Potential relocation to UK - golf questions

[soonernick]

After lots of discussion in recent months, and tons over this weekend, it is becoming more likely that my wife, daughter and I may be relocating to the UK in the next 24 months, likely in the London area. My wife's profession is the most transferrable and the job opportunity would be in London, but unless my job is more transferrable than I expect (attorney), we likely won't be able to afford central London living, so I'm assuming we will live outside of the city. Obviously there are a million other issues we will be prioritizing, but I wanted to get an idea of what I'm going to be looking for from a golf perspective. I've lived in London for 8-months during law school in early 2000's, and traveled for golf or family a couple times as recent as 2019, and my brother-in-law lives in Scotland, so I have a decent feel for the differences in golf culture. But as someone who has spent the last 10 years at Southern country clubs playing 2-5 days a week almost year round, with big member-guest tournaments and constant action, I know I'm looking at a bit of a culture shock. So just a couple of initial things I'm curious about:

 

1. What am I looking for budget wise or level/quality of course? I know about the price differences (pretty excited about that), but I also understand our income will be budgeted much differently than in the U.S. So, just to give you an idea, my current club is $7,500 initiation and my base dues are $850/month, but after restaurant, pool, drinks, tournaments, etc. my average bill over the course of the year is about $1,300/month. My wife and daughter don't even golf and they're both at the club at least twice a week from May thru September. Obviously with some great UK courses costing around $2k/year, I respect this is not an apples to apples comparison. Plus, we're making this move on the assumption that I won't have an income for at least a 3-6 month period, and when I do start working I have no idea what I'll be making. My wife's income will likely be in the £90-110k range. So can you all point me to a couple of names of London regional clubs that might be in my ballpark that I can at least use as a starting point to make comparisons?

 

1a. Do I even want to join a club? Or would I be better off spending a year bouncing around various local courses?

 

2. Do many of you have any experience working in the golf industry in the UK? Considering I have 18-24 months before the move happens, I was considering becoming a PGA Member. I've been around the industry since mowing greens in high school, I have several friends that are pros or work in the industry, and I'm pretty confident I can handle the PAT without too much prep. The biggest reason I avoided a golf career and went a different direction in the States was that everyone I knew that worked in golf when I was graduating high school and undergrad told me they never got to play golf. Is that the same for industry in the UK? Do the hours and low pay make you want to get away from the course as soon as you're not working? Would it be difficult to get into the industry at 45 years old?

 

Thanks in advance, and please know I realize I'm probably glossing over important issues at this stage, just trying to get a feel for where I should start looking.

Edited June 27, 2022 by soonernick

[sabram]

Joining a golf club in the UK is much different than in the U.S. You will be pleasantly surprised at how relatively inexpensive club dues are in the UK, and many clubs don't have any initiation/ joining fees . The main reason for that is because the clubs in the UK allow unaccompanied visitor play on certain days and times so the green fee revenue from visitors subsidize the operation of the club. You'll spend less money on golf and play more as compared to being a country club member in the US. There are many good courses 360 degrees around London. The best and most expensive ones are in Surrey, which has a lot of more upscale places to live. Before the pandemic few clubs had waiting lists. Since the pandemic  it's my understanding that more clubs have waiting lists to get in. In any event, you should have a number of good choices wherever you decide to live, and because there are usually no initiation fees, if you find a  club you like better it makes it easier to switch.

[El Gringo]

You are better off concentrating on areas you would like to live and the work travel convenience for your wife. From there you can add in golf membership considerations. BTW, once you figure out a few possible areas, contact the clubs which appeal and start the ball rolling. All the high profile clubs will be full and likely closed waiting lists. By the time you move things may loosen up. 

 

I have always liked Wimbledon because it has open space, a few decent feeding and watering holes and good connection to the city. But the golf opportunities are limited without fairly long car journeys. If you live more Woking or Guildford way the choices are awesome, but it's more suburban living. That much harder to get into the etc. 

Edited June 28, 2022 by El Gringo

[soonernick]

Thanks for the response, it is greatly appreciated! And you're correct in pointing to the work/travel issue for my wife. Be assured that golf is like 15th on the list (at best) of where we will end up, with my wife's daily routine and our daughter's education having priority amongst other things.

 

We're obviously super early in this, but you might have presented my question in a better way than I did... Once we do decide on an area, how does one go about choosing a club in the UK?  I know I'm not going to be able to roll up to Sunningdale with a coupon for one free month of dues if I get a friend to join with me, but are top 100 England courses (outside of the top 10-30ish) accessible for similar prices we hear that make Americans jealous? 

Edited June 28, 2022 by soonernick

[El Gringo]

1 hour ago, soonernick said:

Thanks for the response, it is greatly appreciated! And you're correct in pointing to the work/travel issue for my wife. Be assured that golf is like 15th on the list (at best) of where we will end up, with my wife's daily routine and our daughter's education having priority amongst other things.

 

Were obviously super early in this, but you might have presented my question in a better way than I did... Once we do decide on an area, how does one go about choosing a club in the UK?  I know I'm not going to be able to roll up to Sunningdale with a coupon for one free month of dues if I get a friend to join with me, but are top 100 England courses (outside of the top 10-30ish) accessible for similar prices we hear that make Americans jealous? 

My guess is that many clubs are in the 2-5k year dues range. Joining fees have gone up. You can generally expect to pay at least double the dues for the joining fee. For instance, Walton Heath is doable from Wimbledon, about 30 minutes. I think it's about 3K yearly dues and 9K joining fee. A much smaller club over the M25 from WH is Reigate Heath 9 holes, lovely course, simple house, but nice. It's probably less than 1K dues and less than 2K joining fee. 

 

You need to put out the feelers as early as possible and get your name on waiting lists. 

[GingerBubba]

I'd say pick your accommodation based on all the reasons you mention above that take precedence over golf. Then when you arrive, start playing all the courses in your area until you find one that ticks your boxes. I don't think whether a course is Top 100 or not will have any bearing on what you ultimately choose - you'll base it on an equation personal to you involving things like ease of travel, course condition, quality of layout, level of engagement in comps etc. Don't expect any country club vibe - it will be all about the golf.

 

Good luck with work, whatever route you go down (I've no idea re your second question). As an alternative to PGA, there are a lot of American law firms in London - admittedly it's going to be corporate stuff - but if your background is in that, perhaps they'd be interested?

 

Good luck either way! You're going to need a second income because your wife's will barely cover the electric bill!