Dalhousie's demo day is part of drive for members

~ An aggressive campaign has netted 32 new members over 45 days.

Dalhousie Golf Club will host a demo day Saturday, the latest step in a spring membership drive that has brought the club an unprecedented growth spurt.

The club, which opened in June 2002, has brought in 32 new members in a 45-day span in the membership drive, according to general manager Andy Deiro.

Dalhousie hopes to make an impression on more potential members Saturday when eight golf manufacturers show off their wares. The demo day event is open to Dalhousie members from 8 to 10 a.m. and then to the general public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Nike, Titleist, Pink, Callaway and Hogan will be among the manufacturers represented. Dalhousie also will have a booth to discuss memberships.

The club has launched promotions to correspond with the groundbreaking of the clubhouse and the opening of the pro shop. One program is geared toward junior memberships, which are open to those 40 and younger and are limited in quantity. Another program introduces nonequity memberships, which come at a reduced fee but are not transferable.

"We had had a lot of inquiries to come see the property. A lot of people had said, 'I'd join if there was a clubhouse' or 'I'd join at this price,'" said Deiro, who started the drive by contacting those parties to inform them of the promotions. "The key is getting a couple of guys fired up about it, and they talk with their friends about it.

"I expect we'll get another 20 or 30 members in the next 20, 30 days."

He said Dalhousie's current membership stands at about 200 golf members and nearly 150 dining members.

The 60-day initial nonequity campaign ends June 30, and the fee will increase gradually for the next 60 days as Dalhousie officials gauge the growth and interest level in the program.

"Our campaign has been focused so much on national memberships," Deiro said. "This has been a 60-day focus on people in the community to say, 'Here's what's going on at Dalhousie and you can be a part of it.'"