R&A Insight - Zoe Ridgway

To celebrate International Women’s Day today (Friday 8 March), we continue our new blog series with R&A staff by speaking to Zoe Ridgway.??

As Championship Director for the AIG Women’s Open – which returns to the Old Course in St Andrews this August – Zoe holds an exciting role within the wider golf industry as the major championship continues to evolve. Please meet Zoe…?

What does International Women’s Day mean to you?? ?

For me, International Women’s Day is an opportunity to reflect on the journey women have made in golf, especially given it has traditionally been a male dominated sport. It is a chance to think about pioneers of the women’s sport like those who established St Andrews Ladies’ Putting Club (originally known as the St Andrews Ladies Golf Club), the first-ever women’s golf club, or the 13 founders of the LPGA. It’s a chance to reflect on the talented women who forged a path at the very elite level of the sport like Dame Laura Davies, Catriona Matthew, Annika Sorenstam or Karrie Webb. It’s also a time to think about those women who broke down even more barriers on the way to inclusivity, I am thinking trailblazers like Helen Hicks who was the first woman to have a sponsorship, Babe Zaharias who was the first woman to compete against men, Althea Gibson and Renee Powell who were the first African-American players on the LPGA and Se Ri Pak who was the first Korean to win a major title and inspire a whole generation who have gone on to dominate the sport.??

In professional golf, the future continues to be bright with stars like Georgia Hall, Charley Hull, the Korda sisters and Rose Zhang demonstrating that these women are elite athletes. However, this is also a time to look to the future and realise more can be done as we continue to strive towards parity. I am proud that the AIG Women’s Open prize fund has grown by more than 175% since The R&A and AIG partnered together on the championship. But there is still work to be done towards parity, especially as the money in the men’s side of the sport continues to increase at unprecedented levels.???

At grassroots level, we have also seen progress being made in participation rates amongst women, especially post the Covid-19 pandemic. Participation statistics released by The R&A last year showed that 20% of adult golfers on full-length courses in GB&I were female in 2022 compared to 15% in 2019. There is a huge opportunity for the golf industry to inspire more women to play golf, enjoy it socially and compete at the elite level but also to work within the golf industry. I think what is most exciting is that women represent possibly the largest opportunity for the industry.? ? ??

Tell us about your role as Championship Director for the AIG Women’s Open and what it entails.? ?

The AIG Women’s Open is a major championship which celebrates women and is on a constant path of evolution. It’s an incredibly exciting Championship to work on. My role as Championship Director is vast but broadly I am responsible for the staging and operational delivery of the Championship. This includes everything from ensuring we have the very best facilities for our athletes, to having enough bathrooms on site for the large crowds in attendance.?From building hospitality structures which provide the premium experience our partners and guests are looking for, to ensuring that the general public can get to the venue safely. The enhanced spectator experience that we launched at Walton Heath last year, which featured a Festival Village and headline concert, has also added new interest and challenge to my day-to-day work life.??

I am now delving into the world of concert permits and music artist management. But the AIG Women’s Open is a huge international sporting event and music experience so, of course, I do not work in isolation. I am very lucky to be surrounded by talented colleagues with expertise in many different areas. To work with these passionate people, as a team, to build this Championship is what makes it so rewarding. The anticipation we experience? before the players arrive, and then again before opening the gates to spectators on Wednesday, to sitting down on Sunday night having seen everything come together for players and fans to enjoy is a great feeling… then we start work on dismantling it all the next day!???

This role is also all about forward planning and problem solving. What makes golf such a unique sport is that we change venues each year and that no two golf courses are the same, it’s not like football or tennis where you have predetermined layouts. We cannot copy and paste what we did at Walton Heath last year and bring it to St Andrews this year or Royal Porthcawl next year. Each venue requires you to look at it creatively and see how you can build a world class championship which will test the very? best golfers, entertain the avid golfer and inspire the next generation. It’s this variance that keeps me excited. No two days are the same!??

Have you always had a passion for golf? Please provide a flavour of your career to date.? ?

I started playing golf when I was 14 years old and quickly became hooked on the sport. I never really considered a career in golf because, aside from playing professionally, I didn’t realise there were any other career paths available.?I did a degree in Spanish (aun hablo un poquito) and when I finished University I started looking for a job. It was then that I realised there are so many different career opportunities in the golf industry. International Sports Management Ltd (ISM), a sports agency managing golfers and promoting events, was located close to where I grew up and so I sent my CV with a cover letter asking to be made aware of any job opportunities. I was delighted when they offered me a dual role as Events Assistant and Personal Assistant to the Sales and Marketing Director. That role launched my career in the golf industry and I’ve never looked back. It was at ISM where I discovered my passion for events and during my 15-year tenure I worked my way up to Head of Events. It was from there that I joined The R&A nearly six years ago. I feel like I have been fortunate to capitalise on opportunities when they have come my way, but it’s also been hard work and dedication which has seen me into my current role as Championship Director of the AIG Women’s Open.?

How proud are you of the growth of the AIG Women’s Open on and off the course in recent years?? ?

It has been fantastic to see the Championship grow year-on-year. The R&A’s focus has been on elevating the AIG Women’s Open to a world class championship. We have evolved the players’ experience to ensure they play on the best courses in the UK and for substantial and growing prize funds. We now provide a bespoke player clubhouse which delivers all the facilities a modern high-performing athlete needs. This includes a gym which focuses on preparation and recovery, menus designed by nutritional experts that also reflect the dietary preferences of the most international field in women’s golf, leading sports doctors and physios available for consults, a concierge service which can be used to do everything from booking restaurants to sourcing new orthopaedic mattresses for hotel rooms, as well as childcare services.??

Whilst a strong focus will always be placed on the player experience we are also now turning our attention to other aspects of the Championship and in particular the spectator experience. Last year we launched our new-look Festival Village which created a spectator environment not seen in UK golf before. Entertainment was at the forefront of all aspects of the village with more interactive activities for all ages and golfing ability. It was a hub of colour and fun with music, mini-golf, hitting bays, the sessions stage, graffiti wall, scavenger hunt, video games, lawn games and AIG Women’s Radio broadcasting live for the first time. The live music concert headlined by Ellie Goulding was just the icing on the cake for the Championship. People were able to watch world class golf, enjoy a fun family day out and then close off the day by experiencing a BRIT Award winner perform.??

Showcasing the world’s best golfers is always front and centre of all we do but we also want to attract large crowds to cheer them on – that has been a large motivator for creating this new spectator experience. We are proud that it is starting to grow the appeal of the Championship, last year we welcomed 51,000 spectator to Walton Heath, that was a 53% growth in attendance compared to Muirfield in 2022. This year, being at the Old Course in St Andrews, the home of golf, we hope to continue the momentum the AIG Women’s Open is building. ??

What has been the biggest highlight in your role so far???

There have been so many it’s hard to know where to start! I have loved all the venues we have visited since I took on this role in 2020, working with the host venues is one of my favourite parts of the job. Collaborating with so many passionate individuals across the industry to build this Championship is just so rewarding. I think one venue which will always standout is working with the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers at Muirfield. They were just so supportive and passionate about the Championship. Ten years ago a women’s major championship being played at Muirfield would have been unlikely, but collectively we were able to create a really historic and special moment for the AIG Women’s Open. Then, what we achieved last year at Walton Heath will always be special and a moment I reflect back on in the future.??

We really set ourselves a challenge of creating something new and different, we were being ambitious and taking a risk. We spent so many months, actually it was almost two years from inception to delivery, working on the spectator experience, so seeing the new style Festival Village come to life was just phenomenal. Seeing it busy and fans of all ages engaging with the new activations was just so fantastic but it was also a relief that people were engaging with our vision.??

What can fans expect when the AIG Women’s Open returns to St Andrews in August??

The chance to see the world's best women golfers competing at the most iconic venue in golf. The Festival Village will provide a fun environment for all the family to enjoy and opportunities to celebrate women’s sport more widely. There will be a concert again on the Saturday night, I can’t say who just yet, but I promise we will be delivering another really exciting performer for everyone to sing and dance along to.??

You came through the first cohort of The R&A’s Women in Golf Leadership Programme, part of the Women in Golf Charter. How much has that Programme helped your career and what would you say to other women looking at starting the Programme?? ?

The programme is incredible and I feel very privileged to have been a part of the first cohort. ?Meeting other women working in the industry has been fantastic – we are still in touch and enjoy celebrating the successes of those in the group.?The programme included coaching sessions and I also had a mentor supporting me.?I benefitted immensely from the coaching and mentoring, in particular, as it gave me an opportunity to put into practice the theory we had learned in a supported environment.?In the past five years, 140 women from 34 countries have completed the Leadership Development and Foundation programmes and it continues to go from strength to strength. Over 1,300 organisations across the world have also signed up to the Women in Golf Charter.?Companies need diversity in their leadership teams and it has been great to see The R&A investing in this programme with a view to increasing the number of women in leadership positions in the sport in the future.?I would highly recommend the programme to anyone who has the chance to get involved!?

For more information on the AIG Women’s Open, please click here.

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