Form 990 filings from 1,382 clubs show expenses up 38.1% since 2019. Revenue kept pace, but costs outgrew revenue at nearly half of clubs last year.
Tag: Social Clubs
Private clubs run on two ledgers: dues carry daily operations, while initiation fees and assessments fund buildings and courses. Here is how each revenue stream works, with sourced industry data and examples from Boca West, Jacksonville Golf & Country Club, Carolina Golf Club, and The Club at Forest Ridge.
Whether a private club is worth it depends on usage, life stage, and fit; here is a cost-per-use framework and a trial checklist to decide.
Private clubs reported $1.45 billion in initiation fees and capital contributions on fiscal 2024 Form 990s. In a constant 864-club panel, fee income grew 64.8% in five years, outpacing revenue.
Private clubs are still booming in 2026, but the peak has passed. NGCOA data shows 58% of private clubs grew membership, while GGA Partners finds waitlists have stopped lengthening and smaller clubs are seeing softer demand. Here is what the sourced numbers say, and what they mean for membership marketing.
The Laver Cup’s escalating-points scoring solves the exact problem that kills most fall tennis leagues: matches that stop mattering by week six. Here’s how to run a capped, team-format finale on Laver Cup rules — and why the waitlist you generate matters more than the event itself.
The Met’s Opening Night Gala on September 22 kicked off fall gala season nationwide — and city clubs, from the Metropolitan Opera Club to the Duquesne Club, show how to turn that momentum into a year-round membership engine. Here’s the playbook for programming, generational engagement, and social content.
The Longevity Investors Conference in Gstaad puts real capital behind the trends your members already chase at hotel spas and standalone clinics. Here’s what the money signals for your club — and which clubs are already acting on it.
Where New York’s private clubs host live music and DJ nights, what membership costs, and how non-members can get in. Every entry sourced.
Private club membership rosters are secret, but board filings are not. We read the Form 990 of every club that files one — 2,272 clubs, 30,996 names — to find out who actually governs American private clubs.