Medal entry numbers at your club

[KenL]

A comp 6 days a week?
We have about 30 in a year.

 

[pendodave]

A comp 6 days a week?
We have about 30 in a year.

I was listening to an Australian golf podcast and clubs there have a comp pretty much every day by all accounts. The host was bemoaning the fact that this meant that there was less match play (and other formats) than in the UK. Not heard of it over here as much though. We average about 1 a week (alternately midweek and weekend).
Apologies for gratuitous thread drift...

 

[evemccc]

It would be useful if people posted approx membership numbers (if known) in addition to comp entries, as this provides context to absolute numbers enrolled in a medal

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Due to numbers wanting to play in our monthly medal, a few years ago my club introduced a Sunday Monthly Medal in addition to the trad Saturday one, so that we now have two medals every month. The Saturday is more popular - 100-120. Sunday tends to be 80-100. Difficult for me to say numbers who play in both but let’s guess about half Saturdays also play Sundays. So in total in any month about 200 members will play in a medal out of a membership of 635.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

800 members, don't know the split of ladies and 5 day members.

Approx 150 play the mens Saturday comps. (I know some of this is a repeat but @evemccc has asked, fairly, for context in terms of overall numbers at a club)

 

[nickjdavis]

I reckon entries are down maybe 10-15% compared to last year but maybe 20% up on 2019....read into that what you will, but my take is that the bubble caused by golfers being attracted to the sport when other sports shut down during covid has, not burst, but simply deflated a little bit.

 

[moogie]

800 members, don't know the split of ladies and 5 day members.

Approx 150 play the mens Saturday comps. (I know some of this is a repeat but @evemccc has asked, fairly, for context in terms of overall numbers at a club)

800 members....!!
Wow

 

[Lord Tyrion]

800 members....!!
Wow

Makes it interesting to get a tee time at times.

It's probably too many in reality but it may be necessary for financial purposes?

 

[Springveldt]

800 members....!!
Wow

Makes it interesting to get a tee time at times.

It's probably too many in reality but it may be necessary for financial purposes?

I don't struggle. The only tee times that fly off are the early ones on a Saturday morning (7am till 11am) probably like most places. If you don't book them the instance the sheet goes live and want to play early then your group will be splitting up and hoping single slots appear. Any other time I've never had an issue.
Even with 800 members during the summer you can pop out at 6pm on a summer night and the course is nearly empty.

 

[Jamesbrown]

Wednesdays no drop off, Saturday no drop off but Sunday is not as subscribed as it used to be. In fact it’s frustrating as I like a 7-8am tee time and nobody playing till around 8.40ish on Sundays.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

I reckon entries are down maybe 10-15% compared to last year but maybe 20% up on 2019....read into that what you will, but my take is that the bubble caused by golfers being attracted to the sport when other sports shut down during covid has, not burst, but simply deflated a little bit.

Just on this…I hear that my club’s waiting list is growing…it was 100 earlier this year. Club is considering how we manage that waiting list as we are not a recognised ‘prestige’ club…just a darned good members club with a splendid track. We don’t want to lose the waiting list (or Academy members frustrated at not being able to transfer to full membership) due to low turnover of members (last renewal the turnover was insignificant). One option is to increase membership by 50. It’s a good problem to have, but a problem nonetheless.

Club of course looking at stats the booking system gives on medals, other comps and casual play. As an aside that’s something it couldnt do pre-pandemic for casual play as we didn’t book times for casual play.

 

[evemccc]

Just on this…I hear that my club’s waiting list is growing…it was 100 earlier this year. Club is considering how we manage that waiting list as we are not a recognised ‘prestige’ club…just a darned good members club with a splendid track. We don’t want to lose the waiting list (or Academy members frustrated at not being able to transfer to full membership) due to low turnover of members (last renewal the turnover was insignificant). One option is to increase membership by 50. It’s a good problem to have, but a problem nonetheless.

Club of course looking at stats the booking system gives on medals, other comps and casual play. As an aside that’s something it couldnt do pre-pandemic for casual play as we didn’t book times for casual play.

As an aside (apologies to the OP for deviation) what are the advantages of having such a large membership and waiting list to rank and file members —apart from the fact we all want our clubs to do well and keep the course to a good standard etc — because generally if the waiting list is long and membership high, there is more likelihood of the club management will be using that as leverage to increase subs I would have thought?
Also is there not difficulty in getting a tee-time or less flexibility even just playing last-minute casual rounds or a few 9s..?

 

[Bdill93]

All our comps still fill up.

Lower guys are getting slowly bored of being hammered most weeks despite good gross scores, but such is life at my club under WHS

 

[Slab]

Just on this…I hear that my club’s waiting list is growing…it was 100 earlier this year. Club is considering how we manage that waiting list as we are not a recognised ‘prestige’ club…just a darned good members club with a splendid track. We don’t want to lose the waiting list (or Academy members frustrated at not being able to transfer to full membership) due to low turnover of members (last renewal the turnover was insignificant). One option is to increase membership by 50. It’s a good problem to have, but a problem nonetheless.

Club of course looking at stats the booking system gives on medals, other comps and casual play. As an aside that’s something it couldnt do pre-pandemic for casual play as we didn’t book times for casual play.

A bit off topic but... how does the full capacity membership equate when compared to tee time occupancy?

i.e are there next to no tee times available or only those allocated for visitors etc are free or are there plenty tee times unused on various days (talking about a fair weather week as opposed to a week in mid-winter)

 

[peld]

We have 941 golf members for two courses.
we probably get about 100 for our club champs, and about 60-80 for normal medals.

Dont think we have many juniors and probably 80 ladies id guess.
Dont know how many are 5-day members.

Getting a tee time now in winter becomes impossible, hence why i only play winter league. In the summer, i only play comps, or on a sunday afternoon. Prime weekend tee times go in about 10 seconds when the booking opens 10 days before (absolute joke). Id move clubs but its 2 miles away.

 

[KenL]

Under 70 playing tomorrow's medal.
Club has about 700 adult male members.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

…as posted elsewhere on my yesterday knock in our Thursday Roll…but relevant to this discussion…as ‘only’ 40 played.

The Thursday Rollup would typically have 60+ entries. Apparently numbers have fallen off dramatically since it was classified as a WHS qualifying comp. It may be just coincidence that the vast majority of those playing in this Rollup are Seniors.

Word has it that many (and not just Seniors) just don’t really get how WHS works and so avoid playing more WHS qualifying comps than required. Either that or they don’t want to have to hole tap-ins or have rubbish, or even good, scores in their 20.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

A bit off topic but... how does the full capacity membership equate when compared to tee time occupancy?

i.e are there next to no tee times available or only those allocated for visitors etc are free or are there plenty tee times unused on various days (talking about a fair weather week as opposed to a week in mid-winter)

We have 635 full members, and other than Sat and Sun mornings to about 1pm, I can get a tee time virtually whenever I want. Checking just now the 1st tee is basically completely unbooked after 2:30 for today (even with two societies playing) and also after 3pm over weekend. Also if I wanted to play earlier than 3pm there look to be 10-12 available tee times each day. It seems that a lot of our members are either retired or can play Mon-Fri and, other than weekend comps, choose to do so.

 

[Slab]

We have 635 full members, and other than Sat and Sun mornings to about 1pm, I can get a tee time virtually whenever I want. Checking just now the 1st tee is basically completely unbooked after 2:30 for today (even with two societies playing) and also over weekend. Also if I wanted to play earlier than 2pm there look to be 10-12 available tee times each day. It seems that a lot of our members are either retired or can play Mon-Fri and, other than weekend comps, choose to do so.

I guess that means the club certainly has the tee capacity to increase the membership numbers if they wanted to (a bit like overselling seats on planes knowing some wont get used i guess)

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

I guess that means the club certainly has the tee capacity to increase the membership numbers if they wanted to (a bit like overselling seats on planes knowing some wont get used i guess)

That’s what the thinking will be.

We are fortunate that we are in a financial position to be able to choose to limit visitor tee times, and only have societies on Weds and Fridays. Plus, as we have reinstated joining fee (equivalent to one year subs so about £1800) taking 50 members off the waiting list we are looking at £90k plus £90k a year, with first year giving an injection of near £200k. That’s very significant for the club if the course and tee times can handle it. Or maybe in first instance create a type of reduced entry and subs membership that only gives play after 1pm or suchlike.

I‘m wary, as one of the joys of membership at my place (justifies the cost for me) is that I can get a tee time when course is quiet any day of the week, and I never struggle to play Sat morning as the Sat Rollup has a batch of mid-late morning tee reservations.