The resounding applause and cheers at the recent 2019 Scottish Golf Tourism Awards for Carnoustie Golf Links’ award of ‘Scotland’s Best Golf Experience’, weren’t just heard at the Angus facility – they also reverberated much further afield.
The accolade was also worn as a badge of honour in Tagmarshal’s offices in Ireland and the USA. For the eight-time Open Championship venue has optimised its on-course experience using Tagmarshal’s golf course intelligence and pace-of-play management solution since 2017.
Leanne Mirrey, head of customer experience at Carnoustie Golf Links, explained: “This year we moved over to (Tagmarshal’s) 2 Way devices mid-season and have had remarkable results in the short time we have utilised them.
“Not only can our team monitor pace of play, on and off the course, but golfers and caddies also have direct real-time results at their fingertips. The Tagmarshal team have been outstanding in assisting us every step of the way to ensure a smooth transition and we look forward to continuing our partnership to provide a world leading golfing experience to all our guests.”
Tagmarshal’s managing director, Stephen Knoop, added: “Congratulations to Carnoustie Golf Links for being awarded this prestigious title. Being recognised as the best golf experience in Scotland really is an achievement of which they should be very proud.
“We are delighted to have played a part in this success. Improving golfer experience through pace-of-play management and on-course optimisation, is a key element of the Tagmarshal process, as the program provides increased operational oversight to improve flow management.”
Tagmarshal’s data from Carnoustie supports the award, with improved and well-balanced player flow leading to an average of almost 15 minutes being shaved off the time taken for an 18-hole round, and year-on-year data demonstrating an improvement of 29 percentage points on the number of rounds within 10 minutes of pace, achieving the facility’s stated target time.
Information collated from more than 10 million rounds of golf across its clients worldwide, demonstrated that Carnoustie Golf Links was one of six ‘Diamond Award partners’ – the highest decoration Tagmarshal confers – to achieve the best continuous commitment to player experience, pace and flow of play, player communication and on-course service delivery, during 2019.
Carnoustie Golf Links is just one of several Major venues to benefit from the experience-improving Tagmarshal program. These include next year’s Ryder Cup venue and three-time host to the US PGA Championship, Whistling Straits; 2020 US Open venue Winged Foot; the 2017 US Open host Erin Hills; and Pinehurst Resort & Country Club, home to the 2024 US Open.
The multi-award winning facility, which also received the title of ‘World’s Best Golf Course 2019’, in Abu Dhabi last month, is not alone in Europe in utilising the system. A second ‘Diamond Award partner’, Club de Golf Alcanada, in Mallorca; Ballybunion – a world top-20 course – in Ireland; The Grove, near London; and highly regarded Iberian venues such as West Cliffs and Sotogrande, have joined more than 200 facilities that have embraced the solution with outstanding success.
Described by the world-renowned US business magazine, Forbes, as “the pace of play software leader”, Tagmarshal’s industry-leading algorithms display real-time alerts for clubhouse staff and marshals to pre-emptively address golfers falling behind the required pace of play. Data transmission is provided from a small GPS device clipped to golfers’ bags or installed on buggies.
The data shows partner courses are routinely able to shave off between 14 and 24 minutes from an average round in just six months using Tagmarshal’s systems, which is the equivalent of one more tee-time per day. Through pace of play management and on-course optimisation, Tagmarshal is able to improve the player experience, increasing loyalty and driving repeat play, and additional F&B spend, affording material benefits to both players and operators.