Scott Clelland completed his PGA training in 2008 and was awarded the title of PGA Advanced Fellow Professional in 2024. He has a background in coaching and club fitting and he now works with Wilson Golf, fitting players on the DP World and Hotel Planner Tours. He also works on the operational set-up side of things, supporting the team who look after their custom-fit product so the assembly, quality control and the forecasting components for the year.
Alongside this, he assists The PGA as a tutor, assessor and marker on the Foundation degree programme in Equipment Technology and Coaching and Scottish Golf on their volunteer coach education pathway.
He has recently completed the League Managers Association (LMA) Postgraduate Award in Strategic Leadership to elevate his management skills.
Students complete a nine-month course at the University of Liverpool on leadership, strategy and governance, and share their experiences from the world of football, cricket, rugby union and, of course, golf.
The Award is a Master’s Level, academically accredited programme that combines knowledge and experience from the academic, sports and business worlds.
The programme aims to prepare participants for a successful transition to the next level in their career, and equip students with a skillset and framework to from their leadership and strategic thinking. The Award is delivered in two core modules: Leadership, and Strategy and Governance.
How did you initially get on the course?
The PGA put a note out saying we've got this exciting collaboration, with a couple of places available, and this is what the content would look like. Logistically it was eight in-person days at St George's Park or Liverpool so travel from Glasgow was lengthy but it was time well spent reflecting on the days learning and what could be done differently and then what would I do if I was in that situation again.
How beneficial was the course?
It was fantastic and I got something from every day and the speakers and the externals who were brought in to deliver those sessions.
When I went through my PGA training and I was very much a last-minute person to get things done which was fine because it was me and I wasn't responsible for anybody else. But this has given me, along with my role at Wilson, a lot more awareness, responsibility and planning skills for the future. Now I am able to run smaller test cases to make sure things are good before it goes big and it goes wide.
The fact that this course was a lot more face-to-face, whether it be in person or the Zoom workshops, that suits my learning style. And I take in far more during days like that than I would if I were to sit and read a book on leadership.
Who else was part of the course?
You go in and you're not really sure what you're going to arrive at. But then you've got managers from the football world, international cricket captains and so many different sporting voices. Then all of that is overshadowed by the first speaker who was part of Cobra, making decisions on national security for the country. It humbles you a little bit when you think you know what you're doing.
But then you're able to relate some of your problems to their problems and you think they're solving it the same way that I am.
St George's Park is so big and so impressive. You've got a good half-mile to actually get to the main building and it's surrounded by pitches. It adds credibility when you go to a venue like that as well. It's a little bit like us holding a training workshop at a golf club or that you hold it at the PGA headquarters. That brings a bit of attraction to the subject as well.
What part of the course has been particularly beneficial?
The crisis management day was very good. Having gone from Head Professional with one assistant, to being part of a worldwide brand, the challenges are bigger when you're dealing with more people, more products and more revenue.
The challenge of multiple problems all running into each other during that day gave me an appreciation for the importance of people and helped me upskill myself to realise that in golf you've got certain problems but, working effectively with others, is the real skill of leadership. In the case of a football club it's very public when there's a problem, not necessarily that you have lots of problems within a golf brand but it's good to share and see just how common problems are and the structure to resolve those problems is very similar as well, regardless of where you are and what you do.
It's the understanding of just how bad that problem is. So initially, being able to grade it as, 'have to do something right now' or, 'can you need to get something out to the public within the hour'. Or it may be something that we need to monitor where we know that we may have an issue but we don't know how big that issue is? So we may sit on it for two weeks and just keep an eye on it and then everything that sits in between that.
What motivates to enhance your knowledge?
It is easy become complacent and stale where you get a qualification. You sit on it and there's an expectation that you're going to be a millionaire. If nobody actually understands where that title came from, then it's useless.
Continuing to develop, learn and everything that goes behind that is the important part for me, that it makes my job easier in the sense that communication with team members is better and the knowledge that I've got to work with players is higher.
You can then bring more people into the conversation and create it in a different context that's maybe a little bit more relatable to them.
While I was managing my own business before Wilson, the hashtag I used was 'always getting better' which covers my main focus points of helping someone get better through coaching, helping someone get better through the equipment and supporting them and you're getting better yourself while doing it.
And that was where the LMA leadership side came into it when I saw it. I thought, I'm in a position now where I'm working with people and am responsible for the outcomes they will generate. So, if I can take something from it, then it's going to be beneficial.
• PGA Members are strongly advised to complete the PGA Director of Golf Qualification before starting the League Managers Association (LMA) Postgraduate Award in Strategic Leadership.
Click here to find details of the next Director of Golf Induction, which is on March 18.
