6 Ways Golf Clubs Could Save Money To Limit Fee Rises

The most prestigious clubs in this country have seldom had it so good, with skyrocketing visitor fees supporting the membership, enabling subscriptions to be kept relatively low.

But lower-tier clubs are finding it harder to makes ends meet without sharp rises in annual fees. The escalating cost of membership at smaller clubs poses a threat to the integrity of the club membership model that’s been in place for decades, as people increasingly view it as too great an expense.

Clubs might need to change their offering entirely (that’s for another article), but in the meantime, clubs can look to limit the rising fees by reducing costs. But how?

I spent several years on the committee at my home club and two years as captain. During that time, my vice-captain and I had a mantra of “just say no!” Sounds mean, doesn’t it? But saying no was one of the most important things we did.

Members and staff at every golf club harbour and proffer a wealth of experience, knowledge and ideas for improvement in all departments. Most of these ideas are excellent and it would be desirous to implement them. The problem is that almost all those ideas cost money.

Those in charge of a committee or club must be the party poopers. If a club’s finances are anywhere near the edge and the idea in question is non-essential, then there must be a very compelling argument for it to happen.

To survive, clubs must save money wherever possible. Here are six suggestions for achieving that objective.

Merge Roles

When I first left university, I worked as a procurement consultant. No, I never really knew what it meant either. But basically, our objective as a company was to save other companies money.

It was mercenary work and at times it was unpleasant. It was most unpleasant when the harsh reality was the most obvious way for a company to save money in a particular area was to cut staff numbers.

It’s basically why I left. I hated recommending that people be laid off.

I’m loathe to do it again. But here goes – does the club still need both a professional and a secretary? Can a single 'Director of Golf' provide both functions?

Could other roles at the club be merged? Could there be a steward looking after both bar and kitchen, rather than a bar manager and a catering manager? On the admin side, is it still necessary to have a full-time treasurer?

Ooh, I hate myself. But it’s worth considering. Are there too many people on the payroll?

Golf clubs are not the same as regular businesses which aim predominantly for profit. Golf club staff should be treated more generously. But perhaps golf clubs are too generous at times. Would it be easier for a club to be more supportive of a streamlined, essential staff-only team?

Just an idea – don’t shoot the messenger.

Put a hold on planned course works

This is an obvious one for me when it comes to limiting expenditure.

Every couple of years, a new greens convenor or greens committee comes on board, and they want to make a mark. They will have great plans. They will have done drawings of how to reshape the green complex at the 7^th or where bunkers could be added on the 12^th.

They will be bubbling with excitement at their incredible ideas. Time to put on the party pooper hat and “just say no.”

If fees are escalating and the membership is becoming tetchy at the cost of the annual subscription, the last thing they want to see is diggers on the course. – “Who is paying for that? Yeah, muggins here!”

When finances are tight, the focus must be on maintaining current playing surfaces in the best possible condition. People like the course as it is – that’s why they are members.

In an ideal world, improvements would be made, but in an ideal world, there would be valet parking and a state-of-the-art club fitting studio with ten bays.

Focus on the basics, cut out the extras on the course and deliver a solid product with what is already there to work with.

Conserve energy

Again, pretty obvious – don’t waste power and energy in the clubhouse and other club buildings. Check hot water thermostats and don’t heat water unnecessarily.

Get a smart meter, monitor energy usage and identify waste. Use motion sensors for lighting, replace bulbs with LEDs, increase insulation, check seals on doors windows and other points where the outdoors gets in and make sure boilers are running as efficiently as possible. Those sorts of things.

It’s common sense, but is it all being done?

Aggregate Expenditure

When it comes to greenkeeping equipment, if there are other golf clubs in reasonable proximity, it might be possible to share the cost on certain items of machinery that are required less frequently.

Courses need their own greens mower, but are there items like sprayers or spikers that could be shared between two or three clubs? You’ll have to check insurance on moving items between venues, but there are potentially big savings to be had.

Then, could the club join a local, regional or even national golf buying group? Prices can be significantly lower if you aggregate expenditure.

The Golf Management Group (as an example) is a purchasing alliance for golf clubs offering discounted rates on a variety of essential spends, plus a contract management service to ensure best value is achieved going forward.

Maximise greenkeeping efficiency

The biggest expenditure at any small to mid-level golf club is the golf course. Are there ways to maintain it more efficiently?

First thing to do is to conduct a full survey of the course and look for methods of reducing the cost of maintenance.

Look for areas where maintenance may not be required. The rough has always been cut in that section of the 6^th, but why? There are four bunkers to maintain to the side of the 14^th green. Do we really need four? Would two provide sufficient protection?

Where can greater fuel efficiencies be achieved? How efficient is irrigation? How much water is being used and at what cost? Could it be reduced?

Then, use of equipment. Is it necessary to use power tools in certain areas? A petrol-powered leaf blower is an easy solution, but could a rake do the job just effectively?

Why is that leaf blower being carried out to the far end of the course in a trailer on the back of a diesel-guzzling tractor?

The green keeping team will be working hugely hard and may not have the time to consider where efficiencies could save the club money. It might be down to a committee or a greens convenor to go through that process.

Golf clubs can save money in various ways to limit the necessity of subscription fee increases. It might take a little work, but it will be worth it in the long run if the membership stays healthy and the club survives as a result!