Inside the Lexus Encore program – and how it uses golf to have everyone coming back for more.
There is a moment on every great golf trip when the game itself almost becomes secondary. It might be over a glass of wine after sunset. It might be walking off the 18th green with your son or daughter, or standing on a windswept tee wondering how on earth anyone built a golf course in a place so spectacular.
The scorecard rarely survives but the memories sure do. They’re everything.
For decades, luxury car brands have competed over horsepower numbers, leather quality and technological innovation. Lexus still obsesses over those things, sure. No other luxury car maker in Australia delivers a higher proportion of hybrid-electric vehicles, after all. But increasingly, the Japanese marque is betting on something far more powerful than what’s in our garage: experiences. And nowhere is that philosophy more evident than in golf.
For Lexus, however, golf isn’t just another sponsorship category or hospitality platform. It’s part of the brand’s DNA. Long before customer experience became marketing’s favourite buzzword, Lexus was quietly designing cars around the way golfers actually lived, travelled and spent time together. Today, that same philosophy extends well beyond the vehicle itself. It underpins everything, from exclusive golf days to luxury travel tours to curated dining experiences and private VIP events. The destination, not just the drive, has become the luxury and it’s being delivered through an exclusive ownership program called Encore.
Grab your sticks and strap in!
The connection between Lexus and golf has evolved far beyond practicality. Through its Encore ownership program and national dealer golf initiatives, Lexus has built one of the most sophisticated customer-engagement ecosystems in Australian sport. Encore is available to every Lexus customer, including owners of older Lexus vehicles who can purchase a 12-month Lexus Encore Elevate subscription. Members receive a range of complimentary vehicle benefits and access to a suite of exclusive lifestyle privileges. At its heart is a simple belief: the customer relationship shouldn’t end when someone drives a new car out of the dealership. Conversely, Lexus Australia general manager Wayne Gabriel argues that’s precisely when it should begin.
“For a lot of companies, the connection and the journey stops when you take delivery of the car,” he says. “You pull out of a driveway and you see the salesperson wishing you farewell and good luck. We feel that when you buy a car… that’s where the journey starts.”
That philosophy steers everything Lexus does through Encore. Golf days, exclusive events, curated travel and dining experiences, access to private clubs and invitation-only entertainment – experiences that would be difficult, and in some cases not possible, to access independently. It is luxury reframed for a modern audience.
“Actually, what it is more about than anything is enabling,” Gabriel explains. “The idea is that the car is the machine that gets you to where you need to go to be able to do the things you love to do. What we look at is beyond the actual journey… we look at the destination.”
It’s a subtle distinction, but an important one. Lexus isn’t simply selling transportation. It’s helping customers create stories. And of all the lifestyle pillars Lexus could embrace, golf feels uniquely suited. The demographics align, certainly. But Gabriel believes the connection runs much deeper than customer profiles.
“Golf is particularly popular amongst our buyers,” he says. “It’s an interest to them. So, it’s a natural progression, when you share something in common, to try to bring those interests together.”
Yet it’s golf’s inclusiveness that resonates most strongly.
“Golf is one of those things that connects people,” Gabriel adds. “And what better way to connect with people then through the sport of golf and walking fairways together?”
It’s difficult to argue. Few sports allow grandparents, parents and children to compete together. Few sports create conversation quite as naturally, and few sports reward patience, precision and craftsmanship in the way golf does. Those same values happen to sit at the core of Lexus. In fact, Gabriel has recently rediscovered that connection personally. After years spent working across Toyota’s global operations, including senior roles in Europe and involvement with Toyota’s Paralympic mobility programs, golf re-entered his life only recently. A father-and-son golf trip to Tasmania changed everything.
“We went to Barnbougle Dunes and 7 Mile Beach,” he said. “I had one of the best weekends and as a result, I think I’ve been bitten by the golf bug.”
The experience wasn’t simply about golf. It was about connection. “It was a great bonding session with the other fathers and their sons,” Gabriel says. “We had dinner there at Barnbougle. It was just an incredibly enjoyable period.”
That sentiment mirrors precisely what Lexus Australia is attempting to create for its customers via Encore. Luxury itself has changed. Once upon a time, prestige was defined by possessions. Today, among many consumers, access has become the ultimate currency. Top-100 courses, exclusive domestic and international golf tours, and off-course experiences with real wow-factor. This is where Lexus has found its sweet spot.
The company’s dealer golf network now stages about 40 golf events annually across Australia, with many attracting more than 100 guests. Winners can earn invitations to bucket-list experiences featuring golf at iconic venues, luxury travel and premium hospitality.
The pinnacle, however, may be Lexus Encore’s international golf getaway, as Australian Golf Digest learned first-hand recently on Encore’s inaugural trip to New Zealand for the Lexus Ultimate Golf New Zealand Experience. Run by the team at Lexus Australia in conjunction with PGA pro David Gillard of Gillard Golf, the event showcased exactly how far the brand is willing to go to facilitate that ‘journey’ for its customers, delivering access to three of New Zealand’s most sought-after golf courses along with a treasure trove of VIP extras, including FootJoy clothing and premium Club Glove carry-on baggage. No half-measures here.
After arriving in Auckland and settling into the waterfront luxury of the Hilton Auckland, more than 20 Lexus customers were treated to a curated journey through some of New Zealand’s finest golf, food and hospitality experiences. The itinerary began with an exclusive dinner at Origine by Ben Bayly of “MasterChef” and “My Kitchen Rules” fame, where guests enjoyed a sophisticated showcase of locally sourced produce and design-led dining. From there, guests teed it up at the transformed Royal Auckland & Grange Golf Club in a friendly trans-Tasman team challenge against fellow Lexus owners from New Zealand before heading north to the spectacular Te Arai Links. There, the Lexus crew experienced both the acclaimed North and South courses alongside Lexus ambassador and former European Tour professional Dimi Papadatos, immersing themselves in what many regard as one of the world’s most exciting new golf destinations.
For Gabriel, the objective of such an incredible itinerary isn’t complicated.
“We want them to feel special,” he says. “We want to create a memory. That memory is going to be… I went to this Lexus Encore event. So, creating memories and allowing our customers to do things that maybe they wouldn’t either thought of doing or they can’t access, that’s what Encore is all about.”
It’s a compelling philosophy because while competitors continue battling over specifications and features, Lexus has recognised something many luxury brands are only now beginning to understand: people rarely remember the purchase. They remember how it made them feel. And if that feeling happens to involve a world-class golf course, a memorable round with friends or access to an experience money alone can’t buy, then Lexus has already won the long game.
They’re feelings that never grow old for Papadatos. “One thing I’ve learned since representing Lexus is they absolutely love their golf and it just aligns really well with their brand ethos and clientele,” says the 35-year-old, who’s been an ambassador of the company since his runner-up finish to Mexico’s Abraham Ancer at the 2018 Australian Open. “Their golf days are a huge success. Everyone gets behind them, and just from all the dealership days that I’ve attended, people are queuing up to play. David Gillard does an amazing job in running these and it’s just another add-on that Lexus does really well.”
Touching down in Sydney after my trip across the Tasman, I was greeted by my very own Lexus chauffeur and immediately did what every travelling golfer instinctively does: looked at the car, then looked at my oversized golf travel bag.
“Uh… you reckon we’ll fit this in there, mate?” I asked.
Without missing a beat, the driver smiled and took my bag from me.
“Don’t worry, sir,” he said. “They build these things for people like you.”
I laughed out loud. After everything I’d learned that week, I really should have known better.
Did you know?
Almost 75 percent of Lexus vehicles sold in Australia are equipped with either hybrid (HEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) or battery-electric (BEV) powertrains
The Lexus design rule golfers never knew existed
Every golfer has asked the question.
“Will my clubs fit?”
It’s usually somewhere between checking the price tag and deciding on the colour. Yet while most car manufacturers talk cargo capacity in litres and cubic feet, Lexus has quietly been using a very different benchmark, for decades: golf bags.
Not metaphorically. Literally.
In one of the automotive industry’s most amusing – and surprisingly serious – internal design philosophies, Lexus engineers routinely use golf bags as a key measurement when designing vehicle cargo areas. From compact sedans to full-sized luxury SUVs, the ability to comfortably transport golf clubs has long been built into the Lexus product brief.
It’s not a marketing gimmick. It’s a genuine design principle. And according to Lexus Australia general manager Wayne Gabriel [above], it remains very much alive today.
“It’s true! The unit of measurement for the boot space and the cargo space of Lexus… is golf bags,” Gabriel told Australian Golf Digest.
The revelation sounds almost too perfect for golfers to believe. Yet it makes complete sense when you consider Lexus’ long-standing connection to the game. The relationship dates back to the development of the original LS 400, when engineers famously insisted the luxury sedan’s boot needed to accommodate multiple golf bags alongside passenger luggage.
More than 35 years later, not much has changed.
The Lexus ES sedan can comfortably swallow up to four full-sized golf bags across its boot. Most Lexus SUVs are designed around carrying three or four golf bags with ease, while even the ultra-luxury Lexus LM executive van has been engineered to fit four full golf bags side-by-side.
Golf remains such an important consideration that dealerships often keep clubs on-site to demonstrate the practicality to prospective buyers.
“The reason why we’ve got golf clubs in a lot of our dealerships is to show you, Yeah, they can go in there,” Gabriel says. “Three golf bags full is the norm for most of our models.”
The author attended the Lexus New Zealand Golf Tour Experience as a guest of Lexus Australia.
