The largest ever single-day celebration of women’s golf will take place on June 4 with venues from every corner of the globe joining forces to promote the sport, including Hong Kong and Vietnam.
A little over four years ago, Women’s Golf Day (WGD) was simply a pipe dream for founder Elisa Gaudet. Her commitment has galvanised the industry, bringing together a phenomenal number of industry influencers from around the world.
Over the past three years, WGD events have been held at over 900 venues in 52 countries and have delivered golf experiences to more than 50,000 women and girls.
This year what is remarkable is the growth of the campaign in countries who have been involved since year one.
In Nigeria, thanks to development work with the Nigerian Golf Federation, a record 14 venues are already signed up to run their four-hour experiences and in the Czech Republic there is are 35 participating venues preparing to welcome women and girls through their doors.
As the campaign has grown from strength to strength, its impact has become apparent beyond Women’s Golf Day itself. Gaudet said: “What we are beginning to see is a deep-rooted change from the golf club level through to national organisations. I set out on this journey because I wanted more women to try the sport that has brought so much joy to my life.
Elisa Gaudet
“I am really proud to have inspired others to run their own campaigns because we have a singular aim, which is of paramount importance to the future of golf.”
Eight new countries signed up in 2018, including Hong Kong which makes a return in 2019 with more venues signing up. Vietnam and Lithuania are among the newcomers for 2019, demonstrating the global reach of the campaign.
Mike Hendrix, Vice President GolfNow Business Solutions, who have been ardent supporters of WGD, isn’t surprised by the continued growth.
He said: “Our Business Services team has been speaking with hundreds of golf courses in North America about hosting their own event on June 4 and the response has been great. We’ve seen golfers through social media asking if their local course will be hosting an event and we’ve seen golf instructors step up and create and support events. Our golf course partners love this initiative and we salute Elisa’s passion and drive.”
This year’s WGD campaign is extremely personal for Gaudet who has partnered with Play for P.I.N.K. a non-profit organisation that donates 100% of its proceeds to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
Gaudet said: “This is a fantastic charity which is very close to my heart. We hope that this new partnership will help raise awareness and much needed funds for breast cancer research through the power of golf.”
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