Mr. Solomon Allotey, General Secretary of the Ghana Golf Association, has lectured at a short but impressive seminar for sports journalists on Wednesday at the Bok Nam Kim Golf Club near Burma Camp in Accra.
He promised stronger ties with sports media and equipped them with the necessary tools to improve their reporting on golf.
He advised them to be professional, ethical, know the terminology in the sport, and learn how the equipment for the sport is used, as well as tournament structures and formats.
He said the media, who are content creators and developers, must support them with new media manifestations in this digital era to get their messages, tournaments, events, and programmes across on various social media platforms.
“The media has a responsibility to report on golf because the sport has evolved, and with new media, it must be easily done. Golf is a game of integrity, attitude, and emotions,” he conveyed.
The exciting and educational event was attended by a few sports journalists; however, the General Secretary did not appreciate the attendance as he believes the sport has been termed as a lesser-known sport, while others see it as a sport for the affluent.
He noted that golf is a very big and attractive sport in some countries, attracting thousands of fans during four or three-day tournaments.
According to Mr. Allotey, most journalists are not aware of how golfers score to get their results, so he tasked them to learn by practising and playing.
He expressed that golf is one sport that can be played at an advanced age, noting that many golfers are above 80 years and they play to exercise, aside from networking and socializing.
He hinted that plans are advanced to introduce golf to schools to involve the youth who will become the future champions.
Present at the seminar were Mr. Rodney Oddoye, Treasurer of the GGA, and Mr. Maurice Quansah, former Vice President of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana and editor of the Graphic Sports, who said storytelling skills in golf reporting must be enhanced.
He suggested the setting up of a media development fund for the training and encouraging the media to have an interest in golf reporting.
By Sammy Heywood Okine
