Many in the private club industry rely on what was once GuideStar—now part of Candid—as a benchmarking tool for executive or director compensation for non-profit organizations. The country club industry is far from the only industry that looks to benchmark compensation. On the surface, it makes sense. IRS filings appear to offer a window into what our peers are earning at their respective clubs. But that window is far from clear—and in many cases, it’s misleading.

Having spent years as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of an international media firm based in London, and now serving as Chief Operating Officer at a leading Florida club, I’ve seen firsthand how organizational structure, tax classification, and compensation design can distort what these filings actually show.

The result? The true numbers can either be higher or lower. What appears to be data is often only a fraction of the full picture. Here’s why.

1. Many Elite Clubs Don’t Provide Public 990 Visibility

A significant number of the most established and private clubs may fit the structure of a 501(c)(7) social club. But often, at the highest level, clubs such as Ocean Reef Club and Jupiter Island Club—both operating as private, member-owned social clubs consistent with a 501(c)(7) structure—do not offer the level of public financial transparency many assume when relying on platforms like Candid.

While some 501(c)(7) organizations do file Form 990s, many simply file Form 1120 (corporate tax returns) instead, or file in ways that are not widely disseminated through public aggregators. If there is no publicly available Form 990, there is no compensation transparency—regardless of what Candid suggests.

2. Compensation Paid to Entities Obscures the Individual

Directors of Tennis, Golf, or Racquets are frequently structured as LLCs, S Corporations, or even, sometimes, as C Corporations when they might run several clubs with several employees and in several states. Even when a Form 990 is filed, the IRS only requires disclosure of the entity name and the gross amount paid to that entity. This could trend downward for the individual’s income, as we will see later, but it doesn’t take into account the entity’s (and thus the individual’s) costs from general overhead expenses such as liability insurance, accounting, workers’ compensation, legal, and professional instruction staffing costs. It also doesn’t take into account profit margins based on the cost of goods or services within the retail operation. In many cases, the person behind the entity is effectively invisible in the filing.

3. Not All Compensation Is Captured in One Place

Non-employee directors often have multiple revenue streams, including management or consulting fees, lesson and clinic income, and pro shop revenue participation. Only certain payments, typically those made directly by the club entity, may appear on a Form 990. The result of this is that the number reported may significantly understate total compensation.

4. Payment Structures Can Fragment Reported Income

In some cases, services are divided across multiple entities, with separate agreements that might cover instruction, retail, events, and other categories of the role the director may play. While this can be done for legitimate business reasons, it has the side effect of keeping individual payments below reporting thresholds or spreading compensation across entities that are not clearly connected to the researcher. This makes it difficult to reconstruct the full economic picture from a single filing.

5. Revenue vs. Profit Is Often Misunderstood

A common misread of Form 990 data is assuming that the amount paid to a director equals income earned. In reality, many directors operate the pro shop as a business. In this case, they receive gross revenues, not net income. In fact, in some instances, clubs don’t possess a sales tax license and pass that through to the director’s firm for payment to the state on retail goods. This assumption does not take into account the cost of goods sold, staff wages, and operating expenses

We have seen this when conducting searches, and a candidate has based their desired compensation on a number that included gross retail receipts. In some cases, we have found, the difference between reported revenue and actual earnings can be substantial.

6. Multiple Entities Within a Club Ecosystem Add Complexity

Clubs often operate alongside foundations, charitable arms formed as separate entities, or additional operating companies. These affiliated entities may be connected to charity events, fundraising efforts, or even certain staff and director bonus structures. It’s easy to assume that private member clubs function like charitable organizations under a 501(c)(3), but that is not the case. Private clubs are typically 501(c)(7) social organizations—not charities—though they frequently work in close partnership with them. As a result, these related entities may file separately, follow different disclosure requirements, and are not always easily linked back to the primary club.

In summary, Candid can be a useful starting point—it’s a guide, much like a UTR rating or, perhaps more aptly these days, a golf handicap—but it is far from a definitive measure of truth. Candidates entering a search for a director-level role at a private club should absolutely do their due diligence, but they should be cautious about relying too heavily on the figures they uncover. In the private club world, not all entities file publicly, not all compensation is disclosed, and even when it is, the picture is often incomplete.

For those seeking to benchmark compensation or understand industry standards, context is everything. Without it, the data can mislead as easily as it can inform.

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Ed Shanaphy served in London, England, as Managing Director/CEO for 17 years at Haysbridge (UK) Ltd, one of the top ten media and music conglomerates in Europe with offices in London, Sydney, Dublin, and Zurich. Shanaphy served as President of member-owned Blackheath Lawn Tennis and Rugby Club and is a member or has been a member of over a dozen private member clubs including the Royal Automobile Club, Cumberland Lawn Tennis Club, Little Ship Club, and Home House (all in London, England), Waccabuc Country Club (Waccabuc, NY), Quail Valley Golf and River Club (Vero Beach, FL), Beverly Yacht Club (Marion, MA) and The Racquet Club (New York, NY). He gained his B.A at Duke University and his M.A. at The London School of Economics. Presently, he serves as President of BeyondTheBaselines.com, a leading management consultancy for private clubs and Chief Operating Officer at Boulevard Tennis and Padel Club, and, seasonally, as Director of Tennis at Sippican Tennis Club, Marion, MA.

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