It's all very well Pete playing Rick in the GolfBidder challenge, but when's the Kieren vs. Guy match with Pete and Rick choosing clubs and caddying? It's what the public wants 😊.
My dad was a member of the same golf club for about 20 years. He loved going there and knew everyone. He could get a game with anyone if he didn't already have playing partners. It was like an extended family for him and he lived and breathed that golf club. That social side of it you just don't get if you don't join a club. It's not like you can't play other courses as well. They had a society and he went on numerous "away days" with the society. The friendship and sense of belonging you just can't get with non-membership.
In Sweden, a membership is a must, playing for green fees is infinitely more expensive, at least if you are a golfer with 20+ rounds per year. I have been a member for 25 years and, despite being closed for 4-5 months, I have never felt that the time the club has an open course does not pay off. I realize that we are different from GB, but as you mentioned, there are a lot of advantages to the membership around the course. In Sweden, a membership is in the round, at a normal standard club, At a cost of about 500 to 1000 euros/year, a single round of golf at the same clubs is 50 to 90 euros. So very quickly you are up to what a membership costs. In addition, there are tendencies for clubs to merge and create common solutions, which for us members means that we often get several courses to play on for the same money. I think clubs need to understand their surroundings and adjust their costs to what they want. You also can't miss out on the additional sales of having People in the house and on the track who shop in the restaurant/half way house, the shop, the range etc etc. Members create the foundation of the club's finances and attendance creates the profit (hopefully). Here we have different levels of membership, apart from junior/senior, and you can choose the level of the price based on how much you think you play; For example, if you only play weekdays you can pay one price, every day another, if you want to pay green fees, there is a membership for that as well that gives you a little discount. For my own part, I would never be without a membership as I want to use the whole course when I want, I want to play 9 holes one evening... please. Do I want to play 18 on a Sunday, Tuesday or... Go ahead, if I want to stand on the putting green go ahead etc etc. Then there is a discussion about whether you can stand the same course over and over again, but it is something you have to take into account when joining and that does not prevent you, anyway, from playing green fees at other clubs. I am in favour of membership for a reasonable price.
Our golf club has just shut down this week as the owner sold it to a property developer. We had a closing down event and that really makes you realise what you get by joining a club. There were people there that I was juniors with, there were people there I've been playing with for over a decade, there were people there I've played with a handful of times (or never at all) but say hi to every time, my final round was played with 2 people I'd never played with before. Speaking with the members as the night went on you realised just how much indirect support and camaraderie you build up over time. It's so important for the mental and physical health of these people, and maybe that's what you pay for. You only realise what you had when it's gone. Shame on you Beate and Wyatt for taking this away from hundreds of people.
Ive just taken up a membership this year, at a private members course. The cost has been substantial. At £1400 membership+ £2k joining fee (over 5 years). However there are distinct advantages for that price. It has a capped membership that prevents the course being oversubscribed and over used. This means the course is always in prime condition. It has irs own range and short game practice area. the course has been playable all winter and truly is an all year course thanks to it being a heathland course. So you have to factor in if you feel the cost is worth what you get for your money.
Regarding the Old Course ballot, as a single golfer you still have to enter your details in person at the pavilion AND they take your picture. I was wary of bots too but it seems they have thought of that.
I'm in a similar spot to Jacob, rheumatoid arthtitis has put an end to the Rugby. I am really lucky being near St Andrews. There are so many courses and they are very affordable. Ive joined Drumoig for £600 and it has been full greens and tees all winter and only closed 3 days due to weather.
We have a weather station on site and the amount of rain since the Autumn is so high you can't comprehend it. Even though our course drains well we have had closures or 12 holes only although always on full greens and tees. God knows how some lower down softer courses have faired this winter.
Membership pays for itself in the summer if you play a couple of times a week. This winter hasn’t been great but we have mostly played through it on a course in Leicestershire. A lot of local courses have had lots of closures so we’ve been pretty lucky.
Wow. Membership for you guys are soooo much cheaper than in the US (in my personal experience). I belong to a semi-private club, so we still get lots of Public play. My membership was a one-time application $500 to join and $275 per month dues. My monthly dues cover greens fees ONLY. Carts & range balls are extra. Membership privileges include tee time bookings further into the future, plus discounts on merch, food & bev. A mid-tier PRIVATE club near me is $800 per month dues...and the "application fee" is $3K.
Ive just moved clubs and payed £400 joining fee with monthly at £120 for a DPWT Q school event course. although we have mud to the knees for 5 months a year!
Old course ballot story is because a visiting golfer offered £1500 for people to give up space in line. Also fighting some days with Americans holding spaces for friends who did wait in line. Actually resulted in empty spaces as they don’t allow walk ups to fill no show spots
I have links ticket and the value for money is incredible! Also with regards to the ballot it still has its magic, we have to ener the ballot a minimum of 48 hours before the day you want to play then you wait exciedly for the email to tell you whether or not it was succesful. I dont want to be stood out in the rain anymore waiting to play, its a welcome change.
Yeah I looked it up when I heard it was changing. For the singles queue you still have to enter details in person at the pavilion and they take your picture.
Rain nearly everyday in Scotland since October.never been a full week course has been open into April more of the same .and golf club fees going up . Maybe time for a rethink about membership.
I grew up and lived and played golf in Los Angeles from 1975 to 1997. A round of golf back then would regularly take 6 hours and every group consisted of 5-somes. You would get paired up with strangers for every 5-some. This was at Griffith Park Golf Courses (the Wilson and Harding 18's). I can only imagine it's got to be worse now. I also played (what was at that time the busiest golf course in LA) Rancho Park GC and it took 4 hours to finish the front 9... I quit after that first 9 and just left. Ridiculous. That's when I decided to work at 2 golf courses (DeBell GC and Brookside Country Club) so I could play free. That way... a 5 to 6 hour round didn't hurt my soul so much. What made it easy for me was that I was a touring musician and composer so I controlled my work schedule...
I love golf, I've played on an off for 40 years and now my 18 year old son is starting to get into it too. However, I am only able to play twice a month if I'm lucky, I have no interest in competitions or the social side of a club so a membership is just simply not sensible. Even if I was able to play 4 times a month it still wouldn't be of any interest. If membership was £500 a year, I'd probably consider it, but around here most clubs are £1400 a month or higher.
Join a club? No. Near me in Toledo, Ohio we have private and public courses, as most cities do. You can join a public course anywhere from $1,500 to $2,200 USD. However, you still have to contend with morning and afternoon league play and golf outings on the weekends. So, you have a small window of playing time. Sure I can join Inverness CC (private and host to many tournaments) but the $30,000 initiation fee and $600 a month dues is out of reach. However, I wouldn't have to put up with league play.
Not sure about the UK, but in the States, you don't have to pay the annual membership price. It is optional; however, you can just book random courses anytime you want.
My local club wants $180,000 to join as a full member. And about $1200 per month in dues. The wait is at least 12 months once you commit to that. For that price you get a “share” of the club. But I believe you only get 30% back if the $180K when you leave. The course a facility is nice. But I built a top notch simulator room for $50K and just catch a round with friends once a month. No way it makes sense.
The club I play at Maryport GC is 9 holes Links & 9 parkland, the parkland has been closed over the winter but they have made it so the 9 links holes have been open all winter and made it a 18 hole course by changing the tee boxes on your 2nd round. I pay £325 ⛳️ it’s been great for me. Full course is due to open the end of the month.
As a Kiwi who moved to the UK last year around this time, I got a membership here (Flexi) which was 400-500£ plus £500 joining fee.. the full membership is 1100+. My local back home, was the same standard (decent area level) and I paid £185 a year plus £4 a week for comps…. It was quite a shock… Not to mention that for 2-3 months as it was mentioned in the pod the course isn’t play able, you have 3-5 temps most of winter and your scores don’t count for your handicap 😅. Clubs here still (my opinion) don’t maximise earnings which can in turn decrease membership rates. They seem okay with keeping it closed off (old fashioned in my book). Anyway just a rant, that probably gets laughed at by most.
If you want to get some serious practice and playing in at the start of the UK season, come out to Johannesburg for two weeks. You will play some of the best golf courses in great condition. And a video at Sun City will go down a storm. It's a DP world tour venue and plenty of great South African golfers would be happy to be available. If you are looking for competitive golf with a card in hand, there is the Big Easy tour or the Bushveld tour. We would be delighted to host you.
On the golf ball topic, when I first started playing. Some 20+ years ago. It was all about compression. My golf ball at the time Maxfli Revolution, driver Titleist 975J. Low compression (90 something) and 280cc (I think) clubhead. The way I understood it then and now is. Here goes. A hard compression golf ball with a slower clubhead speed doesn’t work very well. Why because not enough compression is created off the clubface. Modern day drivers use trampoline effect to propel the ball. So super thin clubface that acts like a trampoline. Weight is then move around the outside and back to create a larger sweet spot. With that, slower swingers of the club with struggle to create effective trampoline effect within there chosen club. Then add a hard compression golf ball to the equation, which needs speed and mass to compress it and that’s not the design of the modern driver. No compression takes place. Spin drops and the ball doesn’t fly very far. (Obviously shaft choice has an effect also but I’ve chosen to leave that out). So actually a softer ball will work better for a slower clubhead speeds. As the ball has more chance of staying in contact with the clubface for longer and compression and the trampoline effect can take place. Vice versa, someone who has a fast clubhead speed and hard hit can play a harder ball and get more out of it distant wise. Because their speed means they can compress it and generate spin numbers that keep the ball in the air longer with the trampoline effect of the clubface. Again I could be completely wrong here 😱 I am going back on info I was taught way back when. This is why the roll back of the ball is going to affect golf so much more then people think. Modern clubs like P790’s are designed to have trampoline affect built within them and low cg to aid getting the ball in the air. This takes into account that modern balls have high compression (100 roughly). To compress the golf ball and get the most out of club and ball at low swing speeds, the club now takes on an element of the compression. Ie ball stays on clubface longer to increase compression. Ball goes longer. Now the ball roll back, this is going to have a massive affect. More than people realise. Don’t be surprised it clubmakers, start shrinking the size of drivers to get more mass behind the ball. Noticed how headweights have started to move back towards the clubface of new drivers and how Taylormade are keeping there mini driver alive. In 3 years hollow body clubs with low loft design will slow and a return to muscle back irons with more standard lofts will start to happen. But that won’t be the clubmakers fault, that’s the PGA and USGA making them do it. As they softly whisper in there ear let’s roll the ball back. And we all go off to by new clubs 😂 Anyone else have more insight, I could be so wrong 😱. Mick I’d get your dad playing a softer golf ball like the Pro V1, great ball for slower clubhead speed imo 👍🏻
Listen on Amazon, but usually watch on RUclips. Better to see the interaction between the 4 of you. One question, why do content providers, wear baseball caps, when indoors on social media? Talking about golf, does not require the wearing of a hat to make it fit the narrative. Kieran doesn't wear one. Nice one Kieran. If members only paid for the months the course is open, the fee's for the months it is fully open would be huge, so the savings would be minimal. It's not just the golf, it's the banter in the bar with your golfing mates that makes the golf club scene. We have to suck it in with the bad weather, it's out of our hands. Fleetwood, is the only true links on the Fylde Coast, it does not have towering dunes, but it does sit right next to the beach, with only the sea wall separating it. During stormy weather, the waves crash over onto the course. It is a course of two halves, 1,2,3 are more moorland ish, 4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 are links, 13,14,15,16,17,18 are a combo of the two, but one thing to consider, the rough in the playing season, is very punishing. If it looks like it's gone anywhere near it, RE-LOAD. When the wind blows strong, very few good single or plus handicap golfers break par. Each to their own opinion.😁👍
Mick. If your near market harborough. Get on Lutterworth GC. Im sure make you more than welcome. With the best greens in the county and reasonably cheap
My father's illness last year meant I played 4 times. Local clubs are £1000 a year membership. That would have meant I paid £250 per round. You can get ill,injured or have to look after someone who is and then the cost of golf gets ridiculous per round as your availability to play reduces. If you want a handicap to enable you to play multiple good courses there is the facility to do that for the cost of 2 rounds at your local muni.
The Drift in Surrey was only closed a handful of days this winter. Sure it was a bit wet off the general area but have certainly been able to play all year round.
My dad had been a member and captain at the same club in Lancashire for probably 30+ years. He played with his same ‘chuck-in’ group for a similar amount of time, every week. He then got dementia. As the dementia grew worse his ‘friends’ began to sneak away without telling my dad 30 minutes earlier than normal. In the end we had to move him away from Lancashire to live near us. Not once did his golfing friends get in touch. Don’t be like my dad’s golf ‘buddies’. Golf is too important for some people. Friends first. It broke our heart.
Myself and wife are members of the local golf club. From this membership are formed community connections, friendships and a place of belonging. The positive impact on the physical and mental health of the community could not be understated. This is a regional Australian club. Perhaps city / UK clubs are different? For the $700 annual fee this is a small outlay Vs the benefits
I think club membership just boils down to how much you can play. If you’re working full time, raising a family, live in an area with months of bad weather, sure club membership may not be for you. Membership at my club is $3k/yr for one person (no joining fee), but for $500 more, your entire family can play as much as they want (up to four people). Personally, I’m retired and play, on average, four times per week. Living in Alabama, I also play year around. At that rate, I’d pay that much in green fees in just a few months, so club membership is great for me. Plus, I get free range balls and cart use. That’s a bonus as well.
If we get 7 months of terrible weather again, then there is no point in getting a membership at a golf club. Play at longhirst near mopeth £850 a year. Two course. Has been terrible weather this year, but they opened the old course, which is a mixture of both courses.
Any thoughts of moving back to the UK are put to bed. Golf is much cheaper and available all year here in Queensland Australia. Looking forward to a holiday back there. My own Golf Bidder challenge. You guys should come to Australia
I've just cancelled my membership of 3 years, if we don't play 3 times a month its not worth it but we've always continued with it because we wanted a HC, now I've cancelled i can wait 30 days and sign up to igolf, which is like £50 for membership and i can play where ever we like and still have a Golf england HC. The only real downside is the hassle of having to find somewhere to play on a morning, 3 or 4 times a month but there are plenty of courses within an hour or us so most of the time we wont have a problem. Alot of courses now also let non-members play in comps etc providing they have a HC so again, not a big deal. Will we end up paying more by the end of the year by doing it this year ? Maybe.........but we will be playing somewhere different most weeks and if we like playing somewhere in particular we can always sign up if/when it suited.
My first guinness was at the factory tour in Dublin. If you don't play twice a week every week a golf membership isn't worth it. St George was a Cypriot and probably never been to England btw
Look at the bigger picture, membership fees are the life blood for many golf courses who are trying hard to keep annual fees affordable (ours are £650 per year), during the recent bad weather (in UK) the courses may be unplayable or shut but clubs still have to maintain the course and it’s equipment, pay greens staff etc. Without members, during winter months courses would not be viable and it may result in closures
The membership thing is a tough one I'm in the midlands and have been very fortunate that our course hasn't closed once this winter but Manchester way if its been that bad then its understandable to consider not having a membership.
Golf club near me called Killworth spings has been open all year and only closed the back nine a couple times. So a membership there was definitely worth while
You guy talk about joining a club for 1000. We over hear can get either a playing right for a year for 2800€ or buy im for 5k-10k and then only pay 2200€ per year. So for below 1000, I would get multiple memberships....
I for one is losing interest in the result of The "Q" at Myrtle Beach...the wait is way too long and in another month's time I don't think I'd care anymore if a RUclipsr made it or not...just saying
True...but I feel about it like I feel about it...didn't say it was good, just that I'm losing interest and I'm sure in a month's time I wouldn't care at all`@@geoffanderson7911
It’s ridiculous that the PGA Tour has reached such a low that they would get RUclipsrs into their tournaments. I don’t think I’ll bother watching the PGA Tour again if a bunch of average handicappers are being given the chance. 😂
@@samupalonen Firstly, most of them never got to scratch. They got to 3 then became pros. Secondly, do you understand the difference between scratch and tour level? Any midhandicapper can get to scratch. It’s easy. I did it myself in less than a year. But no scratch player is ever making it on tour. The level is just far too good.
Why don’t courses that suffer from poor drainage just close 9 holes over partially bad periods of weather and then rotate the 9 open holes over those weeks. Reduced footfall to the holes that are closed aids in the course recovery and surly creates for members a use year round course. 9 holes is better then no holes and course closure. Just a thought.
Been a greenkeeper for 20 years very hard evan keep our course in the Midlands open this winter it's a race to the bottom at the moment between clubs in my area all these flexi memberships crazy age group categories going up to 45 years old lol and the worse thing to top it of is golf now hot deals I was looking last summer and there 2 tee times for the day we're 12.50 😂😂😂and a regular summer tee time is 45 and the club get nothing of it from golf now
I’m a member of a golf club (not country club) in USA. The weather isn’t good for about 4 months a year. We don’t have tees times and it’s great to just go play 6 holes and get a cup of soup for instance.
I used to play at a municipal course in Darlington called Stressholme. There was a private course next door called Blackwell Grange. Surprise, surprise the council sold Stressholme to Blackwell Grange and the old Blackwell Grange is now an executive housing estate and there is nowhere to play in Darlington for the 'poor folk'
I would love to pay £1000 for membership - down south here in Berkshire my membership is £2200 per year - fortunately our course drains very well so has only closed on the odd day - its still a lot to pay
Come and play South Beds Golf Club. All year round golf at very rewarding course. A long established and welcoming club based in Bedfordshire. In recent years the club has been on an upward trend. Modern management gear towards modern day golfers. I’ve been a member 3 years now and wouldn’t think about going anywhere else. Yes there are more well known clubs in Bedfordshire but those clubs won’t offer year round golf at the very reasonable cost our club can. Pete I invite you to play and see if you can beat the course record. If you can mwahahahahaaaa 👍🏻
Golf is a 6 month only game in this country unfortunately. My local course is £875 for the year And a single round is £35, that’s 25 rounds you’d have to play over the 6 months to make it worth while… seems pretty realistic
We seem to have lost the sense of club. The ability for people to organise as a group and deliver a golf club for the benefit of the members, ie not have the aim of delivering a profit for an owner. With climate change starting to have more of an impact (and the expensive drainage/irrigation projects needed to keep courses open and playable) I'm not quite sure where this is going to end for members clubs. Maybe courses need to be privately owned for the investment to be made, but the danger is that owners won't be motivated by the golf and just cash in on the land.
@@stuartkane2786 we have 27 holes and it was taken over by "the club company". They've dropped quite a lot of money into it. New spa/gym and pool and they've redesigned all the bunkers on the main course over the last 18 months.
Guys I’m sorry but this is not a 5 star podcast. The effort isn’t there. I can’t in good faith give this a 5 star rating when there are better pods out there
A few years back i paid 2500 Canadian (1600 pounds), for a membership. Definitely wasnt a great choice. Its Canada. I have 6 months to golf. I thought, ill golf 3 times a week. Nope. I forced 15 rounds in on the year. Life gets in the way.
I wish membership was close to this affordable in the US for anything decent. You're talking $3-5k in most major metropolitan areas and often a $10k+ initiation fee.
It's a cost-benefit thing joining a club. If you're going to be using it very frequently, then it's worth it. Otherwise it's not. Simple as that. For the average golfer, it's most likely not worth it.
For most folk a golf membership is absolutely not worth it, basically just throwing money away, just far too expensive for what you get back in return, and our weather.
Ever since Schuffles walked on Cam Smiths line I have disliked him. That was a gutless move. He's a bunt. He's putting woes have been exactly because of that. Karma.
Ill offer a sponsor of a few werthers originals found post round unwrapped in my pocket, a half eaten curly wurly and an out if date can of lilt found at the bottom of my bag 🎉❤😂
It's all very well Pete playing Rick in the GolfBidder challenge, but when's the Kieren vs. Guy match with Pete and Rick choosing clubs and caddying? It's what the public wants 😊.
Been calling for this for over a year 👍
Kieran 4and3
This would be amazing! My money would be on Kieran.
Pete was saying a few months back that of all his team, he'd make the biggest impact to Kieren should he be caddying. Let's see ...
Yay! Go guys!
My dad was a member of the same golf club for about 20 years. He loved going there and knew everyone. He could get a game with anyone if he didn't already have playing partners. It was like an extended family for him and he lived and breathed that golf club. That social side of it you just don't get if you don't join a club. It's not like you can't play other courses as well. They had a society and he went on numerous "away days" with the society. The friendship and sense of belonging you just can't get with non-membership.
In Sweden, a membership is a must, playing for green fees is infinitely more expensive, at least if you are a golfer with 20+ rounds per year. I have been a member for 25 years and, despite being closed for 4-5 months, I have never felt that the time the club has an open course does not pay off. I realize that we are different from GB, but as you mentioned, there are a lot of advantages to the membership around the course. In Sweden, a membership is in the round, at a normal standard club, At a cost of about 500 to 1000 euros/year, a single round of golf at the same clubs is 50 to 90 euros. So very quickly you are up to what a membership costs. In addition, there are tendencies for clubs to merge and create common solutions, which for us members means that we often get several courses to play on for the same money. I think clubs need to understand their surroundings and adjust their costs to what they want. You also can't miss out on the additional sales of having People in the house and on the track who shop in the restaurant/half way house, the shop, the range etc etc. Members create the foundation of the club's finances and attendance creates the profit (hopefully). Here we have different levels of membership, apart from junior/senior, and you can choose the level of the price based on how much you think you play; For example, if you only play weekdays you can pay one price, every day another, if you want to pay green fees, there is a membership for that as well that gives you a little discount. For my own part, I would never be without a membership as I want to use the whole course when I want, I want to play 9 holes one evening... please. Do I want to play 18 on a Sunday, Tuesday or... Go ahead, if I want to stand on the putting green go ahead etc etc. Then there is a discussion about whether you can stand the same course over and over again, but it is something you have to take into account when joining and that does not prevent you, anyway, from playing green fees at other clubs. I am in favour of membership for a reasonable price.
Our golf club has just shut down this week as the owner sold it to a property developer. We had a closing down event and that really makes you realise what you get by joining a club. There were people there that I was juniors with, there were people there I've been playing with for over a decade, there were people there I've played with a handful of times (or never at all) but say hi to every time, my final round was played with 2 people I'd never played with before. Speaking with the members as the night went on you realised just how much indirect support and camaraderie you build up over time. It's so important for the mental and physical health of these people, and maybe that's what you pay for. You only realise what you had when it's gone. Shame on you Beate and Wyatt for taking this away from hundreds of people.
Dudsbury?
Going to be a Mosque im sure in your fine country Englandstan.
Ive just taken up a membership this year, at a private members course.
The cost has been substantial. At £1400 membership+ £2k joining fee (over 5 years). However there are distinct advantages for that price.
It has a capped membership that prevents the course being oversubscribed and over used. This means the course is always in prime condition.
It has irs own range and short game practice area.
the course has been playable all winter and truly is an all year course thanks to it being a heathland course.
So you have to factor in if you feel the cost is worth what you get for your money.
Heathland makes a big difference.... for all year round golf
You’ve got to much cash mate .
Regarding the Old Course ballot, as a single golfer you still have to enter your details in person at the pavilion AND they take your picture. I was wary of bots too but it seems they have thought of that.
I'm in a similar spot to Jacob, rheumatoid arthtitis has put an end to the Rugby. I am really lucky being near St Andrews. There are so many courses and they are very affordable. Ive joined Drumoig for £600 and it has been full greens and tees all winter and only closed 3 days due to weather.
We have a weather station on site and the amount of rain since the Autumn is so high you can't comprehend it. Even though our course drains well we have had closures or 12 holes only although always on full greens and tees. God knows how some lower down softer courses have faired this winter.
Membership pays for itself in the summer if you play a couple of times a week. This winter hasn’t been great but we have mostly played through it on a course in Leicestershire. A lot of local courses have had lots of closures so we’ve been pretty lucky.
Wow. Membership for you guys are soooo much cheaper than in the US (in my personal experience).
I belong to a semi-private club, so we still get lots of Public play.
My membership was a one-time application $500 to join and $275 per month dues.
My monthly dues cover greens fees ONLY. Carts & range balls are extra. Membership privileges include tee time bookings further into the future, plus discounts on merch, food & bev.
A mid-tier PRIVATE club near me is $800 per month dues...and the "application fee" is $3K.
Ive just moved clubs and payed £400 joining fee with monthly at £120 for a DPWT Q school event course. although we have mud to the knees for 5 months a year!
Old course ballot story is because a visiting golfer offered £1500 for people to give up space in line.
Also fighting some days with Americans holding spaces for friends who did wait in line.
Actually resulted in empty spaces as they don’t allow walk ups to fill no show spots
Is that true aye? Wouldn’t surprise me. For the singles queue you have to enter details in person and they take your picture as verification.
I have links ticket and the value for money is incredible! Also with regards to the ballot it still has its magic, we have to ener the ballot a minimum of 48 hours before the day you want to play then you wait exciedly for the email to tell you whether or not it was succesful. I dont want to be stood out in the rain anymore waiting to play, its a welcome change.
Yeah I looked it up when I heard it was changing. For the singles queue you still have to enter details in person at the pavilion and they take your picture.
Rain nearly everyday in Scotland since October.never been a full week course has been open into April more of the same .and golf club fees going up . Maybe time for a rethink about membership.
I grew up and lived and played golf in Los Angeles from 1975 to 1997. A round of golf back then would regularly take 6 hours and every group consisted of 5-somes. You would get paired up with strangers for every 5-some. This was at Griffith Park Golf Courses (the Wilson and Harding 18's). I can only imagine it's got to be worse now. I also played (what was at that time the busiest golf course in LA) Rancho Park GC and it took 4 hours to finish the front 9... I quit after that first 9 and just left. Ridiculous. That's when I decided to work at 2 golf courses (DeBell GC and Brookside Country Club) so I could play free. That way... a 5 to 6 hour round didn't hurt my soul so much. What made it easy for me was that I was a touring musician and composer so I controlled my work schedule...
I love golf, I've played on an off for 40 years and now my 18 year old son is starting to get into it too. However, I am only able to play twice a month if I'm lucky, I have no interest in competitions or the social side of a club so a membership is just simply not sensible. Even if I was able to play 4 times a month it still wouldn't be of any interest. If membership was £500 a year, I'd probably consider it, but around here most clubs are £1400 a month or higher.
Join a club? No. Near me in Toledo, Ohio we have private and public courses, as most cities do. You can join a public course anywhere from $1,500 to $2,200 USD. However, you still have to contend with morning and afternoon league play and golf outings on the weekends. So, you have a small window of playing time. Sure I can join Inverness CC (private and host to many tournaments) but the $30,000 initiation fee and $600 a month dues is out of reach. However, I wouldn't have to put up with league play.
Not sure about the UK, but in the States, you don't have to pay the annual membership price. It is optional; however, you can just book random courses anytime you want.
My local club wants $180,000 to join as a full member. And about $1200 per month in dues. The wait is at least 12 months once you commit to that.
For that price you get a “share” of the club. But I believe you only get 30% back if the $180K when you leave.
The course a facility is nice. But I built a top notch simulator room for $50K and just catch a round with friends once a month. No way it makes sense.
The club I play at Maryport GC is 9 holes Links & 9 parkland, the parkland has been closed over the winter but they have made it so the 9 links holes have been open all winter and made it a 18 hole course by changing the tee boxes on your 2nd round. I pay £325 ⛳️ it’s been great for me. Full course is due to open the end of the month.
As a Kiwi who moved to the UK last year around this time, I got a membership here (Flexi) which was 400-500£ plus £500 joining fee.. the full membership is 1100+.
My local back home, was the same standard (decent area level) and I paid £185 a year plus £4 a week for comps…. It was quite a shock…
Not to mention that for 2-3 months as it was mentioned in the pod the course isn’t play able, you have 3-5 temps most of winter and your scores don’t count for your handicap 😅.
Clubs here still (my opinion) don’t maximise earnings which can in turn decrease membership rates. They seem okay with keeping it closed off (old fashioned in my book).
Anyway just a rant, that probably gets laughed at by most.
If you want to get some serious practice and playing in at the start of the UK season, come out to Johannesburg for two weeks. You will play some of the best golf courses in great condition. And a video at Sun City will go down a storm. It's a DP world tour venue and plenty of great South African golfers would be happy to be available. If you are looking for competitive golf with a card in hand, there is the Big Easy tour or the Bushveld tour. We would be delighted to host you.
1000 wouldn't cover monthly restaurant minimum here in Florida at a decent club
On the golf ball topic, when I first started playing. Some 20+ years ago. It was all about compression. My golf ball at the time Maxfli Revolution, driver Titleist 975J. Low compression (90 something) and 280cc (I think) clubhead.
The way I understood it then and now is.
Here goes.
A hard compression golf ball with a slower clubhead speed doesn’t work very well. Why because not enough compression is created off the clubface. Modern day drivers use trampoline effect to propel the ball. So super thin clubface that acts like a trampoline. Weight is then move around the outside and back to create a larger sweet spot. With that, slower swingers of the club with struggle to create effective trampoline effect within there chosen club. Then add a hard compression golf ball to the equation, which needs speed and mass to compress it and that’s not the design of the modern driver. No compression takes place. Spin drops and the ball doesn’t fly very far. (Obviously shaft choice has an effect also but I’ve chosen to leave that out).
So actually a softer ball will work better for a slower clubhead speeds. As the ball has more chance of staying in contact with the clubface for longer and compression and the trampoline effect can take place.
Vice versa, someone who has a fast clubhead speed and hard hit can play a harder ball and get more out of it distant wise. Because their speed means they can compress it and generate spin numbers that keep the ball in the air longer with the trampoline effect of the clubface.
Again I could be completely wrong here 😱 I am going back on info I was taught way back when.
This is why the roll back of the ball is going to affect golf so much more then people think.
Modern clubs like P790’s are designed to have trampoline affect built within them and low cg to aid getting the ball in the air. This takes into account that modern balls have high compression (100 roughly). To compress the golf ball and get the most out of club and ball at low swing speeds, the club now takes on an element of the compression. Ie ball stays on clubface longer to increase compression. Ball goes longer.
Now the ball roll back, this is going to have a massive affect. More than people realise.
Don’t be surprised it clubmakers, start shrinking the size of drivers to get more mass behind the ball. Noticed how headweights have started to move back towards the clubface of new drivers and how Taylormade are keeping there mini driver alive.
In 3 years hollow body clubs with low loft design will slow and a return to muscle back irons with more standard lofts will start to happen.
But that won’t be the clubmakers fault, that’s the PGA and USGA making them do it. As they softly whisper in there ear let’s roll the ball back.
And we all go off to by new clubs 😂
Anyone else have more insight, I could be so wrong 😱.
Mick I’d get your dad playing a softer golf ball like the Pro V1, great ball for slower clubhead speed imo 👍🏻
Listen on Amazon, but usually watch on RUclips. Better to see the interaction between the 4 of you. One question, why do content providers, wear baseball caps, when indoors on social media? Talking about golf, does not require the wearing of a hat to make it fit the narrative. Kieran doesn't wear one. Nice one Kieran. If members only paid for the months the course is open, the fee's for the months it is fully open would be huge, so the savings would be minimal. It's not just the golf, it's the banter in the bar with your golfing mates that makes the golf club scene. We have to suck it in with the bad weather, it's out of our hands.
Fleetwood, is the only true links on the Fylde Coast, it does not have towering dunes, but it does sit right next to the beach, with only the sea wall separating it. During stormy weather, the waves crash over onto the course. It is a course of two halves, 1,2,3 are more moorland ish, 4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 are links, 13,14,15,16,17,18 are a combo of the two, but one thing to consider, the rough in the playing season, is very punishing. If it looks like it's gone anywhere near it, RE-LOAD. When the wind blows strong, very few good single or plus handicap golfers break par. Each to their own opinion.😁👍
Great information- looking forward to chatting the round through once it’s actually happened!
Mick. If your near market harborough. Get on Lutterworth GC. Im sure make you more than welcome. With the best greens in the county and reasonably cheap
My father's illness last year meant I played 4 times. Local clubs are £1000 a year membership. That would have meant I paid £250 per round. You can get ill,injured or have to look after someone who is and then the cost of golf gets ridiculous per round as your availability to play reduces. If you want a handicap to enable you to play multiple good courses there is the facility to do that for the cost of 2 rounds at your local muni.
The Drift in Surrey was only closed a handful of days this winter. Sure it was a bit wet off the general area but have certainly been able to play all year round.
My dad had been a member and captain at the same club in Lancashire for probably 30+ years. He played with his same ‘chuck-in’ group for a similar amount of time, every week. He then got dementia. As the dementia grew worse his ‘friends’ began to sneak away without telling my dad 30 minutes earlier than normal. In the end we had to move him away from Lancashire to live near us. Not once did his golfing friends get in touch. Don’t be like my dad’s golf ‘buddies’. Golf is too important for some people. Friends first. It broke our heart.
A thumbs up or down response is not called for. This is sad. Friends are supposed to be loyal. Shame on them.
Myself and wife are members of the local golf club. From this membership are formed community connections, friendships and a place of belonging. The positive impact on the physical and mental health of the community could not be understated. This is a regional Australian club. Perhaps city / UK clubs are different? For the $700 annual fee this is a small outlay Vs the benefits
I think club membership just boils down to how much you can play. If you’re working full time, raising a family, live in an area with months of bad weather, sure club membership may not be for you. Membership at my club is $3k/yr for one person (no joining fee), but for $500 more, your entire family can play as much as they want (up to four people). Personally, I’m retired and play, on average, four times per week. Living in Alabama, I also play year around. At that rate, I’d pay that much in green fees in just a few months, so club membership is great for me. Plus, I get free range balls and cart use. That’s a bonus as well.
If we get 7 months of terrible weather again, then there is no point in getting a membership at a golf club.
Play at longhirst near mopeth £850 a year. Two course.
Has been terrible weather this year, but they opened the old course, which is a mixture of both courses.
Any thoughts of moving back to the UK are put to bed. Golf is much cheaper and available all year here in Queensland Australia. Looking forward to a holiday back there. My own Golf Bidder challenge. You guys should come to Australia
I've just cancelled my membership of 3 years, if we don't play 3 times a month its not worth it but we've always continued with it because we wanted a HC, now I've cancelled i can wait 30 days and sign up to igolf, which is like £50 for membership and i can play where ever we like and still have a Golf england HC.
The only real downside is the hassle of having to find somewhere to play on a morning, 3 or 4 times a month but there are plenty of courses within an hour or us so most of the time we wont have a problem.
Alot of courses now also let non-members play in comps etc providing they have a HC so again, not a big deal. Will we end up paying more by the end of the year by doing it this year ? Maybe.........but we will be playing somewhere different most weeks and if we like playing somewhere in particular we can always sign up if/when it suited.
Good guess the player. Got a birdie. Bout damn time too. Great pod guys.
My first guinness was at the factory tour in Dublin.
If you don't play twice a week every week a golf membership isn't worth it.
St George was a Cypriot and probably never been to England btw
Look at the bigger picture, membership fees are the life blood for many golf courses who are trying hard to keep annual fees affordable (ours are £650 per year), during the recent bad weather (in UK) the courses may be unplayable or shut but clubs still have to maintain the course and it’s equipment, pay greens staff etc. Without members, during winter months courses would not be viable and it may result in closures
First Guiness needs to be at the Stags Head in Dublin. Outstanding pub downtown.
The membership thing is a tough one I'm in the midlands and have been very fortunate that our course hasn't closed once this winter but Manchester way if its been that bad then its understandable to consider not having a membership.
Bowes Pub, Fleet Street in Dublin, down the road from Temple Bar, great spot for Guinness, one of the best. Stay clear of Temple Bar!
Golf club near me called Killworth spings has been open all year and only closed the back nine a couple times. So a membership there was definitely worth while
also MArket harborough will be closed this weekend as we have had some rain. If you are here this weekend i can get you on killworth springs?
You guy talk about joining a club for 1000. We over hear can get either a playing right for a year for 2800€ or buy im for 5k-10k and then only pay 2200€ per year. So for below 1000, I would get multiple memberships....
I for one is losing interest in the result of The "Q" at Myrtle Beach...the wait is way too long and in another month's time I don't think I'd care anymore if a RUclipsr made it or not...just saying
Patience is a virtue and one that is being sorely lost in this ‘instant’ world of social media in which we now live.
True...but I feel about it like I feel about it...didn't say it was good, just that I'm losing interest and I'm sure in a month's time I wouldn't care at all`@@geoffanderson7911
It’s ridiculous that the PGA Tour has reached such a low that they would get RUclipsrs into their tournaments. I don’t think I’ll bother watching the PGA Tour again if a bunch of average handicappers are being given the chance. 😂
@@blue24563”average handicappers”… all of them had to be at least scratch per PGA requirement. I’d scratch average for you? If so, congrats.
@@samupalonen Firstly, most of them never got to scratch. They got to 3 then became pros. Secondly, do you understand the difference between scratch and tour level? Any midhandicapper can get to scratch. It’s easy. I did it myself in less than a year. But no scratch player is ever making it on tour. The level is just far too good.
Why don’t courses that suffer from poor drainage just close 9 holes over partially bad periods of weather and then rotate the 9 open holes over those weeks. Reduced footfall to the holes that are closed aids in the course recovery and surly creates for members a use year round course. 9 holes is better then no holes and course closure. Just a thought.
Been a greenkeeper for 20 years very hard evan keep our course in the Midlands open this winter it's a race to the bottom at the moment between clubs in my area all these flexi memberships crazy age group categories going up to 45 years old lol and the worse thing to top it of is golf now hot deals I was looking last summer and there 2 tee times for the day we're 12.50 😂😂😂and a regular summer tee time is 45 and the club get nothing of it from golf now
I’m a member of a golf club (not country club) in USA. The weather isn’t good for about 4 months a year. We don’t have tees times and it’s great to just go play 6 holes and get a cup of soup for instance.
I used to play at a municipal course in Darlington called Stressholme. There was a private course next door called Blackwell Grange. Surprise, surprise the council sold Stressholme to Blackwell Grange and the old Blackwell Grange is now an executive housing estate and there is nowhere to play in Darlington for the 'poor folk'
Those Soba noodle pots are S-Tier snacks. Especially the chili ones
I would love to pay £1000 for membership - down south here in Berkshire my membership is £2200 per year - fortunately our course drains very well so has only closed on the odd day - its still a lot to pay
Listening from Guatemala 🇬🇹
Come and play South Beds Golf Club. All year round golf at very rewarding course. A long established and welcoming club based in Bedfordshire. In recent years the club has been on an upward trend. Modern management gear towards modern day golfers. I’ve been a member 3 years now and wouldn’t think about going anywhere else. Yes there are more well known clubs in Bedfordshire but those clubs won’t offer year round golf at the very reasonable cost our club can. Pete I invite you to play and see if you can beat the course record. If you can mwahahahahaaaa 👍🏻
Not the happy gilmore putter 🤣🤣
Barry’s tea best thing out of Cork Ireland 🇮🇪
The credit last for 2 months each, But only one credit eg £25 can be used anything over you pay the difference
Golf is a 6 month only game in this country unfortunately. My local course is £875 for the year And a single round is £35, that’s 25 rounds you’d have to play over the 6 months to make it worth while… seems pretty realistic
Just watched the tobacco road episode...👏
We seem to have lost the sense of club. The ability for people to organise as a group and deliver a golf club for the benefit of the members, ie not have the aim of delivering a profit for an owner. With climate change starting to have more of an impact (and the expensive drainage/irrigation projects needed to keep courses open and playable) I'm not quite sure where this is going to end for members clubs. Maybe courses need to be privately owned for the investment to be made, but the danger is that owners won't be motivated by the golf and just cash in on the land.
My dad been a member of his club about 70 years
I’ve played 9 holes at my course since 1st week of November 😢 been open for just a few days since, and typically I was at work
Take it your in Scotland mate same all over its crap and fees have gone up .
@@davidquinn7144 no mate, I’m in Derbyshire, at least I’ve not heard anything about fees going up YET
What’s the email for the Lancs pro league sponsorship opportunities? Can’t see it in the description
An Ogio special would be great.
I’m spending my money on coaching with Andy Carter each month instead of golf club membership. I get more out of my money that way.
I just watch the podcast here on youtube, if theres no image with the audio i just can't listen to it 😅
Would love to only pay a grand a year for golf. My club fees for next year are £1680 for a 7 day membership. South coast golf!!
Ouch. My course has two 18 hole courses. Nearly £900 a year. Owned by dawson and Sanderson.
@@stuartkane2786 we have 27 holes and it was taken over by "the club company". They've dropped quite a lot of money into it. New spa/gym and pool and they've redesigned all the bunkers on the main course over the last 18 months.
Guys I’m sorry but this is not a 5 star podcast. The effort isn’t there. I can’t in good faith give this a 5 star rating when there are better pods out there
Golfer need to take golf balls on the putting green and use the one they putt best with that will do far more than anything else to improve score
A few years back i paid 2500 Canadian (1600 pounds), for a membership. Definitely wasnt a great choice. Its Canada. I have 6 months to golf. I thought, ill golf 3 times a week. Nope. I forced 15 rounds in on the year. Life gets in the way.
I wish membership was close to this affordable in the US for anything decent. You're talking $3-5k in most major metropolitan areas and often a $10k+ initiation fee.
thats a junior membership at a lot of courses now. in my area the cheapest is $30k and good luck getting a teetime
Crazy prices over there.
Basically have to be a millionaire to play golf. Absolutely crazy.
@@stuartkane2786 its nuts. my JR fee was $10k and 7k a year. Full cost is $75k and 10k a year
It's a cost-benefit thing joining a club. If you're going to be using it very frequently, then it's worth it. Otherwise it's not. Simple as that. For the average golfer, it's most likely not worth it.
Sorry im from North London, pickle ball!!!!!!!!!! whats that is that on the Branston Tour
A Grand membership? If only. Try nearer 2 grand down south.
For most folk a golf membership is absolutely not worth it, basically just throwing money away, just far too expensive for what you get back in return, and our weather.
I think we all have seen Rick play over the last year...if Pete doesn't finish the game by the 14th I'd be surprised!!
I'd argue its quite dangerous to promote cancelling memberships. Memberships are what keep golf courses going.
Listening in athens greece.
Lol. I’ve joined 2 clubs this year 😂
Played a couple of holes in the weekend. Lost 2 PROVs after hitting both of them in the middle of the fairway. Disgusting.
Hate that! Bring on the summer!
Best Guinness I’ve ever had…..Dubai
Go figure
*Insert 5 star review here*
Ever since Schuffles walked on Cam Smiths line I have disliked him. That was a gutless move. He's a bunt. He's putting woes have been exactly because of that. Karma.
Do you guys know how good the intro is at 1.25 speed? 😁
You should not join a golf club, instead take that money and buy Pete and the crew custom golf carts
Great idea!
lol. Fees are way more than £1k. Join a club that drains well.
WELL I AM FROM GUATEMALA 1 FAN 😆
Ill offer a sponsor of a few werthers originals found post round unwrapped in my pocket, a half eaten curly wurly and an out if date can of lilt found at the bottom of my bag 🎉❤😂
5* review
£1k membership 😂 I wish.
How much is yours?
@@RoughCutGolfPodcast £1,700 although the course is on sand so has only been closed 2 days through the winter
I'm only £120 a year
$180,000 membership fee, $1200 a month. In Los Gatos (Silicon Valley)
£1850 in sunny Croydon Sauf London
YASSSSS
Mick - why are you paying a sub for Golf Now? It's free and you can access "hot deals" without a joining fee!
If there are no members of golf clubs there would be no golf courses. Simple.
I hate being negative but the guy on the right loves the sound of his own voice and contributes nothing when he speaks, which is often
A golf membership is not for golf. It's a tax write-off and a way to meet clients and conduct business.