Many golf clubs are not as healthy as you may think

The golf industry has a natural desire to showcase positivity and to paint an optimistic picture of the health of the game, and when you see rising participation numbers, it's easy to understand why, but looking beneath the surface, there is a potential crisis brewing that many haven't yet appreciated.

Phil Grice, Founder of Custodian Golf, has written an open letter to every chairperson and board of directors of golf clubs across the country that will have you pausing to reflect on what truly is the genuine state of the game.

Is Golf Really in a Healthy Place?

"If you read the headlines, you would think golf has never been healthier," Phil writes. 

"According to England Golf, 2025 was another record breaking year for the game in England. In the first half of the year alone, golfers submitted more than 5.75 million scores through the World Handicap System, a 29 percent increase on the same period the year before, and August became the busiest month ever recorded. 

"Meanwhile Golfshake's annual golfers survey 'Revealing the health of golf club membership in 2025' reveals that demand and participation amongst golf club members remains high, with 30% of golfers reported their club has a waiting list, up from 27% in 2024, and overall membership growth is up nearly 10 percentage points year-on-year. 

"It is an encouraging story, until you step inside a committee room. 

"There, the mood is very different. Clubs are wrestling with mounting costs, ageing facilities and member bases that are quietly shrinking in value. 

"Some are wondering how to fund next winter’s maintenance. Others are wondering how long they can stay open.

"This tension between 'golf is booming' and 'why can’t my club pay its bills?' is what I call Golf’s Participation Paradox. It is the single biggest challenge facing the sport today."

You might be curious as to how Custodian Golf has made this determination, but Phil explains that their findings have been drawn from hard data.

"The Custodian Golf National Golf Club Database, two years in the making, covers every golfing facility in Great Britain. Built from the highest quality datasets from Ordnance Survey, the Office for National Statistics and many other sources, it allows us to track club viability, environmental exposure and demographic pressure across the entire country. This gives us an unfiltered view of the physical, financial and strategic risks that clubs face in 2026. 

"Here is what the evidence shows: 

"Golf participation is growing, but golf clubs are not necessarily benefiting. Rounds played are up. Driving ranges, simulators and shorter format venues are thriving. 

"Yet, many traditional clubs remain trapped in cycles of underinvestment, ageing assets and delayed decisions. 

"Our White Paper research published in 2024 showed that one in five clubs in Britain were already so distressed that they risked closure without significant intervention. 

"What has transpired in 2025 has only reinforced exactly what that research predicted. In 2025, seven clubs closed their doors for the last time with no continuation of golf facilities to replace them. 

"Meanwhile, a further six clubs are living under the threat of active property development proposals, with no plans in place to ensure the continuation of golf should their respective applications be approved. 

"A further eight clubs in 2025 have appeared in a Local Authority Plan, with only one, Helensburgh Golf Club, currently set to survive under the current plan alongside new housing development."

Some Golf Clubs Are Growing Anxious

That is an alarming situation, but what do golf clubs themselves think? Custodian Golf has gathered their thoughts.

"To better understand the state of British golf clubs in 2025," Phil continues, "Custodian Golf gathered and analysed more than 100 survey responses from clubs across the UK. The survey was open to all clubs and is not intended to be a definitive or statistically representative view of the entire sector. Instead, it offers a practical snapshot of how clubs are currently thinking about their future. 

"The aim was simple. To build an evidence based picture of club performance and attitudes, and map the findings against Custodian’s three club personas, Lions, Meerkats and Ostriches. 

"The survey explored strategy, governance, facilities, investment readiness, membership pressures, and the use of data and technology. The results reveal a widening divide across the sector. 

"Lion clubs show strong planning, effective use of information, and a clear focus on customers. Meerkat clubs recognise the challenges they face but struggle to turn intent into action. 

"Ostrich clubs carry the greatest risk, with ageing infrastructure, limited planning, and governance structures that make decision making difficult. 

"Together, the findings provide one of the clearest snapshots yet of how British clubs are coping with rising costs, environmental pressures, and changing member expectations.

"They also underpin Custodian’s 2025 persona refresh, giving clubs a practical framework to understand where they stand and what needs to change. 

"The message is clear. The strongest clubs are moving forward with purpose. The rest must act quickly. Participation is rising. Sustainability is falling. This is the paradox now facing the game."

The question to ask is why are a significant number of golf clubs in Great Britain facing this growing anxiety, and Phil has broken that panic into a group of key factors.

What Issues Are Golf Clubs Facing?

• 1. Financial Fragility 

"According to our research almost 40% of clubs generate only a small annual surplus, and 12% have no financial cushion at all. Many have operated on wafer thin margins for years, cautious about raising subscriptions. Reserves have been exhausted. Capital expenditure has been deferred repeatedly. Headline membership numbers often disguise a weaker revenue mix built on junior, flexible or low cost categories. 

"Even land sales, when they occur, rarely close the long term funding gap."

• 2. Ageing Infrastructure 

"55% of clubs reinvest less than £50,000 a year in their facilities, a level that barely maintains the status quo. Clubhouses built a century ago are charming but inefficient and costly. Modern irrigation systems often exceed a million pounds to replace. Drainage and water management issues are intensifying as weather patterns shift and regulatory expectations grow."

• 3. Environmental and Spatial Constraints

"Clubs that once sat on rural fringes now find themselves inside expanding towns. Flood risk, insurance exposure and legal claims from neighbouring properties have increased. Strategic options narrow every year as urban boundaries close in. 

"6% of English courses have more than half their land at high flood risk."

• 4. Governance Strain 

"40% of clubs say their boards are volunteer led, and 69% admit that performance is reviewed only informally or not at all. Most private member clubs rely on well-intentioned volunteers who do not have the time or specialist knowledge required to drive major change. Strategies exist but are rarely delivered. Decisions are shaped more by anecdotes than evidence." 

• 5. Gender and Age Imbalance 

"Only 1% of members are women aged 20 to 50, the most important demographic for family participation. 19% of all members are already over 75, with average male life expectancy at 78. Clubs dominated by ageing membership struggle to attract families and younger adults. Without generational renewal, even financially stable clubs are on a countdown." 

• 6. Strategic Short Termism 

"Many boards operate with a 12 month view. Few have a 10 year plan. Without external data, benchmarking and professional insight, it is difficult to prioritise investment or weigh the harder decisions. Too many clubs drift towards crisis before acting." 

Has The Golf Boom Been Overstated?

We've heard a lot about the golf boom in recent years, coinciding with a participation drive in the midst of the COVID pandemic, but Phil Grice has explained that forward planning is required if those gains are to be maintained.

His letter continues: "Golf’s renewed popularity has created a false sense of comfort. The top tier of clubs, the Lions, are thriving through innovation, evidence led decision making and strong governance. For the Meerkats and Ostriches, the gap is widening at speed. 

"The boom is real, but it is not universal. The clubs that thrive are the ones able to convert participation into prosperity. The rest are watching the benefits pass them by. 

"Every club owes its members a duty of care. That duty is simple. Understand your long term viability and act before 'gradually' becomes 'suddenly'. 

"Because participation without places to play is not growth at all."

Phil's comments and the studies undertaken by Custodian Golf have shown that many golf clubs are not as healthy as you may think.

Addressing that will be a major challenge for venues in 2026 and beyond.