Golf Course Marshal Duties: What does a Marshal Do?
Golf course marshal duties – Marshals are the largest group of volunteers and play a vital role in ensuring players are not disturbed during play, enforcing crowd control and golf etiquette among spectators, and locating errant shots.
The committee requires standing for extended periods of time and Marshals should be capable of walking to and from their respective hole assignments. Golf knowledge is an asset but not essential.
Golf Course Marshal Duties are in place to reduce distractions and maintain the pace of play. But have you ever been “dogged” by a golf course Marshal for no good reason and to the point of the Marshal’s actions upset and ruined your game?
If so what is the best way to let the “Marshal” know you will not tolerate their harassment tactics? There should be an instruction course to let aid the “Marshals know how to keep the pace of play going smoothly without harassing the players.
The Golf Marshal is there to ensure that the pace of play is reasonable and that no one tears up the golf course.
Also to help out where possible, communicate to the clubhouse any problems with players, carts, or grounds, and make sure the players are conducting themselves in an according to manner.
You should be focused enough to play thru interruption or harassment from anyone, even in your group, and not blame a Marshal for ruining your game.
Golf Tournament – Become A Golf Marshal
In order to become a Golf Marshal, you do not have to have any previous experience, although this might depend on the tournament. Obviously, tournaments like the Masters and the Open will most likely require marshals with experience as they will be oversubscribed.
So try a tournament near you or even where you would like to visit that is not quite so high profile, for your first one. Check out the website for the tournament and they should have some contact details for volunteers a few months before the tournament starts.
Preference will likely be given to volunteers who can marshal for the whole tournament rather than just a few days.
You don’t necessarily need to be a member of a golf club but you do need knowledge of how the game is played so that you can anticipate what might happen obviously if you want to be a golf marshal you are likely to be a golf fan.
PRO-AM Competitions
Volunteers provide support for the Pro-Am competitions. Duties may include distribution of gift bags, parking and bag drop assistance, and amateur player registration.
One of the best days to be a Golf Marshal is on the Pro-Am golf day. Quite often there will not be big crowds on this day so you won’t have a huge amount of work to do. Also, the players are relaxed and friendly and quite happy to chat with people, have their photos taken, and sign autographs.
Once they are in the swing of the tournament cameras are usually not allowed and they will only be chatting with people on the way to and from practice (if they feel like it). You are also only allowed to ask for autographs and photos as a golf marshal on pro-am day.
Role Of A Golf Course Marshal
There are a few jobs that golf marshals do but the majority of jobs come under 2 categories, Static and Roving Marshals.
The Static Marshals are placed at particular areas of the course where they stay for the duration of the day’s play (or part of it). This may be guiding people, across a crossing point, keeping quiet in the grandstands, etc.
The Roving Marshals are placed in teams and each team goes out with a particular group of players to make sure the crowd obeys all the rules of the tournament and keeps quiet when required.
Marshals need to keep themselves spaced out at intervals (so no chatting to each other as this looks bad) and need to raise their paddles when a player is about to take a shot.
The Marshals also need to make sure the players move safely between holes, phones are turned off, pathways are kept clear, etc. In any case, you will be briefed on what you need to do before you go out and any first-timers will be paired up with experienced team members to learn the ropes.
Ideally, if you can, volunteer as a golf marshal for the Pro-Am day first so that you can get a practice run ahead of the tournament itself, then you won’t be worried about what you need to do on a big day in the tournament.
Golf Course Marshal Salary
Most golf marshals in tournaments throughout the world are volunteers who do the job for the love of the game and the chance to get close to the action, so don’t expect to get paid for doing this job! There are some roles (chief marshals etc.) that are likely to get paid but you will need experience to get these types of positions.
Golf Marshall Benefits
Apart from getting close to the great players and being able to see some of the action for free you also will likely get:
-A free tournament shirt
-Free food and drink whilst on duty
-Access to areas the public aren’t allowed
-Lots of fresh air and exercise!
If you want to give it a try, check out the website of the tournament you are interested in and contact the organizers.
Course Marshal Definition
The Golf Course Marshal is responsible for assisting with the day-to-day operations of the golf courses and must have excellent communication and organizational skill sets. This is a high-energy position that will require excellent people skills and the ability to work weekends and extended days when necessary.
Golf Course Marshal Job Description
Essential duties and responsibilities include the following:
- Engaging all guests, warm welcome, and a fond farewell
- Greets all golfers within the first 6 holes of their round
- Maintains pace of play on the golf course
- Assists guests with errant golf shots
- Maintains communication with the golf shop & management regarding the pace of play
- Assists with tournament setup
Knowledge and Skills:
*Excellent soft skills/people skills
*Excellent communication & organizational skills
*Ability to respond timely to guest inquiries and guest incidents
*Ability to demonstrate excellence in guest service
*Ability to be a team player
Secondary Responsibilities:
*Assists other departments when necessary
Educational Qualifications, Knowledge, Skill & Ability Requirements:
*High School diploma or equivalent
*Must be able to work weekends and holidays
*Must be able to work a minimum of three days per week
Supervision:
It is inevitable that other duties will arise from time to time. This is not a necessarily exhaustive list of responsibilities, skills, duties, requirements, efforts, or working conditions associated with the position.
While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the proposed position, management reserves the right to revise the job or require that different tasks are performed when circumstances require.
Annually, performance standards can be reviewed and updated to reflect the acceptable standard of performance for critical tasks required by this position.
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