The European Tour star who quit to help club golfers

Steve Carroll

In his latest Club Golf Journeys, Steve Carroll travels to Mottram Hall to learn about six-time European Tour winner Simon Dyson’s new venture

Don’t we all dream of letting a tour player loose on our games – hoping that sprinkle of stardust will somehow rub off and turn us from hackers into medal winners? It’s no longer a fantasy, thanks to Simon Dyson.

Dyson won six times on the European Tour, most notably at the Home of Golf when victorious at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in 2009.

But when injury curtailed his career, he set up Elite Golf Performance at Mottram Hall to help elite amateurs and club players reach their potential.

Simon Dyson

Imparting wisdom from two decades at the top of the game, Dyson takes players through an intensive TPI screening, fitness regime and range session, as well as looking at course management, visualisation and psychology.

For our Club Golf Editor Steve Carroll, who is masquerading as a single figure golfer, the chance to improve was just too much to resist.

So he visited Dyson at his Cheshire base to find out more about his new venture…

For more information, visit the Elite Golf Performance website.

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About the author

Steve Carroll

A journalist for more than 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long.

A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A’s prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.

Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men’s Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.

A part of NCG’s Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He’d like to tell you he floats around 10. The reality is more like 13.

Steve plays at Sandburn Hall, in York, and is a country member at Close House in Newcastle. He has served on various club committees during his time in the game, and is the current Rules Secretary at Sandburn.

Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NCTJ exams at Darlington College of Technology. He began his career working on weekly papers in Newcastle, before joining the York Press in 2001. After five years as a news reporter, he joined the sports desk – specialising in horse racing and snooker – and was Digital Sports Editor when he joined National Club Golfer in 2016.

What’s in Steve’s bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; Caley 01T irons 4-PW; TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedges, Odyssey 2Ball Microhinge putter.

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