89% of golf club members have no intention of leaving

A new survey of golf club members has found that not only has membership risen sharply in the last four years, but satisfaction among members has also grown significantly.

Golfshake polled 3,500 golfers, of whom 67 percent were club members in 2022.

It found that 89 percent of the members are happy with their current club and only 11 percent are considering scrapping their club membership, even amid a cost-of-living crisis.

In 2019, before the pandemic started and when the inflation rate was less than two percent, 77 percent of members were content with their current club and 23 percent were considering leaving.

The number one reason for joining a club that was given was to reduce the cost of playing, which was just ahead of ‘to obtain an official handicap’. Third was ‘to take part in competitive golf’, fourth due to the wider social benefits provided by being a member of a club and fifth was ‘to keep fit and active’.

The survey also found that just four percent of golfers only play at their home club.

Of the respondents who were not members of clubs, 11 percent said they were planning to join a club in the near future. More than half (52 percent) had recently been a member of a club.

The survey showed a two percent rise in the percentage of them who had cancelled their club memberships as a result of time and cost worries, compared with 2019.

One theme picked up in the comments on the survey was that some members would like clubs to be more flexible in their offerings.

For example, with inflation still high, some members stated they would like their clubs to offer a weekend-only membership option, as this would reduce their annual subscription without impacting on the amount of golf they play.