Golf has turned into a family brandish in the last few years. Affiliation Fees – As you know our financial year runs from 1st October to 30th September, so the Coronavirus Pandemic impact on Golf Course closure happened just a few days short of 6 months into the current year. Charging can take a few hours. Following on from today, I will be in dialogue with the Areas and Counties to gain a clearer understanding of the challenges they are hearing of at a local level (many of these calls were scheduled at the end of last week), and I will also make myself available to assist our wider membership in any way that I can. To be clear, we are very much in the planning phase to ensure that when the time is right, we are well placed and have the support of key partners to be able to move quickly to update clubs with detailed information as to what a phased return to golf will look like.
Deny that membership their facility when they have been starved of personalized logo callaway golf balls for many weeks/months at a key time of the year? One which we are actively engaging with many key partners to move forward. We are also collaborating with key industry partners to ensure that across GB&I we are developing a consistent approach that can be adopted when the time is right. We continue to work through the logistics of this with the current and subsequent year venues but with staff furloughed both in clubs and at Scottish Golf, this process is going to take some time and we will provide further updates on the 2021 calendar in the coming months. Though there has been an indication of flexible finaince options being available, it is not clear how Scottish Golf will proceed with clubs who do not, or are not able, to pay the fees due to the current COVID-19 crisis. With around 40% of Scottish Golf affiliation fees, which should have been paid by the end of March, still outstanding from member clubs this year, Scottish Golf are still looking for the remaining clubs to pay 75% of the full affiliation fees due this year.
The announcement at the weekend from Scottish Golf that clubs would be refunded 2019 – 2020 subscriptions has proved less attractive with the release of the details of the decision this week. Like our member clubs, we have other fixed business expenses that we must pay, however we are in a fortunate position where the combination of reserves and reallocation of budget from events and performance activity have allowed us to take the financial decision to refund part of the affiliation fee. The Regulations of Scottish Golf state that all affiliation fees are in fact due by the end of January, but in recent years Scottish Golf moved this to the end of March to try and assist clubs with cash flow based on when a large portion of club membership fees fall due. We recognise that some clubs will be struggling more than others in these challenging times, particularly those who don’t have reserves on which they can rely.
The meeting will be called upon to adopt the various reports, and also elect the Area Secretary and members of the Area Executive. A meeting was called with the main vision of making Caprington a child friendly club. I will do all that I can to support every club with the resources I have, but I also ask that clubs recognise that my limited team (13 since furlough) are working flat out to adapt to an ever-changing world. The right contractor for the job must have a team of highly experienced specialists who are certified to handle projects in their respective fields. As there are no rakes on the course, bunkers will remain GUR until further notice. To do so, you’ll need to manage the golf course, improve your short game, and display confidence in your game to succeed. If you hope to be successful and have fun with golf, then you need to start learning some golf tips and strategies you can implement towards your game. Too small can lead to unnecessary pulling of the ball. Do not touch any golf ball other than your own.