not sure whether to keep my membership.anyone in same boat?

Dbu

Hi
Play every Saturday, but also miss a few due to weather, job etc.

Had a chat with the mrs about it and am seriously thinking of of joining a cheap membership place and just playing in opens around the place, and to add a bit of variety(different courses etc)

My current sub is €980
comp fees are between €6-8 per round ( avg €364 per year)
Total outlay €1344
per round on own course €26 give or take, based on 1 game a week

anyone do something similar, leave their membership go, join a cheapo and just play opens?

brick tamland

Where are you based? If you are in Dublin Id go for pay and play membership somewhere. Not many Opens on Saturdays from oct-april

Dbu

brick tamland wrote: »

Where are you based? If you are in Dublin Id go for pay and play membership somewhere. Not many Opens on Saturdays from oct-april

Thanks brick, in Cork City

slingerz

Dbu wrote: »

Thanks brick, in Cork City

where are you a member, should be cheaper options available in courses not too far from the city perhaps a changing to a less expensive club?

Dbu

slingerz wrote: »

where are you a member, should be cheaper options available in courses not too far from the city perhaps a changing to a less expensive club?

I'm a member in Kinsale
ya there is Frankfield, but both my legs are the same length so wouldnt suit me:D

Kevinmarkham

Dbu wrote: »

I'm a member in Kinsale
ya there is Frankfield, but both my legs are the same length so wouldnt suit me:D

Yea, heard that about Frankfield.

I would be in the same boat, though for slightly different reasons. I play little during the winter because I'm not prepared to drive for an hour to my club to play 14 holes and, possibly, temporary greens. During the good months I'm all over the place playing golf and play at my home club maybe 15 times max. I've played there since I was a kid so I know a lot of people but it's difficult to justify the sub and the comp entry fees.

Like you, seriously thinking of joining somewhere smaller - like Ballymoney (just down road in Gorey) - and saving myself a grand while keeping my GUI card.

Still working out the pros and cons!

PARlance

I'm switching from Full membership to Pay and Play in our place next year.
I got plenty of value out of the Full membership this year, and it's relatively cheap, but I'll be lucky to play half as much golf next year.

So I might end up saving €100-150 less in total, that can go towards about a 4 day supply of nappies.

Dbu

PARlance wrote: »

I'm switching from Full membership to Pay and Play in our place next year.
I got plenty of value out of the Full membership this year, and it's relatively cheap, but I'll be lucky to play half as much golf next year.

So I might end up saving €100-150 less in total, that can go towards about a 4 day supply of nappies.

Parlance, without naming your club, how much does it charge for P&P V's full membership?

slave1

Dbu wrote: »

Hi
Play every Saturday, but also miss a few due to weather, job etc.

Had a chat with the mrs about it and am seriously thinking of of joining a cheap membership place and just playing in opens around the place, and to add a bit of variety(different courses etc)

My current sub is €980
comp fees are between €6-8 per round ( avg €364 per year)
Total outlay €1344
per round on own course €26 give or take, based on 1 game a week

anyone do something similar, leave their membership go, join a cheapo and just play opens?

This is what I've done this year in order to save cash and then spend the savings to play different courses, I've been keeping details to see how it pans out but so far it was well worth it, averaging just under €11/round across 64 rounds to date.

Dublin Spur

Yeah I've been there, this time last year in fact - I couldnt justify the outlay, there was no value in it (€1,400 sub) for the amount of golf I could play.

I decided to take a years leave of absence. It's been much easier than I thought it would be up to now. Hadn't really missed playing regulary too much.

But I have to say I'm very keen to rejoin a club and have been looking for deals this week.

Best of luck

PARlance

Dbu wrote: »

Parlance, without naming your club, how much does it charge for P&P V's full membership?

275 v 750 Dbu.
No problem naming the club if you need it.
It's a bit of a drive from Kinsale

mike12

I pay €1400 and i played 50 odd full rounds plus 20 odd 9 holes in the summer.
That is what i would miss if i left the club for pay and play u have to pay for the 9 holes plus you get to play with a regular 4 ball.
Even for a cheap pay and play u are talking say €250 plus 12 quid a round i know i would save cash but still rather be in a club.
To go country membership for €170 or so and then play opens is fine for the summer but hard to get a game at the weekend during the winter, plus you would have to factor in the travel costs compared to nipping down the road to the local course.

Mike

ssbob

Dbu wrote: »

Hi
Play every Saturday, but also miss a few due to weather, job etc.

Had a chat with the mrs about it and am seriously thinking of of joining a cheap membership place and just playing in opens around the place, and to add a bit of variety(different courses etc)

My current sub is €980
comp fees are between €6-8 per round ( avg €364 per year)
Total outlay €1344
per round on own course €26 give or take, based on 1 game a week

anyone do something similar, leave their membership go, join a cheapo and just play opens?

Thinking of doing the same myself next year, based in Cork aswell, net cost of membership this year was €860(but €1,100 up front and then €240 in the bar for me) however I only played about 25 times in full rounds on the course. I tend to play a lot around as guys I am friendly with who play are not members of anywhere or just not close by.

Thinking of getting a few together to see if somewhere would do a deal.

Will really miss those 6-9 holes in the summer evenings.:(

Dbu

'Will really miss those 6-9 holes in the summer evenings.'

Don't have the luxury of that, 35 minute drive each way to my present course

Keano

My membership works out about €1100 all in a year.

It's expensive but I probably get good use out of it. I love the long evenings on the range and then you meet someone and the invite you for a few holes or you head out and play 9 on your own.

I don't drink a whole lot nor smoke so my hobby costs me roughly €21 a week

imola94

I'd really miss my membership as I really like the club and it's only walking distance away from my house. However work and family commitments are forcing me to consider not rejoining. The nearest pay and play is 40 mins away and it would kill me to be driving past my old club. However the club has offered an incentive programme to members who encourage new members to join and if I could get one or two it would make it justifiable. Good idea from the club I thought but I guess there's only so many new members willing to join golf clubs these days.

charlieIRL

The one thing in my head that I missed this year was heading down to the practice green / chipping area but when I think about it - I probably only went down about 10 times last year just for practice. Normally I'd go an hour before a round and practice a bit. Still haven't decided 100% what I'm doing for 2014 but will prob go back to my old club just to support them.

slingerz

Dbu wrote: »

I'm a member in Kinsale
ya there is Frankfield, but both my legs are the same length so wouldnt suit me:D

i'd avoid Frankfield too myself but there is the likes of Macroom, only 30 mins from Cork City where you'd get in for anything around €600 a year. Blarney is a little bit more expensive at €100 a month but that includes Leisure centre membership if that floats your boat.

Unglika Norse

charlieIRL wrote: »

The one thing in my head that I missed this year was heading down to the practice green / chipping area but when I think about it - I probably only went down about 10 times last year just for practice. Normally I'd go an hour before a round and practice a bit. Still haven't decided 100% what I'm doing for 2014 but will prob go back to my old club just to support them.

That would be a nice thing to do, especially as a lot of the members of that club stayed on and paid their subs to keep it open and await your return.:D

sydneybound

Interesting thread and highly relevant not just cause of the current economic situation but my annual subs are due in 5 days!

Right now I'm in the position of being a member of two clubs, my home course and I have a country membership on a links course which is a total luxury but I love it. That said I'll need to think about the country membership for next year.

My membership is roughly €1300 for the year and it works like some weekends I won't play due to other commitments while others I'll get out both Saturday and Sunday. I'd say on average bearing in mind I play more in the summer than winter I play 4/5 full rounds a month, maybe I'm being optimistic, but we'll say 45 full rounds but there's nothing I love more than playing 9 holes or practising in the summer evenings so we'll put another 30 times that I use the golf club facility on top of the 45 full rounds. So that's 75 times a year and broken down that's roughly €17.50 each time I use the course. Bearing in mind a round is four hours entertainment (maybe not if your playing poorly!) your talking €4.35 an hour which compared to the cinema or pub is pretty good value. 

I could join a cheaper club but then the product (course) wouldn't be as good or convenient to get to which then lessens my enjoyment and increases travel costs therefore there isn't any point in changing.

In my eyes paying roughly €25 a week to play golf isn't overly expensive. Besides its all well and going down the distance membership route but it's extremely difficult to get a decent weekend tee time at say around 9am at these courses as they will be members times. During the winter opens dry up and you can't even get a game. Again you can't really practice or play a few holes in the evenings from April to early October unless your willing to pay €15/20 which is a pain when you just want to nip out.

IMO you cant beat being a member of a club even if you have to sacrifice some of your other monthly outgoings.

ssbob

Got this e-mail from our club today (Blarney), Special for 2014:

Blarney Golf Resort
Ages 18 to 23 years 2014 Membership for Golf Pool & Gym €350

BUT FROM NOW TO THE END OF THE YEAR

SPECIAL PRICE €299

I think thats a serious deal for college students etc....be interesting to see how many join up!

Pity I can't avail of it:(

Dr_Colossus

I see a lot of clubs offering under 30s membership deals in the past year or two (just as I'm no longer eligible having had to give up the game during my 20s due to costs). The under 30s deals are usually very good in terms of a monetary discount and generally offer full playing rights so quite frustrating to have missed out on them.

I can understand the principal from the clubs perspective in terms of trying to reduce the average age of their membership and trying to hook life long loyal members but is there any innovative clubs out there offering membership deals on other factors?
For instance the majority of club golfers are category 3 and 4 handicappers so are there any clubs trying to improve the average handicap of their members by offering discounts if you're category 1 or 2? Would be a great incentive to improve and clubs could build a good golfing reputation with increased rivalry and competition amongst it's members.

It's just as discriminatory as age profiling so don't see what it hasn't been adopted.

Wichita Lineman

Even in tough economic times I would encourage anyone who is a member to try and stick with it for the sake of your club. I am with a small club who need members to keep it going and it's tough out there.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - casual golf is killing golf - in time, the hard working but struggling clubs will close leaving the casual golfers with less places to go. NAMA courses aside of course.

Russman

Dr_Colossus wrote: »

I see a lot of clubs offering under 30s membership deals in the past year or two (just as I'm no longer eligible having had to give up the game during my 20s due to costs). The under 30s deals are usually very good in terms of a monetary discount and generally offer full playing rights so quite frustrating to have missed out on them.

I can understand the principal from the clubs perspective in terms of trying to reduce the average age of their membership and trying to hook life long loyal members but is there any innovative clubs out there offering membership deals on other factors?
For instance the majority of club golfers are category 3 and 4 handicappers so are there any clubs trying to improve the average handicap of their members by offering discounts if you're category 1 or 2? Would be a great incentive to improve and clubs could build a good golfing reputation with increased rivalry and competition amongst it's members.

It's just as discriminatory as age profiling so don't see what it hasn't been adopted.

I don't think clubs are trying to reduce the average age of their membership to be honest, I think they simply want to get cash in.

By offering deals based on handicap they might be alienating a large chunk of people of higher handicap who maybe don't have the time or interest to get lower.

My own club are doing an under 35s 6-day membership deal at the moment which hopefully will attract more than the "normal" under 30 deals around.

millerj

Dbu wrote: »

I'm a member in Kinsale
ya there is Frankfield, but both my legs are the same length so wouldnt suit me:D

Same area geographically. Went for a cheap membership myself last year. €135 distance at Slievenamon. Have played every weekend in the likes of Mitchelstown, Tipp Town and many others along with 6 or 7 games in Slievenamon. Have played several Scratch Cups from Tralee to Dunmurry Springs. Don't think I would have played the range of courses if I had big overheads initially (local membership). I see Cahir Park are offering distance membership for €150 which is a good deal from Cork if you had a couple join together sharing the travel costs.

Downside is the lack of team involvement to be honest if that is your thing. I loved plating Purcell a few years back. That being said I play off 11 and am not good enough for Bruen and not eligible for Purcell so that doesn't affect me.

Only other downside seems to be the reaction when you announce where your home club is. There seems to be a stigma against people from these clubs in my opinion. I wonder will that same stigma affect the likes of Cahir Park next year?

Personally I cant knock the distance membership and for me it made good financial sense.

jokser250

i joined a club first time last year 350 for year and was promised weekly comps which never happened only thing is course is very quiet and i changed from kack handed to normal grip in july . i may not have done that if i had been in a good well run club . luckily enough il get into realy decent well run club next year for 600 which seems very cheap compaired
to some peoples posts

MisterAnarchy

slingerz wrote: »

i'd avoid Frankfield too myself but there is the likes of Macroom, only 30 mins from Cork City where you'd get in for anything around €600 a year. Blarney is a little bit more expensive at €100 a month but that includes Leisure centre membership if that floats your boat.

My brother is a member in Frankfield and his sub is only 160 euro per year .
He cant play before 2pm on a Saturday,which doesn't effect him , but apart from that he can play any other time .

Its not a great course but for that money you cant go wrong ,even if you only use it for practice .The 160 even includes the gui fee !
He plays alot of open days and green fees at other clubs,its the way to go .

shane0007

MisterAnarchy wrote: »

Its not a great course but for that money you cant go wrong ,even if you only use it for practice .The 160 even includes the gui fee !
He plays alot of open days and green fees at other clubs,its the way to go .

I would disagree. IMO the better clubs with higher fees (the ones where people want to pay green fees!) will eventually close if everyone were to join all these €150 per year courses. What is required is support for your home club where you can. If you were to add up all the green fees & open day fees you pay for the year at other courses, you will mostly likely find it amounts to a decent club membership, if not more.

There's nothing like walking into the clubhouse bar & knowing a lot of the same people.

MisterAnarchy

shane0007 wrote: »

I would disagree. IMO the better clubs with higher fees (the ones where people want to pay green fees!) will eventually close if everyone were to join all these €150 per year courses. What is required is support for your home club where you can. If you were to add up all the green fees & open day fees you pay for the year at other courses, you will mostly likely find it amounts to a decent club membership, if not more.

There's nothing like walking into the clubhouse bar & knowing a lot of the same people.

Horses for courses ,it all depends on how much golf you expect to play.
It suits him perfectly as he lives near the course.
He was a member of his home course for years but grew tired of paying a grand a year to play a handful of times a year and often not be able to get a game when he turned up on a summers evening.
They were not rewarding his loyalty so he left ,loyalty is a two way thing.

Btw there is a clubhouse and decent driving range in Frankfield too.
Anyway he wants to play golf not drink in the bar .