Seckford triumph as unsung heroes hailed at England Golf Awards

All that’s good about English amateur golf was celebrated at a glittering ceremony held by the governing body in Manchester

A club once on the brink of bankruptcy have seen their recovery celebrated at the England Golf Awards.

Seckford were named Club of the Year in a glitzy ceremony in Manchester after becoming the beating heart of their local community.

The Suffolk members’ club was on the edge back in January 2020, but have recovered magnificently. They now run a flexible membership scheme for those who can’t commit to playing enough golf to warrant a traditional membership.

The inclusive organisation are also finding financial advantages to help them grow and run hugely successful dementia golf days, which provide access to the course and practice facilities for local people living with the illness.

Away from the course, the club’s bar and restaurant areas have been completely refurbished over the last two years to provide an excellent environment for both golfing and non-golfing social functions. 50 per cent of their trade comes from non-members.

The England Golf Awards 2023 celebrate all that’s great about the game in this country – from volunteers to elite performers, clubs to counties, juniors to lifetime achievers.

Ground-breaking work, meanwhile, saw the Muslim Golf Association named as Diversity and Inclusion Champion.

Last summer, the organisation, founded by Amir Malik, launched a Women’s Taster series which saw more than 1,200 Muslim women register and show an interest in taking up the game.

The sessions were delivered to 560 women in eight different cities across the UK and saw barriers removed, stereotypes challenged, and a new audience of golfers introduced.

The demand for more female, male and junior sessions is extraordinary and the association continues to go from strength to strength with a bright future in store for Muslim players across the country.

In the remainder of this year, the MGA plan to double the number of female participants, introduce a male programme for beginners, and launch a new Order of Merit competition for those looking to play more competitively.

Other winners saw Bedfordshire named County of the Year, Sonia McCarthy and Kirsty Joly were hailed as Volunteer of the Year for their work growing the number of women playing at Sandown Park, and Saltford’s David Phillips was given a Lifetime Service Award.

England Golf CEO, Jeremy Tomlinson, said: “It has been an honour and privilege to welcome everyone to the Hilton Manchester Deansgate to celebrate the exceptional contributions of so many wonderful people to golf in England.

“We received some fantastic nominations for clubs, volunteers and individuals across the country and we’d like to congratulate all of our finalists, and of course, our winners.”

For a full list of winners, visit England Golf’s website.