Javier del Arco

Prof. Dr. Javier del Arco

orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

4Years (2023-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

View All Publications
13 September 2023 in Sustainability
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
RMRICARDO MACIAS
RICARDO MACIAS
JBJosé Bonal
José Bonal
Jairo León-QuismondoJairo León-Quismondo
Jairo León-Quismondo
IIIyán Iván-Baragaño
Iyán Iván-Baragaño
JAJavier del Arco
Javier del Arco
AFAlvaro Fernandez-Luna
Alvaro Fernandez-Luna
Golf is among the top five sports practiced in Spain because sport tourism is one of their main lines of income. During the COVID-19 pandemic, all golf clubs had to shut down and thus enter a situation of economic uncertainty. The main objective of this study was to assess the sport management challenges that general managers of golf clubs have had to face before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic, and how they dealt with these issues. In this qualitative case study, management challenges and strategies were explored by subjecting five golf club managers with at least 5 years of experience to semi-structured interviews. Managers described that they went from a pre-pandemic situation of economic growth to having to deal with different challenges such as a lack of tourism, increased costs, and a need to install new safety and maintenance protocols. All participants highlighted the importance of constant communication with and transparency among stakeholders (clubs, government bodies, federations) during and after the lockdown period. Management during the pandemic expedited the digitization of golf clubs, and this was considered one of the main upsides of this period. Exploring the strategies used could help managers of this and other sports facilities to design sustainable management protocols to deal with possible future health or economic crises.