It’s as if Todd Chant is driving on to a wide fairway with the wind at his back on a short Par 4.

The head of Sydney-based Easy Golf Tour isn’t under-estimating the task in front of him next year, but his two-year-old company is gaining momentum and he is optimisitc about its prospects in the 2020 golf season.

Easy Golf Tour has developed software that helps golf courses administer the tournaments they hold several times each season. So far it has been used at more than 1,000 events at 65 golf courses, and Chant is striking partnerships with more provincial golf associations which is underpinning his optimism for next season.

“What they realize is we’re adding a huge value to the golf courses for a minimal price, and the golf associations like that we give them a value-add that they’ve never had before,” said Chant in an interview this week.

Speaking after Easy Golf Tour appeared at MentorCamp in Charlottetown last week, Chant said the company has made headway so far because it had partnerships in place through the 2019 golf season with provincial golf associations in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Saskatchewan. Now it has signed agreements with the associations in Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba and Alberta, and is in late-stage talks with the Ontario golf body.

What’s more, Easy Golf Tour has responded to a major request-for-proposal put out by Golf Canada, which could transform the business. Chant has already worked with the national organization at the Canadian Junior Golf Championships in Hartland, N.B., in August.

“Our revenue this year was up 10 times from last year, and we hope that we get it up 10 times for next year also,” said Chant.

So far, Easy Golf Tour has built up its customer base with what Chant refers to as the first phase of its product. It’s an integrated platform that simplifies the whole process of staging a golf tournament. The system lets course members sign up for a tournament, and arranges and announces the draw, so all golfers know when they’re teeing off. It posts scores online, and notifies players of special messages. It can even send the media the results of a tournament.

Now, Chant is focused on a second phase, which allow courses to automate their tee-time management, and their point-of-sales operations. He hopes to release these features in time for the 2020 season.

Chant, who spent 18 years overseeing an IT company that carried out projects for golf courses, is heading the development team bringing the product to life, meaning he is now CEO and Chief Technology Officer. The other senior people on the team are CFO Kevin Chant (Todd’s brother) and CMO Pat Laderoute.

The team is now working on a funding round of about $400,000 and has secured commitments of $50,000 so far. As the company grows, it aims to bring on either a new CEO or CTO, so Chant can hand off some of his current duties and focus on the other position.

With the new product in place, Chant is hoping to complete his coverage of the Canadian market then, in 2021, he intends to move into the larger market of the U.S., in such states as Florida, Texas and Arizona.  

He said: “We want to be 100 percent sure that our product is working perfectly before we hit a major market like the U.S.”