COUNTY golf chiefs are hoping to build on a golden era of Wiltshire performance after launching a three-year plan to sustain their success.

The Wiltshire Golf Union (WGU) is hoping sponsors will come on board to help them implement their ideas, which include identifying and developing talent in the county, more support for clubs and continuing to run their many championships successfully.

Among the targets set is to develop more than 300 category one (lowest handicap) players and raise the number of clubs represented at county squad level to at least 20, both by 2014.

Increasing the number of qualified referees and GolfMark clubs is also on the agenda, while the Union also wants to ensure their top championships are full subscribed and are backed by new sponsors within three years.

Wiltshire is currently one of the most successful English golfing counties, boasting five England amateur squad players in the last two years.

East Knoyle’s Ben Stow, the county champion, and Ben Loughrey, from the Wrag Barn club near Highworth were both picked for the Home Internationals in Ireland earlier this month.

The likes of Derry Hill youngster Jordan Smith have also tasted recent success, the 18 year old qualifying for next month’s Faldo Series U18 final in Northern Ireland, where he will be joined by Marlborough’s Ben Amor in the U16 event.

County secretary David Lewis said of the plan, named Better Wiltshire Golf: “It is aiming to improve in all aspects of golf in Wiltshire and we’re hoping that sponsors and businesses will come on board.

“Our website has more than 1200 unique visitors a month and popular pages get more than 5,000 hits a quarter.

“We send a County card to every one of our 10,000 members which could carry sponsor branding and one of our major Championships would be renamed after the sponsor.’’ For info email Lewis at secretary@wcgu.org.uk.