Stronger together: Rotorua golf clubs form Aotearoa NZ's first single-sport collective

Rotorua’s golf clubs are discovering the power of working together, learning that while golf may be an individual sport, success can be shared.

The city’s 18-hole golf courses have formed a collective meaning they will collaborate, share expertise, programmes and services strategically to further golf in the region and ensure its future sustainability. Other collectives nationwide involve multiple sports sharing a facility, making this single-code collective a New Zealand-first that could provide a template for others.

A golf collective was recommended in the 2023 Rotorua Golf Facility Strategy commissioned by Golf New Zealand and Rotorua Lakes Council. Golf New Zealand’s Bay of Plenty regional manager Mark Webb says once Sport Bay of Plenty became involved, the idea gained momentum.

“The clubs have been talking about this for years. Having Sport Bay of Plenty to create momentum really helped to drive it forward.”

Sport Bay of Plenty and Golf NZ supported Arikikapakapa Golf Club, Springfield Golf Club and Lakeview Golf & Country Club to investigate the formal collective, with Sport Bay of Plenty acting as an independent advisor for the clubs and a conduit between them and Golf NZ and Rotorua Lakes Council.

The clubs funded an initial exploration phase to determine if the project was viable, then funding from Rotorua Trust in 2024 enabled the group to engage consultancy firm Sport Guidance to help explore establishing the collective. Sport Bay of Plenty also facilitated collaboration between the clubs, helping form a working party.

The clubs have now formed the Rotorua Golf Collective and held initial meetings with support from Sport Bay of Plenty. Each club will remain sovereign and continue to operate independently.

Sport Bay of Plenty community sport advisor Ryan Parkes says the collective works on behalf of the clubs for the betterment of golf as a whole.

“The entity has a mandate to service all golf in Rotorua with the aspiration to grow golf and make it more sustainable and future-proof in the Rotorua area,” he says. "It's something we’re very proud of.”

The collective approach allows for critical resources to be shared and reduces the burden of some operating costs, Parkes says.

It means the clubs could share machinery or take advantage of economies of scale for greater purchasing power. Eventually the collective could hire staff to work across all three clubs such as in administration or marketing to market Rotorua’s golf offerings to the region and nation.

Haydn Marriner is the chair of the new collective and has been elected for a three-year term.

"Most other hubs that have been created are based around a single sports facility and multiple sports. This is the first time it's been one sport and three completely separate facilities who are all competing with each other in some respects. The fact this has been created, the fact it's been done in Rotorua, I think is really positive.”

Arikikapakapa Golf Club general manager Clinton Butler says it’s early days, but the collective has plenty of opportunities through a collaborative approach that will hopefully benefit the clubs long term.

“Short term the collective is working through getting the nuts and bolts sorted out and developing a strategy but longer term there are opportunities to grow what we do and deliver better outcomes through access to better resources and greater expertise.

“It's new, it's different, and it's exciting because there's an opportunity to try something that could provide long-term benefits, which is great for the sport.”

Springfield Golf Club representative Craig Tiriana says all three clubs are facing similar challenges and the collective allows them to tackle those together.

“Every club has its ups and downs and we’ve always operated solo when dealing with our challenges which was unsustainable.

“We’ve all got quite similar problems and collectively we can have more strength in dealing with some of the situations and looking at how we can leverage some of what we already do to help each other.”

Tiriana says each of the clubs has different offerings but they are stronger together.

“Lakeview’s just slightly outside of town, quite a hilly course. Rotorua’s got a geothermal draw and Springfield's a place that lots of great golfers have come from over time.

“And as a city, we've got some good offerings, it's just making sure we maximise it as a collective,” he says.

Sue Falconer of Lakeview Golf and Country Club says the collective will help the clubs co-operate.

“All three clubs were struggling to remain financially viable and we know there could be some benefit to working together, potentially sharing resources, working to promote green fee players.

“There’s always been a history of competition, this is a different approach.”

Rotorua Lakes Council Parks and Open Spaces Manager Rob Pitkethley says the Council supports any initiatives that ensure sustainability of clubs and codes locally.

“Sport is an important part of the fabric of the community and we want our local sports and clubs to be successful and sustainable.

“That was the premise of the work we commissioned a few years ago to look at the golf landscape and consider the potential for initiatives that would support sustainability, which also aligns with our Play, Active Recreation and Sport Strategy.”

Pitkethley says it’s great the clubs are collaborating as the strategy recommended and the Council looks forward to seeing how it progresses.

Those involved agree this innovative approach could be used nationwide.

“We’ve got lots of areas with three or four clubs all fighting for the same market, all fighting for the same funding dollar, same membership people, same players,” Webb says. “With Rotorua they've identified the fact that we can all grow together.”

Parkes says the collective provides a case for similar models around the country.

“There are probably hundreds of smaller golf clubs, particularly the rural ones or the smaller city ones, that could really benefit from a shared service model like this.

“At Sport Bay of Plenty we're keen to see how it progresses and support it to do as well as it can.”

Read more:

Bay of Plenty Spaces and Places Strategy 2024

Bay of Plenty Play Active Recreation and Sport (PARS) Strategy

Rotorua Pārekareka Play, Active Recreation and Sport Strategy