Every private club has a culture. Sometimes the character of the club is a result of evolution and at other clubs it’s established exclusively by club leadership through their policies and actions. It’s sometimes perceived that the most costly club, or the club with the most extravagant facilities is the most desirable. There are clubs that are defined by their perceived level of affluence, their history, their food and of course the quality and condition of the golf course.
Establishing a club’s culture and defining it accurately are different and can be critical to the decision making that determines the long-term success of the club. Understanding that the culture of a club can – and should – evolve is essential to establishing club policies and planning for future improvement enhancements and additions. So, what contributes to a club’s culture and how can this be used to make good planning decisions?
First and foremost, a club can’t be all things to all people, thus it needs to have a mission and define who the club is for. Is it a “family club”, place for business people, serious golfers club or a place for recreation and fun? To many, club membership is a status symbol and demonstrates personal achievement, often based on financial success. Social status, along with financial success are sometimes the most prominent elements of the culture of some clubs and the measuring stick can simply be the entrance fee or annual dues levels. These benchmarks, along with a club’s revenue levels often define a club’s “peers” and those competing for a given segment of the membership market. As in the age old phrase “money can’t buy happiness” the most costly or most prestigious clubs aren’t always the ones with the happiest or most satisfied members. That’s sometimes despite survey results that are often the result of “nobody wanting to say the baby’s ugly.”
Within any market segment there may be clubs that define their culture by catering to certain groups that might be defined by age, (younger vs older), heritage (Italian, Irish, etc.), religion (Jewish, Catholic, etc.) though more often than not, thankfully, clubs now exhibit more diversity in these and other categories like race and national origin than in bygone days.
More relevant today seems to be a club’s atmosphere. For instance, there are clubs that require golfers to use a caddie, some that require golf carts and some that leave the choice of how to navigate the course to the golfer. There are clubs that emphasize social events and some that focus on sports like golf, tennis, swimming and fitness. Some clubs are active, busy and festive places while others are more subdued with members speaking in hushed tones and guests seemingly walking on egg shells.
Another significant element of club culture is the club’s bylaws, along with the rules and policies of the club. Some clubs have more rules than anyone can remember while others maintain an “minimalist” approach only establishing rules as needed to address specific problems. Enforcement of club rules can impact a club’s culture as much as anything, especially when club leaders are ensconced in their positions for seemingly interminable periods and focus on enforcement even when rules aren’t violated or for the purpose of exercising authority. When club leadership “disciplinarians” distribute suspensions like free tees in the pro shop, the membership becomes uptight, often joke about “getting a letter” and the atmosphere becomes less comfortable with members seemingly always “looking over their shoulder”.
Among the most prominent policies that can define a club’s culture are dress codes, cell phone policies and tipping. I know one club that prohibits listening to music with ear-buds and another that restricts the length of one’s socks when wearing shorts. Does the club have tee times? Are the golf course and other facilities easily accessible to the membership or crowded? Each of these types of policies, and characteristics begin to define the culture of a club. Club politics, like those in Washington are often anything but pretty and at many clubs, those best suited to serve in leadership and policy-making roles either decline to or aren’t welcome.
Analyzing and understanding a club’s culture is a complex process, and is best done by an independent, professional source, able to accurately gauge members’ true perspectives and comfort levels with a club’s culture. Each and every club’s culture is different and displays a varying combination of characteristics. Taking the time to analyze and evaluate that culture, in addition to focusing on club facilities can be the difference between sustained success, financial failure or treading water. Happy members are what make clubs successful and they don’t often speak up when it’s needed for fear of reprisals or unwanted scrutiny. Understanding the culture and desires of those members goes a long way toward achieving, retaining and growing happy members.