Membership Information

Bush Hill Park Golf Club was established in March 1895 and has been awarded "Golf Club of the Year" at the England Golf Awards 2021. Bush Hill Park Golf Club is ranked in the Top 5 of the County by The Top 100 Golf Courses of the World, and also won "Golf Club of the Year" at the Club Mirror awards in 2019 and 2022. 

Bush Hill Park Golf Club was formed in March of 1895, and the Old Park Mansion House became the clubhouse in August of 1922. There are currently over 900 members, made up of a combination of golfers and social members. 

The course was designed by Harry Vardon and James Braid, two of the greatest players in the history of the game, winning 11 Open Championships between them. The course is set in just under 100 acres of parkland, only a few minutes’ walk from Enfield Town and a short drive from the M25.

Your Club card and fob has been ordered immediately after you join. Please contact Michelle (michelle@bhpgc.com) if you haven’t received both items after 10 days.

Club card & top-ups

You can use the Club card to get member discounts and pay for your food and drinks. To top up your card you can use the IG app. Go to ‘Clubhouse Balance’ and tap ‘Top up’ on the top right hand corner. Or you can top up at our bar(s)

Fob & Gate remote

The fob will open the gates when you exit and provide access to the changing rooms. Please contact Michelle (michelle@bhpgc.com) if you don’t know the code. We also have new gate remotes for sale for £20 each. This device will allow you to open the gates just by pointing at the keypad. Contact Michelle to order one.

The IG app

This is your main communication app with the club. To receive our newsletters please log into the members website and go to ‘MyGolf’, ‘Preferences’ and ensure the ‘newsletter and announcements’ boxes are ticked. Here you can book tee times, see what competitions are coming up, and book into competitions. It will also enable you to see what is on socially and book places for social events. It will also enable you to order drinks at the bar. Your account can also be topped up through the IG app.

Membership Renewals

Membership at Bush Hill Park Golf is renwable annually with fees due for payment on or before 1st April. 

Clubhouse Account

If you do not wish to continue your membership, any unused credit on your account would need to be used within 30 days from the date of renewals.

Booking for yourself and guests

All tee bookings should be made on the IG app or member website. Please do not go onto the course without having made a booking. Payments for guests should be made at the time of booking. Guests should check in at the Professional shop prior to play. Please take responsibility to ensure your guests are aware of dress code and general etiquette.

Lockers and trolley shed

There is limited availability for lockers and the trolley shed. Please contact the office to confirm availability. 020 3146 9890.

Coaching and custom fitting

Head PGA Professional Danny Hill and our Assistant PGA Professional Nicola Bennett are here to help you meet and exceed all your golfing goals. Group coaching or one-to-one lessons are available. Coaching is undertaken on the practice range, the short game area, and in our recently built swing studio. The latest Foresight GC Quad technology is also available to support coaching. Our professional coaches also offer on course lessons to assist with course management and to enable you to take everything that you have learned on to the course under the careful supervision of your personal PGA Professional. In addition to lessons, the studio is also used to offer a total custom fit experience to ensure your equipment is designed and made to measure for your personal requirements.

Handicap

Your handicap reflects the standard that you tend to play at the handicap scheme and allows golfers to compete regardless of ability. If you are new to the game, you can obtain your first handicap by submitting cards to the pro shop. This means playing your round with a member and holing out on every hole. Generally three full rounds will be enough to gain a handicap, though it may also be possible to play six 9 hole rounds or a combination totalling 54 holes. If you don’t know any members just contact the professional, the manager or the committee and they will find someone who will be happy to mark your card. Don’t worry if your scores seem excessively high; everybody struggles at the start, and after you have submitted enough cards you will be assigned your initial handicap.

Competitions & general play cards

After you have secured your initial handicap, it will be adjusted, either up or down, each time you play in a competition or when submitting general play cards. 

When you are ready to play in competitions all you have to do is check the website to see when there is a competition and then find someone to play with. Most competitions are on Saturdays for the men and Wednesdays for the ladies but there are some that are played on other days including Sundays and Thursdays.

•  1. Before you play go into the pro shop and register your intention to compete on the computer. The pro shop staff will be happy to assist with competition entry, general play procedures & scoring.

• 2. When you register, a sum will be taken off your club card for entering (usually £1). You can also choose to enter a sweep (£2) and a ‘twos’ competition (£2). These are optional but if you do well you can win money from the sweep and for any twos that you get during the round. Remember, then, to keep your club card topped up.

• 3. Take a score card and play your round.

• 4. After the round go back into the pro shop and to the computer again. You will be asked to enter the score you achieved on each hole into the computer. When you have finished check carefully that it is correct and then hand the completed card to a member of the pro shop staff

Generally there are two types of competition for you to play in, Medal and Stableford.

Medal: This is simply where you play round counting the number of shots you take on each hole. You must make certain that you finish each hole by holing your ball. The actual score you get is called the GROSS score but your handicap will then be taken off to give your NETT score.

Stableford: This is a competition in which you accrue points on each hole. To do this you take your NETT score for each hole and gain points as follows:

1 point for a nett score of 1 shot above the par for the hole.

2 points for a nett score equivalent to the par for the hole.

3 points for a nett score 1 shot below the par for the hole.

4 points for a nett score 2 shots below the par for the hole.

Stableford is the easier of these two formats because if you do very badly on a hole you just don’t gain any points, whereas in medal every shot you took will be counted.

Matches and teams

A number of women's and men's club teams are run by the club. These cater for handicaps of all levels and provide a great oppurtunity to compete, represent the club and play other courses in the country.

Please contact our club Captains for more information.

Reciprocal arrangements to play other clubs

Local reciprocal arrangements – Bush Hill Park has joined with local clubs Hendon, Mill Hill and North Middlesex to allow members of each club to have courtesy at the other 3 clubs. Courtesy rounds are limited to 12 rounds per year, 4 per club. Tee reservations are at the discretion of each Club and bookings should be made in advance by contacting the professional shop. You will be asked to provide proof of membership when visiting, your WHS number or Middlesex Golf Union County Card is sufficient for this purpose.

Hendon Golf Club – 020 8346 8990

Mill Hill Golf Club – 020 8959 2339

North Middlesex Golf Club – 020 8445 3060 

The 1895 Club

The 1895 Club concept was instigated by three Edinburgh based clubs whose centenary year coincided with each other. Enquiries were sent out to other 1895 centenary clubs throughout the country inviting their participation. After some correspondence representatives of 19 clubs attended a meeting at Handsworth Golf Club in Birmingham where some fine tuning was made and agreement reached to constitute the 1895 Club. Bush Hill Park later joined the group whose purpose is to foster relationships and offer reciprocal courtesy arrangements between members of participating clubs.

Members make their own arrangements with the Secretary of the Club they wish to visit by letter or phone, giving as much notice as possible. Do not turn up uninvited and expect to be able to play. Members should take with them a letter of introduction together with their handicap certificate. These are obtainable from the General Manager. Check with the host Club their dress rules and respect them. For visits to take place home Clubs should be separated by 75 miles. Some Clubs do impose limits on courtesies after which green fees are charged. 

Middlesex County union card

As a member of Bush Hill Park you are also a member of the Middlesex Golf Union (MGU) and the England Golf. MGU along with many other County Golf Unions provide a County Card – you can get your card from either the Professional shop or the Club office.

The County Card enables you to play golf at many golf clubs around the country at preferential rates. Not all clubs will accept a county card and some will only accept them from members of clubs in their home county.

If you want to visit and play at another club contact their Professional shop or office and ask if County Cards are accepted before making a booking.

James Braid association

James Braid (6 February 1870 – 27 November 1950) was a Scottish professional golfer, 5 times the winner of The Open Golf Championship and a prolific golf course architect. There are thought to be some 406 courses either designed originally or altered by James Braid (of the 406, 39 are defunct and 6 were plans only). His courses can be found not just in the British Isles but all over the globe and some notables include Aberdovey, Gleneagles, Royal Mussleburgh, Royal Blackheath, Southport & Ainsdale as well as The St.Andrews Golf Club in New York!

The Association of James Braid Courses now has 296 member clubs. Although Bush Hill Park was originally designed by Harry Vardon, Braid visited to advise on changes to the course. Bush Hill Park Golf Club members and members of all the clubs in the Association can enjoy preferential green fees at these courses, by booking in advance.

Rules and ettiquette

Playing golf – guidance. Full guidance is available on the website, including Handicap, Competitions, Marking up your card and Rules. Handbook of Rules available from the club house.

Safety

1. Do not hit if someone is in front of you or within range of your shot.

2. If you do hit a shot that might be going near other players then it is your duty to shout ‘Fore’ as loudly as you can to warn them. It is far better to shout and your ball not go near the players than not to shout and it hit someone.

3. Please make sure that no one is near you when you are about to hit a shot or even just having a practice swing and don’t stand near someone who is about to take a swing.

Basic etiquette

One of the biggest concerns to golfers is slow play, which you should avoid at all times. Here are a few tips to help speed up your round:

1. Be ready to play when it is your turn. Think about the club you are going to use and take it out of your bag so that you can play as soon as it is your turn.

2. When you have played your shot, replace your club in the bag and move swiftly on, being careful not to walk in front of anyone who is about to play.

3. You should always try to keep up with the match in front of you and if you drop behind, for example when looking for balls, then you should consider calling the match behind you through. In some cases, though, it may be quicker to continue but you should try to make up the ground between you and the match in front.

4. Never mark your card on the green of the hole you have just played nor when it is your turn to play. There are plenty of opportunities to write up your score. For instance while you are waiting for others to play on the tee of the next hole.

5. Do not leave your trolley, buggy or bag in front of or on the ‘wrong’ side of the green. This will slow you down when you have to walk back and collect it. It is far better to put your trolley by the side of the green that is closest to the next tee and take several clubs and your putter if your ball happens to be on the other side of the green.

6. You should never take your trolley or buggy across tees, greens or between a bunker and the green. Please take them around the bunkers and keep to paths, if there are any. Neither should you take buggies and trolleys onto the closely mown approach to the green.

Care of the course

1. Do not practice with multiple balls on the course. It is acceptable, however, if playing on your own, to play two balls but no more.

2. Replace any divots and press them down firmly with your feet. If not the hole we create will take many weeks to repair.

3. When the ball hits a green it often makes a small indentation which, if left unrepaired, will spoil the flat surface of the green. The indentation can be repaired by using a pitch repairer which can be purchased very cheaply from the pro shop. It is actually good practice to mend any pitch mark that you come across when playing.

4. After you have played from a sand bunker please use the rake to smooth the surface of the sand for everyone who comes later. 

5. As with all parks and open spaces please keep the course tidy and do not drop litter.

6. You should never take your trolley or buggy across tees, greens or between a bunker and the green. Please take them around the bunkers and keep to paths if there are any. Neither should you take buggies and trolleys onto the closely mown approach to the green.

Practice Facilities

The Club’s practice facilitie include a putting green which looks over the golf course, practice nets, there is also a chipping/putting green and short game area.

General information

At Bush Hill Park Golf Club we have an active social calender with a range of events taking place throught the year.

The Clubhouse is open daily for breakfast and lunch and there are also numerous opportunities for evening dining, or you can just come and use the bar for casual drinks.

There are two welcoming bars open daily and our larger bar offers a contemporary, inclusive feel with a mix of laid back sofa areas, casual dining space and bar stools & tables. There is also direct access to a large terrace and a large picture window provides a magnificent view of the putting green and golf course.

Our newly refurbished George Low bar is the smaller of the two bars and is accessible via the small veranda which also acts as the Club Spike bar. The George Low bar has recently been refurbished in a Sports Bar theme, with three large screen state of the art TVs showing all the major sporting events via Sky Sports and BT Sports.  Both bars provide a full coffee and bar service and breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea are served daily. 

Both bar areas provide a modern and contemporary setting in which to enjoy great food and drinks with family & friends.

There is always something to look forward to and members receive weekly newsletter communications to keep you up to date with all the Club’s social activities. Popular events such as our Friday Club Night, Sunday Lunches, and summer barbeques happen throughout the year, and members are welcome to invite guests along with them.

Discounts

Social members also benefit from discounted rates on room hire for private functions and business meetings as well as 10% off of food purchases and 15% off of drink purchases.

Membership costs & renewals

Social Membership at Bush Hill Park Golf has an annual fee with the only additional requirement being a £100 credit on your Club account, which you can top up as you wish. This can then be used for food, drink and event tickets throughout the year and your card can be topped up at the bar(s) when required.

Renewals are on the 1st of April each year and should you wish to continue your membership, you just need to pay the annual fee and £100.00 credit for your club account.

If you do not wish to continue your membership, any unused credit on your account would need to be used within 30 days from the date of renewals.

Current Directors:

Chairman: Ray Ripsher

Director (Club Captain): Mark Stevens

Director (Women's Captain): Tracey Ripsher

Director (In-House): Nick Balnave

Director (Marketing & Membership): John Bottoms

Director (General Manager): Stewart Judd

Director (Fabric): John Killey

Director (Greens): Mark Watts

Policy

We have an insurance policy for our members and visitors, for further details, please click HERE.

Benefits

For details on our insurance benefits, please click HERE

Affiliation Fee

As part of your affiliation fee for England & Middlsex golf, members are automatically provided with liability insurance, for further details, please click HERE.