TRAVEL, LEISURE AND TOURISM PRACTICE Golf Benchmark Survey in the EMA region 2006 Regional Report: Benchmark indicators and performance of golf courses in South Africa ADVISORY
All seven regional Golf Benchmark Survey reports and the Europe, Middle East and Africa summary report are available for download from the www.golfbenchmark.com website.
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 3 Dear Reader, Andrea Sartori Partner, KPMG Advisory Ltd. Head of Travel, Leisure and Tourism Practice, CEE info@golfbenchmark.com With more than 4.2 million affiliated golfers and almost 7,000 golf courses, the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMA) region plays a significant role in the global golf market. With increased life expectancy, improved and cheaper air transport, health and fitness awareness as well as growth in disposable income and media coverage in emerging economies, golf is expected to further develop both in terms of demand and supply. In such an environment there is a clear market need for structured and comparable information regarding the operational and financial performance of golf courses. With the idea of creating benchmark indicators for golf course owners, operators, suppliers, developers and financiers, and with considerable investment by KPMG s Travel, Leisure and Tourism Practice, the Golf Benchmark initiative was set up. The Golf Benchmark Survey is an annual study covering seven geographical areas within the EMA Region: Northern Europe Great Britain and Ireland Western Europe Central Europe Eastern Europe Middle East South Africa. The primary objective of the Golf Benchmark Survey is to allow golf courses to compare their individual performance against high-, average- and low-performers in their geographic markets. In the years to come when a critical amount of historical data will be available, a key goal of the Survey is to determine trends impacting the golf industry in different geographical regions. During our data collection for the 2006 edition, we have contacted more than 6,000 golf course operators in the EMA region and have collected over 800 questionnaires from participants in 27 countries. Hereby, I would like to take the opportunity to thank all the golf course owners and club managers who took the time to participate in the first Golf Benchmark Survey. Your cooperation this year and in the years to come is the key to the success of this initiative. Thank you for your help! As initiator and coordinator of the Golf Benchmark Survey, I hope you will find our seven Regional Reports and the Summary Report both informative and enlightening to support the future operation and development of your golf course. Please note that all reports can be downloaded free of charge at www.golfbenchmark.com. If you would like to receive any clarification or discuss the survey results, please feel free to contact the Golf Benchmark team or myself. Yours sincerely,
4 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa South African market overview Location and number of golf courses by provinces in South Africa, 2006 South Africa has 456 golf courses, five of which have been ranked by Golf Digest as among the top 100 golf courses outside the US. Although the golf participation rate in South Africa (0.3%) is by far the highest amongst all African countries, the percentage of people participating in the game is still well below the European average (0.7%). Almost half of the golf courses in South Africa are located in three of the nine South African provinces: Gauteng (75), KwaZulu-Natal (74) and Western Cape (68). Development of golf in South Africa Source: SouthAfrica.info with KPMG elaboration Golf has been played in South Africa for more than 100 years. Growth in supply took an impressive upturn during the 1990 s, leading today to a relatively mature market from a supply perspective. Rising disposable income among the previously disadvantaged communities, broad TV coverage, together with the growing popularity of South Africa as a golf tourism destination has encouraged the further development of domestic demand. The number of registered players has increased by 2.3% annually since 2000. Today there are more than 145,000 affiliated golfers in South Africa, with one in every 330 South Africans being a golfer. A significant part of this increase can be attributed to the growth in the number of female golfers (i.e. 7% per annum in the last six years). South Africa is also one of the fastest growing golf tourism destinations in the world. The following graph demonstrates the growth in the number of players and the evolution of supply in South Africa since 2000. Development of golf courses and affiliated players in South Africa (2000-2006) Source: South African Golf Association (SAGA), SouthAfrica.info with KPMG elaboration
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 5 Profile of the South African sample Distribution of golf courses by size This regional report forms part of the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMA) Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 (GBS). More than 800 golf courses from 27 countries completed questionnaires, of which 38 are located in South Africa 1. A significant majority (84%) of the golf courses in the sample were 18-hole facilities, only 5% 9-hole and 11% 27-hole or larger courses. Almost two-thirds of the golf courses in our sample (62%) are privately-owned, while about a quarter of the courses are municipal facilities. Club members own the remaining 14%. by ownership We asked golf course operators to assess the quality level of their courses according to grades ranging from top quality to low quality 2. High-end and good quality courses comprised 36% and 58% of our sample respectively, while midquality courses made up 7%. Less than half (44%) of the courses in our sample were declared to be profitseeking businesses, while the remaining 56% are run on a not-for-profit basis. by quality Methodological note and survey limitations The analysis presented in this report has been performed based on the responses of 38 participating golf course operators in South Africa. Requested information mainly relates to the 2005 operating year. Financial data were submitted in South African Rands (ZAR) 3. Respondents were requested to present all pricing related and financial information net of VAT or any other applicable tax. by location We wish to highlight that in the case of financial information some cross tabulations may be considered indicative but not representative of the market due to the low number of responses. Please also note that the rounding of decimal figures may lead to some discrepancies when computing input data 1 We wish to highlight that as less than 10% of all South African golf courses participated in the Golf Benchmark Survey 2006, the figures in this report may only be considered indicative but not representative of the South African golf market. 2 The reader of this report should be aware of the fact that we expect golf courses to assess their quality in comparison with their competitors in the same country or region, rather than on an international basis. 3 The average exchange rate for 1 ZAR was 0.106 EUR, 0.135 USD and 0.072 GBP in September 2006.
6 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa Demand characteristics Membership, round information and average course utilization are the key demand indicators of the Golf Benchmark Survey. Membership The surveyed 18-hole golf courses in South Africa have 1,032 members on average. The surveyed 18-hole golf courses in South Africa have a significantly larger membership base than most of the investigated regions, reaching on average more than 1,000 members. Average number of members by ownership 18-hole courses Membership composition of 18-hole golf courses Public courses have 1,079 members on average, while for privately-owned courses the average number of members is close to 900. The member-owned courses have an average membership of 1,700; however, this data is based on responses from a limited number of courses, and therefore may not be representative. Men account for 62% of the members of 18-hole golf courses within South Africa. Female and junior members make up 13% and 15% respectively. Corporate membership in South Africa is a significant 10%, as opposed to courses in Western Europe or Great Britain and Ireland where it is a mere 1%. Good quality 18-hole courses have on average significantly more members than courses in the mid- or the high quality segments.
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 7 Round information Apart from the number of players members or non-members the demand potential of any golf course is strongly related to the number of playable days. The favourable climate allows South African golf courses to benefit from 335 declared playable days on average. The average number of total rounds played on 18-hole courses in South Africa is above 37,000. Member rounds comprise approximately one half of the total rounds played with the remaining half being other types of rounds, mainly green fee rounds. To allow courses to benchmark themselves against the average of their performance group, we have calculated the average round information for the top 20% and bottom 20% 4 of the courses based on the number of recorded rounds. Average number of rounds played on 18-hole golf courses (including 9-hole rounds) Average number of rounds played per playable day 18-hole courses Round Average Top Bottom types South 20% 20% Africa Member rounds 56 84 32 Other rounds Total rounds 59 79 27 115 163 59 It can be noted that member rounds have a similar weight in the case of top performing courses with approximately 50% as in the case of bottom performers. A good benchmark indicator of the demand is the average rounds per playable day. The surveyed 18-hole courses in South Africa recorded on average 56 member rounds and 59 other rounds per playable day. While the best performing courses have 163 recorded rounds per day, we note a relatively strong performance even from the lower performing courses with 59 rounds per day. 4 This distribution is also known as top and bottom quintiles.
8 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa Course Utilisation The demand of the surveyed golf courses can also be expressed by the course utilisation, calculated as a percentage of the recorded total rounds from the total available tee times. The average utilisation rate of the surveyed 18-hole golf courses in South Africa is 58%. Among the surveyed 18-hole courses private courses have the highest utilisation with 62%, while municipal and member-owned courses show similar utilisation rates with 50% and 55% on average. Average utilisation of golf courses by ownership type 18-hole courses While the average utilisation of an 18-hole golf course in South Africa is approximately 58%, 9-hole courses and 27-hole or larger courses are less utilised, recording on average 42-45% usage based on our sample. Average utilisation 18-hole courses While the best performing courses reach a usage level of over 80%, the lowest performers in the South Africa sample are 27-29% utilised.
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 9 Revenues and costs Does the membership scheme require the payment of an initiation fee? This chapter provides information on the key operating indicators expressed in terms of pricing, revenues, operating costs as well as operating profitability. Pricing The membership and pricing 5 schemes applied by the surveyed golf courses are extremely variable and therefore difficult to compare. Despite this, we noted some common characteristics, e.g. most golf courses (78%) require the payment of an initiation fee. 44% of courses charge an initiation fee for every membership type, while one third charge only for certain types of membership. When considering all courses, the average initiation fee is ZAR 3,332, while the annual subscription for individual full members is ZAR 4,020. Taking only 18-hole courses into account, the initiation fee is around ZAR 3,000 while the annual subscription is slightly above ZAR 3,900. Based on our sample, the quality of golf courses has a significant impact on the membership annual subscriptions. Clubs with mid-quality courses charge on average ZAR 1,368 annual subscription, while those offering good and high quality courses charge between ZAR 3,200 and ZAR 4,600, respectively. Average initiation fee and annual subscription 18-hole courses (ZAR) Average annual subscription by quality 18-hole courses (ZAR) 5 All pricing information was requested excluding VAT or any other applicable tax.
10 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa It is also important to note that in South Africa, unlike most European countries, the majority of the surveyed golf courses (nearly 90%) charge their members for playing. Does an individual full member need to pay to play? The other important component of the pricing scheme, the green fee, shows almost no variation between weekdays (ZAR 138 for 18 holes) and weekends (ZAR 147). Average green fees for 18 holes (ZAR) 18-hole courses Average green fees by golf course ranking 18-hole courses (ZAR) South African Noncourse ranking Affiliated affiliated Top 33 236 375 Top 34-66 198 310 Top 67-100 143 217 Not ranked in top 100 111 124 Overall average 162 241 Source: SA Golf Directory 2006 Note: The above ranking was based on Golf Digest s course rating for South Africa, 2005. Please note that the above prices also include VAT and any other applicable taxes, unlike the prices indicated by the Golf Benchmark Survey participants. To provide some additional information, the table below indicates the average green fees in different regions of South Africa, based on data published by the South Africa Golf Directory 2006 edition. Average green fees in selected regions of South Africa, 2005 (ZAR) 18-hole courses 9-hole courses Region Affiliated Non-affiliated Affiliated Non-affiliated Cape Town 208 355 125 193 Eastern Cape 138 211 33 49 Free State 77 106 45 64 Garden Route 241 375 44 63 Gauteng 195 282 53 67 KwaZulu-Natal 188 274 46 64 Limpopo 133 144 48 73 Mpumalanga 106 148 52 77 North West 140 184 48 62 Northern Cape 59 85 25 42 Source: SA Golf Directory 2006, with KPMG elaboration Considering the strong international and domestic golf tourism demand, it is not surprising that 18-hole courses on the Garden Route are charging the highest green fees, followed by Cape Town, whereas golf courses in the Northern Cape and Free State charge the lowest fees. The average price for an 18-hole buggy rental in South Africa is ZAR 134.
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 11 Revenues Golf course revenues comprise the following main components: membership fees, green fees, revenue from food and beverage, pro-shop, and others (e.g. sponsorship, lease income, etc). Based on our sample, the average revenue for an 18-hole golf course in South Africa is approximately ZAR 8.2 million. The average revenue of the surveyed 18-hole courses in South Africa was around ZAR 8.2 million in 2005. Privately-owned courses recorded 2.3 times higher revenues (over ZAR 8.6 million) than municipal courses (approximately ZAR 3.8 million). Average revenues by ownership (ZAR) 18-hole courses Revenue structure for an 18-hole golf course in South Africa Membership revenues account for approximately one quarter of total revenues, while green fees account for one third. The remaining significant portion of revenues is generated mainly by food and beverage (26%). Courses with the highest revenue (top 20%) have recorded an average turnover of close to ZAR 17.0 million, more than double the average, while those with the lowest revenue (bottom 20%) had ZAR 2.3 million average turnover in 2005.
12 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa Average revenues by performance (ZAR) 18-hole courses RevPUR and RevPATT for 18-hole golf courses (ZAR) Revenue indicators Besides total revenue, a good benchmark indicator of operational efficiency for golf courses is the revenue per utilised round (RevPUR), which represents the value of total services sold in relationship with one round played. In this respect, 18-hole courses have an average RevPUR of ZAR 211. Profitability 18-hole courses Another indicator reflecting the operating performance of a golf course in relation to its total revenue generating potential is the revenue per available tee time (RevPATT). 18-hole courses in South Africa recorded on average ZAR 130 RevPATT. Operating Costs and Profitability Operating costs, including wages and maintenance costs, average more than ZAR 8.2 million. Surveyed South African courses recorded an average operating cost per hole of ZAR 434,000. Salary costs make up approximately 36-37% of total costs for 18-hole courses. In terms of profitability, an overwhelming majority (93%) of the surveyed courses which submitted financial information have reported positive gross operating profit (total revenues less operating costs), while only 7% are making an operating loss. Note: We considered as profitable those golf courses where total revenues exceeded gross operating costs, excluding financial charges, depreciation and taxation.
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 13 Average revenues, costs and GOP in South Africa (ZAR) profitable 18-hole courses For 18-hole golf courses with a positive operating profit, the operating costs account for more than 84% of total revenues resulting in a gross operating profit of approximately 16%.
14 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa Other operating characteristics In this section we focus on the topics of staffing and outsourcing, both of which contribute toward the operational efficiency of golf courses. Staffing 18-hole South African courses employ 58 persons on average. While in Great Britain and Ireland the average staffing of an 18-hole course is 22 persons, the average for an 18-hole golf course in South Africa is significantly higher, consisting of 58 persons. This comprises 50 full-time and 8 part-time employees. Almost one quarter of the staff work in golf maintenance with 13 persons on average, of which 11 are full-time and 2 are part-time employed. Average number of full-time and part-time employees 18-hole courses The relatively high staff numbers can be attributed to the significantly lower labour cost in South Africa. In many cases, courses prefer to employ more labour rather than investing in expensive maintenance equipment.
South Africa - Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 15 Outsourcing Several courses outsource some of their activities to external suppliers. Be it golf academy, pro-shop or the food and beverage facilities, outsourcing in many cases proves to be an efficient solution. Outsourcing in case of South African courses is most frequent in the case of the pro-shop (62%). Food and beverage facilities are outsourced at 43% of the courses. Although only a few of the surveyed courses have a golf academy on their premises, more than half are outsourced. Level of outsourcing at golf courses in South Africa
16 Golf Benchmark Survey 2006 - South Africa Future market outlook Are you planning any capital improvements, refurbishments in 2006? Valuable information regarding the current market situation can be gained by understanding the plans of golf course owners and operators with respect to capital improvements and their future business performance prospects. Capital improvements A vast majority of the course operators (89%) were planning capital improvements or refurbishments in 2006. Half of the clubs planning capital expenditure are planning to upgrade their golf courses, with an average budget of approximately ZAR 1.31 million. Improvements to club houses are planned by more than one third of the courses (39%) with a similar average budget (ZAR 1.36 million). Planned capital improvements and average budgets (ZAR) Rating of expected business performance Machinery purchase and other facility developments are planned to a lesser extent, however with a relatively large budget allocation (ZAR 1.23 million). Expected future business performance More than half (55%) of the South African course operators see their future business prospects as excellent, and one third (31%) as good. The share of those expecting average performance is 14%, whilst none of the surveyed course operators are expecting poor performance in the near future, reflecting the very positive sentiment of the market.
independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International, a Swiss cooperative. All rights reserved.
www.golfbenchmark.com For further information please contact the Golf Benchmark Team: KPMG Travel, Leisure and Tourism Practice CEE Tel: +36 1 887 7100 Fax: +36 1 887 7392 E-mail: info@golfbenchmark.com KPMG in Hungary H-1139 Budapest, Váci út 99 Hungary The information contained herein is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavor to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act on such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation. KPMG does not accept any responsibility for errors, omissions or any consequence arising from the use of this report. KPMG reserves the right to alter at any time any element of this report. KPMG and the KPMG logo are registered trademarks of KPMG International, a Swiss cooperative. 2006 KPMG Advisory Ltd., a Hungarian limited liability company and a member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International, a Swiss cooperative. All rights reserved.