What's the biggest misconception that non-golfers have about the game?

The general perception is that people who play golf are richer and older with a lot of free time on their hands. This is true of some people, but that's really just a segment of golfers. There are many people like me who don’t have a lot of money but we still go ahead and play at the more affordable courses.

As for age, a lot of young people are into golf. Did you know that the top 10 golfers in the world are all below 30 years old?   

What were the biggest challenges in making Deemples a reality?   

I always knew it would be a challenge to do something like Deemples. My background is in digital media and marketing. I’m not a software engineer myself, but I’ve hired engineers before when working in sales for a tech startup, so I understand what was needed and how to find it. 

What makes Deemples so popular with golfers today?   

Some people think Deemples is a sort of Tinder for golf: you swipe right or left for people to play with. I was very conscious not to do it that way because it would be irrelevant if you were to be matched with someone who isn’t available for a game when you are. Would you swipe left or right on your Uber or Grab driver? It just makes sense for it to be based on availability.

Think of it as more of an EventBrite or Meetup.com for golf. It’s all event-based, most of the events or games are hosted by the golf courses themselves. Some golfers also create and post games too, which others can join. Once you join the game you can chat with other golfers, and once you’re done with it you can rate them and submit their scores on the app.

What are your go-to golf courses for the weekend?

That would be Kelab Golf Seri Selangor and Kota Seriemas Golf & Country Club in Nilai which deliver a great golf experience that's still affordable.

I recently played a game at the Bukit Unggul Country Club in Dengkil, Selangor, another great place. In Johor, I like the Els Club Desaru Coast.  

What are some ways the pandemic has changed the golf scene in Malaysia?

I think the pandemic accelerated a lot of these digital demands, not just in sports but in all industries. We were at the right place at the right time with Deemples, because we're the only platform that makes it affordable for golf courses to accept payments upfront where they may not have previously had the payment gateways in place to do so. To incentivise golfers to make upfront payments, many of these courses now offer a slightly lower rate on Deemples.

What's at the top of your to-do list for Deemples in 2022? 

We're gearing up for the US launch of Deemples in mid-2022. During the pandemic and the lockdown in Malaysia when there should have been very little activity on the app, we noticed that a lot of people were downloading Deemples, the majority of whom were actually in the US. 

We spoke to a few people there to understand more about why they downloaded this app and we realised that they face the same problems when it comes to finding people to play golf with. We spent about four months in lockdown talking to potential partners, and we finally found one. So we’re in the midst of building this product for the US.

Locally, we'll also be adapting the Deemples website such that bookings can be made from there too and not just via the app. 

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