“It was so much more than a job; it was my life”

By Peter Thornton

Leo Barber is a legend of the Wellington golf scene. For the past 18 years, he’s been the face of the Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club as its superintendent and general manager. Barber has left his post to start a new job with PGG Wrightson Turf servicing turf managers in the Wellington region and growing business abroad. We sat down with him to reflect on his remarkable legacy at the “spiritual home of New Zealand golf”.

You were at Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club for 18 years, what are some of your memories of your first day in the job?

I started at Paraparaumu Beach during a period where it’s fair to say, the club was going through a low ebb in its storied history. The course had lost its way a little, not in terms of its wonderful routing but it felt unloved, and the purity of its links character seemed cluttered with softish surfaces, rouge grasses and exotic vegetation choking its dunes. The club was enduring financial stress having taken on capital projects combined with declining membership and those members didn’t seem that proud or affectionate for both their course and their club. I, on the other hand, only saw opportunity. Lots of the issues with some patience and a good plan were fixable. I also remember thinking what wonderful land it was for golf. You got a real sense that this property was special. It was just time to get to work.

What did you love about being part of the green staff and getting this course in top condition?

As members embraced the vision of improvement, it was really energising to know they were appreciative and coming along with us. You just had this sense with every little project undertaken that you were creating work that was valued and felt special. Some of the work was really just basic greenkeeping done with care and some of it was restoring lost beauty for example refurbishing the bunkers or revealing a beautiful dune that had been sitting under self-seeded pines and creating a vista. It was important to return pride into everything we did, both on course and off.

When did you progress into the role of general manager at Paraparaumu Beach and what was that change and challenge like?

The club underwent a full restructure in 2006 and that included some changes at board level and a real return to disciplined management. We had an interim manager who stepped in and overhauled a lot of the processes and took the first steps to addressing things like debt which was really restricting the club. Following an unsuccessful recruitment for a permanent manager, I was approached to see if I was interested in transferring some of the skills that were achieving results on the course, into a joint role including the general management. This was not a direction I ever saw my career taking but I also looked at it with the view of protecting the gains we were making on and off course and perhaps learning some new skills which could prolong my longevity or give me options later in my career. Those early years were really tough as I got to grips with what is a really challenging role and as someone that loves leading from the front in a hands-on capacity, learning to manage my time and the course by delegation from an office.

Paraparaumu Beach is rightfully known as one of the best golf courses in the country – what makes it special for you?

Firstly, it is great land for golf. Sandy undulating soils, perfectly scaled dunes and wonderfully natural vegetation. Secondly, the Alex Russell routing has created the perfect design for interesting golf. It has a great mix of long and short holes, clever greens complexes and really strategic options on your shot making. It also has such wonderful history and as someone that grew up down the road and attended so many of those opens during the 80s, 90s and early 2000s, you can’t help but feel you are walking in the footsteps of greatness. Champions at PB tend to be the best player rather than the luckiest.

You have made some significant change to the course – restoring it to a true links layout – you must be proud of what you’ve made over time?

I think the whole team is proud and a big part of my approach to the restoration was engendering a sense of pride into each and everything we approached. It was also laying out a vision and taking a consistent approach to tasks. I documented everything we did and it’s nice to look back with some before and after pictures because memories tend to be reasonably shallow in golf clubs and just as Churchill once famously said, “sometimes you have to look back in order to see forward.”

What are some of your proudest moments or achievements at PBGC over the past 18 years?

Helping to bring that pride back to the club that had lost a little of it's lustre. I loved developing staff and creating teams. The numerous course improvements were really satisfying and just removing the clutter without changing Russell’s routing. We were regular hosts of New Zealand amateur premier events and during my time we hosted the New Zealand men’s and women’s amateur, six New Zealand men's and women’s strokeplays, two New Zealand men’s seniors, two Interprovincial Championships (one male and one combined) and a Freyberg. I loved hosting guests from all over the world, many of whom became close friends. I was fortunate to play with the Prime Minister John Key, Steve Williams and Sir Bob Charles among some notables. I hosted the chairman of Augusta National, Dr Fred Ridley and the secretary of the R&A Peter Dawson. I was invited to speak at conferences both in New Zealand and abroad and always enjoyed the opportunity to tell the Paraparaumu Beach story. We took previously contracted services for golf and food and beverage in-house and really improved our delivery off course including a total refurbishment of the clubhouse. Retiring over a million dollars of legacy debt recently we also achieved cash surpluses every year for the past 18. There was also membership growth to over 1000 which was a historical high from a low of 650 following the 2008 global financial crisis. Maintaining, and even in some instances, improving our course ranking (both local and international) in an era where many new golf courses were constructed and all with a maintenance budget that was modest at best.

What advice would you offer any up-and-coming golf club managers in New Zealand?

Approach it for career reasons and not lifestyle! It’s a tough gig. Build networks to assist decision making and problem solving. Be present -- ultimately people want to touch, feel and talk to you. Have a strong vision and engender passion into staff and members. Try and be proactive and not reactive – easier said than done! Learn to say no but also learn how to accept praise as well as criticism.

What will you miss about being the manager of this place?

I guess ultimately it is the people I will miss the most. Often, we focus on that handful of difficult members that aren’t necessarily coming through the gates of the club for rest and recreation, but the club is full of so many great people with excellent spirit. I’ve shared incredible moments with so many members whether it’s been just a close chat in the lounge, or an unexpected interaction where they might have been sharing some praise. Also, perversely, I’ve shared some very special moments during times of illness, end of life or the tears of grown adults when they come to the end of their playing days. Over the course of 18 years, I’ve welcomed a lot of staff and seen their development, but I’ve also farewelled many and that’s really hard, particularly when they almost feel like family to you.

Although comfortable in what’s been achieved and reconciled with stepping away, I will miss having direct influence through a role that for me was so much more than a job, it was my life.

What are you looking forward to about your new role with PGG Wrightson Turf?

It’s a newly created role and was really developed with my interests at its centre. I’m a real people’s person and I’m looking forward to the relationship building that will form the foundations of future business. I’m passionate about Wellington and looking forward to servicing their turf managers. There is an international component to the role, and I am looking forward to developing business up in the Middle East as well as assisting the distribution of our seed into Australia. PGGW has a world leading breeding programme for turf specific grasses and I’m excited to share that story.

You are a proud Wellingtonian and proud of the Kapiti Coast, you must be looking forward to coming back to Paraparaumu Beach just as a golfer and enjoy a place that is very close to your heart?

It’s one of those sad aspects of the job that whilst often it’s golf that gets you interested in the career, it then becomes work, and you feel less inclined to return on your free time to engage in the pursuit. I played a lot of golf in those early years but sadly the last five or six years I’ve only been getting out 15-20 times a year as I sought out a few other interests just for some balance. I’ve got two boys that have taken up the game and I’m excited to continue to stay connected with PBGC and to get back out on the links for some “hassle free” golf!

Peter Thornton is an experienced journalist and media manager. He first worked in the golf industry producing Phillip Leishman’s television golf shows for Sky Sport. He went onto be the media and communications manager for Golf New Zealand and has worked as a journalist in all forms for the past 20 years.