Member Article

Engineer’s new role applying science to the golf swing

Teesside University engineering graduate James Harper is an expert in loads, stresses, velocity and acceleration – but his new job sees him applying his scientific knowledge to golf swings instead of structures and physical materials.

James is a professional golfer and an Advanced Golf Club Fitter and has joined Ramside Hall Hotel and Golf Club in Durham as a Trainee PGA Professional.

He will study for three years to become a PGA Golf Professional, qualified to teach golf, repair clubs and run a retail business or administer a golf club.

For the past four years, James has run JH Golf – his own golf custom fitting business – which saw him specialise in matching golf equipment to the unique requirements of each golfer’s swing to help them get the most from their performance.

His business was based in Teesside at the Sports Domes in Seaton Carew but his new role will see him establish a swing studio at Ramside Hall Hotel and Golf Club in Durham including a Science and Motion laboratory which analyses every aspect of a golfer’s putting stroke.

He is also one of a small number of golf professionals in the region with the equipment to adjust the loft and lie of clubs. He has been joined at Ramside Golf Club by Kieran Ayre, 19, from Sunderland who is also undertaking his PGA Training following stints working at golf resorts in Abu Dhabi and in Northumberland.

James and Kieran’s appointments are part of a £15m development underway at the four star Durham hotel and golf resort designed to transform Ramside Hall Hotel and Golf Club into one of the leading golf, leisure and spa destinations in Northern England.

In September, parent company Ramside Estates Ltd opened the 18-hole Cathedral Course – the newest championship golf course to open in the UK – and construction is underway on a health club, spa, swimming pool and 47 new hotel bedrooms, scheduled to open in Spring 2015.

Helen Roseberry, director of golf at Ramside Hall Hotel and Golf Club, said: “These are exciting times at Ramside. The new Cathedral Course has been brilliantly received by our membership and the North East golfing public and there is a real buzz surrounding the courses and club that we intend to build upon.

James and Kieran are excellent appointments for Ramside Golf Club and represent our commitment to providing the finest golf coaching, club repair and custom fitting services to our members and visitors.“

“I’m delighted to be joining Ramside Golf Club at such an exciting moment in the club’s history. The intelligent investment in a new championship course, renovated driving range and coaching staff has built on an already outstanding reputation for quality and puts Ramside among the best places to learn, play and enjoy golf in Northern England,” said James Harper.

www.ramsidehallhotel.co.uk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Matthew Moore .