GN - I can answer this question in several ways. Golf was in progress all over the world, especially in the USA. A correction has been made since the 2008 crisis, at least in the United States. In the 80s and 90s, a lot of golf courses were built and because of the crisis the big multinationals like Nike, Adidas suffered a significant drop in income - especially for equipment, clubs and balls.

But what we are seeing today is strong growth among millennials, 12 to 13% which is positive and will be confirmed over the next 10 years. Another positive sign in the US is the inventory of gated communities with golf courses which is stable and we are seeing new owners arriving in these communities and investing. It will take time but in the next 3 to 5 years we will see the difference.

Last comment, in the USA in the world of golf, we will see what will happen if Trump wins, From an economic point of view, everything should be much better and therefore golf will benefit. If Democrats go under their current model, the golf industry will not get better.

Photo: © TPlassais / Swing-Feminin.com

SF - Since your victory at the French Open on the Saint-Cloud golf course in 1980, have you had the opportunity to come back to France? Have you played on the Golf National? 

No, I haven't had the opportunity to come back to France since. But we are currently studying partnership possibilities in France for the construction of a new resort.

I cannot give too many details but we look in the south of France and in the Alps in the hotel industry - ski for the Alps and Golf for the south of France. I cannot reveal everything but it is a partnership with a French company.

Europe interests me, we have seen the changes in the Middle East. We will open in Jordan and in Croatia we will start the construction of new courses.

Q - Right now we are seeing a drop in licensees around the world. As a golf course designer, how can we democratize this sport and find more licensees to make it more fun - fewer holes on the courses for example?

Again there are several factors to take into account.

Young people must come and play golf for sure. We are studying the possibility of making shorter routes - 6 and 6 instead of 9 and 9. All this we are already doing.

Golfing is not a fun sport. Above all, we need to allow them not to be like their parents. They must be able to come as they are - with their cell phones, dress as they wish - this is how we are going to attract young people - more freedom is needed for the new generations.

We must not make courses too simple because we will lose the golfers that we already have.

SF - How many golf courses have you built in the Bahamas?

Two, South Ocean and Sandals Emerald Bay.

To build courses in the Bahamas you need water - which is complicated, you need pumps and therefore energy.

But the environment is incredible with the white sand and the blue of the ocean. Sandals hole 9 is one of the top three in the world for me.

SF - Did you watch the tournament at the Olympic Games, did you enjoy it? What did you think of the attitude of some players - like the best players in the world who did not come to the Olympics?

GN - Yes, I looked. I think it went very well. There were quite a few uncertainties as to how people would welcome the sport to the Games, how some top players withdrew for the wrong reasons, and a dark task.

But when you look at what happened in the men, the final was great, you felt the tension - that's what's interesting. Golf has a trial period of two Olympic Games so we hope that in Tokyo we will have the top players and that people will say yes golf should be at the Olympics.
I think that some players who have made negative comments would like to withdraw them and I think that golf should be part of the Olympic Games.

SF - What do you think of the young generation of golfers? Do you have players that you particularly follow? Would you have liked to play with new club and ball technologies now?

The answer may seem strange, but no. In each generation, we all play with the best technology - the generation before me also had the best equipment.

I know what I would have played the same way with today's technologies but I couldn't have done what I did, like playing with the ball like I did with my equipment . Equipment nowadays helps to be good but not with as much precision. The difference is that we had to be so precise with our swing, today we can miss a shot and still make a good shot.

What would be interesting would be to take today's players and have them use our gear and see how they fare. (Laughs)

They would need time to adapt…

SF - For a course like that of Sandals Emerald Bay, how many years of reflection, preparation and realization are necessary?

5 minutes !!

No, first I start at the end. When I got here there was nothing. A superb beach, the vision of building a hotel. But I put myself at 18^e hole and I saw where the departure and the Club House would be.

Always make the last hole the most memorable.

We made 2-3 drawings, some need around thirty. Here he was waiting for us. Everything was there. Sandals is the 5th^rd owner of this course and they take great care of it and thanks to them many people come to play here.

The first 12 holes are truly exceptional.

SF - If we had a plot and we would like to have a Greg Norman course, how much would it cost?

GN - It depends. If you give a plot on a sand dune and perfect weather conditions, we can build: two options - Signature and Eco Signature as we did in Jordan.

For a Signature course count around 1.2 million dollars, for an Eco Signature golf this can go up to 1.8 Million dollars.

For the construction as such, without big maneuver of ground, one can build a course for 5,5 / 6 million US dollars.

In Colorado for example, we have built a course in 3 summers, because the ground freezes in winter. In the end it cost us 1,5 million US dollars per hole.

In Asia, we worked on the construction of a course on the sides of an extinct volcano. It was a huge undertaking - the price the course cost was incredible. The owner had no budget limit.

SF - Do you think the Europeans have a chance against the Americans who are revenge for the Ryder Cup?

Yes quite !!

SF - In the different activities of your group - the design of golf courses, wines, a textile line for golf. Which activity is the most important financially and which takes the most time?

I am very involved in the design of the courses because it is my first passion. There is nothing more exciting than taking virgin land and transforming it into what the customer wants. The course design has opened up a lot of opportunities for my company.

I have 45 courses under contract worldwide and 18 currently under construction. So I see what golf is getting because I know where the investments are and are going in the world.

When it comes to wine and clothing, there are licenses and partnerships.

Wine is a partnership (joint venture) with two wine producers, one in Australia and one in California. We buy the bunches, we produce it and we sell it.

For clothing, we took a license, we are involved - Marketing and PR, because my name is on it.

But all of this is very exciting because we have a lot of projects going on all over the world.

Q - You are very fit, you can see that you like fitness - do you have as clear a vision of the world of fitness as you have of the world of golf? Would you like to take part in the world of fitness?

Fitness for me is a part of my life, I train 5 days a week in the afternoon.

I need it to breathe and think about the projects to validate. For golf I did fitness and I saw the benefits. And I continue because there is nothing better than getting up in the morning and feeling strong and fit. Golf has damaged my body a lot and if I stop fitness I think I will feel it.

Regarding fitness, we are studying projects for in 18 months ...

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