Unless you are a Bulls fan, 2009 has been a year that most people want to forget. The economy struggled, house prices crashed and there was a general mood of doom and gloom amongst citizens. Little wonder then that sports clubs have also suffered as members cling onto every last cent of disposable income. But, whilst some clubs have battled with dwindling memberships, Morningside Country Club actually managed to achieve growth during this period.

Rob Zimmerman, now in his third year as Bowls Chairman and newly elected President of the club explains his reasoning behind the club’s success; “We’ve made a big push over the last couple of years to create the right kind of atmosphere at Morningside, one that caters as much for families wanting to spend some time together on the weekend as it does for competitive sportsmen and women and I think we’ve achieved that balance.”

Over the course of 2009, MCC sought alternative ways to promote the club as part of Zimmerman’s Vision 2015 initiative. “We started looking at what we could offer to people outside of the club’s members and realised that we present a great opportunity for families, businesses and individuals to host get-togethers, team-building functions and parties in a fun, safe environment. In that respect, our Barefoot Bowls tournaments have been a huge hit, allowing people to kick off their shoes and have a lot of fun together on the greens.”

Key to the sustained success of the club has been their flagship tournaments, which were once again well supported by both players and sponsors this year. The MCC Classic remains one of the top tournaments in the country, drawing the best bowlers from Gauteng and other provinces. Sandton Properties secured the naming rights in 2009 and are bound to follow it up with more sponsorship in 2010 following the success of last year’s event.

The annual Petticoat Day, an all ladies affair, has also received a massive entry this year but do not be fooled by the old-fashioned name, the tournament is legendary for its festive atmosphere and outrageous themes.

Additional to the family oriented atmosphere and the festive tournaments, it is the club’s sporting success that still remains a big draw card for competitive bowlers. When both of MCC’s division two teams achieved promotion for the 2008/2009 season, it was widely expected that they would battle with the depth required to keep both teams in the fiercely contested premiere division. In the end they not only achieved their goal of remaining in the premiere division but finished a very credible third and seventh respectively. The results raised a few eyebrows and attracted some top bowlers to the club allowing them to set their sights even higher this year.

Boosted by their new depth, MCC added another Women’s team as well as a Men’s Pennant side and, with a fourth green set to go live at the beginning of next year; they look set to grow further in 2010. If they managed to achieve all of this in the tough conditions of 2009 then I would not bet against them doing it either.