For many PGA Members, becoming a Head Professional is vocational and represents the culmination of years of dedication, learning, and professional development. It’s the chance to become one of the more influential figures at a club, to shape member experience, and to build a business of their own.
But making the transition from assistant to head pro is about far more than technical competence. What does the title actually mean? Some clubs want a coaching specialist. Others need a retail operator. Some want a business leader who can manage staff and develop new services. Many want a combination of all of these.
As Joe Kelly, PGA Member Support Manager, explains: “Today’s role requires far more than is often considered – it often calls for leadership, commercial acumen, strategic thinking, financial awareness, people management skills and a commitment to delivering exceptional customer experiences.”
To help you prepare, this guide draws on two perspectives: the practical, on-the-ground experience of those who’ve been through the process, and Kelly’s institutional view of how golf operations and recruitment actually works across the industry. Our contributors to this article are:
Joe Kelly, PGA Member Support Manager, who advises facilities and PGA Members on operating models, employment status and recruitment.
Adam Keable, Partner at Swilcan Advisors, an international executive search firm that recruits senior leaders and head professionals for golf clubs, resorts, developers and golf industry organisations worldwide.
Nick Duc, General Manager at Haywards Heath in West Sussex, a PGA Member of 30 years who recently led the recruitment process for a new Head Professional.
Daniel Featherstone, who recently took on his first Head Professional role at Brookdale in Manchester, having spent six years as an Assistant at Stockport.
Joe Kelly, PGA Member Support Manager
Understand what the role actually is
Before you can pitch yourself for a head professional job, it helps to understand why the role matters so much to a facility in the first place. Joe Kelly explains…
Golf operations are at the heart of a successful golf facility. Responsibility for the delivery of golf operations normally sits in the professional shop – more commonly referred to as the pro shop. While the name reflects a historic association with the PGA Professional, it has evolved and today, the pro shop is the operational hub of the successful golf facility. It is where members and visitors receive their first impression and where the daily rhythm of the golf operations converge.
The pro shop serves as the vital connection between the facility, its members and visitors, influencing the customer journey, from the initial enquiry and arrival through to play, departure and return visits. Its responsibilities extend well beyond the administration of tee times and issuing of a scorecard. The professional shop is responsible for delivering a welcoming, professional and memorable experience that reflects a facility’s values and standards.
Every customer interaction presents an opportunity to strengthen that relationship. Consistently high standards create trust, satisfaction and a sense of belonging that encourage repeat visits, membership retention, positive recommendations and long-term loyalty. Combining operational excellence, customer service, retail, custom fitting, and coaching creates an integrated experience that delivers both commercial success and customer satisfaction.
Together, these functions reinforce one another: professional coaching is one of the most effective recruitment and retention tools available to a golf facility. It helps golfers improve their skills, build confidence and enjoy the game more, creating a positive experience that encourages greater participation. For many prospective members and customers, access to high-quality coaching is a key factor when choosing where to play and develop their game.
Alongside coaching, custom fitting ensures that golfers are equipped with products tailored to their individual swing and playing requirements. This not only enhances performance and customer satisfaction but also supports retail growth by providing customers with the confidence to invest in equipment that meets their specific needs.
"Together, coaching, custom fitting and outstanding customer service provide a compelling customer proposition – attracting new golfers, retaining existing ones and creating sustainable commercial value."
In other words: a facility isn't just hiring someone to run a shop. They're hiring someone to hold together coaching, retail, fitting and service as one integrated customer experience – and, as you'll see throughout this guide, they'll be assessing whether you can think about the role in those terms, not just deliver on one strand of it.
Know the operating models
Not every golf facility runs its operation the same way and understanding the model you’re applying into is essential – because it changes what you’re being assessed on.
Across the UK and Ireland, three principal operating models are commonly adopted. Whilst there is often a clear correlation between the type of golf facility and the operating model it utilises, this is by no means absolute. Facilities are increasingly adopting alternative approaches that better reflect their commercial objectives, operational priorities and local circumstances.
Resort, proprietary and destination facilities typically favour hybrid operating models. These arrangements provide operational consistency through employed staff responsible for the day-to-day golf operation, whilst preserving the flexibility and entrepreneurial benefits of self-employed PGA Professionals delivering coaching under separate commercial agreements. This model enables facilities to maintain greater control over the customer experience without compromising the independent coaching businesses that many PGA Professionals value.
"When you're the Head Professional at a private members' club, you're the first port of call. That requires a huge range of personality and skill sets." - Nic Duc, General Manager at Haywards Heath
Within the private members' club sector, the retained Professional model continues to be the most prevalent. Under this arrangement, the Head Professional operates an independent business under a contract for services, managing the professional shop and associated golf services whilst developing their own business. In recent years, however, an increasing number of member clubs have explored hybrid structures, separating operational responsibilities from coaching by employing operational staff while retaining self-employed PGA Professionals to deliver coaching.
By comparison, fully employed models remain relatively uncommon. Although they offer complete managerial control and consistency of service delivery, they can introduce higher employment costs, greater administrative responsibility, potential VAT implications and reduced commercial flexibility. Equally important, many PGA Members continue to value the autonomy, entrepreneurial opportunities and earning potential associated with self-employed coaching, meaning that facilities adopting a fully employed structure may reduce the pool of suitable PGA candidates when recruiting.
There's no universally "correct" model - as Kelly notes. The right one depends on the individual circumstances of the facility, its membership and its long-term vision. But each environment tends to want different things from a candidate.
As Nick Duc explains: "I believe at a proprietary club, it is much more about skill sets and bringing to the role admin capabilities and presentation capabilities. You're not the figurehead. When you're the Head Professional at a private members' club, you're the first port of call. That requires a huge range of personality and skill sets."
In practice: proprietary and resort roles tend to place greater weight on operational delivery, administration and commercial performance. Private members' clubs place greater weight on member engagement, financial acumen and relationship-building. Knowing which one you're walking into and being honest about which one suits you is step one.
How will your employment be defined?
Understand employed vs contracted roles
This is the distinction that changes almost everything about how you should prepare for interview – and it’s one many candidates underestimate.
The fundamental distinction between an employed head professional and a contracted head professional is employment status. While this may appear to be a contractual formality, it has significant legal, operational and financial implications for both the facility and the PGA Member.
An employed head professional works under a contract of employment and is subject to the direction, supervision and control of the employer. The employer determines how, when and where the work is undertaken and the relationship is governed by employment legislation. In return, the professional receives a predetermined salary together with statutory employment benefits such as paid holiday, pension contributions where applicable, sick pay, and other contractual entitlements. Where a head professional is employed, all other operational workforce will also be employees and subject to the same employment conditions.
By contrast, a contracted head professional operates as a business, delivering agreed services to the facility under a contract for services or Service Level Agreement (SLA). Rather than being employed to perform a role, the professional is engaged to deliver specified outcomes and standards of service. The relationship is therefore governed by the terms of contract rather than by managerial control, and all staff engaged in the delivery of the services as defined in the SLA will be the responsibility of the contracted Head Professional.
Remuneration within the contracted model also differs significantly. Instead of receiving a salary, the Professional is typically granted commercial rights and assets necessary to generate the financial resource to fund the delivery of service. These commonly include exclusive retail rights, coaching rights, branding, access to custom fitting facilities, rent-free occupation of the professional shop and associated operational areas, together with an agreed monetary fee – commonly referred to as 'The Retainer'. This arrangement enables the Professional to generate income through the delivery of services while meeting the standards and obligations set out within the Service Level Agreement. Accordingly, the value of the Retainer cannot be standardised across the industry or determined by reference to industry averages.
Instead, it must be assessed on the specific circumstances of the individual facility, taking into account both the cost of delivering the agreed services and the value of the assets being released. Assessing the potential value of those released assets is a complex exercise, requiring careful evaluation of a range of commercial factors. It is an area that the PGA has been researching and developing for more than a decade in order to establish a robust and evidence-based approach.
To read more about the different operating and recruitment models, click here.
Why does this matter for how you prepare?
For an employed role, clubs are typically assessing leadership ability, coaching expertise, team management, operational delivery, customer service and communication – essentially, how well you’ll operate within an existing structure. For a contracted role, you’re not just demonstrating you can do the job – you’re demonstrating you can run a business. That means clubs want to evidence you can finance and stock a shop, build supplier relationships, create a sustainable business model and recruit and manage your own team.
Nick Duc, who led recruitment for a contracted Head Professional role at Haywards Heath, said: “We wanted a proven coach – and proven in all aspects of the role. Coaching comes to mind first but were they going to be able to stock the shop? What's their business acumen? Do they have the wherewithal to be able to finance that? We know it's a huge undertaking. We've got a reasonable-sized shop and applicants were probably going to be putting £50,000 to £100,000 minimum start-up on the line. Would they have that in place?"
Understand what a specific club is looking for
A common mistake applicants make is assuming every Head Professional role is essentially the same. It isn't and treating it as generic is one of the fastest ways to be overlooked.
“No two Head Professional roles are exactly the same,” says Adam Keable. “The operating model, commercial structure and expectations can vary significantly from one club to another. Some clubs need a service-led operator, while others are looking for a more traditional professional combining retail, coaching and member engagement. The starting point should always be to understand the club’s objectives, define the remit clearly and establish what success looks like. Candidates who treat every Head Professional opportunity as broadly the same risk missing what the club is actually looking for.”
Some clubs are recruiting a visible figurehead who'll engage members and become part of the fabric of the club. Others want someone commercially minded who can grow retail sales and develop new revenue streams. Before you apply, work out which one this club actually needs.
Daniel Featherstone, Head Professional at Brookdale
Build your experience – and know your environment – before the opportunity arises
Kelly explained that successful recruitment begins long before an advert is published. It starts with a clear understanding of the role itself and what the facility expects the successful candidate to achieve. That cuts both ways – it’s just as true of preparing to apply as it is of a club preparing to hire.
The lead-up to a Head Professional role should start long before a vacancy appears. Daniel Featherstone spent six years as an Assistant at Stockport before moving into his first Head Professional role at Brookdale – and says the groundwork started years earlier.
"For the last three years at Stockport with the Head Professional, we'd almost been gearing up to me moving on," he said. "Every chat, every end of year feedback, was about 'what can we do to get you ready for the next step?' Can you start to do a little more of the financial stuff behind the scenes, understand the running of the shop, do a bit more interview prep – because it can be a bit more daunting when it's all to do with you."
Asked whether having a mentor mattered, he added: "Absolutely. It was a lot of weight taken off because I knew what I was going into beforehand."
Aspiring Head Professionals should look to get involved beyond their current role – helping with budgeting, event planning, buying decisions and stock management – and should consider branching out to different venues while they still can. As Keable puts it: “The early stages of your career are an ideal time to build breadth of experience. Be prepared to move beyond what is familiar, experience different clubs, operating models and cultures, and actively seek opportunities that stretch you. Two or three seasons in contrasting environments can significantly broaden your perspective and demonstrate to a future employer that you have deliberately invested in your own development.”
"I've worked in the business for more than a decade and you start to get a feeling for what's going to work for you and what doesn't." - Daniel Featherstone, Head Professional at Brookdale
Equally important is knowing which environment genuinely suits you. If your entire career has been at private members' clubs, do you actually know what's required at a proprietary or resort environment?
“Relevant experience matters, but so does self-awareness,” says Keable. “The strongest candidates understand the environments in which they perform at their best, can articulate their strengths and are equally comfortable recognising where they still need to develop. Career progression should not simply be about securing the next title; it should be about finding an environment in which your experience, personality and ambitions are genuinely aligned.”
Featherstone recognised this in himself: "I've worked in the business for more than a decade and you start to get a feeling for what's going to work for you and what doesn't. I've only ever been at private members' clubs and as you're starting out – unless you've got a lot of financial backing behind you – being able to stock a shop for a resort is quite difficult. You've got to start within your means if you can."
A role can look fantastic on paper – but if the culture and expectations don't suit your skills and personality, it may not be the right move.
The Professional's Shop at Silvermere
Build a network and know where to look
Networking has a bad reputation, and Keable doesn't pretend otherwise: "I still haven't found many people that say, 'I absolutely love networking'. Effective networking shouldn’t begin with asking someone if they have a job available. That immediately makes the conversation transactional and gives them an easy opportunity to say no. Approach networking with curiosity instead. Ask people about their career, their organisation and the challenges they face. Most senior professionals are willing to share their experiences, and those conversations allow you to build genuine relationships while developing a much deeper understanding of the industry.”
Instead, treat networking as a chance to learn, not just to ask for a job. "You need to be curious and ask for advice," Keable says.
“A conversation doesn’t need to begin with a job opportunity to be valuable. Someone who doesn’t have a vacancy today may still be willing to share their experience and offer advice over a coffee or lunch. You may not be ready to become the Head Professional at one of the top clubs, but you can learn from those who already operate at that level. Be curious, ask about their journey, the challenges they face and the dynamics of their club. Those conversations can give you valuable insight into what it takes to succeed at the highest level, while helping you build genuine relationships across the industry.”
"The package should clearly outline salary, benefits, working hours, responsibilities, performance expectations and opportunities for career progression." - Joe Kelly, PGA Member Support Manager
For Featherstone, relationships built while at Stockport played a major part in securing the Brookdale job: "It was all to do with people. I'd been at Stockport long enough to know a lot of the pros in the area, so when it came to this job being available, I was in the know about who was moving where and at what time... I had quite a few people putting in good words – either that had worked here before or were people who knew senior members of the club."
Networking is also how you find out what a specific opportunity actually offers. Facilities, Kelly notes, should "clearly define the nature of the opportunity from the outset" – whether it's "a salaried employed position, with associated employment benefits and clearly defined responsibilities" or "a self-employed contractual opportunity, where the PGA Professional operates an independent business within the facility." He adds: "The distinction is fundamental and should be transparent throughout the recruitment process."
Where the opportunity is an employed role, "the package should clearly outline salary, benefits, working hours, responsibilities, performance expectations and opportunities for career progression," Kelly says.
Candidates should understand not only what is expected of them, but also how the organisation intends to invest in their professional development and support their long-term success. For a contracted role, the equivalent is knowing your commercial ground: prospective candidates need sufficient information to assess the viability of the opportunity, including the level of commercial freedom available, any exclusivity arrangements, the facilities and resources provided, expected financial commitments and the requirement to recruit, develop and lead a team as the business grows. When you're talking to contacts about a role, these are the specifics worth asking about before you apply, not after.
It's also worth knowing where to look. As Kelly pointed out, The PGA has direct access to the profession's talent pool. Every PGA Member has access to the platform, providing facilities with immediate exposure to PGA Professionals at local, national and international levels. Opportunities are promoted through a dedicated recruitment platform – PGA Jobs – supported by targeted communications and notifications.
The PGA's Member Support Team can also help you understand a role's employment or contractor model – it's a resource worth using alongside your own network, not instead of it.
Adam Keable, Partner at Swilcan Advisors
Create a CV and covering letter that stands out
When a vacancy attracts real interest, generic CVs are a red flag to recruiters. Keable sees the same pattern constantly – what he calls "buzzword bingo": "There will be, 'I am a hard-working, passionate head professional that is a strong leader and has technical abilities in delivering coaching, retail and operations to a leading club'. You've said exactly the same as everyone else."
Focus on evidence instead: what experience do you bring, what environments have you worked in, what are your genuine strengths? Featherstone's CV wasn't built in the weeks before he applied for Brookdale – it dated back to his PGA qualification. "The actual basis of that CV I've had for eight years and you're building on it as you go."
"Think of your CV as your professional value proposition,” Keable says. “Within a short period of time, the reader should understand who you are, what you have achieved and what you could bring to their organisation. Clarity and self-awareness are far more compelling than a long list of generic strengths."
"You've got to avoid, at all costs, just cutting and pasting an AI CV." - Adam Keable, Partner at Swilcan Advisors
That clarity is harder to achieve if clubs themselves are using generic, AI-written job descriptions – so do your own due diligence, research the club properly, and speak to someone who knows it if you can, so you can genuinely tailor your application rather than guess.
Tailor every covering letter. Featherstone believes this is where candidates really separate themselves. "The covering letter was a lot more about how the job I was in was tailored towards the job I wanted to do... As you read through specific job adverts, you understand what they want from you and then you start to tailor that covering letter towards what they want as well, rather than what you can do."
Use AI but use it properly. "It's a great tool for articulating your uniqueness," Keable says, "however, you've got to prompt it and you've got to be very clear with the information you put in that's specific to you."
AI can help you answer questions like "where do I excel and where do I want to position myself?" faster, but it shouldn't be a cut-and-paste solution.
Keable adds: "You've got to avoid, at all costs, just cutting and pasting an AI CV... it's designed in a way that it's a cheerleader. It leans on being positive. You've got to use it as if you want constructive criticism, prompting it from a sense of, 'how could this be better? What doesn't work?'... You've got to use it as a sparring partner."
Ultimately, the CV has to reflect your own personal brand. Reread it, get others to read it, and make sure it still sounds like you.
Know that panels are looking for more than technical competence
Technical knowledge and coaching credentials are necessary but are rarely what decides the outcome at interview stage. “When you reach the interview stage, technical competence is often assumed,” says Keable. “What increasingly differentiates candidates are the softer skills.”
Part of the reason is that "the average board member doesn't really understand the business of golf that fluently... it comes down to those personal skills of communication and leadership that I think are often overlooked."
This is especially true at private members' clubs, where the job involves managing and motivating staff, building relationships with members, communicating with committees and boards, presenting ideas confidently, and creating programmes that grow participation.
Keable also weighs education and CPD heavily: "There is no magic formula. There is no, 'do this course and it gets you a job'... I would look at it through more conventional education, so that might be something through The PGA, or through the industry, that gives you a certification to show a level of qualification in an area, and I would also look at informal education. How can you carve out a niche?"
Silvermere professional shop
Prepare properly and know what you'll be asked
Poor preparation is one of the most common failures Keable and Duc see. "I’ve called applicants about a Head Professional opportunity only to find they cannot immediately recall which club or role they applied for,” Keable says. “At this level, you should know the organisation, understand the opportunity and have a clear view of why it interests you before the first conversation takes place.”
Duc is just as direct: "If you're coming for interview, particularly for a Head Professional's role, at a club you're intending to spend a reasonable amount of time at, why would you not have played the course, or researched the club or been for a visit beforehand? I was flabbergasted by the number who came, particularly for first interview, who hadn't played the golf course or spoken to Sam [Cowley, then the incumbent Head Professional]."
Before interview, use every resource available: speak to the current professional about how the operation runs today, research the committee members likely to be on the panel, review the club's communications, and understand its governance structure and strategic priorities.
Expect to be tested on: your career journey and leadership experience; your coaching philosophy; your retail strategy for the club; your ideas for developing the business; how you'd staff the operation (for contracted roles); your financial understanding; and how you'd engage members.
At Haywards Heath, Duc's panel structured ten questions, split among panel members, so every candidate faced exactly the same first-round questions and were scored out of ten. The second interview asked far more of candidates: "We gave them four to five weeks to prepare between interviews. We asked them to describe their first 100 days. We asked them to prepare a business plan for the professional shop and for coaching... We really wanted to put them to the test to make sure we didn't end up in a situation where six to nine months down the line, we were thinking, 'the person we thought we interviewed isn't the person that's come to the role'."
Nerves are part of the process, not something to eliminate. "The biggest thing in interviews is just be yourself and bring out exactly what you can do," says Featherstone. "For me, it was, 'can I pitch to complete strangers about why I'm the perfect fit for the job, rather than the job be a perfect fit for me?'"
Think like a Head Professional before you become one
"Be serious and be humble," says Keable. “Approach the opportunity with ambition, but also with humility. Very few candidates will have experienced every aspect of a role before stepping into it. I often think about appointments through a 70–30 lens: perhaps 70% of the role should draw on experience and capability you have already demonstrated, while the remaining 30% should stretch you. The best career moves give you enough familiarity to succeed, but enough challenge to continue developing.”
Those who make the transition successfully rarely just wait for adverts to appear. They spend years quietly building the skills, the network and the self-awareness that convince a club they're ready – long before the opportunity actually arrives.
