Club glossary
What Is a Membership Category at a Club?
A class of membership — full golf, social, junior, nonresident — that sets a member's dues, privileges, booking rights and any food and beverage minimum.
A membership category — also called a membership class or type — is a class of membership that defines what a member pays and what they may use. Clubs typically offer several: full golf, social, junior or young executive, senior, nonresident, corporate and legacy categories are all common. Each category sets the member's dues, initiation fee, food & beverage minimum and privileges.
What a category controls
| Attribute | Example differences between categories |
|---|---|
| Dues | Full golf pays more than social; juniors pay a reduced rate that steps up with age |
| Initiation fee | Full, reduced for juniors, none for some legacy categories |
| Golf privileges | Unlimited golf, limited rounds, weekday-only, no golf |
| Tee time booking | How far in advance the member may book, and which times |
| Guest privileges | How many guests per round, and on which days |
| Minimums | A higher F&B minimum for social members, none for nonresidents |
| Governance | Voting rights and eligibility for the board |
How categories change over time
Members move between categories — a junior member ages into full, a full golf member moves to senior or social, a member relocates and becomes nonresident. Clubs also cap the number of members in some categories, which creates waiting lists. Each move changes the member's dues and privileges from a set date, and the club's systems must reflect it on the next statement and at the next booking.
Example
A club has 420 full golf members, 180 social members, 60 junior members and 40 nonresident members. A full golf member may book tee times 7 days ahead and bring three guests; a social member may play six rounds a year, book 2 days ahead, and carries a $1,500 annual F&B minimum; a nonresident member pays reduced dues and may play up to 12 rounds a year.
Why it matters at a private club
Membership categories are how the board balances the club's economics and its capacity — how many golfers the course can serve, how many diners the clubhouse needs. They also touch every system: billing, the tee sheet, the member app and reporting. When the category is recorded in one place and every rule reads from it, a change in category takes effect everywhere at once.
Related terms
In Bubs: each membership's class drives its dues schedule and minimums in member billing and its booking window, allowed times, daily limit and guest allowance on the tee sheet.