ASIA: Gray and Calver Spearhead New AGIF Board

Singapore: Chris Gray and Adam Calver will continue to spearhead the Asian Golf Industry Federation (AGIF) for a further two years.

At the Federation’s 14th Annual General Meeting, Gray and Calver were re-elected unopposed to the positions of President and Vice-President of the AGIF for a second term.

“These are exciting times for the AGIF and, together with the new Board of Directors, Adam and I look forward to continuing to take the next steps in development toward a sustainable industry,” said Gray, Head of Sustainable Golf & Agronomy, Asia-Pacific at The R&A.

Calver, Chief Operating Officer at Faldo Design, added: “For 2024, we’ve identified additional educational and regional networking events for greenkeeping and club management, in addition to the AGIF Conference in Hanoi in September.”

While Henry Ng, Regional Manager Asia for Suståne Natural Fertilizer, was re-elected to the Board, three newcomers were welcomed – Toro’s Gareth Knight, Singapore Island Country Club’s Michael Wong, and Centaur Asia Pacific’s Bryan Littlejohn.

“We’re delighted to have Gareth, Michael and Bryan join our Board of Directors. They all have a wealth of experience in the industry in Asia and we look forward to their contributions in the months and years ahead,” said Gray.

Knight is a 29-year veteran of the sports turf industry, during which time he’s worked in golf course management, agronomy, sales, leadership, and consultancy.

Knight, who graduated from Torrens University last June with an MBA in Innovation and Leadership, has spent the past 6½ years as Senior Sales Manager at The Toro Company for Asia.

With 25 years of expertise in greenkeeping, sales and service within the turf management industry, Littlejohn has honed his skills in helping others maintain pristine golf courses and sports turf.

After spells at clubs in his native Scotland (Inchmarlo Golf Resort and Portlethen Golf Club), New Zealand (The Hills Golf Club and Wanaka Golf Club) and Singapore (Raffles Country Club), Littlejohn joined Centaur Asia Pacific nine years ago.

For the past six years he’s run sales and services, spanning Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, representing brands such as Rain Bird, Jacobsen, Soil Scout, CapillaryFlow and EcoBunker, all AGIF member companies.

A former Singapore national team player and teaching professional, Wong is currently Director of Golf & Sports at Singapore Island Country Club (SICC).

Prior to joining SICC, he spent 17 years with International Management Group, planning and executing more than 60 professional tournaments in the Asia Pacific region.

“I look forward to contributing my efforts to the AGIF to ensure golf clubs and industry partners within the region are aligned and able to work closely together for a better future,” he said.