Golf club is out of the rough and back in profit

Lahinch golf club has turned the corner and is back in profit, its captain said yesterday.

Richard Pyne, speaking ahead of presenting a report to members, said the club recorded an operating surplus of €97,626 in 2011.

A collapse in green fee income resulted in the club recording a combined operating loss of €1m in 2008 and 2009. In a bid to cut costs, staff were placed on a three-day week from October to March.

In his report, Mr Pyne said a combination of the three-day week, tight cost control, restructured staffing arrangements and a 10% rise in green fee bookings had resulted in the surplus.

The €1m recorded in green fee income is 45% down from the €1.87m in such income in 2007.

Mr Pyne reported: “There have been further staff redundancies and resignations in 2011, and the process is ongoing to attain an acceptable overall staffing structure at an affordable cost that will deliver the standard of product and services required by the members and visitors to Lahinch golf club.”

Accounts show the surplus of €97,626 followed a surplus of €65,280 in 2010.

The club counts current Ireland and Munster rugby captain Paul O’Connell as a member and, in a bid to boost revenues, the club admitted 16 members last year that raised €262,999.

The revenues from entrance fees and €179,606 from overseas life membership resulted in the club recording an overall surplus of €540,231.

The club’s accumulated fund at the end of 2011 stood at €6m. The cash balance also increased from €856,164 to €1.32m during the year.

In an interview before the AGM, Mr Pyne said: “The club has turned the corner and is back in profit. Membership over the past two years is down 7% to 8%, but it is containable and the course is in great shape.”

However, in his report to members, Mr Pyne warned that “there is no room for complacency as the surplus only represents a return of 4% on a turnover of €2.4m and is subject to vagaries outside our control”.

Adult membership last year declined by 66 from 2,203 to 2,137, and this followed 2010 where “the continuing downturn in the general economic situation resulted in 55 members resigning and 75 being struck off for the non-payment of subscriptions”.

In his report, Mr Pyne said: “As a direct result of the downturn in the global and national economies, membership retention and our ability to attract new members are serious challenges facing the club.”

Mr Pyne said that a comprehensive membership review was to be completed in the coming months.

A contentious 5% hike in annual subscriptions for last year resulted in income from subscriptions declining only marginally from €1.17m to €1.13m, while fees from green fees eclipsed the €1m barrier — up from €927,040 in 2010.

Unspecified redundancy payments for clubhouse and course staff resulted in staff costs in those areas increasing from €885,165 to €912,471.

The figures show that non-cash depreciation costs last year amounted to €417,976.