Winners honoured at 59club MEA Service Excellence Awards supported by Golfbreaks

FINEST SERVICE PROVIDERS HONOURED AT 59CLUB MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA SERVICE EXCELLENCE AWARDS SUPPORTED BY GOLFBREAKS

High-profile venues across the Middle East & Africa recognised for service excellence in glitzy ceremony hosted at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai.

The finest golf properties across the Middle East & Africa saw their teams descend on Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, on Wednesday May 26, 2021, with the hope of claiming an industry ‘Oscar’ at the annual 59club MEA Service Excellence Awards.

A day which started with a 9-hole Team Shamble on The Earth Course, ended in a glittering awards ceremony as the market-leading performance-management specialist continued to honour its best performers across the region for having achieved the highest standards of sales & customer service excellence across 2020/21. 

The winners in the 59club MEA Service Excellence Awards are determined by scores collected from its impartial mystery shopping audits, which evaluate the experience afforded to visiting golfers and prospective members, in accordance with objective benchmarking criteria. 

On the night, 59club MEA presented 16 awards, recognising ‘service excellence’ across all areas of the businesses – Sales, Service, Operations, Retail, Golf course, Food & Beverage and Management. 

And, for one property, there was double celebrations as Abu Dhabi Golf Club saw two of its teams honoured after scooping Golf Membership Sales Team of the Year and Golf Agronomy Team of the Year.  Pictured from left to right: Scott Sellars, Golf Operations Manager of Abu Dhabi Golf Club and Clinton Southorn, Cluster Director of Agronomy.

Speaking of their winning performance, Francisco de Lancastre, Cluster General Manager said; “We are delighted to receive these two awards, as it is a testament to the hard work and effort demonstrated by the team over 2020. Working with 59club MEA throughout the year assists us to monitor customer service data and constantly strive to improve and evolve our renowned service and facility standards”.  

Other Teams honoured on the night were Abu Dhabi City Golf Club who were awarded Food and Beverage Team of the Year, Emirates Golf Club who claimed Golf Operations Team of the Year and The Els Club, Dubai having scooped Golf Retail Team of the Year. 

While Trump International Golf Club, Dubai went on to receive the My59 Ultimate Service Excellence Award for their continued commitment to engage, analyze and enrich their member and guest experience, utilizing a collateral of survey tools across 59club’s software platform. 

The final awards of the evening and always a highlight of proceedings saw 59club MEA present their Industry Benchmark of excellence, it’s Gold and Silver Flag Designations. These highly prized accolades recognise properties that provide excellent facilities for golfers to enjoy, as well as having achieved the required standard of customer service throughout the year. 

This year, 59club MEA presented 8 ‘Gold Flags’, the deserving winners were: Abu Dhabi Golf Club; Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club; Emirates Golf Club; Jumeirah Golf Estates; Saadiyat Beach Golf Club; The Els Club, Dubai; Trump International Golf Club, Dubai; and Yas Links Abu Dhabi. Whilst 2 ‘Silver Flags’ went to Abu Dhabi City Golf Club and The Track, Meydan Golf. 

Of this year’s awards, Mark Bull, Director at 59club MEA, commented: “ It was an honour and privilege to host the first service excellence awards outside of the UK, special thanks to our host venue, Jumeirah Golf Estates and Golfbreaks for their support of the event, as well as all our event partners.  Congratulations to all nominees and winners on the night, all of whom can be proud of the levels of service provided throughout 2020 and we look forward to continuing to support the industry in driving standards forward.”

59club MEA ‘Service Excellence’ Award Winners 2020/21

Golf Membership Sales Team of the Year, sponsored by Worldwide Golf: Abu Dhabi Golf Club

Golf Retail Team of the Year, sponsored by Sunset Events:  The Els Club, Dubai

Food and Beverage Team of the Year, sponsored by African & Eastern:  Abu Dhabi City Golf Club

Golf Agronomy Team of the Year, sponsored by Toro/Delta Turf Care:  Abu Dhabi Golf Club

Golf Operations Team of the Year, sponsored by Golf Genius:  Emirates Golf Club

My 59 Ultimate Service Excellence, sponsored by Club Car: Trump International Golf Club, Dubai

Silver Flag Designations: Abu Dhabi City Golf Club and The Track, Meydan Golf.

Gold Flag Designations: Abu Dhabi Golf Club; Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club; Emirates Golf Club; Jumeirah Golf Estates; Saadiyat Beach Golf Club; The Els Club, Dubai; Trump International Golf Club, Dubai; and Yas Links Abu Dhabi

  • Rick Bevan of Worldwide Golf; Scott Sellars of Abu Dhabi Golf Club & Neal Graham of 59club MEA presenting the Golf Membership Team of the Year Award to Abu Dhabi Golf Club
  • Marinus Koekemoer of Delta Turfcare; Clinton Southorn of Abu Dhabi Golf Club and Neal Graham of 59club MEA presenting the Golf Agronomy Team of the Year Award to Abu Dhabi Golf Club
  • Jon Sirois of Golf Genius; Chris May of Dubai Golf & Neal Graham of 59club MEA presenting the Golf Operations Team of the Year Award to Emirates Golf Club
  • Epitacio Fernandes of Sunset Events; Tom Rourke of The Els Club, Dubai and Neal Graham of 59club MEA presenting the Golf Retail Team of the Year Award to The Els Club, Dubai
  • Rhian Lobo; Rajith Chandran and David Taylor all of Abu Dhabi City Golf Club receiving the Food and Beverage Team of the Year Award
  • Nathan Williamson of Luxury Carts Group; Casper Schonfeldt of Trump International Golf Club and Neal Graham of 59club MEA presenting the my59 Service Excellence – Ultimate Award to Trump International Golf Club.
  • Scott Sellars of Abu Dhabi Golf Club receiving their Gold Flag Award
  • Matt Waters of Yas Links Abu Dhabi and Saadiyat Beach Golf Club both receiving Gold Flag Awards
  • Chris May of Dubai Golf and Emirates Golf Club both receiving Gold Flag Awards
  • Tom Hall, Michael Major, Julian Danby and David Taggart all of Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club receiving their Gold Flag Award
  • Ismail Sharif of Jumeirah Golf Estates receiving their Gold Flag Award
  • Richard Arrowsmith and Phil Waine both of Trump International Golf Club receiving their Gold Flag Award
  • Hammad Hafeez; Ettienne Barry; Tom Rourke; Tom Nicholson all of The Els Club, Dubai receiving their Gold Flag Award
  • Ian Brenna; Sheikh Alam; and Will Bruce all of The Track, Meydan Golf receiving their Silver Flag Award
  • Rhian Lobo; David Taylor and Rajith Chandran all of Abu Dhabi City Golf Club receiving their Silver Flag Award