‘Modest’ profit for Lahinch Golf Club

One of the country’s most prestigious golf clubs added just 16 new members to its books last year and according to the club’s chairman, faces “serious challenges” in the global recession attracting new members and retaining its existing ones.
Lahinch Golf Club showed “a modest surplus” last year of nearly €100,000, according to its statement of accounts and this has been attributed to a cost-reduction policy introduced in 2008.
“The surplus was achieved from a combination of tight cost control, implementation of a three-day week from January to March and October to December, restructured staffing arrangements and a 10% increase in green fee bookings. There have been further staff redundancies and resignations in 2011 and the process is ongoing to attain an acceptable overall staffing structure at an affordable cost that will deliver the standard of product and service required by the members and visitors to Lahinch Golf Club,” said Richard Pyne, chairperson of Lahinch Golf Club council.
The club’s total excess of income over expenditure was more than €540,200, including the €97,626, entrance fees of €262,999 and overseas life membership of €179,606.
In an effort to increase membership, Mr Pyne confirmed that a membership review would be completed this year.
“A total of 16 new members joined in 2011. As a direct result of the downturn in the global and national economies, membership retention and our ability to attract new members are serious challenges facing the club in the future. A comprehensive membership review, including age analysis, will be completed over the coming months to assist council in its future planning,” he stated.
Mr Pyne also noted the upgrade of the website allowing visitors to reserve tee times at source, adding that “we have seen an increase in activity since the launch of the new website last October”.
Accounts show that income from subscriptions was down last year but green fees were up. Competition fees dipped last year too, compared to 2010, while bank interest more than doubled. Overall expenditure was up slightly on last year. Expenditure on course wages, salaries, pensions and redundancy was up from €755,880 to €789,003, while in administration wages, salaries and pensions rose from €204,734 to €229,688. In the clubhouse, the figure for wages, salaries, pensions and redundancy dipped slightly from €129,285 to €123,468.
Light and heat expenditure in the clubhouse was up by more than €5,000 while insurance costs were down slightly. Money spent on fertiliser, seeds and week-killer for the course jumped by more than €26,700 last year. The figures spent on repairs and maintenance also rose. Accounts show that nearly €40,000 was paid in rates for the course in 2010 while in 2011 the course received €15,872 under the headline rates. The clubhouse paid rates of €37,911 in 2010 but last year this was down to €29,173. At the course depreciation was down from €357,322 to €341,285 last year but at the clubhouse it was up from €43,971 to €76,691. The cost of printing and stationery halved at the club from €43,710 in 2010 to €20,757 last year. Computer costs rose from €15,547 to €24,714 in the same period.
The club cleared €97,626 in income over expenditure and at the end of 2011 boasted an accumulated balance of €6,099,483.