For an industry that has long feared change, having the new World Handicapping System and England Golf’s iGolf scheme all in the space of 12 months has seen a real shake-up in our industry. Throw into the mix the uncertainty of a global pandemic with constant rule changes to adhere to and it has been an incredibly challenging time, particularly for the golf club manager and I have huge admiration for all managers who have worked tirelessly to keep their clubs moving forward under the circumstances.
The independent golfer scheme or iGolf as it has been named by England Golf has undoubtedly caused a lot of controversy and ill-feeling towards our national governing body. I’ve sat in on numerous Zoom calls involving England Golf staff including Jeremy Tomlinson and the reaction towards the scheme has been overwhelmingly negative. It is often dangerous to take this negativity on face value as it can often be caused by a vocal minority but on this occasion, this does not appear to be the case.
Perhaps this negativity comes from the way the scheme has been communicated to clubs which I can understand and clubs probably should have been more involved in the process given the potential impact.
My opinion, however, is that it is born out of our absolute obsession with full membership and more so the full member who plays in every competition and is all about their handicap index. Any golfer who wants any less is still treated with a stigma that they are not a proper member and they do not fully belong. Even full members that join but don’t want to play in a Saturday medal or hold a handicap are frowned upon!!
Now we are giving away our one prize possession, the one thing that makes people join a golf club...a handicap index.
Nothing to do with the quality of the club's facilities, the membership experience they deliver, being part of a community, no, the main reason anyone would ever join a golf club is to hold a handicap index...obviously.
I’m generalising of course but I have the benefit of speaking to many clubs across England and the themes are always the same. We continue to hold this outdated and elitist opinion on what a golfer should be, it is the opposite of inclusive and it continues to hold back our sport. I’ve said many times that if we simply changed the narrative of what defines a “golfer” we would probably be reporting a huge boom in our sport rather than a decline.
I have the benefit of being able to see both sides when it comes to iGolf. Having been a club manager for a number of years I can certainly understand the anxiety and apprehension of such a shift...especially considering the current climate of uncertainty. I can also understand the England Golf point of view, as someone who has made a living in the last 5 years helping clubs to target golfers on the fringes of the sport to bring them into club membership, there needs to be better communication with these “nomadic” golfers and a better understanding of how we can engage them further in our sport.
As an industry, we need to understand that all of the innovation in recent years has been developed by independent companies. Our governing body has stagnated for many many years and there has been little or no innovation by golf clubs themselves. Perhaps it is that fear of change, perhaps naivety that golf is fine and there is no need to change or perhaps we simply do not know how to evolve our sport for the better.
There are companies that have entered the golf industry and forced change in recent years, companies such as TeeOffTimes and PlayMoreGolf have built successful businesses by owning the independent golfer audience. They have understood what the independent golfer is looking for whilst clubs continue to try and pigeonhole them into membership products they do not want. They have brought about innovation that has driven the industry forward largely against its own will with many still battling against them or believing they have “destroyed the industry”.
What I see from England Golf and the iGolf is the first steps towards innovation in our industry from within and the opportunity to exert greater influence on those golfers who are on the fringes of our sport but potentially hold in their hands the success or failure of many golf clubs in our country. The last 16 months or so have seen a massive shift with more golfers coming back to membership which is fantastic but we cannot ignore the fact that many clubs relied on independent golfers paying reduced green fees to keep their club afloat for many years prior. Will this come back? Who knows, who could have predicted such a shift during Covid but I for one am concerned.
That concern for what is to come for the golf industry as a whole is why I believe it is now time for clubs to embrace iGolf and embrace the independent golfer. iGolf represents yet another huge shift in our industry and when such a shift takes place, inevitably it will lead to opportunities for those who accept it and find a way to take advantage. If you bury your head in the sand and pretend this is not happening you will lose out once again. iGolf is now here and it is here to stay so let's find a way to make the most of it!
A couple of potential suggestions on how you could get ahead and welcome the iGolf members to your club…
Set up regular Open Competitions purely for iGolf members whilst charging a green fee and competition fee
If your competitions are not fully subscribed, consider setting up a subsidiary competition for iGolf members to enter
Create an affiliate membership scheme where they join the club, enjoy some of the perks of membership and reduced green fee rates whilst they use iGolf to maintain their handicap index
The key reason England Golf have developed this scheme is to build a significant database of golfers in our country, which in turn has the potential to weaken the grip 3rd party companies have on this audience and put it back in the hands of golf clubs themselves. Whether golf clubs choose to use this is up to them but I strongly believe there is a massive opportunity here for golf clubs and they should do all they can to make the most of it.
Comments