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Your clubhouse is costing you money – and you don’t even know it
Dark entrances, awkward retail and silence at the clubhouse door are quietly driving golf club members and visitors away, says a behavioural psychologist. Fortunately, some of the world’s leading venues have worked this out, and here, according to Ian Knox, head of European Tour Destinations, is what they’re doing differently.
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Knowing a member saves golfers nearly £60 a round on average, new index finds
A new database tracking what member’s guests actually pay to play – rather than the visitor rate every club publishes – has found the discount is worth most at Britain’s top-ranked courses, where signing in with a member can save more than £180 a round.
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Nairn Golf Club appoints Kim Speirs as new assistant manager
Formerly part of the leadership team at Carnoustie Golf Links, Kim Speirs joins Nairn Golf Club as assistant manager, working alongside general manager Paul Mills as the club embarks on a decade-long strategic plan.
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Campaigners push back as developer defends 507-home Sunbury Golf Course plan
A community campaign is urging residents to oppose plans for 507 homes, a care home and medical centre on part of Sunbury Golf Course, which will see the venue lose several holes.
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UK golfers have lost 94 years of play to extreme weather since 2016, new research finds
A decade-long analysis of UK weather data reveals extreme heat and rainfall have made courses unplayable for a combined 34,359 days since 2016 – with Cumbria the worst affected region and further increases forecast by 2040.
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Golf clubs urged to take part in national water resilience census
Golf clubs can shortly take part in a major sector-wide study into how golf clubs source, store and use water – evidence organisers say is critical to building golf’s case with water companies and regulators as drought restrictions become more frequent.
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How CardsSafe is helping golf clubs secure card payments on and off the course
From equipment hire to on-course drinks buggies, CardsSafe’s card-retention system is now used at clubs including Foxhills, Silvermere and The London Golf Club – which has expanded its installation three times since first adopting the technology in 2008.
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BGL appoints Stephen Brown as group chief operating officer
As BGL’s group chief operating officer, Stephen Brown will now apply lessons from leading the company’s Adventure Leisure and Ninja Leisure divisions to its golf operations, aiming to challenge convention on how people play, practise and engage with the sport.
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Glen Golf Club members reject no-confidence motion; TALGC talks to continue
A motion of no confidence in The Glen’s management committee has failed by roughly 299 votes to 120, clearing the way for a second ballot later this month that will decide whether talks over a controversial partnership with The Ancient Links Golf Company continue.
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Cabot Wilds, a 2,500-acre Nova Scotia golf resort, to open next year
Developed in partnership with Oxford Frozen Foods founder John Bragg, Cabot’s newest destination – this time in Canada – will bring a riverfront course and a full slate of wellness and outdoor amenities to the Cobequid Mountains foothills.
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Police appeal after £100,000 golf equipment stolen in St Ives club burglary
A gate and glass doors were smashed during a break-in at St Ives (Hunts) Golf Club last Friday night, with Cambridgeshire Police appealing for witnesses and dashcam or CCTV footage – particularly of a Land Rover seen in the area.
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Scotland’s “ghost course” gWest goes up for sale next to Gleneagles
Nearly two decades after it was unveiled, the David McLay Kidd-designed gWest course that stalled amid economic and political turmoil – and has been played by only a handful of golfers – is being marketed by the Al-Tajir family, with planning consent already in place for a resort, hotel and 170 homes.
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Why golf needs more outsiders in the boardroom
Golf boards are often dominated by people with decades of experience in the game. But Brandie Deignan, who’s just spent three years on Wales Golf’s board, argues that the most valuable voice around the table may be someone who’s never played – an outsider willing to question long-standing conventions, particularly over who golf is failing…
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Around 400 golfers in the UK suffer a cardiac arrest each year
As England Golf backs Air Ambulance Week, the story of Paul, who suffered a catastrophic cardiac arrest mid-round and received 13 defibrillator shocks from a Thames Valley Air Ambulance crew, shows why clubs are being urged to review their emergency preparedness.
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Member disciplinary cases are ‘surging at golf clubs’
The National Golf Clubs’ Advisory Association says its enquiries are now dominated by member discipline and misconduct issues – including rising incidents on WhatsApp and social media, as well as pace-of-play frustrations.
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Golf club that closed during the pandemic reopens
Formerly known as Magnolia Park, the Boarstall golf club has been closed since the pandemic – but, under new owner Bespoke Hotels, it’s reopening with a restored Jonathan Gaunt championship course.