Dubai Sports City's The Dunes Golf Club to offer transferable membership

The transferable membership model has a demonstrated track record of success in major golf markets around the world.

Executives with the mega-project developer have said that external research recently conducted points to strong market demand for the transferable club membership model, a first-of-its-kind concept in the Middle East.

The Dunes, say Dubai Sports City executives, is set to be positioned among the world's finest golf clubs in terms of course design and membership flexibility.

'The Dunes will be a world-class facility by anyone's measure, so the real challenge for us as owners is how best to balance exclusivity with access for avid golfers living in the city,' said U.Balasubramaniam, CEO, Dubai Sports City.

'Dubai residents enjoy a keen sense of value-for-money, and we believe that our transferable membership concept will uniquely protect and reward members of The Dunes golf club, adding further value to the Dubai Sports City offering.'

Under the transferable membership model, individuals, families, and corporations will be invited to pay a one-time fee to become a member of the club, and the transferable membership can then be sold at a later date at market value, for example if the member is leaving the country. Members will also pay an annual fee in line with current Dubai golf club annual membership rates.

The obvious benefit, according to the club's management, is that the transferable membership is likely to retain or even increase its value over time as the number of memberships at the club will be limited.

Mark Chapleski, Area Managing Director of Troon Golf, the organization managing The Dunes, says that the transferable membership idea originated as an effort to further sweeten the membership offering at The Dunes.

'Market research tells us that Dubai residents don't want to play on heavily-trafficked golf courses. They want value-for-money in their golf memberships, and that means fewer members who are willing to pay a premium for a faster pace of play but who also see enormous value in the option of a membership that might be sold at a profit years later,' said Chapleski.

Transferable memberships for play at The Dunes Golf Club are expected to be made available on a limited basis later this year, with play set to begin at the course in early 2008.