You may not have grown up in an area that offered a country club membership as an option. But after you move to an area where country club memberships are not only optional but popular, you probably can’t help but consider it. A country club membership is a want, not a need. Nobody needs to get a country club membership, But there are a lot of benefits to joining a country club, many of which you may not even be aware of as of now. Before you completely dismiss a country club membership, you need to be fully aware of what you’re potentially passing up.
A country club is usually privately owned, and confined to a single community, often a neighborhood. Country clubs often have membership quotas and require members to pay monthly or yearly dues in order to maintain their membership statuses. By joining a country club, you aren’t just taking advantage of a social opportunity, but also gaining access to sporting facilities. Often, country clubs feature pools, golf courses, and tennis courts, among other things. But there are always additional perks to joining a country club, some of which are not as obvious as others. Let’s look into all of them below.
1. It Saves You Money
You may initially think that a country club membership only takes your money, rather than saving any of it. But this is not necessarily the case. A country club membership can save you a good deal of money if you use it correctly. This is because country club memberships offer a variety of different benefits that you would typically spend extra money on, and for no additional costs besides the cost of the membership. A country club membership will typically offer you the ability to work out and exercise through the use of sports facilities. Therefore, you don’t need to pay for an additional gym membership if you have a country club membership. On that same level, you’ll be able to practice for free if you play a sport like tennis, or enjoy swimming.
Country clubs also sometimes offer you the ability to check out different tools and pieces of equipment that you would typically need to buy for yourself. For example, country clubs often offer gardening tools, sometimes even lawnmowers to their members. In addition, being a member of a specific country club can connect you to different discounts that you wouldn’t normally have, especially to local businesses. For example, if you want to have hardwood flooring installed in your house, you may be able to get a better deal if you get in touch with a flooring expert who is connected to your country club in some way.
2. Sports Facilities Access
As previously mentioned, one of the greatest advantages of having a country club membership is the access it will give you to different sporting facilities. This will allow you to work out and practice whenever you would like, without paying additional fees. Taking advantage of a country club’s in ground pools will allow you to swim whenever you like, which is especially beneficial during the summer when you might like to hang out at a pool most.
Many country clubs also offer different tournament opportunities, which will allow you to participate in sporting events individualized to your club. The great thing about this is that you’re able to not only exercise and practice, but have some good old-fashioned fun playing against people in your community. While not all country clubs offer the same types of sporting facilities (some may offer full gyms, while others keep it limited to tennis courts, for example) having some types of sporting facilities can certainly expand what you get out of your neighborhood. Sometimes, country club memberships even allow you to get lessons from a professional instructor within the sport that you’re interested in, allowing you to really hone your skills as a player or practitioner.
3. Additional Luxuries
There are some things that you can get out of a country club that just isn’t offered in your typical communities. For example, you may be able to use spa facilities offered by a country club. While spa facilities are not a guaranteed part of every country club, many clubs have added these facilities to their lists of offerings, and with good reason. It can be extremely enjoyable to visit your country club, work out a little at the tennis courts, and then a trip to the infrared saunas.
Again, the luxuries offered by different country clubs will vary depending on the club itself. But some clubs have also been known to offer high-end golfing, which is so in demand that many people will pay extra and visit the golf club from a great distance, despite their not being a part of the local community. You certainly wouldn’t want to pass up on the luxuries offered by a country club. Often, what you would pay for a country club membership would be less than what you would pay for those services outright otherwise.
4. Social Events
Once you’re a member of a country club, you’ll often be invited to exclusive social events that would otherwise pass you by. Country clubs often have regular events, especially during the spring and summer. These may include everything from simple parties, to auctions that can help benefit the club. There are a lot of reasons why you should take full advantage of these types of events and go to at least a few every year. For one thing, they’re simply a lot of fun. Why not take the time to have a few drinks with people in your community, spending the afternoon on the golf course. For another, however, there are valuable connections that you could potentially make through these types of social events.
The fact is that country clubs are exclusive for a reason. Quite often, people that join country clubs are business owners or influential people in your community. There is a very real benefit to making connections socially. You could potentially find job opportunities through these connections, or get access to deals that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to utilize. For example, if you become friends with the owner of a local HVAC company, you may very well be able to get a better price on services next time, while enjoying a very real and valid friendship. If you would ever like to run for local office in your community, too, making friends at a country club social event could certainly be to your advantage. These are just a few of the benefits of looking behind the curtains at a country club.
5. You Can Show Your Friends A Good Time
Think about how much easier it would be if you were able to take your friends straight from work to the golf course. This is something that isn’t necessarily available to most of us, but it is available to members of a country club. While you would be paying for your country club membership, your friends would likely be able to visit for free, or for a very reduced fee. Certainly, you wouldn’t be the only person benefiting from your country club membership. You could take both friends and family to the country club with you, ultimately getting more bang out of your buck in the long term.
Think about how relaxing it would be to go to a country club and golf after spending a hard day doing manual labor or even hunching over a desk. Your friends would be extremely grateful for the opportunity to spend time at your country club. You could also use the country club to make new friends, of course, and bring your new and old friends together. Country clubs exist for a lot of reasons, but one of the main reasons is to expand your social opportunities. It can be difficult to find time to make friends in this day and age or even to spend time with the friends that you already have. Why not take the time to do so at a country club?
6. Easy Restaurant Access
Country clubs usually offer dining facilities onsite. The types of restaurants that a country club may offer can vary, of course, depending on the country club itself. Some country clubs keep their dining opportunities limited to a pub at the golf course, while others will offer multiple restaurants. Certain country clubs will go so far as to offer higher-end dining opportunities on-site. You could get access to a steakhouse close to your house, and visit it shortly after a good round of golf. Of course, these restaurants are often open to other members of the public, but without the perks, that country club members are offered.
Country club members are often able to eat these clubhouse restaurants at a lower cost than outside diners. For example, country club members may be offered a separate menu, some of which offer prices that are extremely low for what you’re getting. Other times, you may be able to accumulate points through your purchases through a country club (often including the fees that you pay for your membership) which would give you discounts for your regular meals. Points can often be used for other purchases, like club-branded merchandise, and much more. Some country clubs even allow you to use these points to enable you to get discounts on golf and tennis lessons! Ultimately, much of what you would be spending on country club purchases relate to each other, ultimately allowing you to save money in the long term.
7. Event Planning
Country clubs are often at the center of local event planning, often being chosen for events ranging from weddings to proms. Chances are that if you grew up in the same town over the years, you will be familiar with events taking place at a country club. The great thing about a country club is that it has both outdoor and indoor space for these types of events, making it the perfect space for this type of planning. Additionally, a country club is regularly maintained. You won’t have to worry about bad brick paving ruining the look of a country club event space! Furthermore, country clubs will often take care of gardening, or if necessary a tree service, in order to ensure that their exterior is as aesthetically appealing as possible. You can use a country club for a variety of different events, from formal to casual. Of course, you would need to pay a fee in order to use these spaces for those events. But typically, if you do so as a member of the country club, you would be able to save money.
Country clubs also often come with important connections that can make planning your event easier. Some country clubs can put you in connection with a company that offers corporate event limos, for example. Others may be able to offer catering, which will make it a lot easier for you to have your event space ready in time for the event itself. A country club will often keep certain decorative pieces on hand to make it easier for those renting the spaces to prepare. Therefore, by renting out a space at your country club, you will not only be saving money but a good deal of time and effort as well.
Clearly, there are a lot of advantages to becoming a member of a country club. Not only will you be able to utilize the fun resources that the club has to offer, but practical ones as well. Don’t assume that joining a country club is just about keeping up with the rest of your community. It’s about giving yourself more opportunities.