How much did your club pull in from visitor green fees?
The Revenue Club said 2023 was a record year, but what does that mean for the average club? Here are the numbers…
How much does the average club bring in through visitor golf green fees? The Revenue Club say they have the answer.
The company, which offers expert advice on building visitor sales at golf courses in the UK & Ireland, have revealed the number is £163,952 in green fee sales.
As they announced their golf market overview for 2023, The Revenue Club said that represented growth of eight per cent on 2022 and reported an average green fee rise of five per cent to £26.80 had contributed to what was a record year overall for visitor revenue.
The major opportunities had come in the early part of the year when a near 10 per cent drop in member play, “possibly due to the cost of living crisis”, opened up course capacity and led to a first quarter in visitor sales that “set clubs up well for the remainder of the year”.
Online bookings continued to surge with The Revenue Club, which surveyed the 175 courses it works with, saying there had been a seven per cent increase in web traffic.
Visitor golf green fees: More people are booking online
Delving deeper, the average £163,952 in casual green fee income was made up of 65 per cent online bookings and 35 per cent phone and walk in sales.
Online sales had added an extra £10,196 to the average total. The Revenue Club said the average club had 15,438 users shopping on online tee sheets in the last 12 months, which was seven per cent up on the previous year.
With the conversion rate into bookings remaining at 10 per cent, they concluded golfers had not been put off by the higher green fee rates.
Rob Corcoran, director at The Revenue Club, said: “The outlook for 2023 is very encouraging a green fee revenue growth has progressed steadily through the year with increases of 17% and 33% in November and December respectively, despite the poor weather.
“Supported by the uplift in demand and the gradual rise in prices, proactive operators can look forward to a fifth consecutive year of growth in their area of their business.
“Continued focus on online sales and rapidly developing digital marking channels will once again be the key to realising this potential by adapting to the playing and working patterns of UK and Irish golfers.”
Now have your say
What do you think of this visitor golf green fees news? Should clubs be making more money? Could your course cope with more visitors if it helped keep membership fees down? Let me know by leaving a comment on X.
Steve Carroll
A journalist for 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long. A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A's prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.
Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men's Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.
A part of NCG's Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He currently floats at around 11.
Steve plays at Close House, in Newcastle, and York GC, where he is a member of the club's matches and competitions committee and referees the annual 36-hole scratch York Rose Bowl.
Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NTCJ exams at Darlington College of Technology.
What's in Steve's bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; TaylorMade Stealth 2 irons; TaylorMade Hi-Toe, Ping ChipR, Sik Putter.
