Sweden has been hitting global newsreels and headlines since the Covid-19 outbreak due to the seemingly unconventional route it has taken to manage the pandemic. It’s encountered a lot of criticism from across the globe for not following WHO guidelines nor putting the country on full lockdown as has been the case on continental Europe, Scandinavia and of course the UK. To understand why Sweden’s approach is different you need to understand the constitutional set-up, which you can read more about here: https://bppblog.com/2020/04/23/the-swedish-exception/. Just because we’re not on lockdown doesn’t mean we’re being nonchalant about the crisis or the risks of infection. Social distancing based on personal responsibility and trust has been the way of trying to contain the virus and flatten the curve.
So how has this affected the game of golf and the 600+ clubs and courses around the country? Well, golf clubs are open for business but there are certain restrictions in place. The Swedish Golf Federation (SGF) in coordination with the Riksidrottsförbund (National Sports Federation) and the Folkhälsomyndigheten (Public Health Agency of Sweden) have been creating guidelines and informing clubs on how to prepare for and promote social distancing as well as protect members, guests and personnel. In fact, golf is experiencing a rather unexpected “upswing” due to social distancing and the lack of close contact required to play the game. According to the SGF, Sweden has had the best start to the golfing season in five years with double the amount of member rounds being booked than this time last year. I can vouch for this as our own statistics show a doubling of booked member rounds compared with April 2019. We’ve also had an influx of new members, especially newbies and those who have upgraded their memberships from partial to full memberships. It seems that being an activity that by nature is rather isolated is definitely in its favour during this period of social distancing. Who’d have thought that one of the perceived negatives of the game could actually be its saviour in a time of crisis? However, greenfee revenues are down considerably as people aren’t visiting other clubs and we’ve seen this reflected in our April results. More about this later.
Ängelholm Golf Club – how we’re managing the crisis
At my club it’s all hands on deck and paddling like hell under the surface to manage risks and issues that could pop up at anytime. New guidelines and regulations can be launched on a weekly or even daily basis due to the uncertainties of how the Covid-19 situation in Sweden will develop. Our board members and management meet online on a bi-weekly basis to identify risks, prepare mitigation plans and implement guidelines. Here’s the list of what we’ve implemented so far:
Members & guests
- Information posters with social distancing guidelines placed in the clubhouse.
- Alcohol handwash and instructions are placed in the clubhouse foyer for everyone who enters the building.
- Handwashing instructions are placed on mirrors in the toilets and club changing rooms
- No queues of more than five people are allowed at the lunch buffet and they all must stay 1,5m apart. Any queues forming in the restaurant will be dispersed and members/guests will have to wait outside until the queue has subsided.
- Coffee sofas and tables have been removed from the restaurant so that normal tables can be spaced out more.
- No more than two people plus personnel are allowed in the reception/shop area at the same time.
- More regular cleaning routines have been implemented in the clubhouse and card/check-in terminals are wiped down with an alcohol-based disinfectant on a regular basis by reception personnel (discretely when there are visitors nearby).
- Members and guests are encouraged to use Swish (mobile payment app) instead of card/cash payments if possible.
- The driving range is open for use but all driving range events have been cancelled until the end of June. (Public Health Agency regulations on no public gatherings of more than 50 people in one place)
- All official club tournaments have been cancelled until the end of June (recommendation from the SGF)
- Private group bookings are still allowed but any prize giving ceremonies must not take place.
- All regional and national junior tournaments have been cancelled by the SGF but our juniors are still allowed to train in groups at the club as long as they are healthy with no cold or flu symptoms, otherwise they will be sent home immediately.
- All bunker rakes have been removed (course attendants rake daily instead) and golf holes have been fitted with adapters so that players can easily retrieve the ball from the hole without having to touch/remove the flag.
- Family members may share a golf buggy but individuals are encouraged not to share (we have a restricted amount of buggies available, which unfortunately means that some players can’t get access to buggies when required)
- No hanging around the clubhouse more than necessary and keeping a minimum of 1,5m apart is encouraged.
Organisation & personnel
- Information has gone out to all committees that meetings should be held remotely via online conference systems as much as possible.
- Communication mails are sent out bi-weekly to all members keeping them updated of changes to guidelines.
- The board meets bi-weekly online with management and is actively working with a risk list covering business continuity planning (creation of checklists, backup plans in case key personnel become ill/incapacitated), virus transmission prevention as well as protecting personnel and planning for eventual economic impact on club revenues (greenfee revenues are already down 30% against April’s budget and liquidity incl expenditures is being kept on a tight leash)
- Collaboration agreements in place with a selection of local clubs to promote greenfee deals between clubs to minimise the reduction in greenfee revenues. Members may now also invite a guest to play with them at a reduced greenfee during May.
- Course personnel are not to share machinery and vehicles where possible.
Financial support available to Swedish clubs
Furthermore, as part of the guidelines there’s information on how to apply for extra financial support from the National Sports Federation for any losses incurred from the need to cancel tournaments, other events or even keep personnel in quarantine due to Covid-19 symptoms or illness (a financial package provided by the Swedish government will allow for the deferment of org tax payments during 2020). These packages will be available from May 1st and are subject to strict conditions upon application. We’re currently calculating forecasts and working out how much tournament revenue we can expect to lose up until June. Fortunately my club has always had well-documented procedures in place for tournament management, entrant statistics and revenues earned, which is a blessing in this crisis because we’ve got information to hand. I can only imagine how stressful it must be for other clubs lacking processes and routines right now and if I were to give one piece of advice to any club it’s make sure that you have business continuity in place. Ensure you have documented checklists, instructions, procedures and working methods for your key processes in case your club board needs information quickly, or if key personnel need to be quarantined or get ill.
Business as usual?
All in all, it is almost business as usual but not quite. As you can see, there’s a lot to think about and much work and preparation needs to go into managing social distancing at a golf club. The cancellation of club events and tournaments is particularly depressing for most of us as it’s those events that bring the club members together and is part of the whole Ängelholm GC culture and atmosphere. As club president, social and club cohesion is one of the main attractions of our club that I’m very conscientious of. We’re warm, friendly and welcoming and keeping that feeling flowing is difficult when we can’t all be together. However, one of our major concerns right now, including of course that our personnel might become ill, is that the government could decide to introduce stricter regulations on restaurants, and as ours is franchised out it’s going to be a nightmare if they have to close down completely and lose so much revenue that they might never be able to restart their business again. But we’re keeping our eyes and ears open daily for any hints that this might change.
The activity of playing golf out on an open-wide course in the fresh spring air is, at least in Sweden, calculated as being a low risk factor for the transmission of and being infected with Covid-19. We do have a lot of older members in risk groups but they adhere to the rules by keeping their distance (no Swedish hugging!) and are so grateful to be able to get out for at least some social interaction and physical exercise. I’m surprised at other countries not allowing courses to be open but if they do ease up on lockdown restrictions and take a more Swedish approach then clubs must take responsibility and should maybe have a think about some of the things that my club has put in place to mitigate risk.
Whatever happens, stay safe, wash those hands and keep your distance! And feel free to wander on in to our website and take a tour: www.angelholmsgk.se or follow us on Instagram @angelholmsgk
