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What ale your roles and responsibil-ities as the new Managing Directorfor Laguna National?Part of the excitement for me in accept-

ing the role was its broad based nature.Clearly an immediate focus will be on theupgrading and repositioning of LagunaNationalwith the launch of theWorldClassic Course (pictures next page). Partand parcel with that will be the executionof the owner's goals for additional infra-structure renovations and upgrades, whichinclude the clubhouse, new restaurants,MembersVIP lounge, and the repair and

renovation to the Masters Course.

We are in averyunique position in thatwe have beengranted development rightsto construct a resort hotel at the site ofthe club - so this will occupy a significantamount of my time over the next year. Ofcourse introduction of ahighprofile pro-fessional event is also very much at the topof our agenda. At averyhigh level, I see itas myrole to provide the guidingprinci-ples and direction for the ownerships cluband lifestyle businesses given my experi-ence in this area.

How do you feel Laguna Nationalis positioned in theSingaporegolf market?We have significant hardware, whichneeds upgrading andwill receive that.Our positioning is not currentlywhere wewould like it and thatwill take some timeto turn around including significant added

focus on software improvements to matchthe infrastructure and, of course, raisingour profile for the right reasons. One thingwe do have going forus is the brand newWorld Classic Course, which will provideaveryunique, challenging and sure to be

talked-about test ofgolf for the region.What sets Laguna National apaftfrom other Singapore golf slubs?In my decision to move to Laguna I as-

: sessed this very question on both a per-, sonal and professional level. First and fore-, most, I believe we have a dedicated and

: passionate ownerwho is sole proprietor., this means that ifwe wish to move in a: certain direction and implement upgrades,

: policies, standards and improvements,, we can react swiftly in comparison to ouf: counterparts in the country Certainly

, having the XTorld Classic Course will be

: a feather in our cap. Like any new course,

: which is groundbreaking in some way

. it will court discussion and passionate

, opinions - all ofwhich is great for Laguna.

I I can tellyou this, playing the course is, a much DIFFERENT experience thani seeing it from the ECP. The addition of ai classy and contemporary hotel, managed

i by a world-class brand in the near future is

' a very unique selling point for us as a golf

' club in Singapore aswe are the onlyonesi approved for such a development. And

' finatty and perhaps most importantly we

i hav. a significant and loyal Membershipi base of over 3,000 who use and enjoy the

i club regularly-we really appreciate that.

i Any hints on what the Worldi Classic witl be like?: I will first saythis...untilyou have expe-

i rienced it from the heart of each fairway,i you are hard pressed to knowwhat it isi reallylike. Seeing it from the air or by driv-

; ing by it does not allowyou to properlyi assess it. I have played it several times

i now: Each time I am forced to hit differenti shots on the same holes, dependinguponI the wind direction or the pin placement

, on the ve rylarge,undulating greens. The

i greens are definitely reminiscent of those: you would find on links golf courses, with

i many seeming like two or three greens

i in one. The par-4 holes are great, and. several are fantastic risk-reward layouts

; and change with the placement of bothI the tees and the pins. This course needs

Patrick Bowersn the new Managlng Direct*rat Laguna National Gotf and Country C[ubtelts JU K. TAN his plans for turning theclub into a world-class establishment.

BACKT(

to be played multiple times to show all its

sides...and in that sense it is a great private

members course.

What special services would beavailable at World Classic?\7e do want to differentiate the experi-

ence. That having been said, I have asked

our GM and our team to only roll out ser-

vice that we can provide consistently get

that right and thenwe move on to bigger

and better things. There is nothing like a

great idea poorly executed. Members ofcourse have access and they are allowed

limited introduction of guests. Our tee

times are 15 minutes apart on weekdays

andl} minutes on weekends with limitedflights to ensure course conditioning and

playrng experience is maintained. Ourgolfing guides (caddies) are assigned to all

members with Guests groups to enhance

the experience. S7e have an express check-

in procedure for our members to whiskthem through the usual paperwork. Eitherour Golfing Guides orMembership Liai-son crew then escorts them from the bag

drop to their buggies. \7e will add services

as we move towards full opening, which in-clude both infrastructure and soft services.

What other developments arein store?In a few short weeks we will open our twone\Mest Japanese restaurants. EMARU willbe our lzakaya style Japanese roadhouse

and TEN will be our Yakiniku barbecue

outlet. XTorkwill then begin on both ourMembersVIP lounge (akin to howyoutypically check in at Singapore AirlinesFirst or Business Class lounges) and thenrepair and renovations to the Masters

Course. S7e are in the conceptual stages

for redesign and upgrades ofthe entry ex-

perience, main lobby and function rooms.

All in all the entire clubhousewillundergoa renovation, in stages, over the coming

months andyears alongside the additionof the hotel. So it is allvery exciting and

will significantly improve the members'

experience.How do you feel yout past experienc'es will help you at Laguna National?During my time at the clubs inI7histler,BC, Canada, I gained an understanding of

: the high-end golf industry, the guests were

: from all over the world and the expecta-

' tionwas forperfection.\Thilewith IMGI I was fortunate enough to be involved

, with the design, development, opening

i ^d operations at more than 60 new clubs

, across 30 countries and 5 continents. This

' allowed me to gain an appreciation fori bothwhat is critical in the development

, and sustainability of ahigh end recre-

, ational development inAsia Pacific as well: as the integration of more than just thei golf component. During my time with The

, TigerWoods Dubai and getting to work: directlywithTiger$7oods and his team,

, I was able to learn about leveraging that

: brand strength to be exposed to the "best

: in class" with regards to products, services

: and even in the development of new and

, cutting edge ideas for the golf club busi-

i ness. I now see it as my role to provide

' botft guidance and expertise to our owner-

' ship in this regard and also a transfer of: knowledge to my GM and his team.

i Wnat are some of Your main goals: at Laguna National?, 'We need to focus on core principles. N7e

i need to move from providing a somewhat

, random experience to a highly predict-

' able one. This is achieved through the

, development of a star-studded team. One

: person cannot do this alone. Nfe know thatr Formula 1 teams win world championships

i with great ownership, funding, team prin-

i cipal, aerodynamics group, engineering

i team, pit crew, testing etc. All the pieces

, must be in place. So we have to do the

' same with the recruitment and retention: of top talent. Additionally I would like us

i to move towards being one of the best-

, regarded clubs in the country for course

: conditioning. At the end of the day youi can provide all the great service you like,

, but the hallmark of a truly great golf ex-

i perience is primarily the condition of the

, playrng corridors (tees, fairways, greens).

, S7e have not currently achieved this. Fi-

, nally, anyupgrades in the software need

: to be equally matched with the hardware

i - but I feel confident that our ownership

: is willing to do this and has shown the will-. ingness to do so in the past. e

BUSINESSJUNE 2OI'I / GOLF DIGEST SINGAPORE / 7I