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PayandPlay

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Pay&Play vs. club membership...Should I join a golf club?

The Facts:
I pay every week / 10 days across a varied selection of courses both muni & private. I have a regular gang of a dozen friends who make up our regular game.

I love the variety & challenge of all the courses (Wirral / Cheshire / N.Wales) and have been geting some great value games in due to recession conditions. Pay & Play allows me to pick and choose when I play - this fits in well with commitments to work & a young family.

But...I have the feeling I'm missing out on something...
My general understanding of the game, both rules & ethos, is average to poor. I play with lads roughly my own standard (H'cap approx 20 - ish)- so am not exposed to any greater experience that I can learn from.

Also I find Clubs are willing to take cash for Pay&Play guests - but the welcome is skin deep - I'm much more used to changing my shoes in the carpark, than the clubhouse.

I imagine the majority of the fiends on this forum are hard core golfers so bias maybe for club memembership - but having read many other posts I trust the honesty of collective (if not some individuals)....

what is the answer?
 
For me the advantages of a club membership are these

Regular competitions (both midweek and weekends) so a chance to play to and reduce your handicap. The competitions at my club are always drawn so you get to meet many of the members.

No booked times. Our club runs a roll up policy where unless there is a competition or society booked you can just turn up and go out so you can play at a time to suit. Even if there is a comp/booking we can always go off the 10th

Practice facilities. Important to me as I can always nip up for an hour after work in the summer and at weekends and hit some balls or wrok on my short game.

Good facilities. I have my own locker so I can leave my clubs at the club and don't have to worry about lugging them to/from work (I commute) or stopping off on the way. Our clubhouse has a decent bar and patio area, the food is decent and the members give old faces and visitors an equally warm welcome

Challenging course. It is only 5 years old but its maturing nicely and is a tricky prospect off the whites and you need to be driving well and hitting solid irons to find the relatively small greens. It isn't a course that becomes overly familiar and there is always a changing tapestry with the wildlife and different seasons. It has had a lot of work done in the last few years and is progressing well

Pro Shop. Our pro has some decent stuff in stock and will always order anything in. He isn't always the cheapest mind. A decent teacher he'll always try and give you pointers if you ask.

I guess thats most of what you need from a club
 
I'm a member of a private club attached to a municipal so we are always trying to explain to the pay and play guys what the benefits of the extra £100 to join the club are. Basically it comes down to two areas, golf and social.

First the golf. The attraction of competition play is something of a mystery until you actually start playing in them, just like golf itself, you try it then get "the bug". It's hard to explain but it is so much better and more challenging than simply playing with your mates. Also, you don't end up playing all your golf at one course, an official handicap means you can play anywhere in the hundreds of open comps that are brilliant value and the best way to play other courses. Secondly, golf is also a very social game. Instead of your small band of friends you will meet many, many more in a club environment having days out and trips away all the time. You have a stake in the club too, a sense of belonging and of course the use of all the facilities.

The other big advantage of joining a club is that you will play much more and get better. You can go out and do 6 or 9 holes on a summer evening or maybe spend an hour on the putting green or chipping etc. Every visit doesn't have to be half a day.
 
I do both. 5-day membership as I can't normally play Sundays, though that means missing out on a lot of comps.
When I can get out at a weekend it will be to a different track, so I get the variety there and also from playing with a society.

(which to answer a different post, is how I've racked up around 40 courses in under 3 years)
 
I am a member of a club and wouldn't be without it, but I also regularly play other courses with friends and wouldn't stop doing so because of the variety. The Club allows me to play with better golfers, where I learn a lot and also allows me to play a more competative round of golf, albeit not to too good a standard on my part! I think doing both definitely helps my game.
 
110% Club Membership for me.

Ive been a member of the same club for 20years, and quite simply have never tired of playing it.
Its possibly the premier course in my area, is visually stunning, a very good test of Golf, and is always in very good condition.
The Clubhouse is historic and welcoming, and I simply feel at home when i'm there, & Plenty of Comps to play in too.

Sure I enjoy playing other courses, but many I do play are just too 'corporate' for my liking, and others are way too busy meaning you have to book a tee time on any day of the week, which would'nt be acceptable for me.
I can walk on our 1st tee at most times within reason, and on a summer night, its not unusual to have the place to myself for an hour.

Pick your Club well, and its the way to go.
 
I'm a member at my current club since 2003 and it has a lot going for it - pretty cheap membership, good pro and shop, good catering, nice friendly crowd, easy to get on cos we're in the sticks!
I dont live near the golf club so I don't use it for socialising other than an after game drink.

I can understand the OP as I get very blase about my own course through familiarity mainly, the same shots over and over.

However you cant beat the feeling of rolling up to a new track you've never played. Working the holes out, trying to score etc. The expense can be a downer for good tracks but we need to play different courses to feel enthused and stimulated about golf so moving about is good in that regard.

The main benefit of club golf is it's cheap if you play regularly, you get regular competitions to play in and you are able to keep a formal handicap which is required to get onto some good courses......well only Royal Dornoch in my experience! :eek:

Pros and cons, like everything.
 
I'm a member at my current club since 2003 and it has a lot going for it - pretty cheap membership, good pro and shop, good catering, nice friendly crowd, easy to get on cos we're in the sticks!
Click to expand...

I am now a member for 2 years and LOVE the craic, you get to meet so many folk and play with people you would never get a chance to if you just pay and play.
I have played with a man who played off +2 and turned down tour membership, Darren Clarkes old caddy, people who are grumpy as hell and folk who I am now very good friends with.
For me its a marriage, and true to a marrige somtimes the grass is greener on the other courses - to satisfy my urges I play a few opens and a few other courses through the year.
I love the fact that you play the same course, you know you can birdie every hole - its just doing it on one round :D
 
It depends on how often you play the game, as well as your preferred choices.

If you play a lot of golf, then financially it would be costly compared to membership.

Membership offers regular cheap golf, facilities, oportunities (comps,teams,visits to other clubs etc)

Membership offers greater variation in play and the greater chance to play against better players which often helps your own game.

Membership does not prevent pay and play at other clubs.

Membership allows you to play at clubs that require you to be a member of one.(though this is becomming less common these days)

Membership allows you to meet people at a slower pace and form genuine friendships, as opposed to the sudden like/dislike of brief encounters during pay and play visits.

Membership (members clubs) gives you a say and active involvement.

Membership at most clubs offers you practice whenever you wish, and the choice of using the club pro to improve your game.

Nothing wrong with being freelance, but it can limit your options, being a member doesnt stop anything you currently do ;).
 
110% Club Membership for me.

Ive been a member of the same club for 2 years, and quite simply have never tired of playing it.

Sure I enjoy playing other courses, but many I do play are just too 'corporate' for my liking, and others are way too busy meaning you have to book a tee time on any day of the week, which would'nt be acceptable for me.
I can walk on our 1st tee at most times within reason, and on a summer night, its not unusual to have the place to myself for an hour.

Pick your Club well, and its the way to go.
Click to expand...

As above, with 1 change!

The amount I play, going back to P&P would be costly. I'd need to start a life of crime. Even when I was a member at a municipal course

http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/GenerateContent?CONTENT_ITEM_ID=2613&CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE=7

it was costing me twice as much as it costs me now.
 
I'm 'married'. I used to 'mess around', but being able to do it when I feel like it, and not worry about if there's enough cash in my wallet is a huge bonus.

Of course, I need to 'put it about a bit' occasionally, but it's always good to know that you can always get it at home if times are hard. :eek: :D



Go on Homer. I dare you to put it in the forum section of the mag!! ;)
 
Some really compelling arguments & definitely benefits I hadn't considered. Membership sounds like the way forward...if I can convince the bank manager & the wife.

But which club to join....???
I'll save that question until I've done some research.

Aplogies to all the readers who we're misled by the title of this thread...yeah, it was a cheap tactic but I had to get your attention!

Thanks again

P&P
 
Happless, I think that one is worthy of mag recognition.. :D :D

Payandplay, its right you should take time to investigate clubs and their membership, get the right one and you will be more than satisfied.
 
If you contact the clubs you are interested in, you might find that some will offer you a cheap or even free round for you to inspect the course and the facilities. Many seem to be making much more effort with prospective members now that times are getting harder. Draw up a list of whats important in a club for you and see which tick all the boxes
 
I'm currently a nomad, but I'd settle down tomorrow if I had the cash.

Just scanning everyone's answers I don't think I saw what I used to think of as the major benefit.

Which was the ease at which you could sort out your golfing fix.

I have bad days at work for example, but don't have time or money for 18 holes or even 9 after work. But being a club member means you can just turn up, play a few holes to get rid of the day's frustration, and then go home without feeling the need to kick the cat.

At the moment I don't have a club, or a cat for that matter. The wife's ankles are suffering as a result :o
 
Membership is best... needs to be within 15 min and must be a good course, great greens and excellent FREE practice facilities.

Don't jump in with your eyes closed or you're gonna be wanting a divorce. Take your time to 'play the field' so to speak.
 
Love being a member of a club i've met so many people lots whom have become frineds. I still get the oppotunity to play lots of other course's through club matches and exchange days.Then there is the social side which i enjoy to.
 
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