Charles Molony’s appointment as Club Secretary at Royal West Norfolk Golf Club in May was the latest step in a career built on embracing opportunities, broadening his experience and developing a strong professional reputation across the golf industry.
Before taking on a management role at one of the UK’s most prestigious golf clubs, Molony had worked as a Head Teaching Professional, coached overseas, supported clubs through England Golf and progressed through two senior management positions within the famous Kent links, Royal Cinque Ports. He is also a PGA Fellow Manager.
Each experience gradually strengthened his credibility and prepared him for future leadership positions.
“I've always tried to be a sponge and take opportunities when they've been thrown at me,” he said. “From an early age, whatever opportunities have come my way, I've just said yes, and then I worked out how I'm going to deal with that.
“I believe that if you put in those hours and that effort at an early age, you get rewarded a little bit later on down the line because ultimately, when you're sat in an interview setting, you can provide examples of when you've dealt with certain situations.
“I've always been quite a critical thinker, so I've never really just accepted the status quo,” he added.
“I've always asked questions. I've always wanted to ask why. I went to university, and they drill into you critical thinking and analysing, and I am very much analytical. I try my best to take a step back before reacting to certain things.
“I do try to remove myself from the situation, zoom out, and look at things before necessarily jumping in. I try to analyse things and realise why people are doing certain things. But ultimately, the roles that I've had have all added something to my knowledge. They've all given me a wonderful foundation.”
The willingness to embrace new experiences has become a defining feature of Molony’s career. Alongside practical experience, he has consistently invested in his own professional development, strengthening both his knowledge and his credibility within the industry.
A career milestone that Molony outlined was achieving the Applied Golf Management Studies degree (AGMS) from the University of Birmingham, which allows undergraduates to combine a high-level applied theoretical degree with membership of the PGA.
Across three years, the course covers modules in business management, applied sports science, equipment technology and coaching theory delivered by specialist staff from both the University of Birmingham and the PGA.
Pictured: Royal West Norfolk
“Achieving the AGMS degree was quite a key milestone” he said. “I think that did give me quite a well-rounded experience. The unique thing about the AGMS degree is because it's applied golf management studies, it’s applied because there's not much research out there in golf, so you had to apply it from other industries and other sports.
“It gave you quite an interesting perspective on business, on the world of business within sport and how some of it could be applied to golf.”
Continuing that commitment to professional development, in March earlier this year, the Club Management Association of Europe (CMAE) announced that Molony had achieved the Certified Club Manager (CCM) designation – the highest level of professional recognition in club management.
“I received the news that I was going to be offered the role here on the same day that I passed the CCM exam.”
“In terms of career days, that day earlier this year in March, I don't think that's going to be beaten for quite some time!”
The CCM accreditation is awarded to those who demonstrate excellence across leadership, governance, finance, operations and member experience. There are currently just over 100 club managers with this accreditation in Europe.
“I started on the CCM pathway, as it’s known, in 2017 and it exposes you to high level education from day one. The sharing of best practice and industry-leading education, and the tutors that I've now got in my phone book - I'm very happy picking up the phone and giving a phone call to if I've got an issue or if I want to bounce an idea off.
“The CCM is ultimately the cherry on top. It doesn't mean that you're going to get top jobs, but it's pretty good to have on the CV, and it sets people apart, really. The exam was an eight-hour exam that I did in late March - the pass mark is 70%, so it's pretty tough”
This qualification reflects the continuous development that has characterised Molony's career and reinforced the reputation he had already built through experience.
“I love the way that the club management industry is going. It’s becoming more professional which is necessary as you're running a seven-figure business that’s multi multifaceted. You've got to be head of HR, you've got to be a marketing professional, you've got to deal with members, you've got to deal with finance people, you’ve got to be an agronomist amongst many other things”
Equally important for Molony has been gaining experience across a variety of environments, with overseas roles giving Molony an opportunity to broaden both his perspective and his understanding of the industry.
In 2010, he started as a Head Teaching Professional at Royal Windsor Golf and Country Club in Kenya, before moving on to teaching with Costa Crociere – an Italian cruise line. It was at the Marriott Forest of Arden where Molony first switched to operations, recognising that his strengths lay within golf club management.
“When I initially went to university and became a PGA Member, I thought I was going to be a Head Professional working in retail, doing ambassadorial stuff, teaching, playing, and that sort of thing.
“I think it became apparent in an experience that I had in Italy, that maybe my skillset was a bit more suited to the club side of things, operations, management and administration, because that's where my skillset lay. That's naturally what happened.
Pictured: PGA Fellow Manager Charles Molony
“It’s not necessarily traveling abroad that’s super important in your career but seeing a different spectrum of clubs of different sizes, different operations, proprietary, i.e. profit making versus not for profit, it really does broaden your horizons, and exposes you to the different business models.
“Sometimes you’re dealing with an owner, and sometimes you're dealing with multiple committees and influential members.
“I think having a broad experience of the different makeups and the different goals of different clubs can only hold you in good stead when you go for a role.”
Another step in building his reputation came in 2015 when Molony joined England Golf as a Club Support Officer, remaining in the role for three-and-a-half years before moving to Royal Cinque Ports as Golf and Membership Manager and later Assistant Secretary.
The England Golf role exposed him to clubs of every size and structure, while reinforcing the importance of relationships, collaboration and professional networks. It also gave him the opportunity to observe best practice from across the industry, experiences that have shaped his approach in senior leadership.
“It's all to do with relationships and building those relationships. How you deal with people, whether it's staff or members or other stakeholders- all of that is so important,” he said.
“For example, we're working closely with the local parish council and the National Trust here at Brancaster.
“At Royal Cinque Ports, you were dealing with the R&A, who obviously had an influence over events held at the course.
Molony's journey demonstrates that a strong professional reputation is built over time and shaped through consistently embracing new opportunities, investing in professional development, building meaningful relationships and drawing lessons from every role along the way. Those experiences laid the foundations for his appointment at Royal West Norfolk.
“The power of your network is huge,” he added. “Having people in your phonebook that you can confidentially contact and bounce ideas around with is huge. Being able to do away days and club visits and that sort of thing is great as well.
“It’s something I'm going to encourage colleagues to do here. We did a reasonable amount of it at Royal Cinque Ports, going on away days and visiting clubs, whether they were city clubs in London or other golf clubs, because you always pick up on things.
“Sometimes it confirms that you're doing a good job at your current job, but other times, you spot tiny little nuggets you can take back to your club.
