by Dave Turner (retired Parks and Rec Manager)

The recent articles in the national papers, The Globe and The Vancouver Sun advocating for the closure of municipal golf courses to free up the land for other more beneficial uses caught my interest and I started to do a little research. The articles gave the impression that golf is a dying sport and that kids aren’t entering the game. It doesn’t take long to go online and get the information about sport participation numbers published by Statistics Canada. I would have to think those are the most reliable numbers that we have. 

A major report was published by Statistics Canada 2005 showing the sports that Canadians participated in the most. It showed us: 

Golf engaged the largest number of adult Canadians of any sport 

1.5 million golfers. Ice Hockey came second with 1.3 million participants 

The 2005 study was followed up by another study published by Heritage Canada siting 2010 numbers of participants. Again golf topped the list: 

Golf has been Canada’s most popular sport since 1998 

In 1992 golf was fourth most popular sport behind ice hockey, swimming and downhill skiing 

In 2010 there were approximately 1.5 million golfers 

The most recent publication by Statistics Canada shows 2016 numbers with golf placing second to hockey as the most participated sports in the Country 

It is clear from the statistics that golf is one of the healthiest sports in the Country based on participation. There is cause for concern however for golf and indeed for all sports other than soccer. The number of kids taking up the games are dropping. Soccer is the only one showing an increase in participation. 

This brings me to the advocacy part of this letter. I sat on Sport Council for the North Vancouver Recreation Commission as a staff representative for twenty years. There were advocates representing the major sports that are played in the parks. My observation was that soccer were the most successful advocates. They raised a lot of money when kids registered for soccer and that money was used to help the municipalities put in new soccer facilities in the public parks. Is it any wonder that soccer is the only sport showing growth and bringing kids into the game. 

The glaring omission to me as a golfer was that all of the major sports in the Country were at the table advocating for municipal support for their particular program. There was hockey, swimming, track and field, tennis, pickle ball, baseball, soccer and others but not golf. 

You have one of the top sports in the Country, golf, and they aren’t at the table advocating for their sport where they could connect with kids the best. In their neighborhood park. 

I have looked into what is possible that could be placed in a neighborhood park that would introduce kids to the game. All of these would be low cost additions relative to other facilities that are placed in parks and they would go a long way to introducing kids to the game of golf. Kids would then have the same chance to learn golf basics of hitting, putting and chipping a ball the same as they do with the other major sports. 

Putting, just as we did in Sam Walker Park. Install a small synthetic turf putting green. Chipping, similar to putting, install a synthetic turf chipping area. Hitting, install a hitting net where a kid can practice hitting a ball into a net. These are all, low cost, resilient surfaces that are easy to maintain, they are safe and they don’t take up much space. They would go a long way in getting a kid exposed to the game and would get them ready to move onto real golf. 

The real key as I see it is the golf community would have to start advocating for these types of facilities in their neighbourhood parks. That is where you really reach kids. Imagine if soccer, tennis and baseball weren’t reaching kids in the parks. They would be nowhere. Golf has done very well on its own but there is so much competition now for a kids interest I think golf needs to step up and start advocating for golf at the neighborhood level the same as all the other sports people advocate for their sport. 

If the little putting green that we put in Sam Walker Park is any indication then this kind of addition would be welcome and popular in any park and would go a long way to bringing kids and others, often new Canadians into the game. I am reaching out to the golf community with this letter to introduce the idea of getting basic facilities in local parks that would give a kid the chance to at least learn the basic skills as they can with all the other sports. I hope this letter will generate some interest and get people talking about getting golf in your local park so kids can give it a try. The other sports have been doing this for decades. 

I would be more than happy to discuss this idea further. 

Sincerely, 

Dave Turner 

• please leave a comment or email davidfturner@shaw.ca and he will be sure to answer your questions and comments. He is as passionate about bringing the great game of golf to kids, and others who wouldn’t otherwise get the chance, as anyone around.

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How North Vancouver set the precedence for fitting golf into their community at Sam Walker Park

One resident had the idea to bring golf to this small park in North Vancouver.  It was a space in the park that was seldom used because of the slope of the hill and the shade that it gets.  But, with the advantages of synthetic turf in a situation like this, it would be all too possible to create a golf green that fills the space in a way that would look like the park was designed around it.  The Mayor at the time, Darrell Mussatto, liked the idea.  The “said resident” had a petition signed by neighbors and took it to a council meeting some weeks later.  She made a harrowing case for golf in the community, the Council was all on board, they fast tracked the project, and away we go, we now have golf in a small park in North Vancouver.

Mr. Mussatto put his Section Parks Manager and student of golf course architecture, Dave Turner, on the job to lead the project.  This project was Mr. Turner’s as much as anyone as he knows what it means to kids to be able to try golf for the first time.  Golf can be a meaningful experience that has the capacity to change ones life, as it did his.  Mr. Turner did an excellent job of negotiating the sloping terrain with a living retaining wall, utilizing the City’s own resources to do the brunt of the base preparations and finally searching out and hiring the most qualified firm to be able to create what he envisioned for the project : )

The golf green turned out to be a great success.  As Mr. Turner, Mr. Mussatto and I have all witnessed, the golf green remains busy daily.  There will be mother and child relaxing, workers having a contest on their lunch break and even husband and wife settling disputes on the putting green.  That’s right, when I ran into one of the neighbors on a routine visit to the park, she told me that her whole family uses the golf green almost every day. She also mentioned that her and her husband settle their arguments in a good old-fashioned putt-off. Amazing!

The community members who were opposed at first are now on board and see the delight that has come from this simple park addition, the coffee shop across the street has set out a bin of putters and balls to be used by anyone at any time, and over 5 years after the installation, the green is still doing well.

And now, as we have seen the proof of concept first-hand, we can use this example as a spring board to inspire other communities to do the same.  For relatively low cost, and a very manageable maintenance practice, a golf green in your local park is the perfect addition.  If people, especially kids, can ride their bike to the park and try golf like they can with almost all other sports, well, I for one would think that is pretty special.

Golf is Canada’s most popular sport year over year.  Imagine what we can do with this game if we just find ways to scale it down for everyone to enjoy!

Please read more about the Sam Walker Park project in this British Columbia Golf Article (exerpt below)

“young kids through to seniors living nearby all love coming out to the green. Mussatto believes these types of projects work really well in high-density areas of the city where most people do not have backyards. People can come out of their apartments, have their own little putter and ball and go. These are things that don’t take up a lot of space, they have a high utility, and not a lot of cost. They check all the boxes of what you want to see in the community.“

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If you are interested in going down the rabbit hole of all things putting, The Major Series of Putting (MSOP) is a tell tale sign that putting is beginning to take on a life, and competitiveness, of its own.

MSOP

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I had an opportunity to play Queen Elizabeth Pitch n’ Putt today for the first time and it gave me that giddy, butterfly, excited feeling like when you’re a kid going somewhere fun.  Basically, I was a kid again today.  There is something about the modest little kiosks at these pitch n’ putts, the ones where you pay through the window and kink your neck to see what kind of chocolate bars and snacks they have on offer behind the counter, that brings up this feeling, for me.

That excitement seemed to sustain itself throughout the round today.  One reason might be that I hadn’t played in a while and had a new “swing theory” to test out.  The other was that I played as a single and this meant I could hit a couple balls off the tee and practice my chipping as I went along.  Oh, and I was catching a Canadians baseball game afterward with an old friend.  Oh, and I drove Norabel (my old convertible Chrysler LeBaron) to the course today. Oh, and it was a perfect 25° day.  Happiness was tee’d up high today my friend.

I birdied the first hole with both balls. Nice start! I played the first round with a new used putter I bought off a friend (usually a mistake).  It didn’t take long before I ran into a beginner foursome, which is totally great to see.  I am a low handicap golfer playing as a single so I know to be as patient as I need to be and let time just do its thing out there. A nice couple caught me on the the 5^th tee.  They were originally from Germany and mentioned “back home” they make you pass a test before they let you onto the course.  You need to understand etiquette and take a lesson before trying the game.  My initial thought was that this would be a huge barrier to entry for new golfers, but then I recalled an entirely amazing program posted on the window of the kiosk. Fraserview Academy has a “Get Golf Ready – Par 3 League” program they are running from August to mid-October that covers skill development in interested golfers, and it’s only $30!!  Why wouldn’t ya?!  What an offer!! Probably best that learning the ins and outs of the game be a voluntary endeavor.

There was a lot I admired about the course today.  It was in the middle of a beautiful park setting surrounded by other activities like disc golf, tennis, walking and riding bikes.  The course meandered brilliantly in every direction and utilized strategic interest from the effect of being on a significant hillside.  The fairways were dried out so you could anticipate fun bounces or could try playing the “ground game” (with the ball hit low to run along the ground), and the fully grown trees were a brilliant place to plant your gaze or grab some shade.

I thought the course was fantastic.  It had a good mix of yardages, the greens were in good condition and the teeing areas were level with mostly new mats.  The thing I think I loved most about the course today though were the dry fairways.  I love, love, love the philosophy of not watering when it’s not required.  The days of Augusta National Golf Course being the benchmark for how a golf course should be kept are long gone.  In the modern game we all know that water conservation is sexy and that golden brown fairways contrast spectacularly with the deep green of the trees, bushes, and the golf greens.  I personally love the textural complement of taller fescue grasses grown into places that balls don’t often go.  The tall wispy grass moves in the wind and adds a third grass height to the playing area. Fun.

I played over my head today, I think.  I got on a run and had it under par but blew it coming home.  I needed to birdie the 18^th hole but when I got there it was closed! I failed to read the sign or acknowledge the discount they gave me for this little inconvenience.  But I still needed a birdie to finish even par and had only played 17 holes so I pleaded my case to Natalia in the kiosk.  Instead of shutting me down, she surveyed the area, saw nobody was on the first hole and told me “If you’re quick you can play the first hole one more time”.  Natalia, you are the greatest!  The birdie roll took a peek inside the cup but in the end the golf Gods just teased me and the ball stayed out. 

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