Luckily my Grandma, a low handicap golfer herself encouraged me to play golf at the age of 7 years old. This family encouragement to try golf was so important, it was the natural step for me to join my local golf club as a junior member. My first membership fee was seventy seven pounds, it has proved to be such an important part of my life ever since.

With so many sports competing for our time, I wanted to detail some of the reasons from my own experiences to join a golf club.

Wellbeing

Golf is the perfect way to be outside and enjoy the countryside on a regular basis. Taking in fresh air and seeing the trees and open spaces has been proven to improve your outlook on life. There are many health benefits from this including exercise, a round of golf is around four miles of walking and burns hundreds of calories.

You can play as often as you like per week

This sounds an obvious point but it really does make you feel that you can play as much as you want and not think about the costs involved. With pay and play courses suddenly your costs for golf can really increase. The fixed cost of play is really attractive, especially in the holidays and summertime when more golf is possible. It also means you can play 36 holes in one day, something I used to do much more as a junior and not so much these days. This really helps in getting your game to a much higher level in a much quicker timescale.

With county golf being of a high standard, this is a really important feature of having a membership at a golf club.

Local to Where you Live

With so many golf clubs around the country there is a high probability that you can find a golf club near to where you live. This presents lots of advantages, with everyone these days needing to think about their carbon footprint, it means you can often be on the first tee within 30 minutes and not have to travel vast distances to play golf.

Familiar Environment and Reciprocal Memberships

By playing regularly you build up familiarity and this is an important feeling when life is busy with lots of business travel. You can get back to your equilibrium and find relaxation in a familiar environment. It is always good to play new courses but having a base gives you so much, also nowadays golf clubs often have reciprocal memberships with other golf clubs. This means that your golf club can often give you a great deal of variety with trips to other clubs as part of your membership.

Club Professional for Lessons to Improve your Golf

The standard of PGA Golf professionals across the UK is very high, many club professionals have strong playing records which means they have detailed knowledge of what it takes to play to the highest standards. A lesson or a group lesson is a great way to start accessing this experience and tuition, group lessons can be a great way to keep the costs down and also start meeting new people. Our next JdV Sport Group Ultimate Golfing Clinic on the 26th March is at Stoke Park, we have places remaining for this special day.

Destination to Improve your Golf | Practice Facilities including Chipping area, Putting area, Driving range

Practice is not for everyone as I have always enjoyed playing, however practice facilities are important as you can ask your professional to give you lessons on specific parts of the game. The short game can also be so enjoyable to work on and improve, these practice areas offer members the very best spaces to develop their skills.

Nick and I are proud to be Brand Ambassadors for Stoke Park who have built a David Leadbetter Short game Academy which is the ultimate in golf club memberships. For more on Stoke Park Club memberships, contact our team to set up a showcase visit.

Social Life and Events

Golf clubs are very sociable with many clubs running social events throughout the year. I have been going to these from an early age and proud to be the first lady golfer to be junior captain of my first golf club. These events create a real club atmosphere and provide a wonderful opportunity to organise more golf matches and build lifelong friendships.

Lifelong Relationships

There is no sport quite like golf for spending lots of quality time with friends and family. Golf has changed my life in so many ways, meeting people from around the world from so many different professions. Whilst pay and play courses are important to start golf it is much easier these days to have a firm group of friends and golf partners at your home club. These friendships can offer you so much.

Family

Golf clubs provide families for a regular place to enjoy in some truly beautiful settings. Golf clubs are very encouraging of family members as often it creates a generational game to enjoy. With junior memberships being very reasonable, I have always thought it is an ideal place to spend time with the family. Nick and I compete as a brother / sister pairing in our club foursomes tournament which is an enjoyable way to meet new people in a competitive way.

All Abilities can play

The handicapping system run by golf clubs creates a system that means every ability level can compete against each other. This system means that the game is for everyone.

Regular Competition

Being a member of a golf club gives you access to regular competition and this really sharpens up your golf. Golf clubs have so many good players and it puts a premium on focussing your energies on improving, learning and taking your game to new heights. Golf clubs run lots of types of competitions and I have always played in the club knockout matches to meet new people.

I think this is one of the biggest benefits of being a member, this can open up lots of opportunities to test yourself and as a junior you can see what it takes to play county or England golf. It also gives people new goals on performance, I have seen several of my friends go on to play golf for a living on the European Tour, Ladies European Tour and represent our country in the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup.

I have been lucky to go to many events through my career in the golf and sports industries including: the US Masters, European Tour events, BMW PGA Championships and many Ryder Cups. We have a number of event opportunities within our various partnerships including Your Golf Travel. We are thrilled that the next Ryder Cup venue is at Whistling Straits who we are proud to partner with. Get in touch with our travel team for more information on these “Once in a Lifetime” experiences.

Find a Course you Love

With so much choice, find a course you love. Play a few rounds before you join and get a feel for the golf course and clubhouse. Don’t be afraid to ask the secretary or club manager to set a game up with one of the members, it is also good to meet some of the members before you join.

Supporting your Golfing Ambitions

Member clubs are very keen to see golfers progress and achieve more in the game. Find people who know the game in the club, as this can be a real asset to being a member to get the right support for your golf.

I hope this provides encouragement to go on and join a golf club, Nick or I are more than happy to talk over our golf lifes and advise on clubs that may suit your individual requirements.

Happy Golfing

Jill de Villiers

JdV Sport Office: 0208 741 8766