Club glossary
What Is Reciprocity Between Private Clubs?
An arrangement between private clubs that lets a member of one play or dine at another, usually booked through the member's own pro or manager.
Reciprocity is an arrangement between private clubs that lets a member of one club play golf, dine or stay at another. A member traveling to another city asks their home club's golf professional or general manager to arrange access, and the host club welcomes them much as it would a member's guest — usually at a reciprocal rate, and without the host member who would normally be required.
How it works
- The request. The member contacts their home club's golf shop or manager with the dates, the number of players and the club they would like to visit.
- The introduction. The home club's professional or manager contacts the host club directly — by phone, email or a letter of introduction — and vouches for the member.
- The booking. The host club offers a tee time, often within limits: weekdays only, a set number of visits per year, or not during member events.
- Payment. The visitor pays the host club's reciprocal fees, typically a green fee and cart fee. Depending on the arrangement, the host club takes a card at check-in or bills the home club, which charges the member's house account.
- Etiquette. The visiting member follows the host club's dress code and rules, and the professionals usually return the favor when asked.
Some clubs formalize reciprocity through agreements with specific clubs or through reciprocal networks that set common terms for participating clubs.
Example
A member of a club in Colorado will be in Scottsdale for a conference. Their golf professional calls a private club there, which offers a Tuesday 9:10 tee time for two at its reciprocal rate of $150 per player, including cart. The member pays by card at the host club's golf shop and thanks the host professional on the way out.
Tax considerations
For a 501(c)(7) social club, income from reciprocal visitors is generally counted as non-member income and can be taxable as unrelated business income. Clubs should track it separately and confirm treatment with their tax adviser; the IRS overview of social clubs sets out the general rules. This is not tax advice.
Why it matters at a private club
Reciprocity is one of the most valued privileges of private-club membership, and it depends on professional relationships between clubs. For the golf shop, it means booking visitors who are neither members nor a member's guests, pricing them correctly, collecting payment, and recording the round for the club's non-member income reporting.
Related terms
For setting up and managing reciprocal arrangements, see reciprocal club privileges.
In Bubs: the golf shop books a reciprocal visitor on the tee sheet as a named guest priced from the club's guest-fee table, the register takes their card, and the revenue is reported with non-member income.