Golf society days are good way of enjoying a day out with friends and colleagues at different clubs with a lunch and a chat putting the world to right.

I wonder if all this is under threat as it seems that the clubs are seeing societys as cash cows. The charges for a day out with my own society this year seem to have risen ( what hasnt I here you say) by some way over last year. A cost £42 plus for a day seems a bit steep , add to this petrol costs etc it makes you think twice about attending .

When added to membership of private club with  fees the thick end of £600, £700 maybe £800 it brings in to question whether the society is still sustainable .

I guess you dont approve of societies then Creo. A well run society poses no problems to a golf course or members.

I am member of both a society and golf club, most members of the soceity are members of golf clubs, So all of sudden if we are playing with the society we are the scum of the earth?

So i dont see your thinking?

Added to this if societies are where banned from your golf course, would you and other members be prepared to stump up the £1000's of pounds in green fees, Loss of takings in the bar for food and beer and pro shop takings that the club will be missing out on.

 If you join a course that is a commerical venture eg profits to made, the you have to accept socities are part of the club structure, of course they become a problem if the owners look to societies over there own members which a lot of the newer courses do.

To go to the orignal message, I dont think £42 is a lot for a game of golf and a meal and far from societies dying off, i think it may be the other way round, societies getting bigger and membership at clubs get smaller.

Societies are a necessary part of sustaining most, if not all, golf clubs in this country.

I think the problem is that societies often contain a number of players who don't play golf regularly, are often ignorant of the rules of golf, don't replace divots or repair pitchmarks etc. These "golfers" are usually put out last and thus are the society members that come into contact with club members.

I play in a society and we play once a week and travel as far as 50 mile so we have a good choice of courses to play.Our lads are very respectful to the courses that we play and to the members when we come across them.

I personally think societies at this moment in time are keeping a lot of clubs above water.To back this up,we played our local course recently and as usual went to the 19th.While i was at the bar got talking to bar staff and asked if the club house was always like this(only 6 other visitors plus our 14 in)he said yes,maybe get dozen or so in at the w/end after a comp and have a quick drink then get off.

The 14 of us prob spent between £10-£15 each on drinks and food plus our green fees,so i cant see why that  some clubs have a chip on their shoulder about societies when they pay green fees and also spend more money in the club house than the majority of their own members thus keeping their annual fees down.

Long live Societies

Scazzer 

I play in a society as well as being a club member, I can honestly say that all of our 35 society members are regular golfers of varying standards and all respect the clubs we play at.

In our society we pay £30 for each round, some at muni's and some at private clubs so the £30 a go equals itself out at the end of the year.

I think golfing societies are going to be the biggest income source for all golf courses eventually as the economy slows down into recession and club memberships decrease.

 On top of it being a good money maker for golf clubs, its also a great way for those who cant afford /don't have the time to join a club, to enjoy some friendly competition and banter with a group of like minded folk.

Dismiss the society at your peril. 

I agree Greengrass, I too am both a member of a club and society, We usually pay £50 for a day that is for 36 holes and lunch, We go to some very good clubs but dont go to many muni's mostly private clubs or propriety owned.

If we didn't have societies playing at our club we would probably have to pay double subsciptions!

Paul A 62 wrote (see)

 A cost £42 plus for a day seems a bit steep 

I also play in both and can honestly say that our society has never given any club a problem. We even have society ties....oooh!

We played at a well known course in Kent last week, breakfast, lunch and dinner with 27 holes and apart from our group and a wedding party the club was deserted all day. I bet they were glad we had booked!

At my club we also have a dormy house but if you plan your golf they shouldn't be a problem either.

Tim Ellis wrote (see)

I think the problem is that societies often contain a number of players who don't play golf regularly, are often ignorant of the rules of golf, don't replace divots or repair pitchmarks etc.

Its not like your average clubs has any members that fall into this category so it must be the society players...  

Colinski your absolutely spot on mate,many times ive seen members of their own course take big chunks out the ground and then just walk offand many times i  and other society members will replace others divets as we walk along or repair 3/4 pitch marks while on the green.

Also,a good few clubs do appreciate visiting societies,many times when we get back to the club house we have had good banter with the members(who actually use their facilities)and made to feel welcome which the lads DO appreciate and we will tend to visit them 2/3 times a year,And there is the other end,eg.we have been quoted a price when booking,get to pro shop and they quote a higher figure,spoke about wot we were told but club sticks to its guns.We,ve paid the new price but leaves sour taste so after round gone to nearest pub instead of club house to spend our money,their loss..........

Colinski (14) wrote (see)

Tim Ellis wrote (see)

I think the problem is that societies often contain a number of players who don't play golf regularly, are often ignorant of the rules of golf, don't replace divots or repair pitchmarks etc.

Its not like your average clubs has any members that fall into this category so it must be the society players...  

Of course there are members at every golf club who don't respect the course or their fellow golfers. But this discussion was about societies and just like we've all seen club members treat the course badly we've also all seen society members do the same. As someone said earlier - a well run society poses no problem to any club. A sentiment with which I totally agree.

Unfortunately the actions of the few reflect on the society as a whole. Not fair but that's life.

Golf societys are indeed a very good source of income for clubs and also an irritation for some members, but as some of you have pointed out taking society cash helps keep club coffers in the black . My original concern was that for some society members costs might be getting to much.

If a society turn up at a club to find the price has increased then I guess they will take there business elsewhere.  

On another point I know my own club has tried to increase the evening bar takings by putting on events such as jazz bands and card evenings.

Thanks for the responses  

I had been a society golfer for a couple of years. I'm glad to know that when I paid my club subs I immediately became a better person to have around

Seriously, I've never seen anyone out with my society who I thought was a serious threat to the course in terms of hacking the place up or breaching etiquette - maybe the odd bending of a strict dress code, but that's hardly going to bring about the end of golf as we know it, is it?

I still say that corporate days have more absolute non-golfers and are responsible for more poor conduct - from unrepaired pitch marks to extreme slow play - than most societies. Sadly, I imagine they're the most lucrative events for the club.

My society only normally plays 18 holes of an afternoon. The cost (without a meal) is typically £25, which I think's very reasonable, and has not increased from last year. It's sometimes more than you'd pay just in straight green fees, let alone a society rate, but the profit we make on those days subsidises the ones at more expensive venues.