Had a conversation today with a friend. Subject of so many clubs he knows haven’t been full in years.

So, probably not a better place to ask than here.

Is your club full to the number you club allows by voted rules.

My club is always full. Never been an issue. I did somewhat agree since I know a few that struggle every year and normally don’t fill up. Then others never have an issue.

Full

I don't think well-run clubs with quality leadership/members and sensible and enforced QDM (not trophy) rules have a problem.

My club (QDM) manages and we don't shoot bucks under 3 yrs old and we try not to shoot 3 yr old bucks. We have approx 12 members and their kids and everybody sees bucks. They may be immature bucks, but we see bucks nonetheless. We usually mob-up on mature bucks youth weekend and then we do ok throughout the year and then the rut hits and we do very well then.

I could not be happier. I see lots of bucks. I usually kill a 4 yr old buck every year. Our leadership is solid and our members are solid and there is no drama nor greed.

I think leadership and solid, enforced rules makes for quality clubs. We QDM and IMO, we do it right. My club had one opening this year because his wife put the hammer down on him but we filled his spot quickly.

We also have LIMITED... very limited guests. IMO, the hunting should be for the members and their family members, not guests. Once a son or daughter is out of college, they are considered a guest. A member may only have three weapons on property at one time.

Oh, our rut... it's reserved for the members and their appropriate family members; NOT guests. Guests not allowed after the first weekend in Jan. I love that rule!

All I've mentioned makes for a good club.

I saw just this week where a Dog Club,I believe in Coosa County had 19 openings at $950 a year. 19 how is that possible. What happens if you don't fill them? That's a lot of $. They always seem to be around the next year so they get by somehow.

See, this is why I could never be in a normal club. Why should a membership entitle you to more than one gun at a time? If you want your kid to hunt so bad, hunt with him/her. It penalizes the single or retired guy who is alone.

Remington270, you're right! But I'm sure there are some clubs with one member-one weapon. One day, that will be my most desired hunting club. But most of us are dads with kids in the younger or teenage years, so that is how we chose the rules. Because we have family members (but limited to school kids) hunting, we limit the guests days. I think it's hard to have a liberal guests policy AND have too many family members hunting on one membership.

We counter our family member allowance with limited guests. And no guests in January. I think liberal guests rules hurts hunting clubs. If a guest kills a 2 yr old buck at my club, the antlers are property of the hunting club and the sponsoring member gets his arse fined hard!

I've seen clubs that have a 5-7 year waiting list and I've seen clubs that charge you $100 more for the first year than the rests (key indicator that the turnover is so high its a money maker for the club). That's why ultimately I got out of clubs.

I was in one of the best run clubs in the state of Alabama, one of those with a 7 year waiting list and got booted. I was told it was because they didn't like the size of the deer I was shooting but they all measured. I had reported a guy on the club for drinking while he was hunting, which I don't appreciate a bit, a few weeks before I got the boot and unbeknownst to me he was in the "click" that pretty much ran the place. That was it for me. All of a sudden they needed to review every deer I had shot over the past 7 years and before you knew it I was gone.

After that one I bounced around other clubs in the North Alabama area and found clubs that I wanted to stay in just for the people but there weren't no deer on the property or the inverse of that.... wanted to stay in for the deer but the people in the club were horrible. I was in a club in Lawrence county with a bunch of 60+ year old men and they were just good as gold. Loved that place but there wasn't any deer on it hardly at all. The men in the club were great people though and I thoroughly enjoyed their company. Once I left it looking for greener pastures I joined another club in Winston county that was covered with deer but the President was siphoning funds off the club fund and paying for his own private lease for him and his wife right beside the club..... even planting it with club seed. Finally just went to leasing my own land with a good friend of mine that I completely trust.

Leasing is more expensive, more work and you don't get near the access to as many acres of course but you also don't get near the headaches. When it comes to deer hunting and in this state particular people get really wound up. It's just easier when you only have to talk to one other person to decide on anything for your lease.

I would say to those like me who save all year to be able to afford it now.... lets enjoy it while we can because we're about 3-5 years out from being priced out of leasing until clubs will be our only choice. My property owner has already let me know that he's getting $15/acre at every other lease he's got in Winston County so I know that rate hike is coming. My buddy in South Alabama says he is paying $17 just because he was grandfathered in but everyone around him is paying $20/acre or more. Alabama land just isn't worth that but people will pay it until hunting becomes a country club sport like polo and golf.

Myself and one other friend.. Full..

Clubs with high turnover every year or open memberships when the season starts probably have issues with leadership. Good clubs will have a waiting list of people who want to join.

NSDQ160, that's where the need for "well-run" hunting clubs come in. Ethics breeds ethics. And don't make harvest rules based on "biology" your daddy told you or you heard at the coffee shop. If you think every 4 yr old buck is gonna score 140+... or even 120, you're ignorant about deer biology. Make buck harvest about age and have a certified

I'm against hell-fire-and-damnation. Anybody can make a mistake and I ain't above making a mistake too. As long as the shooter or offender owns the mistake of, say, shooting a 2 yr old buck, the other members should forgive the mistake and hell, in the big picture, it's not the end of the world and the hunter should be able to take some good-natured ribbing about it.

But when the hunter starts making excuses and starts damning the buck harvest rules or the rule he broke... to me, he's not the kind of member we want. Not because he made a mistake, but because his attitude.

Oh, and I'm not accusing you of anything I just mentioned; I'm just saying that I get what you're saying. We don't allow drinking and hunting either. Sounds to me like you were in one of those not-so-well-ran hunting clubs. If you have rules, then ENFORCE them. If a bucks meets requirements, then NOTHING should be said about the buck! Again, it's about well-run clubs and most people can't adhere to such enforcement of structure or abide by it.

I agree.... you put out antler size (spread, tine length) limits and when you bring them in say you really wanted them to be 4 years old..... that don't fly. Got to pick one or the other. The drinking thing don't bother me as long as you aren't in the woods with a loaded weapon. Save that stuff for the camp.

We are full, plus one.

Q160, you're exactly right!!!!! Don't make antler restrictions and then the buck makes the min and complain about the buck's age!!!!! We incorporated both. If the buck is 4+ yrs old, as determined by a biologist, then it doesn't matter if the buck is a 4 pt!!! Not often, buck we've had a few 2 yr old bucks killed that met antler restrictions and I heard a little grumbling from a few guys. The buck was killed in the woods and it's not like the hunter had the opportunity to study the buck's age. The hunter actually felt bad about killing a 2 yr old buck but I told him to not worry about it; the buck made the min score so it's an allowable buck! Harvest rules were met!! Move on!! It's not worth making a good member feel worse than he already feels. If I know the hunter well, I may rib him some but he would know that I'm just kidding. Mistakes happen and "would've, should've" is easy to judge in hide-sight!!!

It's sad that too many clubs are not well-run.

Our rule is one gun per membership. You want to bring guest;buy another membership

I LOVE that rule!!! I'm about at the stage in life where one membership equals one weapon will be my most desired type club. But I had kids not so long ago and we made lots of memories hunting together. There are certain clubs for certain type hunters. It's about what you're looking for in a hunting club.

But regardless, the club needs to be well-run, and that's the problem, it seems!

I actually prefer that rule and I have a child. I would but another membership just to be able to bring a guest or my son whenever I wanted without any flack.

I take my wife and my kids with me. We just take 1 rifle and anything killed goes toward total membership allowance. Pretty easy and 3 bucks is plenty for a family. Our goal isn't to buck out every year. If I shoot 1 mature buck,I'm happy.

That rule is used a lot on Texas leases. My kids are all grown and my wife doesn't hunt so it would be to my advantage to be in a club like that. I do enjoy most of the family interactions of other members but most of the time I'd just as soon not be around other members kids and wives when at the camp plus the added pressure.

We've had the same members for 6 or 7 years, only change in membership was when I ran off a member that hunted like he was getting paid for it and we didn't replace him. If the perfect member came along, we might add them but aren't looking. Everybody gets along, nobody overhunts so if it ain't broke, don't fix it

This year is the first time I have ever been down a member on one of my leases. Looks like I'm going to have to eat that membership if I don't get one soon. Plenty of guys out there that will pay $500 for a club with high member to acres ratio but fewer and fewer that are willing to pay more for better numbers. I may drop that property after this year just cause it's becoming a headache.