Anders Mankert: “It takes time and effort to do PGA Excel – but they're the people I want to employ”

09/05/2025

The owner of Leicester Golf Centre explains why The PGA’s pathway for progression is so important to the profession and the industry as a whole

He’s the owner of one of the country’s most progressive golf facilities. At Leicester Golf Centre, Anders Mankert operates a driving range and golf course that has no dress codes, very few rules, and runs on the premise that the sport is for all.

It’s an approach that has won him numerous accolades and a reputation for being enterprising in a game that is working hard to shed its traditionalist image.

But it’s not just in the bays or on the fairways and greens that Mankert is forward-thinking. He has embraced PGA Excel and has urged his fellow PGA Professionals to come on board. He says it’s only a matter of time before the process becomes an industry standard.

PGA Excel is a pathway to progression. It rewards PGA Members for their impact and inspires them to reach their potential.

Different membership designations are awarded through PGA Excel and it gives members the chance to promote and differentiate themselves from others.

It is also increasingly being used by employers as a way of being able to measure achievement. The highest designation within PGA Excel is Master status. There are only 65 Master Professionals, with Mankert becoming the latest to receive the accolade.

Speaking to fellow Members about PGA Excel on The GBQ Podcast with Sarah Stirk, he said: “You must do it. Just log in and start filling in your accomplishments and achievements."

He added: “Eventually we’re getting to a point where separation of your skillset or your qualification is going to be a must. As an employer, I’m already looking at the PGA Excel programme for who I employ next.

“I’m going to be honest with you. I will expect a pro that comes to work for me to be an Advanced Professional or upwards. I’m not the only one.

“This is going to be an industry wide programme now, and if you are able to separate yourself, it's going to set you apart in terms of jobs that you can find in the industry.”

He continued: “The best people will have gone through this process. It takes time, it takes effort, but they’re the people I want to employ.

“I want to employ the people who have got that desire, that drive, that ambition. That's what this [PGA Excel] is showing me.

“If I can see somebody as an Advanced PGA pro, or a Fellow of The PGA, I know what type of person they are. If they’ve taken the time and they’ve achieved enough to achieve that status, I know they’re in my gang. They’re in my team.

“I’m not the only one. Everybody's going to be doing that, aren't they?"

Mankert said: “It just separates you. It says something about you. It tells the employer or the company that this is somebody that's driven. This is somebody we want on board, somebody who's proactive. It tells you everything.”