2021 Golf Club Subscription Fees Due? Here’s Why You Should Pay Them…

Golf Monthly urges club golfers in this country to do all they can for golf in this time of crisis and help our clubs survive

Golf Club Subscription Fees Due? Here’s Why You Should Pay Them... Things To Do When The Golf Course Is Closed

Golf Monthly once again urges club golfers in this country to do all they can for golf in this time of crisis and help our clubs survive

2021 Golf Club Subscription Fees Due? Here’s Why You Should Pay Them…

As the country endures another challenging Coronavirus lockdown, with golf currently off the table for most, and its immediate return sure to be with significant restrictions, Golf Monthly is once again calling on club members to pay their annual subscriptions to make sure that clubs come through this test and remain there for us all on the other side.

With no golf to play right now in England, and the prospects for the year uncertain, many may question the value of paying their golf club subscription fees for 2021.

At Golf Monthly, we wholeheartedly believe that, if at all financially possible, paying your annual subscription, even though you’re not getting use of the club and facilities just now, is the right thing to do.

If hard-pressed clubs receive significantly less than expected this year, they could go to the wall.

It’s totally understandable that everybody’s priorities will have altered because of this prolonged crisis and there will be those in a precarious financial position who have to make tough choices.

For some, golf might have to take a backseat this year – even if the sport is a passion.

We also recognise there are many who will have been affected financially who want to remain members of their club and to make a contribution where and when possible.

For these people, clubs must be flexible and look to provide options of credit, perhaps delayed or deferred payment.

We hope that clubs and members who have been affected financially can communicate effectively to discuss the options available.

Clubs want to retain members and members want to preserve their clubs – like everything in this challenging time, we have to work together.

But, for those who truly love this game and can afford to take a financial hit, it’s key that they do so.

Early in 2020, many were asking the same question about paying subs - but the year delivered a number of positives from a golfing perspective, and many were surprised how much they got from their memberships.

And there are things to look forward to in 2021 - The first full season of the World Handicap System for instance.

It will be fascinating to see how it works and how competitive golf functions under it.

Then, the elite season is set to be a thriller with four Majors, a Ryder Cup and The Olympics all (currently) scheduled...

Watching those without a club to go and play at afterwards could lead to significant disappointment.

Golf has been played on our islands for 550 years and it will continue after this crisis, but we don’t want it to become something that is marginalised and only open to the elite.

We are fortunate to have many smaller clubs that provide hubs in local communities, allowing people from many different walks of life to experience the sport, to mix across the social demographic, enjoying healthy fresh air and exercise together.

For golf to remain a sport for all, these clubs need support from their members to make it through Coronavirus and remain available for use on the other side.

So, we urge those who can to support club golf in this country and help it survive.

Please, if you can, pay your subs in full this year, or sustain your monthly payments, and look on it as an investment to the future of the game.

If you want to continue to enjoy golf in the coming years, on a complete roster of British courses, then (if you can) you need to take one on the chin now.

For all the latest golf news, check the Golf Monthly website and follow our social media channels @golfmonthlymagazine on Facebook and @golfmonthly on Twitter and Instagram

Fergus Bisset
Contributing Editor

Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly. 

Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?