Golf clubs low on membership

[Reemul]

My club has multiple levels

Platinum - 7 day + reciprocals = £905
Gold - 7 Day - No reciprocals £805
Intermediate plus (same as platinum for 36-40) £645
Intermediate - (same as platinum for 26-35) £505
Colt Plus - (22-25) = £345
Colt (18-21) = £195
Junior (under 17) =£25

Personally unsure why some one aged 35 pays £400 a year less than me, guy I work with, same job, same money, one less kid pays the £400 less than I do, we play together. Not sure what benefits im getting for the additional £400.

 

[Italian outcast]

Apologies if it’s answered already where In Italy are you? Was it the hill on 16th at bellshill that took it out of you and you decided to retire to sunnier climates

I loved that hole - effectively no out of bounds and a holding green
T'was the 9th and 18th that always did for me
I'm in Bergamo (near Milan) most of my time - as in signature

 

[Tashyboy]

I loved that hole - effectively no out of bounds and a holding green
T'was the 9th and 18th that always did for me
I'm in Bergamo (near Milan) most of my time - as in signature

Ciao IO, had many a happy hour in Bergamo, love it up Bergamo Alto, the funicular railway was made in Ceriano Laghetto which is just east of Saronno. I have good friends who live there.

 

[williamalex1]

Bellshill is a great course nothing quite as exhilarating as trying to drive the pond at 4 knowing if you don’t the splash will wake up the local delinquents fishing for golf balls?! I do like bellshill all joking aside other than the hill at 16 where I’ve found a dead mountain goat or 2 percent


Ps wetlands? Those days are gone that new drainage Robertson group paid for means the course is so dry we might need sprinklers

With all the trees you cut down global warming has shot up quite a bit lol, only kidding mate . We play your senior opens and 4bbb comps every year and usually do quite well, we actually won it 2 years ago .
I know your pro's dad Billy Wright quite well, plus a few of your low h/c players, always a pleasure to play Ricarton and come off breathing normally with a 66 . Anytime mate, we can play just the 15 holes if your old bones can't make the last 3 Billy.

 

[williamalex1]

I loved that hole - effectively no out of bounds and a holding green
T'was the 9th and 18th that always did for me
I'm in Bergamo (near Milan) most of my time - as in signature

Yes Ian, the 9th par 5 dogleg left with OOB all the way on the left, and the 18th uphill par 4 slight dogleg right with OOB all the way on the right. Or maybe the 4th a dogleg right with OOB all the way on the right .

 

[Italian outcast]

Yes Ian, the 9th par 5 dogleg left with OOB all the way on the left, and the 18th uphill par 4 slight dogleg right with OOB all the way on the right. Or maybe the 4th a dogleg right with OOB all the way on the right .

Exactly - i can still go OOB in either direction

 

[Italian outcast]

Ciao IO, had many a happy hour in Bergamo, love it up Bergamo Alto, the funicular railway was made in Ceriano Laghetto which is just east of Saronno. I have good friends who live there.

Ciao signore Tash
I love it here - truly beautiful and well connected
Lady outcast is from here so we moved over (from France) to be closer to her parents
We live just down the hill so look up to citta alta every morning - have to walk up the hill every day on one of the dog tours (no funiculare on my side of the hill)

 

[Bxm Foxy]

My old club, Mullion in the Uk was on the 1895 reciprocal scheme. I used it to play Ipswich a couple of times and saved myself a fair chunk in green fees. What was your club if you don’t mind me asking?

Wrangaton.

 

[Tashyboy]

Ciao signore Tash
I love it here - truly beautiful and well connected
Lady outcast is from here so we moved over (from France) to be closer to her parents
We live just down the hill so look up to citta alta every morning - have to walk up the hill every day on one of the dog tours (no funiculare on my side of the hill)

Once went up there with a Kids football team before our flights back from Bergamo. Anyway we found the old opera house and had a mosey on round. One of the guys got up on the stage, he is a bit of a football hooligan. Anyway he starts booming out Shakespeare. It was electric, some of the Italians were shouting Bravo when he finished. We were wetting our pants laughing.

 

[Crazyface]

My club has multiple levels

Platinum - 7 day + reciprocals = £905
Gold - 7 Day - No reciprocals £805
Intermediate plus (same as platinum for 36-40) £645
Intermediate - (same as platinum for 26-35) £505
Colt Plus - (22-25) = £345
Colt (18-21) = £195
Junior (under 17) =£25

Personally unsure why some one aged 35 pays £400 a year less than me, guy I work with, same job, same money, one less kid pays the £400 less than I do, we play together. Not sure what benefits im getting for the additional £400.

Whilst these things are in place I have decided to not join anywhere on full membership. And before anyone jumps in i'm on £12K a year before tax. Which is great in one respect as the tax man gets as close to nothing as can be from me, but means I have to be VERY careful how I spend what money I have for myself.

 

[Britishshooting]

I'm a member at two courses. One is superior however has intermediate up to 30 years of age, it's therefore similar price for me to play there than a lesser course I'm also a member at. It also does the points system which works out cheaper still with the option to top up should you get on the course more than planned. These options have seen good membership renewals and encouragement of members from other local courses.

The second course which is the lower quality option has intermediate up to 26 years old, there seems to be a trend of members moving to courses which offer the higher intermediate age bracket once they reach 26. The only constant seems to be the pensioner bracket who reliably rejoin year after year.

If money was tighter I wouldn't be a member at the latter myself, however it's a decent enough course and is brilliant in terms of social between the members and it almost went under last year so I decided to re-join myself as that would be a huge shame.

 

[Bigfoot]

I can see a club going under around here soon. We lost a nine hole course - Habberley and Burlish Park - both near kidderminster - over the last few years but others are going about getting new members in different ways.

One is trying a drop in membership fees but existing members will pay an amount more, if they don't get the required numbers.
Another is raising fees in order to pay for better quality of course.
A further course had a meeting to get ideas but members walked out when the committee said no to all the ideas proposed by the members!!

It will be interesting to see who gets the required result.

 

[Tashyboy]

Whilst these things are in place I have decided to not join anywhere on full membership. And before anyone jumps in i'm on £12K a year before tax. Which is great in one respect as the tax man gets as close to nothing as can be from me, but means I have to be VERY careful how I spend what money I have for myself.

Amen to that brother

 

[xreyuk]

Our club don’t seem to care, fees have just gone up.

 

[Grant85]

Just to bump this as not seen it mentioned elsewhere, but Eastwood GC to the south of Glasgow appointed administrators this week. A proposed deal / purchase to keep it as a golf course fell through and they basically have no cash.

Scotsman Story

Given the number of courses in the area (and in nearby Ayrshire) it's a very competitive location and I think it was inevitable that a course was going to go sooner or later.

It seems that a lot of members left over the past year, with a big exodus when 2019 fees were due. Likely been past the tipping point for a year or two now.

Pollok dropping joining fee possibly led the charge last year. Who I understand are now full and will be putting their joining fee back on.

Hopefully if nothing else, this strengthens the position of other courses and they realise the seriousness of not recruiting younger people and encouraging people to take up the sport.

 

[patricks148]

Ive heard Stathpeffer now only has 25 members, not sure if this is true or not but they must be on their last legs. most of the smaller clubs are struggling.

 

[Capella]

Are there fixed rules in the UK how many members a golf club is allowed to have? In Germany, according to DGV (the German golf association) a club is allowed 700 full members per 9 holes. "full" means full paying, junior members, long distance, green fee and secondary memberships don't count. Only few really reach that limit, but I know of one or two who built an additional 9 hole par 3 course to be allowed more members.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Are there fixed rules in the UK how many members a golf club is allowed to have? In Germany, according to DGV (the German golf association) a club is allowed 700 full members per 9 holes. "full" means full paying, junior members, long distance, green fee and secondary memberships don't count. Only few really reach that limit, but I know of one or two who built an additional 9 hole par 3 course to be allowed more members.

No there aren't, but many private clubs will have a max number for 7 day members so as not to crowd the course at the weekends and balance budget with course flow rates. Mine I think is about 450 7 day male members. Obviously you also have 5 day males, 5 and 7 day females and juniors as well.

 

[Siolag]

My club allows 600 ordinary (7 day) members, and has a waiting list now.

 

[Grant85]

Are there fixed rules in the UK how many members a golf club is allowed to have? In Germany, according to DGV (the German golf association) a club is allowed 700 full members per 9 holes. "full" means full paying, junior members, long distance, green fee and secondary memberships don't count. Only few really reach that limit, but I know of one or two who built an additional 9 hole par 3 course to be allowed more members.

A lot of clubs will have it written in their documents that they can have a maximum of x number of members. But some clubs that are 'full' may create additional categories such as young adult, 5 day, temporary member etc. if they feel the course has capacity for more paying members.