The iGolf scheme has relit a fire in this floating golfer

Truth be told, playing bad golf had become a bit of a chore. And an expensive one at that. All too often, the €100-plus a month in membership dues would slip quietly out of the bank account never to be seen again, not a single hole played. Meanwhile, young family duties mushroomed.

Saturday morning singles? The Sunday stableford? Good luck with that. Try U8s camogie blitz at the other side of the county followed by a dash to U12s soccer training. Golf, inevitably, got squeezed out.

Now, four years on, and with the clubs used about as many times since, Golf Ireland's iGolf scheme has relit a fire.

Basically, if you're a floating golfer, and it's estimated there are at least 300,000 of them, who play at least one full round a year, and if you haven't been a member of a golf club for three years or more — Exhibit A above — and would like to get an official handicap, then you can do so for just €65.

So, on Tuesday last, October 1, the day the scheme rolled out, we ponied up, typed in our last membership number, hit the pay button and hey presto, we were up and running again.

We presumed we'd have to submit three completed scorecards for a new handicap, to reflect present (in)ability. Instead, the system asks if you've been a member anywhere since 2018 and, when you type in your old membership number, if you have one, your last handicap immediately kicks back in.

In my case, it's a 4.1 index under the World Handicapping System. For all those figuring that swathes of new iGolf sign ups are going to clean up on the open competition circuit, I can set their minds at ease - I'd struggle with that handicap over nine holes these days.

Presumably, there are plenty more like minds out there that the scheme may suit.

England, Scotland and Wales adopted their own iGolf scheme in 2021, three years after New Zealand. England Golf reported in June that over 10,000 iGolf subscribers "have now seamlessly transitioned into membership of affiliated golf clubs".

They estimated that "£11m in club membership fees has been driven by the initiative" and noted that they have almost 50,000 'current subscribers'.

On the face of it, iGolf is a similar scheme to FlexyGolf which operated briefly here in 2021. For €119, FlexyGolf offered an official handicap too. Where it differed from iGolf is that Blacklion Golf Club in Cavan and Highfield in Kildare were presented as hub clubs, to administer the handicaps. Within a week, FlexyGolf claimed to have 30 members signed up and, according to the company, finished up with 'several hundred'.

Golf Ireland stated publicly that they didn't support the venture, however, and that was pretty much that. In September, 2021, FlexyGolf waved the white flag, claiming they'd effectively been shut down.

Three years on, is iGolf any different? That too is a matter of opinion. Golf Ireland, crucially, say their scheme is not for financial gain but is there to grow golf and that any profits will be ploughed back into the game.

Reaction has been mixed. The fear is that iGolfers will make a mockery of open competitions, availing of reduced entry fees and making off with handy prizes. Golf Ireland will manage the handicaps - a special handicap committee responsible for iGolf members has been set up to provide oversight - but some still anticipate banditry.

It has also been suggested that smaller clubs who rely on annual membership fees to survive could fold if enough switch over to iGolf. Golf Ireland have built in the three-year stipulation for new members - they'd initially considered just 12 months - to address this.

Still, in one online discussion on a golf forum, a user described iGolf as a 'disaster' which will kill off small Irish clubs. Another said it could do the opposite, presenting a hypothetical scenario of an iGolf member paying their €65 membership, as well as €40 each month in open competition fees and realising that they can probably join a local rural club for the same overall outlay. Charleville GC, for example, have a year one rate of €455 for beginners while Kanturk GC charges €400 for newcomers.

Former European Tour player Gary Murphy, head professional at the K Club, made a gloomy prediction on the Golf Weekly podcast.

"I do think it's going to really affect the smaller country courses, where the sub is maybe €700 or €800 or €900 a year," said Murphy. "If you have a couple of kids, and not enough time... I would say 20% of those members are going to go over a period of time. You'd like to fast forward seven or eight years and have a crystal ball but I do think it will affect revenues massively in smaller clubs, no doubt."

The devil will be in the detail. If enough clubs place restrictions on iGolf members competing in their open competitions, or ban them entirely, the scheme could die a quick death.

On Thursday, we put it to the test at a regular singles open competition nearby. Asked how they would be dealing with iGolf members, the pro-shop attendant said they hadn't yet decided. He said the expectation was that iGolf entrants would be charged a higher fee to enter, probably the same as the green fee, but acknowledged nothing had been formalised yet.

We entered the competition at the normal visitor rate and were accepted by the computer system as a legitimate entrant. But clearly, this is one of those situations where no-one is quite sure how to proceed. That is not a particularly inviting scenario for iGolfers who face the possibility of rocking up at their local open competition and being turned away, charged more to enter or, perhaps, being made to feel like a bit of a golfing cheapskate.

iGolfers are each assigned an eight-digit membership number which will start with the numbers 3992. The manager at one golf club said they will probably use this to identify iGolfers when signing in and, most likely, charge them a higher entry fee.  

Achieving a balance between retaining members and putting off the floating golfer altogether will not be straightforward.