There's enough talk about women in golf to indicate that people are interested in the subject. There's good reason for this.
Just look at greats like Se-Ri Pak and Betsy Rawls to name a few.
The more women who play golf, the happier we are here at Deemples. Unfortunately, golf – as we know – has a really small market and that means that women who play golf are even more rare.
Well we at Deemples want to change that and in that effort we started digging around for some help from the femmes themselves. Lucky for us, several lovely ladies came forward to give their insights.
Women in Golf: The Ladies
Isabelle Sophia Teh: An early user of Deemples and an avid user, Ms Teh is one of the very few women who's not shy and is able to golf with anyone! She got into Deemples and she got hooked on it beginning with her very first experience.
Azrin Azizan: A piano teacher at Yamaha Music School, when Azrin's not busy recreating Mozarts, she's golfing! She's a frequent Deemples user because her friends can't golf as frequently as she wants to. Deemples gave Azrin the solution to her problems.
Paradiska Meld: We met her through her husband Octoxa Christofferson, who was an early user of Deemples in Indonesia. They live in a townhouse on hole number 2 of the Modern Golf & Country Club golf course. She used to run her own Human Resources firm.
Women in Golf: Question #1. When did you start golfing and why?
Isabelle: My clients got me into golfing. They asked me to try it out, so I did, and I liked it. Little did I know I’d get hooked and start golfing a few times a week. I think the biggest why I continue golfing is because there are clients who have become friends that golf.
Azrin: I first started golfing about three years ago. I was used to playing all kinds of sports but I was always looking for more relaxing, yet challenging sports. I found golf and haven’t looked back.
Paradiska: I started golfing in 2010 when my dad introduced me to the game. At that time, I was thinking this difficult game was boring so eventually I stopped practicing and in 2011 I stopped. In 2013, I met a guy (who is my husband now) who plays golf. Not many people play golf that day, so I thought, it was serendipity. I tried again to like this game and ended up loving it.
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"Golf teaches me a lot about patience. I also love the beauty of each swing and the feeling you get before and after you golf.," says Azrin[/caption]
Women in Golf: Question #2. What do you love about golfing?
Isabelle: It’s just nice to be out there, and gives me a way to exercise too. I guess most golfers don’t realise this, but they continue to golf because golf is tough to master which makes you want to always improve. Hence most golfers keep coming back to it, because one good shot makes it all worth it.
Azrin: I just found so many benefits from playing golf. Golf teaches me a lot about patience. I also love the beauty of each swing and the feeling you get before and after you golf. Another thing is that golf has worked well in other aspects of my life as it helps me focus my attention more.
Paradiska: The feeling of curiosity. You know, the ball is tiny and the club head is very small and we must hit that tiny ball. Hahaha. Yes, we need to focus on the ball so that it can be hit. That’s what makes playing golf so difficult.
When I could hit the ball and sometimes can’t, that’s what makes me curious and want to try again and again.
And second, of course, going on the course, seeing the beautiful green view and the fact that every course is unique. It really gives me a feeling of relaxation.
Women in Golf: Question #3. What are some of the challenges when getting women to golf?
Isabelle: Most Asian women don’t like to golf because it’s out in the hot sun and Asian women don’t like to get dark, or sweat. They prefer indoor activities like hi tea, mahjong, nail spas, and shopping among other things. Also, a lot of women just don’t exercise, even though that segment is growing, but it’s still a minority.
Azrin: One of the main reasons is probably because there aren’t a lot of women golfers to begin with. It’s sort of like a cycle. The majority of players are men and a lot of women are shy. They would be more comfortable playing only with other women golfers.
Paradiska: They’re afraid of the sun and because golfing is expensive.
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"Golf is tough to master which makes you want to always improve," says Isabelle (left)[/caption]
Women in Golf: Question #4. Do you wish there were more women golfers?
Isabelle: Yes, so that there are more golfers to golf with. However, I’m easy going and can golf with anyone. Currently I’m always golfing with guys because 95% of golfers are guys anyway. Golfing with guys is sometimes much easier and flexible too compared with women golfers. However, I would still love to have women to golf with so that we can go on golfing trips, and I won’t always be the only woman golfer there.
Azrin: Gender isn’t really an issue for me. Golf is an interesting game, regardless of any gender. It’s a good activity not just for a healthy body and mind, but it’s also good for networking and meeting new people.
Paradiska: Yes, I do! So I can play with them and enjoy girl time and talk about golf after the game. I usually play with boys and I’m usually the only girl until 2 weeks ago when I got a new female friend. Hahaha. So happy I found her!
Women in Golf: Question #5. How to get more women to golf?
Isabelle: It’s tough to get women to golf. If they dont’ want to golf, they just won’t. But for those women who do want to, getting out is a problem too because not all their golf friends can golf whenever they want to. I guess that’s where apps like Deemples comes in to help so that they can always get a game going (non-gender targeted) whenever they want to.
Azrin: More introductory programmes for women, more discounts and promotions for green fees, and there should be more highlights on pro women golfers and golf fashion.
Paradiska: Entice them with after the game activities in the locker rooms, such as saunas, Jacuzzies and also great restaurants.
There’s also a need to change the perception of golf being a non-active sport, such that more and more females play golf as if they were joining a gym class.
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"There’s also a need to change the perception of golf being a non-active sport, such that more and more females play golf as if they were joining a gym class," says Paradiska[/caption]
Women in Golf: Question #6. What do you think about Deemples?
Isabelle: My friend and I tried it out and I posted a game at 10pm that evening for a game the next morning, and within a few minutes, someone joined! We weren’t sure if that person was going to show up the next day but he did! Since then I have been very impressed with Deemples and have recommended it to a lot of my golfing friends. We also realised that we don’t get matched for games all the time, but I guess as everything is when it’s new, it takes time. So the only way for us all to be able to golf more, is for more people to know about Deemples. So get Deemples, everybody!
Azrin: I found Deemples through a registration counter at Danau Golf Club. I downloaded it right away and have been using it ever since. It’s super easy to find golf buddies and it has a perfect and trusted scoring system.
Paradiska: I have been looking for this kind of app for so long! I’m the type of person who wants to network with new people. I have joined in some groups but I just wanted to play with new people. I didn’t find Deemples initially and downloaded many golf apps and they all turned out disappointing. One day, in my home-course locker room, my eyes just glanced over a poster of Deemples.
I tried again on Google Playstore with the keyword, "golf" then Deemples appeared. I downloaded it and it’s been great!
