Independent Golfer Ireland

Very few clubs will not allow them play but most clubs will certainly charge at least as much as a normal green fee .

The only advantage then to iGolfer is that they can take part in the competition.

Thats incredibly petty and short sighted.

Id be using this to try out some clubs and get a handicap going with an eye on choosing a course to join after. This type of stuff would put me off joining that club massively

I'm not convinced this will be common. If most clubs allow them, club members won't be put off entering opens that allow them. And if a club can get an extra fourball out of it a week, that'll be hard to refuse. For smaller clubs that's probably another hundred a week, five grand a year. Very hard to say no to when you're probably not awash with cash.

I don't think most people are entering opens for the prizes anyway. The prize tends to be credit in the club, so I think people enter the opens because they like playing other courses and like playing in a comp. Igolfers won't change those factors.

If it's a case that they start winning a disproportionately high number of comps they enter then fair enough, it needs to be addressed. But I suspect what's going to happen will be the same as WHS. Every time an igolfer wins something it'll be shared around social media and people will be under the impression that they're winning all around them regardless of what the reality is. Those who want to believe they're a problem will just look for something to back that up. Anecdotal evidence will be plenty.

It's live

https://www.golfireland.ie/igolf

Lots of clubs are already oversubscribed, they won't care.

Personally I don't agree with the concept of viewing opens as a way to play courses at a discount rate vs normal green fee, so anyone joining this to avail of cheap golf is just as bad as the knobs thinking paying a golf Ireland membership gives them cheap access to premier links.

Join a club or don't join a club but you can already try out courses without this.

The 36 months thing is stupid but looks easy to bypass.

As of right now, I doubt a club will refuse you if you rock up to an Open and want to pay the visitor fee if you’re an IGI Member, as you’ll have an 8 Digit Golf Ireland Membership number and your ‘Club Membership’ will be iGolf. Why would they refuse the money?

The note in the website is: ‘Please check the terms of competition for any open competition that you may wish to play in to check whether the Organising Committee have permitted subscribers to participate’

Well I always thought that opens were more of a fraternal offering between clubs.

So, clubs within the same golfing union offer a discounted rate to members of that union.

It's not explicitly about enticing new members who aren't currently in clubs to join, as you can't play in an open comp without a Golf Ireland ID.

By allowing iGolfers to play at the same rate as members of other golf clubs you're saying basically, one of the other benefits of club membership is now diluted

Contact Golf Ireland, give them this feedback and see if they will make an exemption with your club. You're exactly the type of person the scheme is for. Surely your local club would rather see you pay some green fees than none at all...

Your last resort alternative is to get a distance membership for a reduced rate - search the forum as its been mentioned in old threads (Blessington Lakes I think). This means you'd still get an official GI membership and be able to keep a handicap.

Normal basic weekend comps are rarely open. In my area clubs have a dedicated open once a week, but its typically a weekday.

To me it seems it's a cheapskate way of taking some advantage that a GUI membership brings without the contribution bit. The whole notion of reduced GUI green fees in opens is about you supporting a club. It's meant to be reciprocal that way.

This is an attempt of taking advantage of this, the golf version of the gig economy IMO. I would completely support it if my club charged them full green fee plus competition entry or not allowed them at all.

From an individual point of view it's obviously great for the guys who only play on and off and for the value-chasers/cheapskaters. But not so great for the club landscape. I'm amazed the GUI supports this since the GUI should really be about keeping the club landscape healthy. With the exception of a few hight ticket courses that have their tourists lined up all year most clubs are only getting by. This is not supportive IMO.

Most clubs will let out non GUI members on opens days, for the reduced Green fee. They are happy enough just to get the money. I cant see many turning away cash from people with IGolf membership.

They can enter competitions unless clubs themselves specify otherwise. Their membership will be iGolf

On the website on the benefits page:

Be able to play in Open Competitions*

*I quoted the line below that clarifying that specific clubs can have their own rules.

I personally don’t see clubs going out of their way to exclude iGolf Members. That’s the point of ‘open’ competitions. It’s a revenue stream.

The point of open competitions is that when you hold a GUI card you are presumably a member of a club in Ireland. You are supporting a club. So in a reciprocal fashion you are allowed to play in other club's open comps as their members are allowed to play in your opens. Because you all are supporting a club.

So yes it's a revenue thing but it's based on a mutual contribution thing. We all are supporters of Irish clubs so we allow each other to experience other clubs at a reduced rate.

This scheme is some entity who has no club club/course - only exists in the virtual space so to speak - trying to bully themselves into that reciprocal/solidarity thing and take advantage of it. There is no other way of looking at it IMO. Some might say 'ah grow the game bladibla but to me it's someone trying to take advantage.

Yes they do make money but like I said it's based on something other than just money grabbing and providing individual advantage. It's a mutual thing between equals - clubs with actual golf courses - through their governing body.
This scheme is just a virtual entity with no course anyone can play at and unless it actually adds to the pool of golfers and doesn't take away from club memberships then it is taking advantage IMO.

In a similar fashion I could ask you do you think the people who came up with this have any other motivation than thinking they spotted a loophole where they can make money off other clubs' facilities/opens?

Opens are income for clubs end of story. The eligibility to win a prize is that you need a handicap/GI number to win a prize. I've seen plenty of non affiliated people pay the open fee instead of a full green fee. That can be argued as valid or an error on club's part.

If our club stopped opens or removed incentives to societies, I can 100% say that our subs would have to increase €200 at a minimum to cover the last income. You'd be accounting for lost bar and pro shop income too. We'd also have to ensure the increase didn't cause an exodus of members or the sub would have to be higher again.

The scheme is not a shadow or virtual emtity. It came directly from the R&A and USGA to increase overall participation numbers. The egalitarian merits can be debated. More golfers means more TV rights, sponsorship and so on. Yes grow the game and get more people from different backgrounds involved but let's not forget there's a business element to it.

There will be an equilibrium reached in couple of years max. Clubs won't dissappear and they'll figure out the fees. Some people will eventually become members, some will love igolf because of family/finance/time constraints.

We'll still all be on the Internet disagreeing throughout.