Golfers out of rough
Players can save thousands after tribunal rules membership contract unfair under consumer law
THE golf apple cart appears to have been well and truly upset at Sanctuary Cove, with a controversial rule declared out of bounds.
It’s likely that some golfers who have become reluctant shareholders in the resort’s courses will be cheering – and thousands of dollars a year better off.
The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal has decided that they can resign as members of the Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club, even if they can’t sell their shares in the company that owns the courses.
Shares in that company, Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club Holdings, which have fetched up to $40,000, have proven a nightmare to unload during the past few years.
At one point nearly 130 shares were on the market, with many of the sellers people who wanted to resign their golf memberships but weren’t allowed while they were still shareholders.
The upshot – golfers who for one reason or another don’t want to, or physically can’t, play at Sanctuary Cove have been “bunkered” and have been paying others to take the shares off their hands.
Several sellers apparently have paid out more than $7000 to exit shares which probably originally cost well in excess of $20,000. Their upside – once the shares are gone, the sellers no longer have to pay an annual membership fee and charges, which this year came in at $6565. The QCAT ruling is based around the Sanctuary Cove membership contract being unfair under Australian consumer law in that it prevented voluntary resignation.
The ruling probably wasn’t quite the outcome the Sanctu- ary Cove Golf and Country Club was expecting when it started a QCAT action, claiming more than $17,000 in fees from a member.
The fellow, who hadn’t paid fees since early 2015, said his wife’s health had deteriorated, he’d faced large medical bills, and couldn’t afford to remain a member.
The club suspended him and he was denied access to its facilities.
The QCAT adjudicator gave the golf and country club a partial win, saying it was entitled to $5332 in membership fees and charges for 2015 but not for subsequent years.
It remains to be seen whether the QCAT ruling will see a rush for the door by members of the Golf and Country Club and whether the club will fight it.
Also an imponderable is what effect such an exit might have on the club’s finances, given that each member is shelling out more than $6000 a year in fees and charges.
The club lost the benefit of help from Sanctuary Cove owner Mulpha six years ago and has had to be financially self-sustaining.
Meanwhile, anyone wanting to buy a share in the holding company has plenty from which to choose – the QCAT decision reveals more than 60 listed for sale on the golf club’s share register.
GOLFERS HAVE BEEN ‘BUNKERED’ AND HAVE BEEN PAYING OTHERS TO TAKE THE SHARES OFF THEIR HANDS