Ian Perry, the new chairman of Cirencester Golf Club, readily admits that he plays the game for fun, but he also says that when it comes to the business of managing a golf club he is very serious.

And that’s very important in his new role at a club that was established as long ago as 1893, because the job of chairman involves dealing with the club’s finances and making sure that all the important figures add up.

Fortunately, Perry, who is 67, has spent a lifetime working in business, so when Emma Brereton stood down as chairman in September, he was the ideal candidate to step up.

It’s the first time he’s taken on such a position in sport and he said: “It’s an interesting golf club as it is a limited company rather than a full members club. We’re a business and my job is to run it as a business, but we try to involve the members as much as possible.

“As directors our job is to provide a golf course and amenities for the members of the golf club.”

The chairman also supports the golf side of things as well – Mark Bissett has recently taken over as the men’s golf captain – and Perry continued: “The captain and his committee manage the golf, the board and I manage the business; we think it’s a good model for a successful club.”

And Perry, the son of Don Perry who did so much for sport in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire and the South West for many, many years, will certainly have plenty to do as chairman of Cirencester Golf Club Ltd.

“You’ve got all the responsibility of running a medium-sized enterprise with a turnover of about £1m,” he said. “When recruiting directors the board looks for the right people to run a business.”

And while the business side of things will clearly take up a significant amount of his time going forward, the one thing Perry won’t do is stop playing golf.

“I play two or three times a week,” he said. “I’m an average golfer, I play off 18. I don’t aspire to be a great golfer but I enjoy playing all sports.”

Perry, who was born and raised in Cheltenham – he lives in Charlton Kings – first started playing golf when he was about 10, although it has to be said that for the young Perry it wasn’t just a case of picking up a club, having a swing and away you go.

“I’m a left-hander, but in those days I had to play right-handed,” he said, “there weren’t any left-handed clubs around.

“It wasn’t until I was about 16 that I was given a few left-handed wooden shafted clubs.”

Perry does wonder what would have happened if he had remained a right-hander – “I could bat both ways at cricket,” he said – although he also adds that it felt more natural to play left-handed.

Despite those early challenges, he has fond memories playing golf in his formative days.

“I used to go to the children’s lessons at Cleeve Hill,” he recalled. “I was a junior member of Cotswold Hills and I used to catch the bus from the town centre. I’d go into the practice shed with the other kids and the pro would watch us hit balls into the netting.”

The one-time Cheltenham Grammar School pupil was a member at Cotswold Hills for some 35 years before switching to Cirencester around the turn of the century.

And he’s certainly enjoyed his golf wherever he’s played.

“It’s a great game, it’s a great leveller,” he said. “I’ve got five children and three of them play occasionally. You can play with anyone because of the handicap system, you can enjoy yourself and have a competitive match, followed by a drink or two.

“I played a lot of golf with my dad, he played off 14.”

Perry’s dad played an awful lot of sport, of course, and the one-time Mayor of Cheltenham was a major figure in sport around these parts for many years.

“He was an all-round sportsman – football, cricket, rugby,” said Ian Perry. “He was a Minor Counties cricketer and was a decent footballer, he played in Leeds for a while.”

And off the field he was just as impressive.

“He was chairman of the South West Sports Council and helped introduce the concept of Sport for All,” continued Ian. “He started the Disabled Games in Cheltenham when they first came in and he was also chairman of Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and chairman of the Gloucestershire Football Association.”

He was also a major player at Charlton Kings Football Club where he was club secretary for many years.

Unsurprisingly, the football club was a big part of Ian Perry’s life back in the day as well.

“I’ve played a lot of sport but football is the only one I’ve ever taken seriously,” he said. “I played everything else for fun. When I played for Charlton Kings they were in the County League and for some years we operated as Cheltenham Town’s reserve team.

“It was in the days when Cheltenham were in the old Southern League and Bob Etheridge was manager. We were in the County League and were the second team in Cheltenham, Cheltenham Town didn’t have a reserve team back then.

“We used to train with them every Tuesday and Thursday evening when the likes of Roger Thorndale and Dave Lewis were playing.

“We used to play semi-pro teams like Forest Green and Stonehouse Town.”

Perry was a full-back or central defender and he continued: “I remember my first game was against Almondsbury Greenway, they’d just won the FA Vase. I played centre-half and we were 3-0 down after 15 minutes, that’s when I realised I wasn’t good enough to make it as a footballer!”

That’s all very much in the past, of course, but looking to the future, Perry is excited about what lies ahead for Cirencester Golf Club.

“We’ve got a full membership,” he said. “We’ve got about 480 full playing members and we’ve got a waiting list. We’ve also got junior members, younger adults and a Stepping Stones programme to introduce new people to golf.

“Nearly all golf clubs are full at the moment because of Covid and our challenge is to keep those new people and maintain a full membership. It’s all about getting people on the course to play and making the course attractive. We think we have a very attractive golf course.”

There aren’t too many who would disagree with that and Perry says the club has plenty more to offer as well.

“We’re a community golf club,” he said. “We’re on the outskirts of a small town and we like to serve the community – men, women and children of any age are welcome.

“The aim is to be an inclusive club which members are proud to belong to, and to provide a golf course and facilities that members and visitors will enjoy using.”