The Royal Golf Club Golf Professionals

Meet the Pros


 Chris Kelby - Head PGA Teaching Professional

Chris comes from Grantham in Lincolnshire, UK. He started playing golf at the age of 9 but also had a strong interest in rugby, cricket and football. He even played for the Nottingham Forest junior squad as a teenager. By the age of 15 Chris had managed to get his golf handicap down to just 8 and represented his county on numerous occasions over the next few years in various school and under-21s golf tournaments. By the age of 19 Chris had decided to concentrate on golf for a career and started work at Belton Park Golf Club as a trainee assistant professional. 

In 2002 Chris took up a position as a PGA teaching professional at the Abu Dhabi Golf & Equestrian Club where he enjoyed teaching people from a diverse range of nationalities and cultures. He joined Riffa Golf Club in 2004 and became instrumental in expanding and improving the junior and ladies tuition programmes at the club. He was promoted to Head Teaching Professional in January 2008.

From:                                       Grantham, Lincolnshire

Age started playing golf:         9 yrs

Favourite Course:                   Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire

Favourite Tournament:            The Open Championship

Biggest influences in golf:        Nick Faldo, John Jacobs and Tiger

Favourite player of all time:     Ernie Els

Fantasy 4 ball (plus self):        Tiger Woods, Samuel L Jackson and Anna Rawson

Notable golfing achievements: County Champion at 16, holing a 9 iron for an albatross on the 3rd hole at Riffa

Best tip for a Beginner:           "Get lessons straight away, good fundamentals are the key to good golf"

 

 Martin Robinson - PGA Teaching Professional Martin hails from the Wirral, near Liverpool in the north-west of England and joins us from Caldy Golf Club. He first started playing golf seriously at the age of 14 when he joined Caldy Golf Club. Caldy is a prestigious club on the Wirral coastline close to its more famous neighbour of Hoylake. Martin remained at the club as Assistant Professional where he qualified as one of the first new PGA Professionals to graduate the updated training programme. During his time at Caldy, Martin has developed his client base to include many diverse skill levels from England juniors and county players to complete beginners.

To enhance his coaching through further study, Martin is a fully qualified NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) Sports Practitioner, which is a very practical form of sports psychology. He is also an accomplished player having competed in PGA, Exel Tour and Regional Events. Martin was also present at the recent Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, conducting coaching sessions for juniors.

From:                                       The Wirral, England

Age started playing golf:         14 yrs

Favourite Course:                   Carnoustie Golf Club, Scotland

Favourite Tournament:            The Open Championship

Biggest influences in golf:        Older brother Darren Robinson who is also a PGA Professional

Favourite player of all time:     Padraig Harrington

Fantasy 4 ball (plus self):        Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan, Padraig Harrington

Notable golfing achievements: Three 2nd place finishes in PGA competitions

Best tip for a Beginner:           "Learn how to stay in the present and only ever think about the next shot"