Dublin Membership

Happy Gilmore 2020

Hi, anyone know if membership entrance fees are on the rise or going down? Courses I'm looking at are Dun laoghrai, Grange, Edmonstown , Rathfarnham and Old Conna.... Cheers in advance . HG 2020

eoghan104

They certainly won't be going down for the foreseeable. Any club with an entrance fee will be keeping it and those without might introduce them.

Happy Gilmore 2020

eoghan104 wrote: »

They certainly won't be going down for the foreseeable. Any club with an entrance fee will be keeping it and those without might introduce them.

Thanks Eoghan, not the answer i was hoping for 😂

Ollieboy

Totally agree with Eoghan, it’s not like 2008 when there was no money around. Also any club inside the M50 will be charging a premium and rightly so.

So I expect most clubs to bring them back in 2022 and I know a lot of clubs discussed it. I also expect membership fees to start rising again in 2022.

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Hi, anyone know if membership entrance fees are on the rise or going down? Courses I'm looking at are Dun laoghrai, Grange, Edmonstown , Rathfarnham and Old Conna.... Cheers in advance . HG 2020

Proposal in upcoming AGM to increase entrance fee in Grange

Happy Gilmore 2020

Luckycharm wrote: »

Proposal in upcoming AGM to increase entrance fee in Grange

Many thanks for the heads up. Grange well out of my price range. Rathfarnham is currently 4k and Edmonstown is 5k .. which is the best?

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Many thanks for the heads up. Grange well out of my price range. Rathfarnham is currently 4k and Edmonstown is 5k .. which is the best?

Not much in it, Rathfarnham has a few tight holes and squeezed in a few extra holes a few years ago to make it 18. Edmonstown took in a load of members a few years ago and has a few quirky holes. Played both a couple of times, never really seen many in the clubhouse of Edmonstown but that could be down to timings. You can see both from M50 either side.
Neither are particularly hilly given their locations, I would say your best bet is play them both a couple of times and see which you prefer.

AnBeagalltach

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Many thanks for the heads up. Grange well out of my price range. Rathfarnham is currently 4k and Edmonstown is 5k .. which is the best?

I notice all of these clubs (and stackstown) require a proposer and seconder for membership to even be considered. I was told this was the case for Grange even for Pavillion membership. Is there any workaround for people who have no contacts in the club? Especially now in COVID times where you cannot go up to the club and meet people.

Happy Gilmore 2020

Luckycharm wrote: »

Not much in it, Rathfarnham has a few tight holes and squeezed in a few extra holes a few years ago to make it 18. Edmonstown took in a load of members a few years ago and has a few quirky holes. Played both a couple of times, never really seen many in the clubhouse of Edmonstown but that could be down to timings. You can see both from M50 either side.
Neither are particularly hilly given their locations, I would say your best bet is play them both a couple of times and see which you prefer.

Many thanks for the response. Both are too pricey but if by some miracle the entrance fees go down I will consider. I know members in Stackstown and there is no entrance fees so that might be my only option for now at least.

eoghan104

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Many thanks for the response. Both are too pricey but if by some miracle the entrance fees go down I will consider. I know members in Stackstown and there is no entrance fees so that might be my only option for now at least.

Have you the option to look further away? Much better value in North Wicklow and North Dublin.

Luckycharm

AnBeagalltach wrote: »

I notice all of these clubs (and stackstown) require a proposer and seconder for membership to even be considered. I was told this was the case for Grange even for Pavillion membership. Is there any workaround for people who have no contacts in the club? Especially now in COVID times where you cannot go up to the club and meet people.

Not really unless you know Friends of friends, they had a couple of incidents where people got in and didn't really know anyone and caused a few problems.

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Many thanks for the response. Both are too pricey but if by some miracle the entrance fees go down I will consider. I know members in Stackstown and there is no entrance fees so that might be my only option for now at least.

Have you played Stackstown, it is not bad, great views of the city but a few very hilly holes especially the 15/16 if they play the holes down to the road. Not sure I would fancy it in the winter but very nice in the Summer.
Know a few people in Lisheen only about 15/20 min drive from Rathfarnham, can get good deals there and decent course. Only thing I have found playing there is it seems to be a bit of carpark golfclub, people play and go straight home. Depends on what you are looking for. Castleknock is about the same distance and good deals there. Grangecastle/Beech park/ citywest (don't really like that course) maybe other options.

Happy Gilmore 2020

Thanks to all for posting replies.im currently in Beechpark and can't complain but would love to join a course 5 mins away instead of 20... I'll just have to sit tight for now at least.. I'm lucky to have Beechpark:)

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Thanks to all for posting replies.im currently in Beechpark and can't complain but would love to join a course 5 mins away instead of 20... I'll just have to sit tight for now at least.. I'm lucky to have Beechpark:)

There are also 2 9 hole courses near the back entrance of Marley, one in the grounds of St Columbas Kilmashogue Golf Club and Ballinascorney Golf Club as well. I have never played either.

Happy Gilmore 2020

Luckycharm wrote: »

There are also 2 9 hole courses near the back entrance of Marley, one in the grounds of St Columbas Kilmashogue Golf Club and Ballinascorney Golf Club as well. I have never played either.

Thanks, you certainly know your stuff. Appreciate it.

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Thanks, you certainly know your stuff. Appreciate it.

Well living around there over 40 years and member of one of aforementioned courses 33 years. Good thing about the area is along with North county Dublin the best area for Golf courses in the city!!
If you do know anyone in Grange, Pavillion membership is decent access to back 6 holes/practise area at all the times, reduced green fees, good few comps on main course, biggest plus is you get a GUI. Also if you decide down the line to become a ordinary/full member what you pay as a pavillion will be taken off joining fee. A good few of my friends have done this.
If you are young they do very good deals for intermediates. Membership generally opens in Jan so if you know some members you need to get your skates on.

Happy Gilmore 2020

Luckycharm wrote: »

Well living around there over 40 years and member of one of aforementioned courses 33 years. Good thing about the area is along with North county Dublin the best area for Golf courses in the city!!
If you do know anyone in Grange, Pavillion membership is decent access to back 6 holes/practise area at all the times, reduced green fees, good few comps on main course, biggest plus is you get a GUI. Also if you decide down the line to become a ordinary/full member what you pay as a pavillion will be taken off joining fee. A good few of my friends have done this.
If you are young they do very good deals for intermediates. Membership generally opens in Jan so if you know some members you need to get your skates on.

Brilliant advice that. I know two members very well as it happens so what you said is very useful to know as I wasn't aware of it.. Thanks again

AnBeagalltach

Luckycharm wrote: »

Not really unless you know Friends of friends, they had a couple of incidents where people got in and didn't really know anyone and caused a few problems.

Thanks, that’s completely fair enough but at least in the past you could pick up green fees and meet people in the clubhouse which can’t be done anymore.

I know in previous threads people say that gaining pavilion membership in Grange is the best path to Full but even that can’t be accessed without a proposer and seconder and as above this is now increasingly difficult to get and asking around in work circles is no longer an option either! I’ll be putting out an ad in the Irish Times by Christmas 😂

PhilOssophy

Luckycharm wrote: »

Have you played Stackstown, it is not bad, great views of the city but a few very hilly holes especially the 15/16 if they play the holes down to the road. Not sure I would fancy it in the winter but very nice in the Summer.
Know a few people in Lisheen only about 15/20 min drive from Rathfarnham, can get good deals there and decent course. Only thing I have found playing there is it seems to be a bit of carpark golfclub, people play and go straight home. Depends on what you are looking for. Castleknock is about the same distance and good deals there. Grangecastle/Beech park/ citywest (don't really like that course) maybe other options.

I think any course outside the M50 suffers from the carpark golfclub mentality. It is a combination of people unable to get in anywhere inside the M50 (so they have to drive, i.e. no drinking after the round) and joining fees (which people might not be willing or able to cough up).

I haven't played Stackstown before but I've heard it is very hilly and a friend told me the fairway on some holes is 2ft wide! Agree re Citywest, it is a terrible course in my view and a complete bog in the winter.

Happy Gilmore 2020

Luckycharm wrote: »

Well living around there over 40 years and member of one of aforementioned courses 33 years. Good thing about the area is along with North county Dublin the best area for Golf courses in the city!!
If you do know anyone in Grange, Pavillion membership is decent access to back 6 holes/practise area at all the times, reduced green fees, good few comps on main course, biggest plus is you get a GUI. Also if you decide down the line to become a ordinary/full member what you pay as a pavillion will be taken off joining fee. A good few of my friends have done this.
If you are young they do very good deals for intermediates. Membership generally opens in Jan so if you know some members you need to get your skates on.

Any idea how much the Pavilion membership fees are?

billy3sheets

Ollieboy wrote: »

Totally agree with Eoghan, it’s not like 2008 when there was no money around. Also any club inside the M50 will be charging a premium and rightly so.

So I expect most clubs to bring them back in 2022 and I know a lot of clubs discussed it. I also expect membership fees to start rising again in 2022.

Interested to know your reasoning here. If the driver for the additional membership demand in 2020 has been Covid-19 and it looks like an end is in sight, what do you see maintaining the demand going forward to 2022?

srfc d16

PhilOssophy wrote: »

I think any course outside the M50 suffers from the carpark golfclub mentality. It is a combination of people unable to get in anywhere inside the M50 (so they have to drive, i.e. no drinking after the round) and joining fees (which people might not be willing or able to cough up).

I haven't played Stackstown before but I've heard it is very hilly and a friend told me the fairway on some holes is 2ft wide! Agree re Citywest, it is a terrible course in my view and a complete bog in the winter.

Stackstown is relatively hilly in comparison to the other courses mentioned but if you are somewhat fit ie capable of walking any other course I don't think it is a big issue. The only holes I would consider a somewhat strenuous walk would be 14 and 16a. I have no idea what holes your friend could be thinking of with 2 foot fairways. All the fairways are pretty normal in size in my opinion

PhilOssophy

srfc d16 wrote: »

Stackstown is relatively hilly in comparison to the other courses mentioned but if you are somewhat fit ie capable of walking any other course I don't think it is a big issue. The only holes I would consider a somewhat strenuous walk would be 14 and 16a. I have no idea what holes your friend could be thinking of with 2 foot fairways. All the fairways are pretty normal in size in my opinion

Fair enough! I think what he meant was the fairways are often on a slope so if you didn't hit a certain part of it the ball would roll off it.

Luckycharm

srfc d16 wrote: »

Stackstown is relatively hilly in comparison to the other courses mentioned but if you are somewhat fit ie capable of walking any other course I don't think it is a big issue. The only holes I would consider a somewhat strenuous walk would be 14 and 16a. I have no idea what holes your friend could be thinking of with 2 foot fairways. All the fairways are pretty normal in size in my opinion

9 and 18 are also straight up a hill, nearly every drive falls from left to right. I always heard it was very hilly but didn't find it too bad the first few times but the 15th/16th weren't open. Some of the best views of the city.

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Any idea how much the Pavilion membership fees are?

I think it is about 1k a year, there might be some bar/food levy included with that but not sure.

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Any idea how much the Pavilion membership fees are?

billy3sheets wrote: »

Interested to know your reasoning here. If the driver for the additional membership demand in 2020 has been Covid-19 and it looks like an end is in sight, what do you see maintaining the demand going forward to 2022?

The driver for demand is about 250,000 people living within 10 miles of the course, that is the only reason it can maintain demand. It is the same for Elm Park, Milltown and Castle. To a lesser degree with some of the other courses mentioned. IF the same course was in a small town they wouldn't be able to demand those entrance fees or any entrance fees for that matter. If you come up from Junior the entrance fee is very little.

All Entrance fee money is set aside for investment in the course/infrastructure.

PhilOssophy

Luckycharm wrote: »

9 and 18 are also straight up a hill, nearly every drive falls from left to right. I always heard it was very hilly but didn't find it too bad the first few times but the 15th/16th weren't open. Some of the best views of the city.

I think these might be the holes my friend mentioned, he said the fairway looks grand off the tee but you have to hit a fraction of it and hope it doesn't roll off to the right.

I may go play it to make up my own mind though!

billy3sheets

Luckycharm wrote: »

The driver for demand is about 250,000 people living within 10 miles of the course, that is the only reason it can maintain demand. It is the same for Elm Park, Milltown and Castle. To a lesser degree with some of the other courses mentioned. IF the same course was in a small town they wouldn't be able to demand those entrance fees or any entrance fees for that matter. If you come up from Junior the entrance fee is very little.

All Entrance fee money is set aside for investment in the course/infrastructure.

Thanks. I can see how demand would always be high around these clubs due to the population.

I thought @ollieboy was making a more generic statement about clubs reintroducing entrance fees though. Anecdotally, I heard the increase in demand was Covid-19 driven with people being out of work and unable to play sports but I'd have no evidence to back this up. If Covid-19 is abated by say March, how will this demand be sustained?

Happy Gilmore 2020

Luckycharm wrote: »

I think it is about 1k a year, there might be some bar/food levy included with that but not sure.

Thanks again, was told by a member today that there is strong interest in the pavilion membership and price has gone up...€1400 year 1 and €700 year two.. looking like I will be staying put for now at least.. cheers

PhilOssophy

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Thanks again, was told by a member today that there is strong interest in the pavilion membership and price has gone up...€1400 year 1 and €700 year two.. looking like I will be staying put for now at least.. cheers

It would want to be burning a hole in my pocket before I'd pay 1400 for a pavilion membership. I could never see myself being that desperate to get in to any club.

copacetic

PhilOssophy wrote: »

I think any course outside the M50 suffers from the carpark golfclub mentality. It is a combination of people unable to get in anywhere inside the M50 (so they have to drive, i.e. no drinking after the round) and joining fees (which people might not be willing or able to cough up).

I haven't played Stackstown before but I've heard it is very hilly and a friend told me the fairway on some holes is 2ft wide! Agree re Citywest, it is a terrible course in my view and a complete bog in the winter.

Stackstown is a nice course, normal width fairways, a bit hilly alright. Main issue would be midges in summer and frost and ice in winter, if worried about city west mud in winter, stackstown would be a different experience.

Danny dyers double

Anybody from Lisheen Springs know if they are still offering the flexible membership

Luckycharm

Happy Gilmore 2020 wrote: »

Thanks again, was told by a member today that there is strong interest in the pavilion membership and price has gone up...€1400 year 1 and €700 year two.. looking like I will be staying put for now at least.. cheers

Really hadn't heard that, yes been alot more interest in recent years mainly down to getting a GUI.

Luckycharm

billy3sheets wrote: »

Thanks. I can see how demand would always be high around these clubs due to the population.

I thought @ollieboy was making a more generic statement about clubs reintroducing entrance fees though. Anecdotally, I heard the increase in demand was Covid-19 driven with people being out of work and unable to play sports but I'd have no evidence to back this up. If Covid-19 is abated by say March, how will this demand be sustained?

There has always been an entrance fee, it has come down from its peak plus there used to be a long waiting list which also disappeared during the recession. Demand seems to be picking up again.
There have been 12,000 new GUI members this year.