80 per cent of golf clubs don’t include seniors in membership prices

A new report has revealed that golf clubs might be in danger of forgetting their older customers, with over 80 per cent of them not including seniors in their membership prices. The report, by GolfSupport.com, reviewed the membership options of 244 Golf Clubs in 15 different towns and cities across the UK: Leicester, Manchester, Oxford, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Liverpool, Nottingham, Leeds, Southampton, Birmingham, Glasgow, Coventry, Edinburgh, Cambridge, Bristol and London.

London was found to have the lowest proportion of golf clubs having senior membership discounts/incentives, with only 6.8 per cent. Above London were Bristol and Cambridge with 7.1 per cent and 9.1 per cent respectively.

With 41.7 per cent, Leicester had the highest proportion of golf clubs offering membership discounts/incentives exclusively for seniors. Other notable towns and cities with a high proportion of golf clubs offering seniors membership discounts/incentives included Manchester (36.8 per cent) and Oxford (35.7 per cent).

A nationwide survey also conducted by GolfSupport.com, which received a respectable 520 responses, found that 92 per cent of seniors believe they should get some sort of incentive or discount on golf club membership fees. Reginald (73) from Bristol said: “I used to be part of a golf club in Bristol up until my late 50’s but due to numerous commitments constraining my time, I couldn’t justify renewing. I am in my 70’s now and with more time than ever, I have been looking to re-join a golf club.

“Prices in comparison to when I was a member in the past are significantly higher, hence I am finding it difficult to convince myself to join. I personally believe that golf clubs should be making more of an effort to offer discounts and incentives entirely for seniors. It will not only ease my intention to join but also other seniors facing the same dilemma.”

Gary Swift from GolfSupport.com commented: “Seniors have always been the backbone of golf thus the findings of this research come as a genuine shock to me. With the golfing industry unilaterally determined to engage and appeal more to the younger generations, golf clubs have seemingly forgotten to pay equal attention to the older generation. With so many discounts, incentives, deals and offers available to the younger generations – one would expect the same for seniors.”