Membership Costs Up

[Crazyface]

Sorry, in advance, I know this has been discussed LOTS of times,

Speaking to a bloke on the second tee on Friday, at where I play, he said that there was to be a price increase of £50 for next year. There is to be a meeting on, well I forget when, but soon. Apparently the place is in trouble, not immediately, but if things continue, in 5 years it will be gone! Also he told me about some bloke working over at, er well er I think Trentham, where they were in trouble. Brought this bloke in to sort it out. He's hated by the membership, not a nice bloke, " I'm not here to be like I'm here to do a job" but he's turned the place round. So it can be done. Golf courses need to put secretarys in place that know how to generate money for them and if this cost money to employ them so be it.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Golf clubs are a business, which sadly members forget.

 

[patricks148]

Didn't you leave your last club because the put the membership fee's up?

 

[Grant85]

Golf clubs are a business, which sadly members forget.

Absolutely, golf clubs have to think like a business when they still have the option to put a plan in place to increase revenue.

By the time you wait until the only plan is reduce costs, it is inevitably too late.

Also there are too many members who think they have a divine right to pay their fees and basically only play golf, in some cases a lot of golf, refuse to even buy a bacon roll or a couple of golf balls from the club and then have big moans about the price of everything.

Clubs also maybe are guilty of trying to put too positive a spin on everything. I am yet to really understand at any of the clubs I've been at, how many members we have and how many we'd need to start maybe reducing fees or making a substantial investment in the course or facilities.

Incredibly difficult to get an answer to this kind of question. Perhaps because most clubs have a number of 'life' members or senior members with x years service, who pay very little for annual membership.

 

[patricks148]

Absolutely, golf clubs have to think like a business when they still have the option to put a plan in place to increase revenue.

By the time you wait until the only plan is reduce costs, it is inevitably too late.

Also there are too many members who think they have a divine right to pay their fees and basically only play golf, in some cases a lot of golf, refuse to even buy a bacon roll or a couple of golf balls from the club and then have big moans about the price of everything.

Clubs also maybe are guilty of trying to put too positive a spin on everything. I am yet to really understand at any of the clubs I've been at, how many members we have and how many we'd need to start maybe reducing fees or making a substantial investment in the course or facilities.

Incredibly difficult to get an answer to this kind of question. Perhaps because most clubs have a number of 'life' members or senior members with x years service, who pay very little for annual membership.

reducing fee's is just the long slippery slope IMO, nothing is cheaper than it was 10 years ago so not sure why some think Golf should be

 

[User 99]

Golf clubs are a business, which sadly members forget.

That depends on the club, mines is a member owned club so it's not a business, yes it needs to run like a business but it's not to make profit.

 

[Crazyface]

Didn't you leave your last club because the put the membership fee's up?

Yup. Moved to a cheap deal close to home. (No comps) Will be off again next year. Current course is too easy.

 

[USER1999]

Ours is going up around £80 this year. I know why, but it is still a big bump.

 

[Crazyface]

Also a mate of mine who plays where I am at the moment is "considering" moving clubs. He doesn't like the way things are going. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He's been there from the days of joining fees !!!!!!!

 

[Crazyface]

The £50 increase is a 6.2% increase. Figures eh? Who got 6.2% pay increase this year? I got nowt. One other factor will also will be taken into consideration before I ever rejoin a club on full membership.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

That depends on the club, mines is a member owned club so it's not a business, yes it needs to run like a business but it's not to make profit.

I think the point is that it needs to be run professionally. Put in the correct people, who will run it like a business, and it has a better chance of surviving. Leave well meaning amateurs in charge, even ones who were good in their own field, and it is less likely to in the current climate.

Running it like a business does not make it all about profit, the target could be to break even or to create funds purely to re-invest, but the set up and attitude needs to step up. Golf club managers are specialists in the same way a restauranter, hotel manager, retail manager etc are. No shock that employing one can help.

 

[Lazkir]

Depends on the circumstances at each club. Ours has put out fees up by £40 which may not seem a lot, but after two years of piss poor management and the course being in the worst condition it's ever been, it has got quite a few members leaving.
Maybe not significant numbers going, but enough to mean that the nett income from membership will be going down and not up. That's not including the money these guys spend in the club neither, they all spend quite a bit behind the bar on both food and drink.
The club pro isn't happy as it's going to affect his income as well.
The club, like so many is run by amateurs who look like they have never run a business in their lives, and are pretty arrogant when it comes to any questions about club business.
I personally don't think the club will last more than five, maybe tens years max unless something drastic happens.

 

[User 99]

2 years ago our club increased the fees by £50 and lost 80 members, they reduced them back down again last year and have picked up 170 since.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

It's an intersting question. How much could your club increase fees by and it would not make you look elsewhere? What is the trigger level?

My fees last year were £575 plus EGU fees. I'm expecting them to go to £595 or similar. If they increase more than £40 I would start looking so for me it is £40 increase to trigger a search.

 

[patricks148]

It's an intersting question. How much could your club increase fees by and it would not make you look elsewhere? What is the trigger level?

My fees last year were £575 plus EGU fees. I'm expecting them to go to £595 or similar. If they increase more than £40 I would start looking so for me it is £40 increase to trigger a search.

good question, i think this could warrant a new thread

 

[Jacko_G]

Absolutely, golf clubs have to think like a business when they still have the option to put a plan in place to increase revenue.

By the time you wait until the only plan is reduce costs, it is inevitably too late.

Also there are too many members who think they have a divine right to pay their fees and basically only play golf, in some cases a lot of golf, refuse to even buy a bacon roll or a couple of golf balls from the club and then have big moans about the price of everything.

Clubs also maybe are guilty of trying to put too positive a spin on everything. I am yet to really understand at any of the clubs I've been at, how many members we have and how many we'd need to start maybe reducing fees or making a substantial investment in the course or facilities.

Incredibly difficult to get an answer to this kind of question. Perhaps because most clubs have a number of 'life' members or senior members with x years service, who pay very little for annual membership.

I'm not sure a roll and bacon or a couple of balls are going to make any difference.

Usually catering is outsouced and the pro shop is run as a business by the professional and not the club.

All golf courses will have car park members and that's fine to an extent, you can't force people to use the facilities if they don't want to. What you do have to appreciate though is that they are keeping your fees down as well.

Clubs in general increase fees year on year, not saying it's right but it is something I budget for.

 

[jim8flog]

Our fees automatically go up in line with inflation. So have seen very little increase in the past few years meanwhile some things such as our business rates have increased well above the level of inflation, new managers with a bigger salaries. So we have no choice but to add on a little extra.

Like any business we may have sudden unexpected costs, e.g. we had the water tank develop a leak and it cost £23,000 to replace/repair. The only way to cover these costs is by either a one off levy or increase fees.

 

[USER1999]

The £50 increase is a 6.2% increase. Figures eh? Who got 6.2% pay increase this year? I got nowt. One other factor will also will be taken into consideration before I ever rejoin a club on full membership.

Ours too is 6%, but that comes out at £80.

Thing is, compared to the courses I would want to join if I was not where I am, it is still cheaper. Whether it remains better value, I am not so sure.

But a big thing is still that I have a lot of friends there, and it would be a wrench to leave and join somewhere else, just because of an above inflation rise.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

I think the point is that it needs to be run professionally. Put in the correct people, who will run it like a business, and it has a better chance of surviving. Leave well meaning amateurs in charge, even ones who were good in their own field, and it is less likely to in the current climate.

Running it like a business does not make it all about profit, the target could be to break even or to create funds purely to re-invest, but the set up and attitude needs to step up. Golf club managers are specialists in the same way a restauranter, hotel manager, retail manager etc are. No shock that employing one can help.

Exactly.
Our fees are £1100 for. 7 day membership. It’s gone up every year since i joined, but then sonhave everything needed to maintain the course. We also have a slight surplus, which we are using to redo the bunkers on the course over a number of years. Each bunker I believe is something like £5k to totally redo for the better long term.
Standing still isn’t an option, and obviously my club must be doing something right because the number of new members has risen.

 

[Beezerk]

Our price has gone up again by about £30 for next year, I've just cancelled my membership as well but nor for that reason...