If you had to pick jobs that on the surface seemed less like work and more like play, you’d have to believe that being a golf club pro would rank near the top of the list. According to Mad River Golf Club’s new golf pro, however, there’s more to the job than working on your handicap.
“lt’s certainly not what it used to be,” says Carl Penfold, the new club pro at the Mad River Golf Club in Creemore. “It’s definitely not all golf and 19th hole that’s for sure. I look at this year so far. We opened with a late start due to COVID May 22nd. I’ve only played four rounds at Mad River and we’re now into August. If you do the math that’s not playing much golf.”
Not that being the club pro isn’t still a dream job; in fact, it’s one Penfold has been enjoying for the past 20 years, including the last two years at a club in Calgary. When Mad River’s former pro Brian French decided to retire, Mississauga native Penfold saw the perfect opportunity to move his family back to Ontario.
“We were living in Oakville when we made the move to Calgary, but we thought we could move back, not to Oakville, but to Collingwood,” said Penfold, a University of Toronto business graduate who turned a post-grad golf course management program at Humber into a lifetime career as a golf pro. “We thought it would be a perfect transition from Calgary and a chance to replicate some of the things we enjoyed living in that area.”
While he maintains his love and passion for playing the game, Penfold sees his primary role at Mad River as more than just a traditional golf pro.
“Golf is certainly one part of it,” he said. “People think if you’re a golf pro, you golf all the time. I say no, I’m in the customer service business. My job is overseeing all things on the golf operation side. I’m a customer service professional first and foremost. Golf pro sounds almost like a secondary part of the job.”
Penfold’s day to day responsibilities include things like managing recently re-established club events, overseeing the retail aspect of the on-site pro shop, managing the practice facility and staff responsible for all instructional programs, and working with support staff responsible for everything from greeting golfers at the bag drop to washing carts. In addition, Penfold is constantly upgrading his skills by taking teaching courses and management training programs designed to improve his abilities working with students and delivering on his responsibilities.
With COVID 19 controls easing, busy season has returned to Mad River Golf Club, and that has Penfold working nearly seven days a week to accommodate the rush of club members trying to pack as much golf as they can into a shortened season. While Penfold says COVID safety protocols are still in place to protect both golfers and staff, some of the more restrictive policies – like no rakes on the course, no touching of flagsticks, and no shotgun events – have been eliminated. That has brought a sense of normalcy back to the links according to Penfold.
“When we’re here, it feels like everything’s back to normal,” he said. “It feels like a little bit of an escape from COVID. Our members show up, they’re here for four or five hours, they play golf and have an opportunity to socialize afterwards. It’s an escape. I find members are even more appreciative of the course and are grateful just to be out here for a game of golf.”
For more information on Mad River visit www.madriver.ca or call 705.428.3673.