Andrew Brooks is confident that golf in Bermuda has a bright future.

In the second of a two-part interview, the Port Royal director of golf gives an upbeat assesment of the future of the game on the Island, and what is being done to make Bermuda a premier golf destination.

And while the global recession may have affected golf tourism numbers in the short-term, Brooks doesn't believe this is necessarily a completely negative situation.

"I look at this whole situation that we are in now as an opportunity to improve what we have got," he said, "to take stock of what we have, and all the golf products in Bermuda . . . everything is on the up."

However, he does believe that there needs to be a hard look taken at the realities of golf in Bermuda, and what it will take to attract golfers in the future.

"It is a world sport at the moment which is in recession," said Brooks. "People are hanging back and are not playing golf, and that's an economic downturn that is creating the situation that we are all facing.

"And I think it is important to get across that whereas (before) people were taking two, maybe three, holidays, they're now taking one. People have disposable income, but they are just more aware of where they use it, and that's where it leads into Bermuda and what we do here.

"Effectively people are looking at product, everybody is price sensitive, everybody is looking at getting a bang for their buck, and that is what we have to deliver as a golf resort in Bermuda – value for money."

For Brooks, the key is in upgrading the courses that the Island has to offer, and then making sure the rest of the world knows about it.

"I think that shows with what Port Royal have done with a view to the upgrades," he said. "The old Port Royal was a great golf course, but it was tired, and if you're Mr Smith who's travelling, and asking yourself 'do I go to Myrtle Beach, do I go to Bermuda, do I go over to the West Coast', you're going to travel where you get the best product.

"And I think Port Royal, with hosting the Grand Slam, with the investment that has been put into it, now starts to flag up on people's screens. And there is a knock on from that because people then look to come and play Mid Ocean, Riddell's Bay, Tucker's, and that view is what we want people to be looking at.

"The key is to creating a better golf product on the Island, better service, better surfaces to play on."

However, it's not just the overseas market that has to be catered for, local golfers too need to be encouraged back to play. In that sense Brooks wears two hats, the one running Port Royal as a resort destination, and the one running a public course.

"It's not a difficult task if it's managed correctly," he said. "From Port Royal's point of view, it is an internationally aclaimed golf course, and it is a great lay-out, and it's attractive to the overseas visitor. Putting the public hat on, what we have to try and do is make it accessable to the public to play, and it's a price sensitive market.

"But there is a cost to maintaining the course, it's also about the future of golf, it's not about today or tomorrow. The golf course has just undergone a massive refusrbishment, it's a five-year plan, and it's got to be turned around, and that's not going to happen overnight.

"The investment has been massive, there is a lot of work that has gone in, and the key to it is having an overall vision, and what you don't want to do is get ten years down the line and have to reinvest in the product again. Why would you want to do that."

And it's not just about investing in the course, it's about the structure, the people, the overall way golf is presented and run on the Island

"The key is to reinvest all the time, to improve the product," said Brooks. "And one of our policies right now is to bring some younger staff into the fold, because what we are seeing there (at Port Royal) effectively is an average age of 55. Who's going to run the place (in the future).

"The whole policy for us is to bring in young Bermudians who want to get into the golf business, because it is an exciting business, it's a rewarding business to be in, and train them up for the future of the game. Guys like Daniel Augustus, and the young professionals that are coming up, they need a future, and that's what's got to be done as well."

Brooks' over-riding message is a positive one, and although the winter has been slow, he thinks the doom and gloom merchants aren't doing the Island any favours.

"We can all sit here, and doom and gloom it, but that's not the way out of this," he said. "The way out is to look at the good things that are being done, because there are a lot of good things, look at the promotions that are being done, because they are all positive, and look at the agressiveness of some the hotels on the Island (towards attracting business), and that's starting to get people in.

"It's about getting Bermuda back on the radar, I think it lost it's way a little bit from a golf point of view, and the things that are being done are starting to put Bermuda back on the map.

"Look at the Goodwill tournament, that's 65 teams, it was down on two years ago, but put that tournament on anywhere else in the world and it probably wouldn't have taken place. The ground work is still there, and that is growth, there is nothing that isn't positive.

"Look at what we've got, Port Royal, Riddell's, Belmont, Mid Ocean, you won't scenically get better views from golf courses anywhere in the world, it's here."