ANOTHER BOOST FOR GOLF CAMPAIGN

A campaign to promote Southport and the North West as one of Europe’s golfing hotspots has moved up a gear with another seal of approval from a delegation of Swedish golfers.

Southport, England’s Golfing Capital, played host to ten golf professionals and two golf tour operators as part of the £100,000 England’s Golf Coast campaign to promote the region’s golfing and tourism attractions to key UK and European destinations.

The four-day trip follows a familiarisation visit last year after which golf operator Golf Store Travel, which sells more than 2,000 golf packages a year, confirmed that it wished to return to the area with a group of its golf club professionals. The professionals effectively act as travel agents for the operator to help sell their golf packages.

Feedback following the visit has been excellent with many of the club professionals commenting on the region’s superb golf courses.

Ronnie Olovsson from Golf Store Travel has since confirmed that one of the Southport courses will feature on the front cover of its new brochure advertising its ‘new hot golf destination’. 

Lord Fearn, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Leisure and Tourist said:- “This visit was a great success and a wonderful opportunity for us to showcase our stunning golf courses. We have a fantastic golf product and visits like this will continue to raise the profile of one of the best golfing destinations in Europe.” 

During their stay the group played Royal Birkdale, Hillside, Wallasey, Royal Liverpool, Caldy and West Lancashire. They also visited Anfield FC Museum.

Ronnie Olovsson said:- “The visit went very well. There are super courses within practically no distance at all. The pros really enjoyed playing the aces like Birkdale and Liverpool and the other courses as well. We are now working on putting together some selling material for our brochure.”

The England’s Golf Coast marketing campaign is being spearheaded by Sefton, Wirral, Fylde, Lancashire, the Northwest Development Agency and The Mersey Partnership. 

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GETTING FIRED UP FOR TOP EVENT

Photograph with thanks to Sefton MBC

PYROTECHNIC experts from all over the country were in Southport this week to plan this year’s Pleasureland British Musical Fireworks Championships and to face the challenges of a new venue.

Representatives from the six companies selected to battle it out in the championships later this year were in town to discuss in detail plans for the firework and musical extravaganza including the logistics of firing from the new site on the beach.

For five years the three-day event has been held at Kings Gardens and has now been moved to the beach over two days from  8 to 9 October to give more spectators a better show. Three companies will compete for the highly sought after title on both nights.

Six companies selected were drawn from a record 35 from throughout the country who applied to take part.

Spitfire Pyrotechnics, winners for the last two years, will be back to defend the title attempting to make it a hat-trick by taking home the £3,000 prize money and trophy up for grabs.

The Coventry-based company will be lighting up Southport beach on the Friday night and will be joined by Millennium Pyrotechnics from Salisbury and Manchester-based Walk the Plank. 

Lord Fearn, Sefton’s Cabinet Member for Leisure and Tourism said:- “Once again we were pleased to welcome the competitors to the resort. They were here to discuss in detail the running of the event, the rules and regulations and judging criteria. They then went out to the beach to see the new site so that they are all clear on the measures that have to be taken to ensure a spectacular and safe event.”