Society of the Month – August

Year Founded

2019 – website

Geographic Area you play most

West London, Surrey, Berks & Bucks.

Annual Tour

We go to Morocco every autumn and for the past four years, we’ve taken roughly 40 golfers to Marrakesh, but this year we’re excited to head to Agadir for a bit of a change. Our UK-based weekend is always a step up in luxury from the norm, having visited venues like The Belfry and Forest of Arden in recent years.

Morocco Trip

Morocco Trip

Morocco Trip

The Belfry Trip

Formats

Typically, we play a stableford competition once a month, but during our tour matches, we switch it up to team match play events where the Society Captain and Chairman battle it out as team captains. Our annual championship, to the dismay of some of our members, is medal.

Men’s Championship 2023

How Many golfers

We have a pool of around 150 golfers actively involved, but on a monthly basis, we usually have 30-40 players participating. Among them, we have a core group of regulars who are passionately competing for the Order of Merit title, while others simply come along for a day out with friends, and that's perfectly fine by us.

Why did it start

Our society was formed by a group of friends in West London with a vision to introduce new golfers to the game and provide them with an opportunity to experience competitive golf while having a fun day out. We began with a membership made up of high handicappers and played on the more ‘basic’ courses in the area. Over time, we’ve grown significantly, now attracting a good group of single figure and mid handicappers and we play on some of the better courses available more regularly.

How do you select which courses to play

We like to support a few local West London courses by returning to them regularly, and we are big supporters of the charity Get Golfing, which runs several courses near us.

However, we also strive to explore new venues to keep things interesting.

Price is another consideration, and we do our best to keep the cost for our members below £50 per round.

For our annual championship, we’re willing to splurge a bit.

Favourite Course played with Society

That’s a tough question, but if we had to pick one, it would probably be The Brabazon last year, although a lot of members preferred the PGA National (it played a lot easier!).

Top Tips for running a golf society

• Do it for the passion of golf. Dedication, time, and sometimes personal investment are necessary to make things work well. Having a burning passion for the game keeps us motivated and makes the effort worthwhile.

• Get to know your local course managers on a personal level. Our amazing relationships with nearby courses allow us to secure excellent deals for our members. Guaranteeing the courses 9-10 tee times on a Wednesday morning (and bringing substantial business to their bar!) helps strengthen these relationships.

• Get a society bank account. As we’ve grown, this step has made event management much easier and offers our members the assurance that we operate as a professional society instead of sending bank transfers to personal accounts.

3 reasons to join the Society

• We are extremely welcoming, and our primary focus is to make our events enjoyable and fun. Numerous players who have participated with us have commented on the friendly and vibrant atmosphere of our event days.

• We don’t break the bank. Recognizing that golf can be an expensive sport, we choose not to charge annual fees and ensure that our events offer great value for money by negotiating good green fees with courses.

• We take pride in fostering a community that embraces diversity in golf. Our membership is an eclectic and inclusive bunch, comprising golfers from various backgrounds, ethnicities, and abilities. We make a concerted effort to make lady golfers welcome, having heard numerous nightmare stories of societies that do not create a welcoming environment. The Ladies have their own Championship and we organise an annual Ladies day.

2022 Ladies Day at Richmond Park.

Club Membership Split

Originally a good chunk of our society was made up of members at a local course called David Lloyd Hampton, which is based in Twickenham, but due to the substantial growth we’ve seen over the past few years we have a much more varied membership. Currently, approximately 75% of our members come from a range of local courses, and the remaining 25% are nomads. Recently we have seen people coming from farther afield than West London, including places like Birmingham, Bristol and Gloucester, and we even had a recent member from Canada who sought us out online to play before he relocated to London.

Mental/Physical Health benefits

Our event days are held during the working week, making it accessible to retiree golfers, some of whom are well in to their 80s. Alongside our older members, we also have a significant younger crowd who dedicate a good portion of their annual leave to play with us, as well as juggling other work/life commitments. Spending a day away from work to enjoy the outdoors with friends is undoubtedly beneficial for both physical and mental health. Additionally, we ensure there’s a social element to all our events, enhancing the overall experience. People keep returning to our events, so it is undeniable that we offer our members a beneficial experience irrespective of how they have played.

Charity

We are proud supporters of the David Lloyd Hampton Golf Club captains’ charity, and each year we find a way to contribute. Recently, we organised a par three tournament at the Players Club in Bristol, raising several hundred pounds for a local children’s hospice.

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