About us

After more than 22 years of work in an insurance company (Gerling Group), retiring as managing director for the Westphalia area (Alemania), I decided in 1998 to combine hobby and business.

At the beginning I contributed my insurance know-how and together with the Gerling Group, we became “the liability and legal protection insurer” of the German Golf Association, at the same time I developed a “professional pension scheme” for golf professionals, as a partner of the PGA of Germany

With the founding of Golf Marketing GmbH, I introduced the Matchplay series in Germany, it started in 1998 with the Gerling Matchplay for Everyone, this oldest and largest German Matchplay series is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

Then I expanded the program with the series: Matchplay for Ladies Only, Matchplay for Best Ager and Matchplay for children and young people. More than 400 golf clubs with almost 20.000 participants per year took part in the heyday of the Matchplay series.

After selling my shares, this company is now owned by Heinz and Doris Siem (parents of tour professional player Marcel Siem).

In addition to sponsors such as Gerling, Allianz, HARIBO, Aldiana, Adidas, Deutsche Bank and DVAG, to name just a few, I would particularly like to highlight Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, with whom I have had a friendly partnership for over 18 years.

After we bought an apartment in Portixol a year ago, it came as no surprise to insiders that I would also install the Matchplay theme on Mallorca.

The “foundation stone” was quickly laid, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises is providing the finalists of the series with a top-class event on June 7th, 2024 on MS EUROPA, the world’s only 5-star ship, in the port of Palma de Mallorca.

All finalists, sponsors, press, etc. will be welcomed on board from 6.30 p.m. and take part in a guided tour of the ship. The award ceremony for the champion of the 1st Mallorca Matchplay Series 2023/24 will then take place as part of a gala dinner.

Afterwards, this surely unforgettable evening comes to an end at around 11.30 p.m. in the “Sansibar” on board the EUROPA.

As a further highlight, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises is providing a cruise on the MS EUROPA for 2 people worth EUR 25.500. This cruise will be raffled off among all participants in the Matchplay series in April 2024. It’s not just any cruise, it is the cruise which goes from Palma to Hamburg over 15 days after the event on June 7th, 2024.

During Thursday’s golf rounds at the Maioris golf course, I found that networking via golf always works. There I met Thomas Schwer. Thomas Schwer and his daughter Janina Wattenberg, who is the CEO at Schwer & Partner, were enthusiastic about the idea and spontaneously offered their company Schwer & Partner as another main sponsor!

So, the package was “round” and the

1^st MALLORCA MATCHPLAY SERIES 2023/24 PRESENTED BY HAPAG-LLOYD CRUISES AND SCHWER & PARTNER

could start!

On the recommendation of our main sponsor Thomas Schwer, we were lucky enough to get to know Benjamin Arnold, because nowadays nothing works without a social media agency.

Benjamin managed in a very short time to enthusiastically convert our ideas into a professional web design with his company “Mallorca Marketing Team S.L.”.

Now we “only” needed to convince the golf clubs on Mallorca of our idea.

Thanks to our new team member Daniela Modrok, we are able to do this in an excellent way!

She is not only a fantastic golfer (HCP 2), she has lived in Mallorca for many years, speaks German, Spanish and English and is well known and accepted in the local golf scene.

With her we have now managed to persuade more than 10 golf clubs to participate and we are getting closer and closer to our goal of 18 golf courses with around 600 participants. The series will be played in the golf clubs from October 2023 to March 2024.

Of course, all this is only possible if you have an understanding wife behind you for such a commitment, thank you “Babsi”!

Our thanks go further to Carsten Sühring from Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, to Thomas Schwer from “Schwer & Partner” to Daniela and to Benjamin and “last but not least” to the mallorquin golf clubs, who have placed their trust in us with their participation.

This leap of faith is both an incentive and an obligation for the entire Matchplay team.

With sporty Greetings,

Norbert Gerkens

Daniela Modrok