Many golf clubs already hold much of the information needed to start planning next year’s membership revenue.
This summer’s membership usage, visitor bookings, enquiries and tee-sheet patterns provide real evidence of how golfers are engaging with the club. Clubs can see which categories are performing, which members are playing less and where potential joiners are failing to progress.
The problem is that membership planning is often left until renewal season. By then, prices may have been agreed, renewal communications may already be underway and there is limited time to make meaningful changes.
Starting now gives the club more time to understand the position, agree what needs to change and prepare properly for 2027.
The first step is to understand what has actually happened this year.
Total membership numbers matter, but they do not tell the full story. It is also worth reviewing revenue by category, new joiners, resignations, upgrades, downgrades, playing frequency and membership enquiry conversion.
A club may have maintained its overall membership number while becoming more reliant on lower-value categories. Another may have grown full membership but still have a gap between regular visitor golf and the commitment required to join.
This summer’s behaviour can provide further insight. Repeat local visitors, former members continuing to pay green fees and unsuccessful membership enquiries may all indicate demand that is not being served by the current structure.
Reviewing this information while the season is still fresh makes it easier to understand what has worked and what may need attention next year.
A membership revenue forecast cannot assume that every current member will renew.
Some resignations may already be expected. Others may be less obvious, but signs of risk can often appear in advance. Playing frequency may have fallen, competition entries may have stopped or a previously engaged member may have become less connected to the club.
These changes do not necessarily mean that the member is unhappy. Work, family commitments, health or a change in lifestyle may simply mean that their current membership no longer fits.
Early conversations give the club more time to understand those circumstances. In some cases, the answer may be better communication or improvements to the member experience. In others, a clearly differentiated flexible category could provide a suitable way to retain the relationship.
This should not become an automatic cheaper alternative for every full member. As covered in our article on protecting full membership, the audience, access and value of each category must remain clearly separated.
Planning next year’s membership revenue is not simply about deciding how much to increase subscriptions.
It is also an opportunity to consider whether the current categories reflect how golfers actually use the club.
Some clubs still provide two realistic choices: remain a visitor or commit to full membership. That leaves little room for golfers who play regularly but cannot justify unrestricted access or an annual subscription designed for frequent play.
The answer is not to create a category for every possible golfer. Too many options can make the decision harder to understand. Each category needs a clear audience, price, level of access, range of benefits and commercial purpose.
Full membership should remain the club’s core proposition. A controlled flexible category can complement it by serving golfers who may play 10–15 rounds per year, directing demand towards suitable tee times and creating a route from visitor golf towards a deeper commitment.
Our recent article on reviewing golf club membership categories explores this distinction in more detail.
A new-member target needs to account for the members the club expects to lose.
For example, a club may currently have 600 members and want to finish 2027 with 620. If 45 members are expected not to renew, the acquisition target is not 20. The club would need 65 new members to reach its closing target.
Even that calculation only considers headcount.
Targets also need to reflect the expected category mix and revenue value. Retaining a golfer through a lower-commitment category may protect the relationship and some revenue, but it will still affect the overall subscription forecast.
Realistic targets can be set by considering previous enquiry volumes, conversion rates, available course capacity, marketing budget and the time staff have available to handle leads. The objective is to create a target that is commercially worthwhile and supported by a credible route to achieving it.
Effective membership campaigns need preparation.
Before January, clubs can agree which golfers they want to attract, which category is most suitable and why someone should choose their club. Website pages, campaign creative, email audiences, advertising budgets and follow-up messages can then be prepared around that proposition.
This summer’s repeat visitors and previous membership enquiries can also form valuable audiences, provided the correct marketing permissions are in place.
Planning early does not mean every campaign needs to launch immediately. It means the club is ready to communicate when golfers begin making decisions about the year ahead.
January can then become a campaign launch point rather than the first time the club discusses its acquisition plan.
A strong membership proposition can still underperform if the supporting process is not ready.
The club’s office, professional team and other customer-facing staff need to understand who each category is for, how it works and how it differs from the alternatives. The explanation should remain consistent across the website, telephone enquiries and face-to-face conversations.
Enquiry forms, automated responses, CRM pipelines, payment processes and reporting also need to be checked in advance. Every lead should have a clear owner, next step and follow-up process.
Testing the full journey before campaigns begin can identify gaps that would otherwise lead to slow responses, mixed messages or lost enquiries.
Planning early will not remove every uncertainty from next year’s membership revenue. It will give the club more time to respond to the evidence, protect renewals and build a stronger acquisition plan.
This summer has shown how existing members, visitors and potential joiners are choosing to use the club. The opportunity now is to turn that information into a clear plan for 2027.
If that review reveals a gap between visitor golf and full membership, PlayMoreGolf can help assess whether a controlled flexible membership category could support contracted revenue while protecting the value of full membership.
Speak to the PlayMoreGolf team to begin planning for next year.
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