I met with Brendan at the lovely Las Américas golf course in the centre of Las Américas in Tenerife. To be honest we could have been in a country club rather than a busy town centre golf course. We sat on the raised balcony outside the restaurant, overlooking the 18th green in 22 degrees, the perfect setting for our chat.
After leaving Clonkeen College in Dublin, Ireland Brendan joined a merchant bank and was on track to complete a career in banking, but like most things in life fate kicked in and his career path was changed. Whilst at the bank he was asked one day if he would be interested in showing a group of wealthy American tourists round some of the better Golf courses on behalf of the Irish tourist board as they had just started “Golf Ireland”, a new initiative to bring American golfers to Ireland. Brendan, a good golfer as a young man playing off low single figures, jumped at the idea. It was a chance to play some of the best courses and get paid for it; little did they know this would change the path of his future career.
The trips were a great success and within a few years Brendan was offered a senior position with a newly founded company to represent Canadian & American golf tour operators in Ireland and the company went from strength to strength. Then disaster struck – Lockerbie and the American bombing in Libya in 1997. After this occurrence the tap was effectively turned off as American and Canadian golfers decided it was safer to stay within their own boundaries rather than travel to Europe. The company which managed to survive the crisis still continues today but Brendan decided to leave in those dark days to find pastures new.
Tenerife was the next stop on Brendan’s career as the new Sales and Marketing Manager for a new real estate development on Golf Del Sur called Sunningdale. Brendan said “I spent 7 years there and settled down into local life and of coarse learned to be fluent in the Spanish language”. Next, the neighbouring complex Las Adelfas subsequently lured Brendan to work as General Manager of their Tenerife operation for a period of 9 years.
La Gomera, the picturesque island off the coast of Tenerife, was the next stop on his career ladder going to work with Fred Olsen at the JardÃn Tecina Hotel and Golf Course as Sales Director. He spent two years there in a job he loved, but its a small island and I’m sure island fever got to him and he returned to the mainland of Tenerife this time as Sales and Marketing director of one of the most exclusive 5* hotels in the Canary Islands, Hotel Las Madrigueras. The Hotel Las Madrigueras is a small luxurious golf hotel overlooking Golf Las Américas golf course.
That brings us to his present position as Commercial Director of Golf Las Americas golf course, a stunning 18 hole golf facility in the south of Tenerife, with an attached newly purpose built conference centre. Golf Las Américas is one of the best and busiest courses on the island of Tenerife with all the modern facilities you would expect at such a prestigious establishment. Apart from the day to day running Brendan has to deal with the tour operators and hotel groups who send customers to the course, also in the promotion of the groups business interests both here in Tenerife and abroad attending the many golf fairs and Expos throughout Europe and beyond.
He is also heavily involved with the Tenerife Golf Association which promotes all of the island’s golf courses and runs the premier golf tournament every year called Tenerife and La Gomera Golf Circuit. Since Brendan has started at the course he has already got to work by assisting in the introduction of a new web site, also linking into the social media of Twitter and Face book. I am sure customers will see the benefits as they visit Las Américas Golf Course in the future. One such benefit, which I revealed, is the total closure of the golf course for two months in the summer to relay all 18 greens and practice facilities with a fantastic new grass.
Brendan mentioned as I was leaving that a great inspiration in his life has been the cyclist Lance Armstrong, whom he has met on several occasions. Lance brought the whole cycling team Astana to Tenerife as a winter training camp, staying of course at The Hotel Madrigueras. Lance Armstrong, a cancer survivor himself, founded a charity in 1997 called The Lance Armstrong Foundation. This foundation and its founder mean a lot to Brendan.
There is more to come from this man in his new position and I look forward to seeing it.
Keep up to date with Golf Las Americas on their Blog and check out their Google Profile. You can also become a fan of theirs on Facebook and follow them on various Social Media sites including Twitter, Youtube and Flickr.
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