Golf has a reputation of inaccessibility. It’s expensive, time consuming, and continuously trying to break the stereotype that it is an exclusive sport.
How Morocco is trying to popularize golf — yes, golf — for both boys and girls
If you follow, read about, or watch golf, you’re bound to hear that phrase “grow the game.” Here’s how one place you’d never expect is trying to popularize it for both men and women.
Morocco, a country that has increasingly become a tourist hot spot, is attempting to cut through some of those accessibility issues and make its mark in the world of golf. Their efforts began in 2002, when the Hassan II Golf Trophy Association (ATH) came to formation, in honor of the late Majesty King Hassan II. They had a particular goal in mind: coordinate various activities aimed at promoting golf in Morocco and train Moroccan golfers to become top-rated professionals. Under this mission, a national team was formed as the Moroccan Golf Federation.
Golf is considerably young in this country of 34 million. It was not until 1923 that Morocco built its first 18-hole course in Marrakech, the Royal Tangiers Club, originally built for French rulers and other dignitaries. At the time, there was no intention for golf to be a sport for everyone, and despite the fact that there are close to 40 courses, golf still fails to reach a majority of people, particularly girls and women. In addition, 11 of the courses are in Marrakech, so golf is not nearly widespread enough to make a substantial impact in many areas, particularly in rural communities where golf courses do not exist.
Currently, there is only one Arab woman who has ever qualified for the Ladies European Tour (to date, no Arab-born woman has qualified for the LPGA). Her name is Maha Haddioui, and at 27 years old she has had the opportunity to accomplish a considerable amount in her sport, compared to other young girls and women in Morocco.
Morocco ranked 139th out of 145 countries included in the 2015 Global Gender Gap Report on gender equality. The struggle to find equal opportunity amongst men and women in sport is obviously constant.
In Morocco, 93 percent of the population practices Islam and adheres to more culturally conservative values, particularly towards women. Many girls don’t receive a formal education due to the fears of them walking by themselves to school. These cultural norms make it difficult for a young girl to ever consider pursuing a sport full-time, particularly if her family would not allow for the travel that (must) could take place.
“My parents were very supportive,” Haddioui said. “When I told them when I was 15 that I would be gone for two months to play tournaments, they encouraged me and were really excited and sent my coach with me. I think that’s the drawback, is that some of the parents of the girls [in Morocco] will not let their daughter go abroad alone.”
Marta Figueras-Dotti hails from Spain and is a former player on the LET and LPGA. After a successful playing career, she made the switch to coaching, and was brought on by the Moroccan Golf Federation as an elite coach for its national team.
“It’s not so much, ‘my daughter is going to play golf’ but more ‘is my daughter going to be able to play golf because of the access or the cost, or how is she going to do it without a coach?’ From my impression, there’s a fear of not knowing what future will be there for girls in the game,” Dotti said.
The Executive Director of the golf federation, Reda Bennis, said, “I don’t think there’s any obstacle in growing the game on the girls side. It might be an obstacle in terms of mentality. We’re trying to become more open-minded and accessible, but overall I don’t think there will be obstacles in the grander scheme of things.”
Currently, the federation supports 20 boys and only two girls, Haddioui and 20-year-old Lina Belmati.
When pressed on why there is such a large disparity between the girls and boys receiving hands on training, Bennis said, “We have another part of our vision to put regional coaches around the country to detect potential champions, and I think that will be helpful in helping grow the women’s side.”
But the question is how? If cultural norms don’t allow for women to play sports competitively, and if getting to golf courses from rural areas is near impossible, combined with the cost of playing golf, growing golf for women will prove a challenge that can’t be solved by enthusiastic talking points.
And with the average person in Morocco only making makes $15,000 a year, along with average golf membership costs around $1,000 annually, there is little room for disposable income. Morocco’s people have among the lowest disposable incomes in the world according to one study. So like most parts of the world, golf is not economically feasible.
“We are hoping to one day make golf part of the curriculum in schools.”
The ATH is hoping to change all of that. “The Royal Highness believes that every golf course should have an academy and right now 16 of the courses have one,” Bennis said. “They get children from a lower economic background, and give them golf clubs, and clothes, and introduce them to the game. We are hoping to one day make golf part of the curriculum in schools. That could really revolutionize it.”
And just this year, the ATH commissioned a caravan to drive across the country with the goal of introducing golf to as many people as possible. Ambassadors of golf are chosen for each city, and participants receive a free day of golf with professional instructors.
“Because of this initiative people are starting to understand what golf is,” Bennis said.
Their primary mission is now making golf accessible to juniors through organizing tournaments and the efforts noted above, with an emphasis on introducing girls to the game. “We have deals with golf courses around the country that will give inexpensive memberships to girls and juniors,” Bennis said. “We also have curated deals where girls can become members of golf courses without her parents also having to be members.”
As a result of these initiatives, Haddioui has seen a slight increase in the number of girls since her junior playing days. Having only boys to play with growing up, she sees the organized tournaments by the Federation as extremely important in keeping young girls in the game.
“Being able to play tournaments and see myself evolve, and win trophies, and get goodies — that’s what got me excited about the game. And that’s what lacked for a few years when I was an amateur,” she said. “You can quickly get discouraged from only playing with boys because most of them hit the ball longer. But if you play with other girls, they have someone they can relate to.”
Despite the cultural hurdles and economic challenges, Haddioui remains hopeful that other little girls will be able to follow in her footsteps, “Eventually it will happen. I started playing during a time when not too many girls were playing, so that’s why now there’s not many. But in 10 years, we will see a shift.”
The “grow the game” slogan is one that’s constantly thrown around in the United States, so much so that it lacks meaning at this point. But if golf is to ever truly grow, it’s going to happen in other parts of the world, not in the U.S. Morocco is attempting to become one of those places, with both boys and girls.
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