With iGolf now fully open for membership the oversight has begun and there have already been a small number of Independent Golfer scheme subscribers who have had their memberships cancelled after providing inaccurate information when attempting to join the scheme.
Irish Golfer Magazine was told that golfers have been attempting to join the iGolf scheme despite holding a golf club membership within the last three years.
Under the terms and conditions, the scheme is exclusive to golfers who are not currently or recently (within the past three years) members of an affiliated golf club and Golf Ireland have said that the iGolf system can automatically cancel the membership of any golfers breaking the three-year rule.
“The majority of those signing up will provide accurate information. That being said, the system runs a series of initial checks and automatically excludes those who were members in the past three years,” said a spokesperson from Golf Ireland.
“The terms and conditions of the subscription are very clear that any subscriber who has provided inaccurate information can be removed and their subscription will no longer be valid. A small number of subscribers since the launch have had their memberships cancelled.”
On the three-year stand down period, it is three times longer than the longest stand down period in other countries who have launched similar schemes to the Independent Golfer.
Upon listening to feedback from golf clubs across the country, Golf Ireland extended the stand down period and have confirmed that a significant proportion of any future surplus income from the iGolf initiative will be set aside to augment a range of new development and club supports as well as conducting an annual review on iGolf.
The general consensus among golf clubs is that the iGolfer scheme is here to stay and they have been taking different measures to try and alleviate the concerns they have about the future of their golf clubs.
At a meeting of golf clubs in North Leinster, it was agreed (pending further oversight from management committees if necessary) that iGolf members could be charged a regular green fee relevant to the time of play (midweek/weekend) and a regular visitor open entry fee while iGolfers will be permitted to play in open competitions and win prizes in their own category, subject to number of entries.
Irish Golfer Magazine also understands that some clubs had considered withdrawing from Golf Ireland competitions although Golf Ireland has not received any communication regarding clubs hosting or participating in events.
With the uptake in iGolf membership starting, Golf Ireland also feel that iGolf subscriber revenue will stretch further than just green fee income for golf clubs.
“Golf clubs set their own green fee rates and conditions for entry to open competitions. iGolf subscribers are clearly informed that entry to competitions is at the discretion of the club. An iGolf player should always check with the club in advance. During recent meetings some clubs have expressed their need to bring in new members and grow revenue. iGolf subscribers can be a source of additional green fee revenue, food and beverage revenue and future membership,” said a spokesperson from Golf Ireland.
Overall, despite widespread opposition particularly from rural golf clubs, Golf Ireland believe that the independent golfer scheme will be a benefit to golf in this country.
Success stories of the scheme have seen 40% of iGolfers in New Zealand transition into golf membership while 10,000 joined golf clubs in England and Golf Ireland are adamant that similar results can be achieved here.
“Clubs in other countries who benefited most from these schemes were the ones that worked with the scheme to promote their offers to independent golfers. One key measurement of success for Golf Ireland will be the number of iGolfers that convert into club membership. In Zealand that number has gone as high as 40%. iGolf will become a resource to clubs giving them a database of golfers to promote their offers to. These could be membership offers or open events or green fee offers.
“Research from other countries has also shown that players who join an independent scheme play more golf than before, this would mean additional revenue for clubs.
“Independent golfer schemes have proven to be successful in other countries and can deliver similar benefits here too.”