PGA professional Chris McDonnell has returned to the North East to become the new head professional at Ponteland Golf Club.
Chris, who played out of Stocksfield as an amateur and won the Northumberland County Championship in 2001 and 2003, turned professional in late 2006 and completed his PGA training at Hexham.
After six years at Hexham, Chris headed out on tour – winning the Slovenian Golf Open on the Alps Tour in 2012 – before coaching in Bahrain for two years.
He returned to the UK in 2014 and played for two more years before taking the role to lead the academy at Golf at Goodwood while playing the PGA circuit – winning the PGA Professional Championship and the Austrian PGA in 2014, and winning the PGA Cup with the GB&I team in 2017 at Foxhills.
Chris returned to the North East in November 2025 after 10 years at Goodwood – following the retirement of Alan Robson-Crosby after 37 years at Ponteland. He has hit the ground running with a refurbishment of the golf shop already completed, while PGA professional May Shaw has joined the team from Morpeth Golf Club.
“It’s fantastic to have the opportunity to come back to the North East. While it has been full on, I’ve really enjoyed my first few months at Ponteland,” said Chris, who has relocated to the region with his partner, Jen.
“Getting my teeth into a shop refurbishment for the first time has been a challenge, but having the support of Jen, who was the retail manager at Goodwood for nearly 20 years, has made it a lot easier.
“The warm welcome and response to the new shop from the members has been brilliant. Now the shop work is done and that’s filling up with new gear – and May is onboard and starting to fill out her coaching diary while I do the same – I’m very excited for what the season will bring.
“The story at Ponteland is incredibly positive right now following the arrival of Candi [Watkins] as general manager and myself as professional last year – along with the fantastic work that’s continuing on the golf course led by [head greenkeeper] Craig [Kilgour] and his team. There’s a lot of positivity around the club and I’m keen to be a part of that.”
Chris and May will be developing coaching programmes this season, with particular focus on women’s and junior coaching. The club is also set to open an indoor swing studio with TrackMan technology this year.
“The potential for coaching and custom fitting at Ponteland was a big attraction for me,” added Chris. “With the swing studio and TrackMan technology combined with the fantastic practice ground and putting green right outside the shop – and a beautifully presented golf course – we have the opportunity to become one of the leaders in the area for coaching and custom fitting. I’ve been lucky to work for and with some fantastic professionals in the North East and further afield, and I’m looking forward to using all that experience here.
“It will also be great to be back in the region and have the chance to play some more North East & North West PGA events with my peers and friends this summer. We’re also hosting a Pro Series event and a pro am at Ponteland for the first time in several years, which I’m sure will be a lot of fun.”
