How I ended up in this conversation
Michael runs The Backdrop, a podcast that gets into events, hospitality and the people building live experiences across the region. Thirty minutes, one conversation, no script. We covered the move from PGA Professional to running events and partnerships at Five Iron UAE, and what I've learned building something in a market that didn't have it before.
Golf isn't staying on the course
The biggest shift I keep coming back to is that golf doesn't have to look like golf anymore to work as golf. Simulator bays in Business Bay, evening leagues, corporate nights that run more like a live event than a tee time. The game is the hook, but what people are actually buying is the experience around it. That's the whole premise Five Iron is built on, and it's why an indoor concept can compete with the outdoor game in a market as course rich as this one.
Communities, not just customers
A venue that only works as a one off booking doesn't last. The ones that work are the ones where people come back because their group is there, their league is there, their regular Thursday night is there. We got into how you build that deliberately rather than hoping it happens, and why community is the actual retention strategy, not the marketing angle bolted on afterward.
Partnerships that mean something
I talk about this a lot because I believe it: a brand partnership that's just a logo on a banner is a wasted booking for everyone involved. The ones that work give the partner something real, whether that's access to a room full of the right people or an experience their own clients will actually remember. We walked through a few examples of what that looks like in practice and why it changes how a sponsorship gets measured.
Customer experience comes first
Every decision at Five Iron UAE gets run through one filter: does this make the two hours someone spends with us better. Not does it look good, not does it fit the brand deck. Does the guest leave wanting to come back. That's the whole conversation when it comes to experience, and it's the part I'd want anyone building something in hospitality to take away from this.
Where this is headed
We closed on where golf and entertainment go from here, and I think the honest answer is further into each other, not apart. More venues, more formats, more ways for people who've never picked up a club to end up in the game anyway. That's the bet we're making with Yas Bay and everywhere after it.
Thanks to Michael and the team for having me on. Full episode is above, or head to The Backdrop Podcast on YouTube.
