By Peter Owen
A FORMER golf professional, turned administrator, who spent 20 years within the golf business in Asia and owned the winner of the 2015 Stradbroke Handicap, has taken up new function as basic supervisor of Noosa Golf Membership on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.
Anthony Sinclair, whose CV reads like a Hollywood film script, succeeds Allan Harris, who’d been in cost at Noosa for 15 years.
Sinclair, born and raised at Bathurst, grew to become a PGA skilled and campaigned with some success earlier than a damaged leg put an finish to his aggressive profession. He then headed to the UK, the place he labored for Formulation 1 legend Nigel Mansell as head skilled at his luxurious Woodbury Park Lodge and Golf Membership in Devon.
Then he moved to Asia the place, for the subsequent 20 years he was concerned in managing, and consulting to, companies throughout a broad vary of sectors from property and luxurious way of life services to style and high-end sports activities retail, distribution, academies and golf operations.
He labored in Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, earlier than launching his personal golf tools distribution firm.
Sinclair was persuaded by his mom to return to Australia and landed the primary job he utilized for – basic supervisor of Federal Golf Membership within the ACT. He discovered what he described as ‘a really difficult scenario’ and proceeded to vary the membership’s fortunes.
He elevated turnover from $3.4 million to $6.3 million, attracted 400 new members, doubled the variety of rounds performed month-to-month, added 15 new company companions, elevated tools gross sales by greater than 200 p.c, and instituted a rebrand and advertising plan for the membership.
In 2021 he was named NSW/ACT Administration Skilled of the 12 months.
Sinclair, who confesses to having explicit admiration for the work of golf golf equipment’ grounds staffs, put Federal’s revival right down to new course administration practices that led to the circuit’s present very good situation.
“The situation of a golf course comes first, second and third to my mind-set,” he stated.
Sinclair additionally added he was excited concerning the membership’s Grasp Plan, which he stated was now properly superior.
Sinclair was additionally excited concerning the membership’s Grasp Plan, which he stated was now properly superior.
It was the Noosa board’s dedication to embark on an costly renovation of its course that attracted Sinclair to the Sunshine Coast membership – that, and the actual fact he was an everyday holiday-maker to the area and cherished the life-style Noosa provided.
“I imply, if you could find appropriate employment on this a part of the world, why wouldn’t you are taking it?”
Sinclair additionally has a mom residing at Maleny, within the Sunshine Coast hinterland, and a sister at close by Coolum. “I do know the world very properly,” he stated.
Away from golf, at which he’s nonetheless a scratch marker, Sinclair’s ardour is horse racing. One of many a number of thoroughbreds he’s raced over time is Srikandi, the excellent Ciaron Maher-trained mare who gained the 2015 Stradbroke Hcp and the Tatts Tiara – each Group 1 races.
“It was the fun of a lifetime,” he stated. “I can’t start to explain the pleasure of proudly owning even a small piece of a horse which wins races like that.”
Sinclair has been joined on Noosa’s government employees by a brand new superintendent, Scott McComas who, in October, acquired the Golf Course Superintendents Recognition Award on the Queensland Golf Trade Awards.
Previously at Nudgee, McComas has a selected curiosity in new know-how in tools and turf care and has been the driving force of weed-free taking part in surfaces at Nudgee.
He replaces Mick Pascoe, who’s relocating to Indonesia to supervise a brand new golf course, designed by Ernie Els for the Trump organisation.
