Subscriptions for membership 2023.

[Oddsocks]

A 5% increase only might send your club backwards in terms of finances and course conditions. Saying that, a 10% increase is a huge pill to swallow. Up the green fees, protect the members ?‍

I agree with the first part, but the second part only stands to harm the newer blood into the sport. If the average green fee was to jump from say £40 up to £55, inevitably less casual golf would be played due to other rising costs.

This would have a negative effect on food and beverage sales at clubs which is arguably where they make their highest profits.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

I agree with the first part, but the second part only stands to harm the newer blood into the sport. If the average green fee was to jump from say £40 up to £55, inevitably less casual golf would be played due to other rising costs.

This would have a negative effect on food and beverage sales at clubs which is arguably where they make their highest profits.

It's going to be a very tough balancing job. Membership renewal may go down anyway because of pressure on personal finances, add in big increases and that decision becomes easier for many people.

Clubs will be making decisions to protect themselves in the next 1-3 years, they can't be thinking about 20 years down the line in the current circumstances.

I can see any project work, not essential, being postponed. That might help keep increases down.

 

[Neilds]

Not sure what our fees are going up but we had an EGM last week which approved top tracer at the range and money to spend on upgrading the bunkers and new machinery so they are confident that we can ride out the current situation. We sold some of the course a few years back for a residential home and got some other land to build new holes. A lot of the money has just been sat in the bank as the old guard were too scared to spend it and now we are becoming a bit more willing to spend to improve the course

 

[Barking_Mad]

I'm paying £110 a month. It's my first membership and I'm enjoying it and trying to play as much as possible as winter will mean a really boggy course and not many rounds given my previous experience of it. Seeing £110 vanish out of my account over winter for no return will be ?

 

[Yorkhacker]

Is that because they want cheaper golf or feel the club isn't spending the subs wisely do you think ?
It's a tough equation to balance at times

They're Yorkshiremen, so like to keep their money close! Seriously though, there was a period where i believe the club was only putting the fees up by 1 or 2‰ or not at all. So 5% in consecutive years is tough for them. I thought it had been 3 years in a row, but I've just remembered that last year you didn't pay the 5% if you renewed on time, got £50 on your bar card and 6 free visitor passes.
The course is in great condition, and we get a lot of visitors that backs up the quality.
Every time I play there, I remember how lucky I am to be a member

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Through choice we traditionally have (been able to cope with having) a low level of societies - through choice I suspect the level will increase next year.

 

[upsidedown]

I agree with the first part, but the second part only stands to harm the newer blood into the sport. If the average green fee was to jump from say £40 up to £55, inevitably less casual golf would be played due to other rising costs.

This would have a negative effect on food and beverage sales at clubs which is arguably where they make their highest profits.

We are thinking along those lines of what can we do for our younger members 25 -40 who might be hit hardest by any subs rise, can we offer them a flexible membership maybe ?
Our catering is franchised and know they're finding it tough post covid and we only just cover our costs over the bar.

 

[hovis]

It's pretty visible in all of the news outlets that costs for everything have gone up, fuel, energy, chemicals, etc. Staff wages will need to increase, any golf club not advertising for staff right now?

A 5% increase only might send your club backwards in terms of finances and course conditions. Saying that, a 10% increase is a huge pill to swallow. I'm not sure I could justify 10%. Tough times for club finances and committees

Up the green fees, protect the members ?‍

But wages are not going up by 10% so who loses out? Usually the paying customer. Also, just because items such as chemicals and machinery have gone up by 10% doesn't mean the club need 10% additional gross income. Do you think these clubs would lower fee's if there was deflation? Not a chance

As mentioned on a previous post the increase has tipped me and around 7 others over the edge and encouraged us the move to another (better) club as its now the same price. Ironically, the 8 of us leaving will cost the club £9200. So instead of trying to squeeze another £1800 out of 8 members they are losing 9k. With no waiting list for a 5 day too there's no one to fill our shoe's either.
This morning one of the green keepers also said people are removing themselves from the waiting list (for a 7 day).

 

[LincolnShep]

I have only just coughed up a £500 joining fee so they would have to increase a huge amount for me to think about moving. Many others would leave before me so they're not going to rise by an amount that makes a difference to me.

 

[hovis]

I have only just coughed up a £500 joining fee so they would have to increase a huge amount for me to think about moving.

Off subject a bit but this is why I absolutely detest joining fee's. It find it crazy in this day and age that a golf club can say "we need you to pay a joining fee so if things change to your disliking then you'll still stay".

 

[LincolnShep]

Off subject a bit but this is why I absolutely detest joining fee's. It find it crazy in this day and age that a golf club can say "we need you to pay a joining fee so if things change to your disliking then you'll still stay".

It's a fair point. They come and go as supply and demand changes. My club doesn't need any new members at the minute so the prices reflect that. As the golf bubble shrinks they might scrap the joining fee, I probably joined at the wrong time!

 

[KenL]

Off subject a bit but this is why I absolutely detest joining fee's. It find it crazy in this day and age that a golf club can say "we need you to pay a joining fee so if things change to your disliking then you'll still stay".

Most good clubs have a joining fee. I believe they are an acceptable thing for a members club. I wouldn't pay one for a business/resort style place.

 

[Teebs]

I think a 5% increase would be acceptable if they offer some additional no-cost benefits to the members. I like the idea of additional visitor passes, exceptionally low cost to the club (essentially £0) but rewarding for the member who could bring friends & family to the course for free.

We are a members owned club so there's confidence that any surplus funds are reinvested into the club..

 

[Lord Tyrion]

But wages are not going up by 10% so who loses out? Usually the paying customer. Also, just because items such as chemicals and machinery have gone up by 10% doesn't mean the club need 10% additional gross income. Do you think these clubs would lower fee's if there was deflation? Not a chance

As mentioned on a previous post the increase has tipped me and around 7 others over the edge and encouraged us the move to another (better) club as its now the same price. Ironically, the 8 of us leaving will cost the club £9200. So instead of trying to squeeze another £1800 out of 8 members they are losing 9k. With no waiting list for a 5 day too there's no one to fill our shoe's either.
This morning one of the green keepers also said people are removing themselves from the waiting list (for a 7 day).

Costs will be going up in variable amounts and it is important to gauge what % affects overall costs. Electricity will have pretty much trebled, no cap on business energy prices, but wages may only go up 5%. Which makes up more of the outgoings?

It's tough and there will be some serious calculations going on, including your key point about driving people away with big increases.

 

[r0wly86]

Costs will be going up in variable amounts and it is important to gauge what % affects overall costs. Electricity will have pretty much trebled, no cap on business energy prices, but wages may only go up 5%. Which makes up more of the outgoings?

It's tough and there will be some serious calculations going on, including your key point about driving people away with big increases.

it is going to be very tough, I think the reality will be that golf clubs scale down what they offer, in terms of green staff, club house staff, Sky Sports etc

prices are going up, but they cannot pass that onto the members in their entirety, because the members will also be feeling the pinch, no real pay increases, increase energy (£300pm!) increased fuel, increased interest rates on mortgages etc. If the club prices rise to much then membership will become a luxury that some won't be able to afford which will create even worse finances for the club

 

[GB72]

I ditched my membership pre the pandemic. I can play golf once a week, sometimes twice but also I could go weeks without playing if there were family plans, holidays, bad weather etc at the weekend. I always said that when fees got up to around £1000 then they were not justifiable (not saying not affordable but I like to justify the worth in what I am spending my money on). Now, if the club experience had been perfectly suited to me, I may have continued but I think I have expressed my feelings enough on that on other threads. On that basis, I left.

If I come back again next season, it will be for a club that fits in with what I want from a club and membership (may have a look at Spalding next) or it will be via a points system at Stoke Rochford (if I can get in) or Belton Woods.

Either way, traditional membership just does not have the value I am looking for as a person with a busy life outside of golf and as a person who simply goes to the club to play golf and who has a busy social life and plenty of friends outside of the club.

 

[Yorkhacker]

Up the green fees, protect the members ?‍

That's a tough one. I think visitors pay enough already, and the income from them helps keep the annual membership fees 'down'. Inevitably the visitor fees will have to rise next year, but you don't want to kill the goose that lays the golden egg.

As you say, tough times ahead for courses and committees. I think us having a joining fee will help keep existing members loyal, and the fact that it can be paid over 4 years will help attract new members.

 

[Orikoru]

Having been a member at my club 18 months now, I finally feel like we've started integrating and meeting other members now (we joined immediately before a lockdown so it was difficult). I can't imagine leaving at this point. Currently paying just over 1300 a year, if it rocketed up by like 300 or something then that would really make me reconsider. I'm sure they won't do that though. The last increase I think they just increased all categories by 5%.

 

[GB72]

Having been a member at my club 18 months now, I finally feel like we've started integrating and meeting other members now (we joined immediately before a lockdown so it was difficult). I can't imagine leaving at this point. Currently paying just over 1300 a year, if it rocketed up by like 300 or something then that would really make me reconsider. I'm sure they won't do that though. The last increase I think they just increased all categories by 5%.

I guees the issue may be that a rate of inflation increase next year could be over 10% plus the clubs are going to have to cover the cost of living increases as well. That £300 increase is not impossible, though hopefully unlikely.

 

[Blue in Munich]

Our subs cannot go up by more than 5% without agreement from 75% of the membership, which they won't get. So it will be 5% which is fine by me, but plenty will not be happy. It won't really matter if people leave, as we have a waiting list, and new members pay a joining fee.

I think we have similar in our rules, so potentially I can see an EGM coming. Personally I'll swallow whatever it takes to maintain the same standard, but I accept I'm in a more fortunate position than some. As someone else has said, it could be defrayed by some free guest passes, which cost the club little and can bring in bar revenue.