Life membership offer

[MadAdey]

Sounds like a club desperate for money and looking for fast cash injections to stay afloat.

 

[jim8flog]

I would think any club offering this is having cash flow issues.

Not where I play.

Ours was offered when they were looking to finance a major new building project. Those who did not take it up had to contribute on annual basis over 5 years which as been the usual practice for absolutely years.

 

[Roops]

They have just offered a new tranche of life memberships at my club along with an investment scheme. Principle reason is to reduce the amount of borrowing to complete on course improvements (bunker fefurb and green drainage) Being a members club, we are not at the whim of an individual or company to sell the club/land, so in our case they are a useful means to raise funds for improvements.

 

[Grant85]

Our place has started offering life memberships, limited to 2 per annum, for 10k.

This equates to circa 15 years subs. Seems like a big commitment to make, will you still be alive in 15-20 years time, still able and willing to play golf, and not bored with playing at the same club for so long? Will the club still be going by then?

Not for me at 59, but I guess very tempting if you are in your 30s, a golf nut, and can afford it.

I've heard of clubs offering free life membership to folk who have been members for 30-40 years, but not for a large lump sum. Not sure if it's a common thing, would be interested to hear if anyone has taken this kind of deal, and how it is working out for them?

Personally against life memberships, from the point of the club not the individual, unless potentially a very long standing, older member who isn't fit to play any more and is going to give up membership anyway.

Younger people and regular players - sorry, but that's just creating 2 tiers of membership. Especially if guys can just 'buy' them in their 30s or 40s and have the use of the club and course for decades to come.

Any club I've been at, life members have always been a source of resentment and contention. There will always be people who have them and others who feel they are just as entitled etc but missed out for whatever reason.

Similar with senior membership, where dozens of people have half price membership but play 3 times more than the guys paying full price!

Happy with a few introductory years for new players or younger players to get them into the club, but should be 1 tier for everyone else.

 

[nickjdavis]

My place offered life memberships recently but the amount they asked for was tiered based on your age and the offer was for a limited time only.

Think they wanted something like £2k if you were 70+ and then I think it increased in intervals up to about £10/11k if you were mid 50's. Annual subs are around £850. There were discounts if you took a husband/wife life membership. I think there were a decent enough amount of takers...especially amongst some of the long term members who are in their sixties.

I personally felt wary of the scheme....as others have said...its obviously a means of injecting short term cash into the business and I know that we've struggled financially in recent years. At 53 I wouldn't have wanted to "invest" the sort of money being asked for...even if I'd had it spare at the time.

 

[rulefan]

The club will probably not last the next 10 years

 

[Deleted member 21258]

Thought I would balance the postings a bit, as I know of several golfs that offer(ed) life memberships and are still trading years after.

One uses the overseas life membership income to protect its sea defences(iirc Ballybunion or might have been one/more of the other big Irish links that I looked at ). Another links course in UK used it for something(I cant remember what they used it for LOL) but had 20 men purchase the life membership in 2008 and are still trading. So they are not all bad news situations.

That said I would not look at or purchase a life membership, unless it was a club that was membership owned and the club owned the course/clubhouse and didn't have masses of debt.