Private Clubs
Executive financial guidance for country, golf, city, yacht, athletic, and equity clubs — at a fraction of the cost of a full-time CFO.
Why private club finance is different
Private clubs carry financial complexity that general CFO work doesn't prepare you for: dues and initiation-fee modeling, member-equity dynamics, 501(c)(7) non-member-income rules, capital reserves and assessments, F&B prime-cost discipline, and a board that is legally responsible for stewardship it can only evaluate through the financials it is given.
Most clubs cannot justify — and do not need — a full-time CFO. They do, however, need executive financial leadership: someone who sits beside the GM, treasurer, and finance committee; speaks the language of the boardroom and the operations floor; and brings the discretion private clubs and their members quietly expect.
What we're often called
Country clubs, golf clubs, and city clubs come to us for the same thing under a handful of different names: a senior financial leader who can own private club financial management end to end — the dues model, the reserve plan, the monthly board packet, and the controls that sit behind all three.
Some boards describe the seat as a club financial consultant, others as an outsourced or part-time CFO. What they consistently want is someone who can sit with the GM and the finance committee, explain what the numbers mean in plain language, and stay for the long arc of a capital plan rather than a single engagement.
"A great club feels effortless to its members. The discipline behind it is almost always financial — and almost always invisible."
What we do
Monthly financial packets the board can act on — operating vs capital, dues and F&B contribution, payroll discipline, and the narrative commentary that turns a binder of reports into a clear governance conversation.
Annual operating budgets, dues and initiation-fee modeling, rolling forecasts, member-attrition scenarios, and the financial planning that lets the board make confident pricing and program decisions year over year.
Reserve-study integration, capital project planning, debt-service modeling, and the disciplined finance behind clubhouse renovations, golf-course capital, and the assessment conversations no board ever wants to have unprepared.
Member-dues reporting, F&B contribution analysis, prime-cost discipline, labor productivity, and the operating metrics that protect the member experience without quietly eroding the club's financial health.
Year-round audit-ready posture for 501(c)(7) clubs, IRS non-member income discipline, internal controls, banking and lender relationships, and the documentation that protects the board and the club itself.
Executive financial leadership that sits beside the general manager, club president, treasurer, and finance committee — handled with the discretion private clubs and their members quietly expect.
Who we serve
Member-owned country clubs and golf clubs where dues, F&B, golf operations, and capital reserves all need to roll up into one coherent financial story the board and members can stand behind.
City clubs, yacht and racquet clubs, athletic and social clubs needing the same discipline as larger country clubs but at a scale that cannot justify a full-time CFO on staff.
Equity-member clubs, master-planned communities with club amenities, and resort-style hospitality where governance, capital stewardship, and member relations all live and die by the financial reporting cadence.
Why fractional
New to the model? Read our overview of what a fractional CFO actually does — and the three-question framework we use to decide whether the model is the right fit for a club.
Weighing your options? Compare executive search, interim, management-company and fractional CFO approaches. Or go deeper on reserve studies and capital planning and board financial reporting.
Frequently asked
Explore further
Clubs usually need a mix of board-facing CFO judgment and dependable controller execution. These pages cover both, plus permanent replacement of a seat that opens unexpectedly.
Board packets, narrative commentary, and the metrics directors actually use.
Turning a reserve study into dues, debt, and sequencing decisions.
How part-time engagements are scoped and priced for clubs of different sizes.
Explore further
Governance, capital planning, and reporting resources for the people carrying the club's financial decisions.
Senior advisory for treasurers, finance committees, and boards weighing dues, capital, and governance decisions.
A CFO partner for the GM — board reporting, dues and capital modeling, and department-level accountability.
Executive search, interim CFO, management company, CPA firm, or fractional — what each actually delivers.
Turn a reserve study into a funded capital plan with dues, debt, sequencing, and assessment scenarios.
Board packets with narrative commentary and the KPIs directors actually use to make decisions.
Start the conversation
Tell us a little about your club and the questions in front of your board. We'll tell you honestly whether a fractional engagement is the right fit — or what we'd suggest instead.
Schedule a conversation