Oldham92
Hacker
Absolute rubbish. I'm 25 and started paying as soon as I moved back from uni at 21. I don't know anyone who doesn't contribute anything who lives at home. Absolutely clueless.
Absolute rubbish. I'm 25 and started paying as soon as I moved back from uni at 21. I don't know anyone who doesn't contribute anything who lives at home. Absolutely clueless.
GB72
Money List Winner
I have no issue with discounts whilst people are in education. Make it a student discount on production of the NUS Card (assuming these still exist).
I may be totally off the mark here but my finding is that people gravitate to golf once they can no longer play other sports. Most of the people I play with used to play football, rugby or something similar until age or injury caught up with them. That leaves a prime age group around 35-40 who want to play competitive sport, cannot play the more physical sports any more and would be low hanging fruit for any golf club who wanted to incentivise their membership.
I may be totally off the mark here but my finding is that people gravitate to golf once they can no longer play other sports. Most of the people I play with used to play football, rugby or something similar until age or injury caught up with them. That leaves a prime age group around 35-40 who want to play competitive sport, cannot play the more physical sports any more and would be low hanging fruit for any golf club who wanted to incentivise their membership.
Parsaregood
Head Pro
Have to agree with this entirely, I'm 27 and it's only in the last year I've been able to afford a better car/van etc and I've been lucky, don't get what planet this guy is onTo me the point of lower fees for younger people, is to keep them playing the game when typically their earnings are low, time is fairly tight as well and they would just give up the game completely. And good on clubs for offering some sliding scale to them we need young people
CF I think you must mix with different people than me,as most young people(say upto mid 20s) I know are not in high paid jobs and do not have massive disposable income. For me it wasn't until very late twenties/early thirties that I earnt more(I went to uni and qualified as a professional), I could never have afford golf subs at full rate prior to that stage in life(ignoring the issue of time). To think you only have £200 by way of bills is very strange (what about phone/car/petrol/food/clothing/house rent/insurance/repairs/job costs/light and heat/rates and so on)
Can think of quite a few sons/daughters of friends or people I know, that went to uni and struggled to even get a job that warrants a degree (working in call centres, macdonalds, cafes as examples) or ones that did not go to uni they generally were not earning a great wage in their early 20s.. I really struggle to think of any sons/daughters/or people I know that are earning good money(say £20k gross plus) in their early 20s and have a high disposable income at say 20 or 22.
Garush34
Journeyman Pro
The assumption would be that as an older person of say 35-40 would be that you have a career and have seen the years of pay rises/promotions and there for are able to have the additional funds. Where as someone out of education may only be finding a job to cover daily expenses etc. Its a gross generalisation to say that anyone under the age of 30 has more disposable income than you, not everyone of that age lives at home and even the ones that do are not getting it for free.
totally agree with you on this, i only took it up once i'd given up Cycling and Cricket.
i firmly believe golf clubs would be better served marketing this group (40 Plus) than youngsters. who profess to have little time or money to play, get them in 20 years time they will have both
Wolf
Well-known member
I can see why it annoys some but from my own experience I'd have loved to have had these options available to me in the early 2000s.
Once I hit 18 I went onto intermediate subs in istelf was a huge jump from junior fees, which I had to fund myself as well as going to college, funding myself to learn to drive and pay my parents housekeeping , so had to work as many part time hours as I could get just to pay for my golf and to live because mum and dad couldn't fund me just like many parents these days can't afford to for their kids despite what some think.
It's one of the reasons I stopped was the sheer cost once I hit full adult membership my income was low, I'd become a parent myself at a relatively young age and couldn't afford to play so my love for the game diminished. I tried to continue playing on for a few years but by this point I was serving in the Army and couldn't justify playing without a reduced fee as well as time away from family, and the thought of not being part of a club and just playing nomadic style with green fees doesn't appeal to me.
Now in my late 30s I'm only just in a place where I have a bit of side cash that allows me to join a new club once we move.
Yes my life choices impacted my financial stability when younger but had I been able to have reduce fees through my 20s then perhaps I wouldn't have missed out on 10-12 years of golfing enjoyment and friendships.
So if these fees can help someone and I have to pay full rate then so be it, keep a people in the game and they will get to a point they pay the same as me, I'll certainly be happy to tee it up with them to..
Once I hit 18 I went onto intermediate subs in istelf was a huge jump from junior fees, which I had to fund myself as well as going to college, funding myself to learn to drive and pay my parents housekeeping , so had to work as many part time hours as I could get just to pay for my golf and to live because mum and dad couldn't fund me just like many parents these days can't afford to for their kids despite what some think.
It's one of the reasons I stopped was the sheer cost once I hit full adult membership my income was low, I'd become a parent myself at a relatively young age and couldn't afford to play so my love for the game diminished. I tried to continue playing on for a few years but by this point I was serving in the Army and couldn't justify playing without a reduced fee as well as time away from family, and the thought of not being part of a club and just playing nomadic style with green fees doesn't appeal to me.
Now in my late 30s I'm only just in a place where I have a bit of side cash that allows me to join a new club once we move.
Yes my life choices impacted my financial stability when younger but had I been able to have reduce fees through my 20s then perhaps I wouldn't have missed out on 10-12 years of golfing enjoyment and friendships.
So if these fees can help someone and I have to pay full rate then so be it, keep a people in the game and they will get to a point they pay the same as me, I'll certainly be happy to tee it up with them to..
Imurg
The Grinder Of Pars (Semi Crocked)
I didn't start playing until I hit 30 and the club I joined didn't have these discounts so I've never been in a position to take advantage of them.
I've always had a feeling that, while these discounts do help some, they are a complete generalisation, making massive assumptions about age and income.
Just because you're 43 it doesn't mean that you have £1300 to shell out on a membership whereas a 34 year old might.
And, of course, it goes in the opposite direction too
I don't know the answer but I do know that many people pay much more than others do for the same service simply because they're older.
Is that right?
I've always had a feeling that, while these discounts do help some, they are a complete generalisation, making massive assumptions about age and income.
Just because you're 43 it doesn't mean that you have £1300 to shell out on a membership whereas a 34 year old might.
And, of course, it goes in the opposite direction too
I don't know the answer but I do know that many people pay much more than others do for the same service simply because they're older.
Is that right?
upsidedown
Tour Winner
We've addressed this by having an alternative day for their comps on the weekends and all our Christmas comps this year are open to all.
D
Deleted member 15344
Guest
All our medals/Stablefords at the weekend are open to all - a lot of the board comps are open to all
The main closed of comps now are the ladies comps during the week -they have Comp every Tuesday and sometimes Thursday and it’s closed off to everyone but ladies
D
Deleted member 21258
Guest
Works the other way in many areas in life, OAP discounts are everywhere and for young student discounts for example for the same services/goods. Being middle aged and working normally means you pay the most tho
Don't disagree with your comment tho
upsidedown
Tour Winner
Have you made new board comps or did you reallocate existing Men's board comps now to be Mixed ones and if the latter was there much resistance from the old guard ? Would like to see us have more open to all comps but realistically if we did there aren't enough tee times to go around with over 600 members and that doesn't include the Juniors or do you run them over a weekend ?
D
Deleted member 15344
Guest
A lot of the board comps are mixed and any new ones are created mixed so we really only have about 4 comps that are men only - Scratch KO , a Foursomes Comp , club champs and a Foursomes KO. Juniors are able to go into a lot of them but a bit more restricted - most junior comps are on after the main comps plus half terms
Slab
Occasional Tour Caddy
Yup I think at some point a clever chap/chapess on a committee somewhere convinced the other committee members into linking the missing age-group from their membership, with ability to pay, and in many cases it'll be true and it spawned age based discounts (regardless of ability to pay)
Trouble is like many things its open to abuse and misuse outside the intended recipients (who remembers all the grandparents getting dragged round B&Q by son/daughters wanting to buy 10l liters of harvest dawn but still wanted granddads 10% Wednesday OAP discount?)
Children, cheap as you can
If in full time education, give them a chunky discount
If in the Forces, another decent discount (especially when serving away)
Pensioners, a moderate discount increasing with each year
The rest who cant afford annual membership, well ideally means testing but some golf clubs are already too intrusive so that's a non starter, so get them playing on pre-pay 'points for rounds' schemes so that if they really do want to play golf but cant afford a membership then they can afford to keep the hobby going on a regular basis, but the deal isn't as comprehensive as a regular membership which the younger guys/gals with sufficient disposable income will go for
The trick is structuring the points scheme in such a way that its is inclusive enough to still treat the player as a member of the club even though the cant do everything a full paying member can
duncan mackie
Money List Winner
Can't help feeling this has been concluded on here before!totally agree with you on this, i only took it up once i'd given up Cycling and Cricket.
i firmly believe golf clubs would be better served marketing this group (40 Plus) than youngsters. who profess to have little time or money to play, get them in 20 years time they will have both
Put resources into giving kids a grounding in the game....then sit back and wait for them to return to the game at a point that suits them.
Now constructively market to newly retired who have never played before, as well as doing all you can on, and off, course, to retain a quality offering for everyone else.
Loss leaders for those who have neither the time nor spare money will simply prove to be exactly that - losses
We are definitely seeing an influx of younger members so the age concessions seem to be working. I would rather get these in and a regular income rather than having a gap in membership numbers. I don't necessarily agree with the reductions but as the incoming members are helping keep my own rates down so I'm pragmatic about it
My opinion on it is that without the influx of the younger guys. The subs for everyone goes up.
I was only able to take advantage of a slight discount for a year, and in the end I didn’t even join that club, but I’d not have even considered em at the their normal subs.
I think it’s simply an incentive to get new people in, a bit like sky, bt etc offering new customers deals. Golf needs the average age to fall. Better for a club to have 40 extra guys/gals paying 600 than have 10 extra paying 1000.
I’d also think that clubs know they probably have to work harder to get the next generation in, I play more social golf than club golf despite being a member. But if I play elsewhere I’ll use multiple online sources for my best round. Something I know the majority of the older guys I play with don’t.
I was only able to take advantage of a slight discount for a year, and in the end I didn’t even join that club, but I’d not have even considered em at the their normal subs.
I think it’s simply an incentive to get new people in, a bit like sky, bt etc offering new customers deals. Golf needs the average age to fall. Better for a club to have 40 extra guys/gals paying 600 than have 10 extra paying 1000.
I’d also think that clubs know they probably have to work harder to get the next generation in, I play more social golf than club golf despite being a member. But if I play elsewhere I’ll use multiple online sources for my best round. Something I know the majority of the older guys I play with don’t.
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
I have absolutely no issues with my club offering reduced rate membership deals to attract new members - and the financial circumstances of any new member coming in on a deal is none of my business. I am happy to pay what I am paying, and every new member of whatever category - no matter how much they are paying - will be paying into the pot that reduces the amount that my subs go up year to year and puts more towards club and course improvements.
My club is in a pretty good place financially and membership wise at the moment (we have a waiting list). But we need a flow of new members to keep it that way - and if we are able to offer reduced rates that the club can afford and that are attractive to prospective new members then great. My only concern would be where the attractiveness of membership is not handed properly in respect of the numbers of new members admitted - but as a members club that balancing act is at the forefront of all we do and so isn't an issue - for most of us.
My club is in a pretty good place financially and membership wise at the moment (we have a waiting list). But we need a flow of new members to keep it that way - and if we are able to offer reduced rates that the club can afford and that are attractive to prospective new members then great. My only concern would be where the attractiveness of membership is not handed properly in respect of the numbers of new members admitted - but as a members club that balancing act is at the forefront of all we do and so isn't an issue - for most of us.
Blue in Munich
Crocked Professional Yeti Impersonator
Probably the planet in my office, where all the older workers make do with older cars, last year's smartphone, etc whilst the younger staff rock up in the latest BMW and the iPhone 10 on hefty contracts. They could easily afford the same price membership as me if they chose to but they spend their income elsewhere.
D
Deleted member 21784
Guest
The cars will no doubt be leased. The older workers prob had the cash available to buy a car outright and make it last. Leasing has taken off now as people don’t have to throw down a massive chunk and will have the latest bmw over day a Ford because it works out £50 pcm difference which they will see oh its “only†£50 more and I get a nicer car (in there opinion ofc)
Love how every thread that comes down to money always ends up “if they didn’t do this and this they could afford thisâ€
Not that it gets boring and tiresome ofc.
