What Is A Nomadic Golfer?
A nomadic golfer is one who does not have a home club. Therefore such a golfer is also sometimes referred to as an independent golfer. This does not mean that all those golfers who are not a member of a club are automatically nomadic golfers.
If you regularly play your golf at mainly one course or club, yet are not a member of it – perhaps even the club is a pay-and-play course which is not geared towards membership – then you would not fall under most people’s definition of a nomadic golfer.
Various changes in society have made it easier to be a nomadic golfer. One of these is that you no longer have to be a member of a club to get an official golf handicap. Getting an official handicap was many golfed motivation for joining a club in the United Kingdom. But with the world moving across to a unified handicap system, the World Handicap System, Different territories have their own ways of administering this. For example, England Golf have the iGolf scheme and Scottish Golf have OpenPlay,
Another factor is that people are becoming more mobile in terms of where they live and less willing to tie themselves into a long-term commitment to one club, particularly so when there is a joining fee to be paid. A joining fee is typically a multiple of the annual subscription, normally between one and three times the annual sub. This can make economic sense if the golfer knows they will be living in the area for many years to come, but those without this certainty are often reluctant to play a joining fee.
Another factor is the ease with which it had become possible to play golf at clubs without being a member. The internet has facilitated knowledge of which clubs accept visitors and at which times and how much the green fee is at different times of the week. Many courses offer online booking. Various comparison websites even offer search terms for the cheapest golf, or what golf is available within user search locations.
