Knee deep in it

Golf clubs have been forced to work harder and think smarter to avoid being swallowed whole by the recession. Some top-end clubs may not survive but those that can will be all the better for it. Tony Leen, Charlie Mulqueen, Therese O’Callaghan and Donal Hughes look at the state of the Irish golf industry.

IT’S the breakfast table conversation no self-respecting husband wants to stomach. The second car may go, perhaps the autumn golf-buddy trip to Portugal. But forsaking membership of the golf club, the Sunday morning haven from the world’s ills?

For many, it has come to that. In fact, golf’s governing bodies in Ireland, the GUI and ILGU are so concerned about the number of golfers dropping their club membership – with the consequential fall-off in the number playing the game – that they have published a booklet offering advice in how they might best cope with the situation.

The Golfing Union of Ireland sat down for their AGM yesterday at Carton House with the state of the industry and the future of golf clubs high on the agenda. However, new president Sean McMahon said that while the union was sympathetic to the large number of clubs facing financial difficulties, they were not on a position to get involved in their internal affairs.

Which, of course, is not to say they are standing idly by and letting each troubled club to work their way out of their problems.

“There is little doubt that the rapid deterioration in the economy has filtered through to the golf clubs and will have an adverse effect on golf club membership at least in the short-term,’’ he said. “The challenge facing the clubs is to minimise this effect.”

Nobody likes mentioning the ‘R’ word in a golf context, but many clubs and golf-related businesses are facing a knockout blow after a disastrous 2009. Families have had to review their golfing options, including taking a 12 month sabbatical from membership of the local club.

2010? From contact with up to 50 clubs nationwide for this Irish Examiner survey, there is some grounds for optimism and for deducting that the belt-tightening of last year is producing results. So what has changed? Better value, yes. Incentives, sure. Easier payment options and scrapping entry fees – definitely.

There is also a defiant constituency which refuses to be deprived the opportunity to play the game they love. If the bad times have taught us anything, it is has been the importance of an outlet to escape from the pressures of the world and the invaluable social interaction that golf, by its very nature, creates.

The main sections of the GUI/ILGU help booklet are on retaining and attracting members. It warns against “clubs retaining members or attracting new members simply to maintain subscription income”. Instead, the view is that they need “to create extra value relative to the perceived cost of limited time availability and the cost of casual green fees or open-day entrance fees”.

The ILGU are being proactive in this area and have introduced a programme to help and encourage ladies of all ages to become involved in golf and ultimately to become members of golf clubs. At present, there are just short of 50,000 ladies who are members of clubs – just 20% of total club membership which shows a decided imbalance in the gender balance of the population.

Their programme begins with coaching by a fully qualified PGA professional followed by an introduction to the game and course by club members. For a nominal fee of €30, they receive four coaching sessions and participate in a beginner’s competition. The ILGU fund the cost of the coaching courses.

Obviously, junior members should be a primary source of full members and by and large they are receiving far greater support in making the transition than heretofore. Here, it is doubtless a case of money talks. Additionally, golf is not an easy game to learn or for the rules, etiquette and traditions to be understood. This is where the club professional has a major role to play although the input of well intentioned volunteers is just as invaluable.

Advice of this nature is all well and good, but clubs are still severely financially strapped and have other things on their mind. They have had to incentivise, strategise and economise as never before to regain a foothold in the market.

“The reality is there is a serious case of over-supply in the market,” says Gareth Jones of Glasson Golf Club in Athlone, sentiments that are echoed nationwide.

Tony Walker from the Slieve Russell resort in Ballyconnell, Co Cavan goes further, believing several clubs are being kept on a “life support machine” by the banks.

He has a point. There seems to be a fork in the road when it comes to strategy. Some clubs are going down “Survival Way”, prepared to do almost anything to survive. This includes back page advertising of knockdown green fees that on the face of it are incredible value, but in reality don’t even begin to cover running costs of the clubs involved. This is the race to the bottom.

Fortunately most of Ireland’s established clubs have gone the other way, the “Recovery Road”. These clubs all have a strong emphasis on providing quality to visitors whilst valuing its members. Green fee rates and subscriptions have been made more tempting but always based on sound balance sheets.

“We hang our hat on quality,” says Barry O’Connor of Killeen Castle, host to the 2011 Solheim Cup, which has seen 290 members join in the past nine months. Even those entering the troubled marketplace like Concra Wood in Castleblayney have been surprised by the uptake. Manager Michael Fee is working overtime but he insists the strength of any club is its members. With over 300 share-holding members at the new layout, Fee believes there won’t be a problem. “When you have several hundred backers ready to put their shoulder to the wheel, things work out,” Fee remarked.

In a cut-throat market, the only potential winner is the customer. Special offers abound, clubs are working harder to gain a foothold. But there are factors outside their control too. On a recent visit to Kerry, our correspondent dropped in on the stunning setting at Dooks Golf Club outside Glenbeigh. It was a beautiful sunny morning, but, the golf course was closed. Like most other golf clubs the big freeze kept the course shut until noon. If it’s not one thing, it’s another.

“Whatever way you look at it, a golf course needs golfers,” says Dooks secretary Brian Hurley. “I was at a Fáilte Ireland meeting recently where they said the roads were gritted for 27 nights straight. The weather has arguably had a bigger effect on our business than the recession. Look at the likes of Killarney Golf Club, I have fierce sympathy for them, because they are suffering as a result of course closures. We are a little better off in that our links course might not close. But, if you are coming here in the middle of July and it is bucketing down, you won’t play. The weather has had a huge effect on us.”

Dooks is renowned for its friendly welcome, but Hurley warns: “We all have to work even harder than we did three years ago. We are fighting uphill but Dooks has advantages – we have a golf course that is open 12 months a year, we have a good membership base and our visitor numbers are holding strong. But, that is reliant more on the Irish market than any foreign market.”

Outside Portlaoise, The Heath Golf Club’s president Sean Mulligan says the club is “in quite a healthy state”, but accepts that is down to careful husbandry for the past few years, a view shared by club captain, Eamonn Conroy.

“The facilities we have are as good, if not better, than those on offer in any golf club adjacent to a provincial town the size of Portlaoise. But, we have had to work extremely hard to maintain those standards. We’ve made a big effort to control payroll costs. Sadly, these included reduced hours for temporary staff and short term lay-offs. Membership has remained fairly static. Some have returned to courses nearer home, others have specifically told us that without work they cannot afford to play golf anymore. We would have got quite a few members from Monasterevin and Kildare over the years but now that golf clubs are reducing fees, they are moving back there.”

Conroy added: “We built our club house 10 years ago in the good times, so our debt is manageable. It would be sad to think that some golf clubs may not survive. Many clubs seem to have targeted their membership base from a perceived high earning cohort of people that in reality does not exist.”

WHILE the weather dampens enthusiasm, other intangibles help. At Esker Hills in Offaly, they’re still lapping up the backwash of Shane Lowry’s Irish Open victory last year, says club MD, Donal Molloy.

“His win brought huge spotlight on the club and directly resulted in a big spin-off with increased green fees and society volumes and membership requests,’’ he said.

Ronan Smyth is the secretary/manager of a tidy nine hole parklands golf course in Kilcoole, Co Wicklow, and is also treasurer of the Irish Region of Club Managers Association of Europe. Getting rid of the club’s salaried administrator is penny wise, pound foolish, he says.

He said: “We provide education for managers and an excellent opportunity for networking which has been invaluable. I would encourage clubs to make sure that their manager is involved as there is a wealth of information to be gained from your fellow managers and the courses we run. We recently held a forum on reducing costs where all the managers shared ideas and everyone left with new plans to implement. Several clubs have taken a short-sighted attitude and have let their manager go. He is the one person with the expertise, knowledge and know-how to guide the club through difficult times. When the market turns I know which clubs will be better placed to reap the rewards.”