Mark Lawrie, Regional Managing Director for the R&A in Latin America and the Caribbean, this week emphasied golf’s appeal as a family-friendly, inclusive, and accessible sport. Lawrie, in collaboration with the Saint Lucia Golf Association, is visiting Saint Lucia to foster the sport’s development and enhance community outreach.
The R&A, originally part of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, became a separate entity in 2004 to focus on governance. It now hosts some of the most prestigious events in the golfing world. During a recent press briefing, Lawrie outlined the purpose of his visit, stressing the importance of both large and small affiliates to the R&A.
Lawrie expressed optimism about the potential for significant progress following this initial visit. He noted the growing enthusiasm for golf in Saint Lucia and highlighted the challenge of effectively channeling this enthusiasm to promote the sport’s growth. “There is a lot of enthusiasm; it’s just a question of channeling it in the right way to grow the game of golf in Saint Lucia,” Lawrie stated.
He also discussed the positive impact of golf’s inclusion in the upcoming Paris Olympics, which has led to improved communication between golf associations and Olympic Committees, creating promising prospects for the sport globally. “The inclusion of golf in the Olympics has had many positive effects,” he said, noting the previously limited communication between these organizations.
“Evidently, the impact of golf being included in the Olympics has meant (that) many things and most of them …are very positive for golf,” Lawrie said.
He spoke of there being “fluid communications” between the golf associations and the Olympic Committees, where “previously there were none or very few of them.”
The R&A, alongside the United States Golf Association (USGA), governs a significant portion of the golfing world, representing 156 organizations with over 30 million golfers in 143 countries. While the USGA oversees the United States and Mexico, the R&A covers the rest of the world, sharing a unified code for the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, Equipment Standards, and World Amateur Golf Rankings.
Recognizing the challenges faced by small developing states like Saint Lucia, Lawrie emphasized the need for dedicated efforts to address space constraints and create new golf facilities and make the game more accessible by welcoming women and integrating golf into school curricula and community activities.
Despite the challenges, the R&A official stated, that Saint Lucian authorities will need to sort out the right programmes that will help to grow the sport on the island.
“It is important for the federation to find ways that can integrate golf into the curricula of schools and find ways in which the community can be attracted to golf,” Lawrie declared.
He emphasised the R&A’s commitment to serving the needs of various golf associations worldwide, offering expertise and funding to support grassroots and high-performance programs.
Lawrie also acknowledged the financial and spatial challenges associated with developing golf facilities, proposing a forward-thinking and creative approach to overcome these obstacles.
Lastly, Lawrie stressed the importance of integrating golf into the tourism industry, highlighting the economic benefits of golf tourism and emphasising the sport’s potential to enhance people’s lives.
He asserted the benefits of golf, not only in terms of physical longevity but also as a tool to improve people’s lives and overall well-being.
“Sports is one of the great tools that we have in the world to make people’s lives better,” said Lawrie. “Anything that is touched by sports is going to benefit from that experience.”
He added: “Golf does have great benefits, in terms of longevity…and golf has this beauty to it that a five-year-old and a 19-year-old can play golf together.”
President of the Saint Lucia Olympic Committee (SLOC) Alfred Emmanuel stated that the SLOC is committed to providing resources to help develop the sport on island, and to eradicate the stigma that golf is played by an ‘elite class’ of people.
“We welcome the Grow Well Programme that we have supported over the years. The makeup of the participants from the Grow Well programme …does not come from the so-called ‘Social class’ that people perceive to be the class of golfers,” he stressed.
Alfred asserted: “Our intention is to ensure that the ordinary kid on the street can have the opportunity of playing the sport of golf.”