St Andrews, Fife, Scotland
GolfClubSubs helps Golf Clubs of all sizes, across the UK and Europe with their membership payments everyday.
The support from the GolfClubSubs team has been exceptional, and together we have established a platform that safeguards and streamlines our operations for the future.
Elaine Wilson, Reservations Manager
Overview
St Andrews Links, located in the historic town of St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, is widely regarded as the “Home of Golf.” The Old Course is among the most famous and finest golf courses in the world, with play dating back to the 15th century. Today, the Links comprise seven public golf courses: the Old, New, Jubilee, Eden, Strathtyrum, Balgove, and The Castle Course. In addition, St Andrews Links Trust operates a golf academy, three clubhouses, a hotel, and five retail outlets, making it one of the most iconic and complex golf operations in the world.
In 2024, St Andrews Links Trust, the charitable organisation that manages these courses, began work with GolfClubSubs to modernise its administrative processes and enhance the overall experience for its 5,000+ Ticket Holders.
Issues Faced by St Andrews Links Trust
Complexity
With seven historic courses, thousands of Ticket Holders with varying price points and renewal periods, and a wide range of facilities under its stewardship, St Andrews Links Trust required a highly flexible and scalable solution to manage its diverse customer base efficiently.
Brand Identity
In 2025, St Andrews Links collaborated with a leading design practice and launched a new brand identity. It was essential that this refreshed identity was reflected throughout the Ticket Holder experience.
Address & Identity Verification
St Andrews Links also undertook a project to refresh and verify its Ticket Holder database. Local residents benefitting from reduced rates were required to confirm their addresses with utility bills, while identity verification for Ticket Holders was required to be carried out via passports and driving licences.
Data Cleansing
St Andrews Links required a membership data cleansing portal to ensure that the vast global Ticket Holder base could find and update their personal data ahead of renewals being issued.
The Solution
Collaboration - With the complexity and breadth of requirements, St Andrews Links required a solution that could be customised and extended around their unique requirements. GolfClubSubs’ Smart Membership platform and systems integration expertise, in collaboration with St Andrews Links Trust, Fore Group and Lightspeed, provided the ideal fit to address these unique needs.
Efficiency - The online renewal system provided by GolfClubSubs dramatically reduced the time and administration required to renew more than 5,000 Ticket Holders. A key part of this success was GolfClubSubs’ two-way integration with Lightspeed Golf and Lightspeed Retail, which ensured:
- Ticket Holder status and player type were updated in Lightspeed the moment renewals were completed.
- Lapsed Ticket Holders automatically had their access adjusted.
- All payment and sales data flowed directly into Lightspeed Retail, creating a seamless reconciliation process for the accounts team.
This level of automation eliminated manual intervention, saved considerable staff time, and ensured complete system integrity.
Brand Consistency - GolfClubSubs’ new “theme” feature provided full control over colours, logos, and fonts, ensuring that the online renewal process seamlessly matched the organisation’s new brand style.
Identity Verification - GolfClubSubs new integration with Veriff, a leading identity verification platform, allows for robust ID and address checking, adding a crucial layer of security and validation to the application and renewal processes.
Data Cleansing – GolfClubSubs provided a new portal for Ticket Holders to look up and refresh their latest personal data.
A Comprehensive Ticket Holder Hub
Beyond renewals, GolfClubSubs has become the central hub for all Ticket Holder data at St Andrews Links. The system manages more than 5,000 Ticket Holders across multiple ticket categories, and powers the official Ticket Holder waiting list. By providing a single, reliable source of truth, GolfClubSubs enables St Andrews Links to manage its Ticket Holder operations with precision, efficiency, and confidence.
As the Home of Golf continues to evolve, the work between GolfClubSubs and St Andrews Links Trust demonstrates how the right technology can honour tradition while embracing the future, leading the way for generations to come.
Testimonial
“With GolfClubSubs, we have been able to modernise one of the most complex golf course access operations in the world, helping to streamline the administrative process associated with managing thousands of Ticket Holders across multiple courses and facilities.
The system gives us real-time visibility of our Ticket Holder base, including renewals, payment status, and demographic trends, which can be used to provide reports and analysis for our committees and management teams. The integration with Lightspeed, Fore Group and GolfClubSubs has transformed our workflows and provided a new level of efficiency, accuracy, and accountability.
Equally important has been the flexibility of GolfClubSubs to adapt to our brand and our processes. From identity verification through to custom reporting, the system has been tailored to our needs.
The support from the GolfClubSubs team has been exceptional, and together we have established a platform that safeguards and streamlines our operations for the future.”
Elaine Wilson, Reservations Manager at St Andrews Links Trust
St Andrews Links Trust
St Andrews, Fife, Scotland
11000
Feb 2025
Smart Membership
Based on reviews on Capterra
For clubs that just want help with instalment payments.
For clubs that want a full membership management and finance system.
For clubs that want the full membership management suite in Smart Membership + Smart Instalments.
With the complexity and breadth of requirements, St Andrews Links required a solution that could be customised and extended around their unique requirements. GolfClubSubs’ Smart Membership platform and systems integration expertise, in collaboration with St Andrews Links Trust, Fore Group and Lightspeed, provided the ideal fit to address these unique needs.
The online bulk renewal feature allows staff to concentrate on higher value tasks.
"With GolfClubSubs, we have been able to modernise one of the most complex golf course access operations in the world, helping to streamline the administrative process associated with managing thousands of Ticket Holders across multiple courses and facilities."
Elaine Wilson
Reservations Manager at St Andrews Links Trust
With GolfClubSubs, advanced reporting is at your fingertips.
Our user-friendly dashboard offers a comprehensive real-time overview of membership payments, empowering you to make informed decisions. Dive into detailed reports, track payment trends, monitor membership growth, and analyze revenue patterns all in one place.
The dashboard's intuitive design makes data analysis effortless, allowing you to focus on what truly matters - growing your golf club and enhancing member experience.
Embrace the power of data with GolfClubSubs.
“The customer support has been excellent with new reports, system updates, and training being provided on demand. Overall, the team at Killarney and the team at GolfClubSubs have partnered really well, together we have modernised the club’s membership management for many years to come.”
Andy Kenny
CEO of MyGolfGroup & Synergy, Ireland
(Killarney Golf & Fishing Club)
GolfClubSubs has been working with clubs across Europe since 2018. Our Smart instalment module makes it easy to collect instalment payments of any volume each month.
Streamline your workflow by utilizing the bulk renewal process, both during collection and in your monthly reporting.
“Pennard switched to GolfClubSubs in March 2019 to manage our members’ instalment payments. The set-up process was simple and well managed. We are extremely pleased with how effective the system is.”
Rhys Morgan
Club Manager at Pennard Golf Club, Wales
At GolfClubSubs, we're dedicated to improving your club's financial efficiency while enhancing the member experience. Our seamless, easy-to-use payment solutions have earned the trust of golf clubs across the UK and Ireland. Join us and transform your membership management today.
CEO & Lead Developer
"I created GolfClubSubs for 2 reasons. Firstly, as a keen golfer and software developer it frustrated me that my own golf club was still sending out paper renewal letters in the post, meaning I had to drive up to the club to make my annual subs payment when everything else I could handle on my phone.
The second reason was closer to home as my club didn't offer an affordable way for me to spread the cost over the year, which became a priority when my second child came into the picture! They said it would be too much admin, so I decided to solve the admin headache both for my club and for myself as the member / user.
Each day as a developer is about solving problems and building something that wasn't there before. I have loved seeing the direct impact of our work and helping golf clubs across the UK & Ireland develop and grow their membership base."
My LinkedIn Profile
Sales & Account Manager
My golf journey has been interesting to say the least, with most of it documented on my YouTube channel. I have shot a 58 on a simulator and remain at the time of writing this The Open champion for 2022 yet I have never broken 80 outdoors, much to the amusement of those around me! I freely admit to being a golf addict and as a right handed golfer who currently putts left handed with a broomstick putter I am certainly not your typical golfer.
Opening up access to the game of golf is something I have always been passionate about and to combine my experience from 18+ years of IT sales and account management with my passion for golf is a very natural, and exciting step for me. I will continually strive to understand your needs and to be relied upon to look after your best interest at all times."
My LinkedIn Profile
HR & Legal
"I'm more of a beginner golfer and looking forward to getting into it more. Having grown up in a golfing family I can see how much a club means to the members and I love being part of making that member - club relationship work for our clients.
My role in HR and Legal involves making our workplace as productive and pleasant as possible. It's a great feeling to know I've made a positive impact on someone's day."
My LinkedIn Profile
