1 March 2019
Please take the time to read this following as it contains important information about the tour, web site and events.
I started the tour about 7 years ago and have come a long way with little or no sponsorship or outside support. Over that time we have grown the number of events
from around 7/8 to almost 30 in 2017. Clubs changed scratch events to Mid Am’s and they continue to thrive so in all the tour has been successful for a lot of clubs and many players have enjoyed playing in top class events at top class venues with some going on to represent GB&I in the Concession Cup and others moving on to play in the Seniors European Tour.
Whilst the events had no doubt been popular, pressure from the clubs around pricing and payment and pressure from players to keep the prices down (and the prizes up!) meant that in latter years the events were harder to fill and suitable courses at the right price were hard to find.
Some other issues at our end culminated in us taken a rest from events in 2018 with a view to re-launching in 2019 which is what we did but unfortunately the same issues still plague us which is costs of venues, players withdrawing and players committing to play but then deciding not to plus the ongoing costs of running the tour and the events. Do not think I am passing the blame - it is my company and I take full responsibility for everything that has happened, good and bad.
I can assure all of you that at no time were we accepting entry fees knowing that we were not going to be holding the event, contrary to some posts on social media. In order for us to run an event we need to ensure we have the entry fees secured so we can honour the payment schedule put in place by the host club. We work and have worked tirelessly with the clubs to get these events and any cancellations affect them as well as you and us.
I accept fully that the communication in the past and more recently has been poor and unacceptable and those that have been playing for some time will know it is not the norm. There have been various reasons for this, not least that fact that we were trying to secure enough players to make any or all of the events viable.
I understand that people book holidays from work (as do I), arrange family situations (as do I), book hotels etc etc and any changes to this can cause immense pressure and inconvenience all round as well as lost money.
Those of you who are new to Mid-Amateur golf events might be feeling let down and wondering what the hell is going on. You’re right to feel that way and those of you who have been playing for years will also feel let down and pissed off to say the least. PLEASE remember that the team and I do this because we wanted to. In the 8 years we have been running this we have taken no salaries from the tour as it something we enjoyed doing and wanted to build something for the future. In time we wanted to run it commercially but that has proven to be the hardest thing of all to achieve.
I urge to to enter and pay in the club run events – they are excellent and you will play some amazing courses and meet some amazing people. Please also bear in mind that we only used the club and county run events for scoring purposes for the OOM. None of the clubs are involved in the running of the tour or the business.
2019 events.
Hunstanton has been cancelled and EVERYONE will receive a full refund of any fees paid. Additional email to follow.
Borth and
Aberdovey have also been cancelled and the same applies in that EVERYONE will receive a full refund of any fees paid. Separate email to follow.
The other events for 2019 will be advised within a couple of weeks but it is hoped that these will go ahead if the numbers are there and/or other organisers can be found. Swinley Forest seems to be full and a deposit has been paid to the club. The Players Club and Prestatyn will not be going ahead as well as Goswick and Dunstanburgh.
Memberships.
People who have paid for Life Memberships or any other memberships (5 year) with guarantees for events will be contacted separately and if necessary refunds WILL be made.
Club run events.
These are still open for entry and you can do so via Golf Empire or the clubs own web site.
The tour web site.
We are looking for interested parties or individuals to take this on going forward. It can be used simply as a point of reference for everything Mid Am and also the OOM or as base for new events. Anyone who in interested in this please let me know. We are not looking to sell it – we are looking for parties/someone to carry on the site for the benefit of others with the potential for future development. We currently have over 2300 contacts and the site (when live) was getting 2-3000 hits a month.
The OOM.
As above, if someone is interested along with the web site they can get in touch.
Other Events.
If any of you would be interested in picking up the Welsh/Scottish/British Mid Am’s that we started then these could be run as stand-alone events and we would be happy to pass on the details of past players etc. and we also have trophy’s etc.
Vice Golf.
This partnership is still viable.
For now, the MAGT team will be stepping back from most of the events we planned and the web site, until we find suitable parties or individuals who may want to take this on as a project.
Any outstanding entry fees/vouchers will also be addressed in the coming week or so but we will need your help with this.
Some/most of you will not take the news very well and I get that. Some of you have already intimated that you will seek legal means to get your money back and I cannot stop you from doing that and any claims will be dealt with appropriately. I can personally guarantee though that ALL monies sent to us will be refunded. It may take a little longer than you and I would like but no-one (none of you) will be out of pocket. I fully expect that 90-95% of you will be refunded within 7 days with the rest following in 7-14 days.
I would like to thank those of you who have supported us over the years, we have met some amazing people and had some great times.
Kind regards
Jason Morris and the MAGT team.
