\n Consultant Liam Greasley says golf club membership is increasingly regarded as a ‘retail purchase’, with fewer people willing to take on responsibility for running the business (Image: Supplied)\n<\/p>\n
\n For Mr Greasley the episode illustrated both the emotional attachment many golfers still feel towards member ownership, and the wider transition taking place across the sport. More fundamentally, he believes golfers increasingly view club membership as a consumer choice rather than a civic commitment to help run the organisation they belong to.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cMembership is going to become a retail purchase,\u201d he said. \u201cThe culture has changed.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cWhen they join, they join to play golf. They didn\u2019t join to have the responsibility of running a business that has perhaps been challenged by the environment that it operates in.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n He further argues that modern golfers are more discerning and less likely to remain loyal if standards fall.\n<\/p>\n
\n Read more:\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI want a better golf course. I want better customer service. I want a better clubhouse. And if I don\u2019t get that, I\u2019ll go somewhere else,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe whole world has moved forward. It goes back to the whole point about membership as a retail purchase. Those are the things that you want from the club you\u2019ve decided to join.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n His comments challenge one of Scottish golf\u2019s defining traditions, with hundreds of clubs across the country owned and governed by their members through volunteer committees. Mr Greasley says that model is coming under increasing strain, particularly among the substantial tier of clubs that sit between Scotland\u2019s internationally-renowned courses and its smallest community venues.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cThere\u2019s no one model fits all, but the biggest challenge in the industry is not at the top<\/a> and it\u2019s not at the bottom, it\u2019s in the middle,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n \n \n Evidence from the last two years of The Herald Scottish Golf Survey suggests those pressures are being felt across much of the industry. Findings from 2025 showed that rising costs had become clubs\u2019 greatest challenge<\/a>, ahead of ageing membership, while the 2026 survey suggested many mid-market clubs were operating on tight margins<\/a> with limited scope to pass increasing costs on to members.\n<\/p>\n \n Broadly speaking, subscription fees rose far more slowly than visitor green fees<\/a> between 2025 and 2026. Across Greater Glasgow and Lanarkshire, visitor prices increased by an average of 10% compared with a 4.2% rise in subscriptions. Similar patterns were recorded elsewhere in Scotland.\n<\/p>\n \n Mr Greasley said clubs with substantial infrastructure faced a particular challenge.\n<\/p>\n \n \u201cWe\u2019ve probably been under-invested for years, and we\u2019ve probably been under-invested to ensure that membership fees remain low,\u201d he said. \u201cUnfortunately, the economy, along with the broader culture associated with that economy, has created quite a significant impact on their ability to continue to run successfully as they were.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n Many remained excellent golf clubs, he stressed, but were finding it increasingly difficult to fund improvements and major maintenance projects.\n<\/p>\n \n Read more:\n<\/p>\n \n The pressures became clear at Scotscraig<\/a>, where Mr Greasley was brought in as a consultant in 2022 following the retirement of the club manager. The club had around 700 members, a seven-day adult subscription of roughly \u00a3650 and annual turnover of about \u00a3500,000, leaving little room for unexpected increases in operating costs.\n<\/p>\n \n As wages, utility bills and other expenses increased after the pandemic, the club sought to grow visitor and golf-day income, almost doubling turnover to around \u00a31 million. Even so, Mr Greasley said comparable 18-hole clubs typically cost between \u00a3900,000 and \u00a31.2m a year to operate.\n<\/p>\n \n \u201cIt\u2019s difficult to go from a turnover of half a million pounds to a million pounds in any case,\u201d he said. \u201cAgainst that backdrop, you can understand the real scale of the challenge.\u201d\n<\/p>\nCourse improvement work under way at Scotscraig Golf Club following the change in management (Image: Supplied)\n<\/p>\n