Strategic Plan
Dear Member
On behalf of the Board and the Club’s management, we present the draft Strategic Plan for 2023-2028 to the Members of Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club. The Vision, Mission, Key Pillars, and Values are representative of our Club and provide us with a great foundation to further progress our strong position in the coming years.
The Club is at a crucial point in its development being now independent from Mulpha for over a decade, having the Voluntary Forfeiture program working as anticipated, achieving solid membership growth over the past three years, managing ever increasing costs in all facets of the business, as well as requiring significant capital to maintain and continue to improve our assets.
Following challenging trading and operational conditions during COVID-19, the Board in 2022 embarked on a journey to produce a new Strategic Plan. The Club engaged Jeff Blunden from Golf Business Advisory Services (GBAS) who has extensive knowledge and industry benchmarking skills through his work with Golf Australia and his delivery of strategic plans of reputable facilities across Australia.
GBAS assisted the Board with the rollout of the Member survey in August of 2022 which was well supported by the Members. Some key findings and touch points were established from the survey, which have been included to assist with this Plan as presented in the Member Information Evening 22 November 2022:
- Overall satisfaction of 7.7; Newer Members (<5 years) averaging 8.1; Longer term Members (20 years +) recorded average satisfaction of 7.3
- Whilst golf courses scored 8.1 (The Pines) and 7.8 (The Palms) respectively, Members hold them both over 9 in terms of overall importance
- 86% of respondents note the quality of Clubhouse amenities as high/very high importance
- 85% of respondents note the quality of practice facilities as high/very high importance
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Overall satisfaction with F&B of 7.5 was recorded; Longer term Members (>10 years) being less satisfied than newer Members (<5 years) – 7.2 vs 8.0; Hours of operation was the lowest scoring metric (6.5)
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Industry benchmark by age: F&B overall average satisfaction of 7.4; Younger Members averaging 7.2; 45-64 years averaging 7.5; same for 65 years +
- Car parking availability has a low satisfaction (<7) for those who travel into Sanctuary Cove
- Near 75% support for co-location of country club amenities within Clubhouse at spend of up to $4m; Less than 50% support for co-location of country club amenities within Clubhouse at spend of $4m +
- More than 50% of Members do not support subscription fee increases or levies to assist funding of any capital works
These survey results, along with other data captured, as well as crucial industry benchmarking provided by GBAS, allowed the Directors to identify the following key issues that the Plan must address:
This Strategic Plan encapsulates some critical pathways over a 5-year period:
Equity Membership Numbers
- Based on industry benchmarks, we have the lowest number of Members (golfing) for a 36-hole facility in the country
- We must continue to build Equity Member numbers and all membership categories to sustain 36 holes, to maintain Clubhouse and golf facility standards as well as meet savings for future capital requirements
- Whilst we continue to grow the Equity Member numbers, non-member play will be essential to support the budget and the extensive capital required to maintain and improve our prime assets
- Our focus will be to continue monitoring tee time utilisation, ensuring Member access to play as opposed to a cap on numbers
- Non-member rounds could represent up to 30% of the total rounds played, which would decrease as Equity Member numbers increase
Club Infrastructure
- Considerable capital investment is required in the Club infrastructure
- The current Clubhouse facilities do not cater adequately for the short and medium-term use requirements
- A reduced and staged approach to Clubhouse improvements will be adopted that will improve the amenities and enhance the Member and guest experience
- The Club will continue to use the current Country Club facilities for the foreseeable future through the current access agreement with Mulpha
Fiscal Management and Future Capital Requirements
- Member subscriptions must not remain stagnant into the future to ensure adequate investment in capital projects is maintained and achieved
- The sale of the Country Club and land 4 years ago were essential for the Club, allowing for $4.5m of capital improvements that was required on The Pines golf course as well as providing a cash safety net
- Contracted sales of land are critical to address further investment in the assets including The Palms golf course and the Clubhouse. Without these land sales, plans to better maintain and further improve the assets as well as invest in infrastructure will not be achievable without alternate funding mechanisms being applied
- Annual Net Available Capital has been trending downward in line with overall revenue
- There are desired capital works of up to $5m being planned over the next 5 years being The Palms golf course enhancement and Clubhouse renovations
Golf Courses and Practice Facilities
- The Pines, The Palms and our practice facilities will remain a priority as indicated by the respondents in the survey
- It will be our objective to narrow the spend and resource imbalance that is currently in favour of The Pines over The Palms golf course
- We have strategically committed over $4.2m to The Pines golf course over the past 4 years
- The course enhancement plan being completed for The Palms golf course by Crafter + Mogford Golf Course Design will provide us with the necessary footprint to improve the golf course over the next 5 years
- We have significant land mass that requires the maintenance and management of 39 golf holes, 2 driving ranges, lakes (weed, erosion), pine forest, cart paths and Clubhouse/golf course landscape which requires continuing significant investment
Our great Club is so unique, not only in south-east Queensland, but in Australia, and we have a responsibility to keep its iconic status. For this reason, we have positioned our vision for the Club:
“To be Australia’s leading golf and country club, providing a world class experience for its Members and guests”
We have set out our Vision, Mission, Key Pillars and Values in the Strategic Plan in a ‘plan on a page’ for your perusal. This provides the Board with a strong direction to go forward and the management team a strong operational plan behind it to build off to ensure its success.
Please be assured that the associated action items, operational plan and level of importance and timelines have also been finalised as part of this process. These are for the Board and management team to continually oversee and deliver.
The Board would like to take this opportunity to thank Jeff Blunden from Golf Business Advisory Services and our Executive General Manager, Paul Sanders, for their efforts and contribution in assisting to deliver this vital document.
Yours sincerely,
Jeff Ervin
President
Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club Pty Limited
