Erik Jorritsma - 15 years of Pitch and Putt in Holland
Erik Jorritsma, Holland
It's 15 years since Erik Jorritsma first played Pitch and Putt in the UK and felt the concept would work well back home in Holland. Erik built the first course in Holland near his home in Koekange. That led to the formation of the NPPB. We wondered if he would be interested in sharing his reflections on that, the Pitch&Putt Support operation and the NPPB for the FIPPA web. Gentleman as ever, Erik was very generous with his time and his views.
How did the opening of the original Koekange assist in the promotion of Pitch and Putt?
EJ: Incredibly so, because Pitch and Putt simply didn't exist in Holland at the time. You could play golf, but in order to play you needed to pass an exam to get a license to play. Some of these golf courses have par3 holes, but these weren't open to the general public either. So the only way to introduce the sport Pitch and Putt was by opening our own course.
Did the opening and running of the Koekange course contribute positively in the manner you anticipated or was the outcome different to expectations?
EJ: Naturally, once we'd started operating, many things worked out different than expected. Different to the Pitch and Putt courses we'd visited in England, our visitors here were looking for more post-playing activities. We attracted more visitors than expected and they definitely wanted to combine playing the sport with a drink in the bar afterwards. We also saw that our visitors liked playing in groups, either family or business, with food and drinks afterwards an important part of their experience. Another unexpected thing was the amount of maintenance required and the amount of knowledge we needed to build quickly to keep the courses in top condition. It certainly was different than just mowing my 5x5m back lawn!
Your memories of the launch of NPPB? What went well? Not so well?
EJ: I have very fond memories of the start of the NPPB. I was acting president and team coach at the same time. We only had 1 club and managed to get 5 players together for the first, unofficial, EC in Chelmsford. We had a fantastic time, laughed a lot and learned a lot. Today, the NPPB still has a lot of room for growth in membership. Many of our visitors arrive as part of a group, and more and more people come back to play several times a year. Most of these however don't join the NPPB, which for them perhaps feels too serious a step. Naturally we're delighted with our 1200 members, although we'd love to grow this further. It's great that we sell as many greenfee cards as we do, but active members simply play more often. After 15 years of growth, we're still looking to solve this and attract more members - optimistic as we are, every year we strongly believe that this is going to be the year of exponential growth!
How successful has the Pitch&Putt Support enterprise been?
EJ: The Franchise Organisation has required a lot of investment over the years to build our foundations - staff members to develop and establish the concept, and of course a lot of investment in growing the amount of courses. It's only in the last few years that we feel there are enough courses to run a sustainable business. It will still take years to see a proper return on investment, but that's OK and fits with our long term vision and approach to this business. Pietrix and I are very proud of what we have achieved so far and are delighted to be able to earn a living just doing what we love doing. We're looking forward to the next 15 years, and hopefully the nation will continue to enjoy the many P&P courses well beyond our time. Naturally, this is not about us, but it's a great feeling to be able to contribute to society.
How has the NPPB evolved and changed?
EJ: We've gone through many changes and adaptations over the years. The NPPB and the Franchise Organisation work closely together. In addition to the membership fees, all individual courses contribute to our marketing budgets to help grow the P&P concept in Holland.
Initially, the NPPB was run by volunteers only - the playing members. That proved to be difficult. Today, the NPPB is run by a committee made up of both players and the entrepreneurs managing the courses. The players, almost without exception, determine all elements related to the sport - the format, handicaps, rules, etc. The entrepreneurs help us grow by managing a professional organisation to manage all marketing, membership administration and tournaments. Today's format works well, and we're now starting to focus more on growing the membership further.
How have the personnel involved evolved?
EJ: I often think we're a big company now - 25 courses + a Support team. In reality however, it's not that big. In total, we employ 8 people at our office, with a further 200 people involved with both Pitch and Putt and the restaurants at the courses. Over the past 15 years, and especially in the current economic situation, every business needs to continue to develop. That's no different for us. In the past 5 years, we've grown a lot in terms of marketing - both quantity and quality. In the beginning, people seemed to just turn up, curious to see what Pitch and Putt was all about. Millions of people have since played our game, so now we need to remind people of the great time they had with us, to compete with all other leisure options the consumer has today. That means more marketing, sometimes through advertising, sometimes through editorial about the sport, a new course or eg. the Franchisee of the Year. We've also grown a lot in our maintenance, our greenkeeping. We don't always manage to achieve the quality of the best Irish courses (stimp 11), but our courses are still beautiful. Every time we design a new course, we manage to improve on previous designs, inspired by every new location.
Is where Pitch and Putt is now in Holland in line with your original expectations, better than you anticipated? Falling short of your expectations?
EJ: When we started, I was 28 - young and ambitious. Our original goal was to open 20 courses in the first 5 years. How wrong were we! In reality, being an entrepreneur is harder than I realised. It starts with an original idea and free-thinking. Then, you're starting to be influenced by other people around you. As Henry Ford once said: "If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said 'faster horses'."
Other people's opinions, however well-meaning, can throw you off-course. Luckily, the older I get, the more comfortable it feels to stay focused on our own vision. Of course it helps enormously that I am now surrounded by excellent people who are helping to make this vision a reality.
Has your own involvement in the Pitch&Putt project and in the NPPB changed?
EJ: Yes, I have definitely taken more of a back-seat in the sport itself. I have been a board member at the EPPA/FIPPA for many years and still am at the NPPB too, although mainly involved on a strategic level. Neither do I compete anymore at the various competitions, apart from my home-course Koekange. Once a year, I also compete in Leeuwarden with my dad and two kids, as a flight in the Frisian Texas Scramble Tournament. Finishing 11th has been our best placement, but we love it every time. Difficult course though, Leeuwarden - a links course.
What are your proud of over the past 15 years? What would you have done differently?
Haha - I could and perhaps would have done many things differently, but you'll never know whether that would have been any better. In general, I am very proud of what we've managed to achieve, but tend to approach things in a non-plussed, practical manner. It's never been easy and still isn't. Yet, we started with 1 course and now there are 25 - not a mean feat, and something to be proud of. Many people have experienced the joy of playing P&P and that's a much better way of earning your living than inventing the shotgun, right? Most of the time you don't pause and reflect, but sometimes you find yourself on one of the courses, simply enjoying the layout, the natural environment and the beautifully kept greens. Moments like that, you realise you've contributed to this and, just before reality kicks in again, you feel rather proud.
What is the relationship between Pitch and Putt and the Dutch business community, between Pitch and Putt and the Dutch government/local authorities; between Pitch and Putt and the Dutch media?
EJ: Still a long way to go. Compared with eg. football and regular golf, we still have a lot of progress to make. Especially because we are a recreational leisure activity, we continuously need to improve our visibility as a sport. After 15 years, a whole generation is now growing up with a P&P course nearby. For them, it's normal to play P&P with your friends every now and then, as part of their leisure activities. That's a major improvement on where we started, when we were totally unknown. We do however need to continue to show the previous generation they can include P&P as part of an active lifestyle well into an old-age. In comparison to 1998, P&P features in the press a lot more often, and I expect this will help us grow our visibility in the years to come.
To conclude, a reflection on other Pitch and Putt matters?
EJ: Pitch and Putt for me, is still the ideal activity and sport. Everything I felt and saw during my first round of P&P (in Blackpool, England) is still very true today - playing P&P doesn't take a lot of time, is a great social activity and gets you outside. I rarely play internationally anymore, so I'm not as close to the international circuit as I once was. Naturally, I know IPPA and FIPPA exist and hopefully they will merge one day. I think it would be fantastic if a strong character in the world of P&P would emerge to drive International P&P. Although a long term project, there's a lot of room for progress with this. It's a wonderful experience to visit an international course with a group of friends - I can really recommend it. Despite the slow economy, if your club team can find a low-budget flight to Holland, every club here will find members to host your visit and put you up for the duration of your trip. And with happy hour every day at one of our courses, these trips won't have to cost the earth! So P&P Holland would love to welcome you all ...
