Annual subscription 2026

[Springveldt]

I've got to stop looking on Google Maps.

Longhirst Hall, 36 holes, £750 a year!

I live about 5 miles from Longhirst, it’s good during the summer but gets very wet.

And as you might have noticed you can get a large detached up here for the price of a terraced ex-council down south. My neighbours moved up from down south about 7 years ago and they couldn’t believe the kind of house they got up here for how “little” money.

When I read online about young adults having to take 40 year mortgages for £400K to buy a flat it blows my mind.

 

[Springveldt]

All over the £1000 barrier in our area

Close house, Rockcliffe Hall, The Northumberland, Ramside Hall, Matfen hall, Wynyard, Hexham, Tyneside, the City of Newcastle, Ponteland, Whitley Bay, Slaley Hall.

Couple years ago, 6 of those were well under £1k mark

Arcot Hall was £930 last year (nearly £950 with EG and county fees) and they would likely have been in that bracket if they didn’t freeze prices for next season.

Won’t be long before they join that group, Morpeth in a couple of years as well.

 

[IanM]

Just as long as they don’t get Mackenzie and Ebert in to destroy that beautiful course by recreating the Sahara, the way they have massacred a couple of the closing holes at Ganton and Deal, that adds nothing to the way anyone would strategise playing those holes

I thought they were only changing a 2 holes and moving the first tee

Last summer I stood when the new par 3 is going. Massive improvement on the soon to be removed 9th. (Weakest hole on course by miles)

Played with a member who was hugely enthusiastic about the changes.

 

[KenL]

I thought they were only changing a 2 holes and moving the first tee

Last summer I stood when the new par 3 is going. Massive improvement on the soon to be removed 9th. (Weakest hole on course by miles)

Played with a member who was hugely enthusiastic about the changes.

The current 9th hole is poor but the 1st hole is terrible!

 

[evemccc]

I thought they were only changing a 2 holes and moving the first tee

Last summer I stood when the new par 3 is going. Massive improvement on the soon to be removed 9th. (Weakest hole on course by miles)

Played with a member who was hugely enthusiastic about the changes.

As long as they are

Opinions are like ‘elbows’() everyone’s got them..I actually quite liked the first..nice bit of elevation gain, slight dogleg etc. I have only only played it once mind you

The ninth however…

 

[KenL]

Slight dogleg.
Getting on the green in 2 is a rare event. Usually over the back or runs back down off the front by about 30 yards.

 

[IanM]

Slight dogleg.
Getting on the green in 2 is a rare event. Usually over the back or runs back down off the front by about 30 yards.

Pretty sure the first tee is going left to sort that out... not sure about the slope up the front, which if course i came back down

 

[timd77]

On the subject of why there’s such a difference in fees depending on the area…

I live in the West Midlands, currently a member at bewdley pines, which is privately owned, run as a business, bar always busy, great food and drink offering. It’s a well draining course and pretty much always open, rarely off temps (bet I’ll tempt fate now!), we get plenty of visitors which no doubt helps the finances. 7 day membership is £1150.

My last club is about 3 miles down the road, Kidderminster, member owned. Bar rarely busy, not many people had food when I was there. The year I left, due to the weather we were on 10 or 13 holes from November to February/march. The club was in financial difficulties, we had to pay a £100 levy in the November (towards energy costs), and come renewal time the 7 day membership went up by approx £300 to over £1500 (I’m not sure what it is now, probably north of £1600). I’d say it’s more of a ‘posh’ and exclusive course, in the spring and summer it’s lovely, and so that’s probably why they charge a higher membership fee.

I know there are other factors involved, but as a straight comparison between these 2, I’d say that being run as a business, bewdley pines is better at bringing money in, spending it wisely, keeping members happy with lower costs.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Absolutely not. A rip off is £1000 for Turnberry.
Plus, options of cheaper tee times in the shoulder seasons.

And what really upsets me is that the likes of Turnberry, Troon, Gleneagles, Royal Dornoch and more especially TOC, are important elements of Scotland’s heritage that are out of the reach of the majority of Scots golfers…and that feels sooo wrong…though it is almost certainly simply my emotional heart rather than my logical brain that says so.

 

[KenL]

And what really upsets me is that the likes of Turnberry, Troon, Gleneagles, Royal Dornoch and more especially TOC, are important elements of Scotland’s heritage that are out of the reach of the majority of Scots golfers…and that feels sooo wrong…though it is almost certainly simply my emotional heart rather than my logical brain that says so.

Agreed. All of these courses should really have a UK (or local) resident rate.
The likes of Kingsbarns and Dumbarnie do that.

 

[Arthur Wedge]

And what really upsets me is that the likes of Turnberry, Troon, Gleneagles, Royal Dornoch and more especially TOC, are important elements of Scotland’s heritage that are out of the reach of the majority of Scots golfers…and that feels sooo wrong…though it is almost certainly simply my emotional heart rather than my logical brain that says so.

A lot of the clubs in Scotland still have SGU rates that can be used

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Ours up 6% - just announced.

Of course some members will moan that if we weren’t spending a good load of our trading surplus on rerouting our 2nd hole with a new green and building a new short-game academy area, then we could have done without an increase. I’m absolutely not of that, what I consider a very short-sighted - a ‘now’ - mindset, when I consider members to be the custodians of a club and course for the future and not just focussed on themselves in the here and now. But that’s maybe just me.

The Club must invest in developing our offering and challenge, we are surrounded by attractive alternative clubs - and whilst we are (currently) fortunate in being able to maintain a healthy surplus year-on-year and a qualified waiting list, we should use our surplus, wisely of course, and not pretend that inflation and new costs (such as those associated with meeting weather challenges) don’t exist, and so I believe that, difficult as it might be for some, we must accept that we members must shoulder much of that burden.

 

[Springveldt]

Current place is going up by nearly 5.5% from £730 to £770 with EG fee of £12 and Northumberland County of £6 meaning it will be £788 compared to £747.25 last year.

The seniors is going up from £705 last year to £758.50 this year. I expect some fireworks at the AGM over that.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Current place is going up by nearly 5.5% from £730 to £770 with EG fee of £12 and Northumberland County of £6 meaning it will be £788 compared to £747.25 last year.

The seniors is going up from £705 last year to £758.50 this year. I expect some fireworks at the AGM over that.

Fireworks over £1 a week?…you must have some grumpy seniors…

 

[Hobbit]

Ours up 6% - just announced, Of course some members will moan that if we weren’t spending a good load of our trading surplus on rerouting our 2nd hole with a new green and all, then we could have done without an increase. I’m absolutely not of that, what I consider a very short-sighted - a ‘now’ mindset - when I consider members to be the custodians of a club and course for the future.

The Club must invest in developing our offering and challenge, we are surrounded by attractive alternative clubs - and whilst we are (currently) fortunate in being able to maintain a healthy surplus and qualified waiting list, we should use our surplus, wisely of course, and not pretend that inflation and new costs (such as those associated with meeting weather challenges) don’t exist, and so I believe that, difficult as it might be for some, we must accept that we members must shoulder much of that burden.

The danger of not having an increase, especially if there are a couple of years of it, is the knock on effect. Let’s say inflation is running at around 5% and the subs are £1,000. The increase would be around £50, taking the subs to £1,050. And if inflation is 5% the next year but no increase is applied, the club receives £1,000 instead of £1,100. That’s £100 x 700(?) members is a potential shortfall of £70,000.

If the club approaches the members for a 17% increase for the 3rd year, how will the members vote? How many members, over and above the regular churn, will leave?

No increase is short sighted

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

The danger of not having an increase, especially if there are a couple of years of it, is the knock on effect. Let’s say inflation is running at around 5% and the subs are £1,000. The increase would be around £50, taking the subs to £1,050. And if inflation is 5% the next year but no increase is applied, the club receives £1,000 instead of £1,100. That’s £100 x 700(?) members is a potential shortfall of £70,000.

If the club approaches the members for a 17% increase for the 3rd year, how will the members vote? How many members, over and above the regular churn, will leave?

No increase is short sighted

Absolutely %

And I’ll just add that as a members club a primary club objective on our finance side is to minimise or remove any dependency the club has or might have on visitor and society green fees - thereby maximising member access to the course, with all green fees taken going to the surplus.

 

[evemccc]

Ours up 6% - just announced.

Of course some members will moan that if we weren’t spending a good load of our trading surplus on rerouting our 2nd hole with a new green and building a new short-game academy area, then we could have done without an increase. I’m absolutely not of that, what I consider a very short-sighted - a ‘now’ - mindset, when I consider members to be the custodians of a club and course for the future and not just focussed on themselves in the here and now. But that’s maybe just me.

The Club must invest in developing our offering and challenge, we are surrounded by attractive alternative clubs - and whilst we are (currently) fortunate in being able to maintain a healthy surplus year-on-year and a qualified waiting list, we should use our surplus, wisely of course, and not pretend that inflation and new costs (such as those associated with meeting weather challenges) don’t exist, and so I believe that, difficult as it might be for some, we must accept that we members must shoulder much of that burden.

You know your course, of course you do…so I will speak ‘generally’

Any course that has a full membership and is a pretty decent or very decent course already, may not ‘need’ a new green or hole routing….(accepting that there are many courses that have holes that aren’t that good —and don’t meet the standard of the rest - the 9th At Goswick, a couple near the turn at West Sussex…heck even a couple at Open rota links courses such as Carnoustie, Lytham and Hoylake for example)

Many changes I have seen to courses can be ‘change for changes sake’ and plenty won’t like the changes almost as much as those who campaign for it

A course that’s full, has a waiting list, is over 100 years old, and is regarded as ‘decent’, may not need expensive changes that members ‘need’ to pay for..

 

[Springveldt]

Fireworks over £1 a week?…you must have some grumpy seniors…

Considering 2 years ago when they increased the fees from £670 to £700 there were arguments galore and a few other things said at the AGM that the whole committee resigned, then yes, we might have some grumpy members.

 

[KenL]

A lot of the clubs in Scotland still have SGU rates that can be used

Do they?

 

[Lord Tyrion]

@SwingsitlikeHogan I'm breathless. 89 words in one sentence , post 472, last paragraph. If you ever write a book I pity the person doing the audio version