Singapore Island Country Club members upset over proposed 'second-class membership'

SINGAPORE: Some members of the Singapore Island Country Club (SICC) are opposing the introduction of new, lower-tier membership even as the matter goes to a vote. 

Members of the club attended an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Tuesday (Jan 14) to raise their objections to the club's general committee. 

The new offerings, called social memberships, were meant to be for sale at less than half the market price of current ordinary memberships, and will come without access to the club's golf course, according to a circular issued by the general committee ahead of the EGM.

It is one of the ways the club is seeking to grow its development fund to enhance and upgrade its facilities. 

But members have questioned the need to raise funds through the sale of such memberships, arguing that a lower tier would dilute the value of current memberships and the club's prestige.

Located in Singapore's central area, SICC operates Singapore's largest golf facility with two 18-hole courses and a 27-hole one.

The club is considered one of Singapore's largest, with close to 7,800 principal members - or more than 17,000 when including family members. 

It is also Singapore's oldest golf and country club, formed in 1963 after the merger of the Royal Singapore Golf Club and the Royal Island Club. 

Over the years, its facilities have been rejuvenated, including the opening of a new clubhouse, The Bukit, in 2023.

Its latest projects include the redevelopment of an 18-hole course at the Island premises, which began works in February last year.  

However, the club has faced challenges due to higher costs and inflation.

In SICC's 2024 annual report, club president Vincent Wee said that the higher cost associated with The Bukit and expanding business development capabilities contributed to an operating deficit of more than S$5 million (US$3.65 million) in the first half of financial year 2023/2024.

This improved in the second half of the financial year due to a slew of initiatives, which included raising members' monthly subscription fees and the quarterly minimum spending levy.

However, the general committee said in an August 2024 circular that its financial position was not sustainable.

The committee called for an EGM on Sep 12 over several resolutions to beef up its funds. One of these resolutions was to authorise it to sell 40 transferable social memberships to Singapore citizens or permanent residents. These social members would have no voting rights and limited golfing privileges. 

This resolution was put to vote but was not passed after a majority voted against it.

The club then made changes to the conditions imposed on social memberships before announcing their launch to members in an email dated Nov 15, 2024. The launch was scheduled for Dec 1, 2024. 

Priced at S$138,888, the social memberships will come without golfing privileges and voting rights, the email said. It also set out the subscription fees payable by social members and their families.  

In a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) in the email, SICC explained why it was going ahead even though the proposal had been voted down.

It said it needed additional revenue to support the development fund without placing the financial burden on existing members. Social membership sales emerged as the most sustainable way - with minimal impact on members and their club experience - after extensive discussions with the general committee and a detailed financial review, according to the FAQ.

In a message to members later in November, Mr Wee said that the club had urgent capital expenditure projects which would need upward of S$20 million. 

Mr Wee added that the majority of members were not against social memberships but several "felt strongly" that these members should not have golfing privileges. Hence, those privileges had been removed entirely. 

Calling social memberships "inevitable", Mr Wee said that members must accept that SICC needed social members. 

The club would require a "sizeable population" of both social and ordinary members to sustain its viability when it loses its Bukit golf course upon its lease expiration in 2030, he said. 

He also raised the possibility of other membership classes being launched in limited numbers. 

The club is expected to rake in S$5.5 million from the release of the 40 social memberships. 

DILUTED PRESTIGE

However, the plan to launch the new tier in December was suspended after concerned club members took to a petition to call for an EGM on the matter.

This was held on Tuesday night, with a turnout of between 100 and 200 members, according to those who attended. 

During the session, which spanned more than two hours at the club's grand ballroom, members raised alternative methods of funding, according to those who spoke to CNA. Most declined to be identified to avoid further friction with the club. 

One member, who has been with the club for more than a decade, pointed out that SICC had tried to sell social memberships in the past, but stopped quickly as it undercut the pricing of the ordinary membership. 

Ordinary memberships can be transferred from current members to new members for a fee, and their prices are subject to demand. Currently, those up for transfer are commonly listed at between S$300,000 and S$400,000. 

The member said that other premium clubs only had a single membership tier to maintain their prestige and exclusivity. 

"The minute we have a second tier (that) dilutes the markets' price, our exclusivity and our premium status may get impacted," he said. 

Echoing his thoughts, the club's ex-president Andrew Low said that social memberships would harm the existing older members who no longer played golf and wanted to sell their memberships.

"This isn’t just about raising money; it’s about preserving the fabric and the essence of SICC. Transferable social memberships undermine and compromise the club’s premier status," said Mr Low, who was president from September 2017 to September 2021, and is now an ordinary member. 

"Has the general committee truly done their due diligence and considered the long-term implications of this decision?" he asked.

Members also suggested tapping the 93 non-transferable ordinary memberships that have lapsed since the early 90s, pointing out that at their current pricing, selling these would raise more funds than social memberships.

Another way was to have existing members top up S$5,000 each, which would also raise funds in excess of the target. 

DISREGARDED DUE PROCESS

Another member, who has been with the club for more than 50 years, had grouses with the way the matter was "bulldozed" through with disregard to "due process". 

He referred to the Nov 15 email where the club had announced that it was going ahead with social memberships, albeit without golfing privileges.

"At the end of the day, if they think that is what the members want then put it to the members and have it voted in unanimously. Why say that I know what you want so I don't need to ask you for permission, that's ridiculous right?"

The club should have conducted assessments and surveys to narrow down plausible methods to raise funds before putting the matter to vote, he said. Its current method was akin to "putting the cart before the horse", he added. 

"What the general committee tried to do is they tried to jam this without approval, and if this had happened, in fact it sets a very dangerous precedent," said this member, who added that the committee may then be entitled to issue more memberships without members' approval going forward.

"So what happens if we end up with 200, 300 social memberships in five years' time, and then collectively, they have a louder voice?"

For example, social members might eventually demand voting rights, he added.

WORRIES OF OVERCROWDING

Similarly, another member who has been with the club for more than 15 years, asked if there was a need for a "second-class membership".

As a retiree, this member visits the club nearly every other day to golf or swim. 

"Even though the facility is under-utilised, let's leave it that way ... the most important is, when you come to the facility, don't be so crowded.

"It's just like if I got a bungalow house, I got 10 rooms. But my family only used two, three rooms. Why must I rent out the room? I want to keep the room open. If I feel like having guests I let them stay."
 
One member that CNA spoke to said he was not opposed to social members, but noted that social membership was only a small, specific measure in the larger scheme of raising funds. 

The member, who has been with the club since the 1970s, felt that current facilities were big enough to accommodate more people, and that social members would assimilate eventually. 

SICC said it was unable to respond to CNA's queries as the matter was related to the internal affairs of the club. 

A new vote on the social memberships, which opened on Tuesday night, will conclude at the end of Saturday if at least two-thirds of eligible members have voted.

If not, voting will remain open for another five days, and conclude on Jan 23 even if the two-thirds threshold has not been reached.

The resolution will pass only if a majority of voters cast their vote in its favour.