Bar Levy good or bad?

[beau d.]

How do you view bar levies if they are in place at your club?
We have a £50 levy at our club which is payable with annual subs. I feel this is not enough and would like to see £50 with subs then a further £100 after 4 months which, if not spent before next years renewal will be lost to the club (excluding illness and the likes). After all that only equates to a couple of pots of tee or a pint every week, not too much to ask in my opinion.
I say this as I feel that a good bar service providing good value snacks is an essential part of any golf club and the lead should come from/be helped by it's membership. After all imagine inviting some mates to play your course on a fine summers day and having to drive off somewhere after the round for a bite to eat, it's happened to most of us and i'm sure most will agree, there's nothing better after hopefully a good round sitting on the balcony with a pint and a snack watching others play the 18th.
How does your club encourage members to patronise the bar?

 

[chellie]

Think it's £50 at ours plus we get a 10% discount as well if paying with our bar card.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

We did away with it this year. To be honest I didn't mind it and it was only £50 and yet many golfers couldn't manage to spend that over 12 months. Shows how often they ventured into the 19th. The club thought the levy was putting new members off and as numbers are up I guess they got it right

 

[In_The_Rough]

You have no idea what you have started here!! For what it is worth I do not agree with them as some people do not wish to go in the clubhouse for drinks etc basically trying to force people to do so is wrong IMO

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

I think it's a good thing. I really don't understand why someone would join a club then not socialise with other members by having a drink after their round.

 

[richart]

We are just introducing one from November, £50 this year, £75 next.

Personally it is a fraction of what I spend so has no real impact. It does seem strange that a member can't spend that amount in the clubhouse over a year. A few drinks, couple of meals and it's gone. Also don't really see the argument that members can't afford it. Membership fees are £1320. Is another £50 really a lot especially as you will get to to spend it, unlike a membership hike.

I think anything that encourages members into the clubhouse rather than changing in the car park and dashing home is a good thing. I know there are people that are pushed for time, but if you can find 3/4 hours for a round of golf, can you not find another 10 minutes for a quick drink ?

Just my opinion of course.

 

[ArnoldArmChewer]

We have a £100 levy each January, it's gone by Feb so no complaints from me

 

[Buddaah]

My club has a £50 levy payable every year, if you don't spend it you lose it but if you spend and re top up then your balance rolls over. I think it's a good thing as you get 15% discount on drinks & it encourages people to be more social.
I feel that if your not going to use the clubhouse then you might as well just spread the £80-£100 a month fees over a few courses. The whole point is surely to be a part of something, meet new people and to enjoy a game with old & new friends.

 

[Iain.faulkner]

We don't have one, and to be honest it wouldn't bother me if we did. I personally believe it is part of being a member of the golf club, but I appreciate that not everyone can do it. I tend to have a drink, sometimes a couple, and something to eat after a round of golf, plus it try to get into the clubhouse on a Friday night once a month as well, so a bar levy wouldn't affect me.

 

[SocketRocket]

We have a £75 bar levy. I agree with it as it guarantees enough revenue will be created to employ bar and kitchen staff.

 

[Hobbit]

Don't agree with them.

People take up golf, not drinking...

I spend at least double the £50 in a month. I see it as a golf club, and a clubhouse to socialise in. Those that just want to play golf, their choice.

If the club feels it needs to raise an extra £30 per year per member, why not just be open and honest about it and raise the subs accordingly.

 

[Fish]

Ours is a nonsense at £100 because it goes on your card which can then be used to pay for competitions, so what's the point? Nothing can be projected from that levy as it has no defined direction, such as the bar!

As Brian states, people join to play golf, not to be told you have to use the bar or you will lose your levy, scrap them and then maybe the club will do something more positive with their menu's and prices to captivate and entice customers to use the facilities freely rather than force them towards the bar to use up what they'll otherwise lose!

 

[chrisd]

At interview, prospective members used to be asked if they intended to support the social side of the club. Without exception they all said yes, so when the scheme was introduced it was felt that those who said yes just to gain entry to the club would be asked, in effect, to back their answer when joining, everyone who used the bar/catering were inevitably spending more than the £50 levy anyway.

In a private club like ours it's right, I believe, that everyone helps make the club run financially.

 

[Pin-seeker]

13 posts on this subject with out any fall outs :whoo:
Personally I don't agree with a bar levy,if some one wants a drink after a round it should be their choice..

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Have a bar levy of £50 at one club - any money left over not spent by members is used to pay the Sky Subscription each year ( about 4 grand )

And £200 at the other which can also be used in pro shop to purchase items.

Both are easily spent plus a great deal more

Think they are a good idea

 

[BrizoH71]

Ours is £30, and I've had to top it up twice since. I think its a great perk, and saves me from carrying cash around.. also saves 10% on bar prices when its used. Our levy can also be used to pay for competition entries as required.

Only downside is it isn't applicable to the food, as the kitchen is operated by a 3rd party contractor; although its maybe a good thing, as I'd be fatter than I am.

 

[Snelly]

Very good thing. £100 every 6 months feels about right to me and that is what they have at the West Sussex.

Any credit left over is returned in decent bottles of wine at Christmas. A very good system that works for the club as they make a margin and get a bulk discount and the membership, as they don't lose out at all. Unless they are teetotal obviously.

 

[Snelly]

.

If the club feels it needs to raise an extra £30 per year per member, why not just be open and honest about it and raise the subs accordingly.

Because it also encourages social cohesion and a sense of community and belonging by encouraging all members to have a pint and a natter with their playing partners after a game. This is as it should be as golf is a social pastime and it's not always easy to have a chat on the course if you are concentrating on your shots or having a bad day!

 

[Slab]

A bar levy can really only be judged as good or bad once the bar itself, its products/pricing & service have been judged on the same scale!

 

[Deleted member 18588]

£100 at our club and can be used only for food & drink. Quite amusing at end of year to see many of the "car park golfers" finally entering the clubhouse and using their levy to purchase cases of wine.

So yes I think it is a good idea BUT only at members' clubs rather than proprietary clubs.

After all at the former the introduction, continuation and any increase of a levy has to be agreed by the members at the AGM.