S6 E2 | Building the Ultimate Learning Experience: Business Acquisition & Growth with Bird Golf Academy’s Tyler O’Connor Host: Golf Business Technology Guest: Tyler O’Connor, CEO, Bird Golf Academy Series: The GBT Podcast — Season 6 Executive Overview In Season 6, Episode 2 of The GBT Podcast, we go behind the scenes of one of the golf industry’s most compelling acquisition and growth stories. We are joined by Tyler O’Connor, CEO of Bird Golf Academy, to discuss how a former US Army officer and self-funded entrepreneur took the helm of a national leader in personalized golf instruction. Tyler breaks down…
Author: Staff Writer
As the golfing world celebrates Team Europe’s success at Bethpage Black at the Ryder Cup 2025, the team at Gilmerton House are proud to reflect on a special moment earlier this summer. In July, during the Genesis Scottish Open, they once again welcomed European Ryder Cup Captain Luke Donald and his team for their pre-tournament dinner, an evening of camaraderie, reflection, and shared purpose that has become part of Gilmerton House’s golfing story. Luke Donald first chose Gilmerton House for this gathering two summers ago (2023), hosting the same format of dinner ahead of the Ryder Cup in Rome. That…
Global sports and entertainment agency, 54, has launched Entourage – a hybrid tech advisory and modular platform business designed to help sports investors, rightsholders, federations, leagues, clubs, brands, major events and creators navigate digital transformation and accelerate commercial growth. As shifting consumption reshapes the economics of sport – particularly reliance on broadcast rights revenues – organisations increasingly need strategic guidance and agile tools to adapt. Entourage provides advisory expertise while also delivering modular, easy-to-deploy technology that can activate fans, retain their loyalty, and monetise more directly. The platform combines shared infrastructure with customisable modules, enabling each client to plug in and…
Golf Live is pleased to announce Nate Hairgrove has joined the company as its Head of Business Development. Hairgrove brings more than 15 years of hands-on experience driving growth, partnerships, and strategic sales across technology, healthcare, and the sports industry. Hairgrove recently directed the business development efforts at OnForm and helped scale their video analysis solutions in the sports performance and coaching market. He has served as Executive Director of Spartan Capital Group and held senior leadership positions with Dassault Systemes 3DEXCITE and Oracle, where he focused on enterprise sales and client engagement. “I’m excited to join Golf Live as…
Golf tourism’s showpiece event Elevate Golf is set to return to Scotland in 2027 when Ayrshire, one of the world’s best golf destinations, welcomes the industry’s biggest names. Reserved for golf’s elite, Elevate Golf sees the finest golf courses, resorts and accommodation providers connect with high-class international tour operators during tailor-made appointments, as well as in more casual surroundings on the golf course and at evening receptions. Taking place from October 24-29, 2027, Elevate Golf 2027 will be held in two stages with the first half of the six-day event taking place in Ayrshire. Here, a carefully selected pool of the best…
Resort on Portugal’s Silver Coast gears up to welcome back the HotelPlanner Tour Excitement is building at Royal Óbidos Scenic Resort as final course and resort preparations begin ahead of September’s Open de Portugal on the HotelPlanner Tour. Held at the five-star resort on Portugal’s Silver Coast from September 11-14, the tournament will see golf’s stars of tomorrow compete across four rounds on the venue’s par-72 championship course. This year marks the sixth successive year that Royal Óbidos has hosted the tournament, firstly as a dual-sanctioned event alongside the DP World Tour in 2020, and subsequently as an event solely on Europe’s development…
Grand Slam winner and five-time Major Champion Rory McIlroy will return to Jumeirah Golf Estates from November 13-16 to defend his DP World Tour Championship title at the season-ending Rolex Series event. The Northern Irishman delivered a masterclass in control and shot-making to claim his third DP World Tour Championship victory in 2024, sealing a record-equalling sixth Race to Dubai title to sit alongside the late, great Seve Ballesteros and further cementing his status as one of the most decorated players in Tour history. The 36-year-old has moved into joint second place for the most Race to Dubai victories and…
Syngenta Golf has published a new in-depth feature on the critical challenge golf course businesses face to become water sustainable. Featuring seven solutions and case studies from Arizona and California to Spain and Italy, leading voices and superintendents share their insights. With 2025 already set to be one of the three warmest years on record, global water scarcity is now an existential threat to many golf businesses. And with AI (Artificial Intelligence) expected to double or quadruple its demand for water to cool thermoelectric power plants by 2028, industry and agriculture will be the big users competing for supplies. Mark…
The Arab Golf Federation has officially launched the Elite Sports Scholarship Camp, one of its most strategic and pioneering initiatives aimed at preparing a new generation of Arab golf champions. This initiative is designed to empower young Arab golfers and open pathways for them to reach the highest levels of international competition by the year 2035. The Elite Camp marks the first phase of the Federation’s scholarship program and is focused on assessing and selecting top Arab talent under the age of 18. Selected players will be given the opportunity to pursue elite-level training in collaboration with IMG Academy. Held…
The R&A Foundation has reached a major milestone with £10 million pledged by philanthropic donors around the world since 2022. This significant achievement strengthens the Foundation’s mission to use golf for good by supporting impactful projects around the world that promote opportunity, inclusion and growth across the sport. To date, £5.4 million of the pledged £10 million has already been released to support a wide range of initiatives, including more than £1.4 million in unrestricted funding (funds that can be allocated for any purpose in-line with The R&A Foundation’s charitable objectives) received in 2024, which have enabled the Foundation to…