Club memberships not worth it anymore?

There are over 12 exclusive private members' clubs in Hong Kong. The latest is Soho House, which I am not eligible to join because of my age. The fee is only US$3,600 (HK$28,080) a year and they are looking to recruit creative thinkers - the waiting list stands at 27,000.

As for the rest of them, they have different criteria for memberships and varying prices for different classes of memberships.

For instance, Ladies' Recreation Club is run by women but they accept male members as associate members. For clubs like the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, you have to sail or like sailing. The same goes for the Hong Kong Cricket Club and Football Club.

Clubs make their own rules for entry but must follow due process if they want to terminate your membership.

I suspect clubs these days are likely to be facing financial difficulties save for a few like the Hong Kong Club and the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club is one of the most difficult clubs to join. To be eligible, you must know and be proposed to join by a voting member and seconded by another voting member. Even so, you get in first as a racing member, with an entrance fee of HK$150,000, and your use of the facilities is restricted.

In my view, this is the most undesirable method of joining the club - you should be able to qualify if you like racing, have a good job and no criminal record.

The current procedure of needing to know a voting member or two can lead to corruption. Most notable is the case of John Hung, who was a former voting member and went to jail for corruption.

The club is like the only casino in town and is very powerful.

In the colonial days, we used to say Hong Kong is governed by a triad of three: the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, the Hong Kong Club and the Hong Kong government, in that order.

Of course, today HSBC has been eclipsed by the American investment banks and Chinese retail banks. But the Jockey Club through its revenue is still strong, notwithstanding the pandemic.

However, I see no value at all in the membership these days, as you cannot attend the races unless you have a horse running. You cannot even get a cup of coffee at the new clubhouse without queuing up to pay at the single order desk - amazing. This is how unresponsive the management has become to members' well being.

To add to that, there is no complaint box either. Apparently, one member lost his temper and was suspended for swearing.

In Macau, where there are different casinos competing for business, service is first class.

Meanwhile, because of the shortage of moorings for boats in Hong Kong, membership to the Aberdeen Marine Club is now exclusively by invitation only unlike in the past.

The Hong Kong Club owns a 25-story building and hence does not have financial difficulties, as it is landlord of the floors it does not occupy and also famous for its good service. It's truly amazing the number of clubs in Hong Kong that continue to survive despite the pandemic.

This is the only city I know in Asia that has an American Club, an Indian Recreation Club, a Portuguese Lusitano Club, Chinese Recreation Club, Japanese Club and all the various sports clubs.

Best of all is the Foreign Correspondents' Club, where you get the most interesting bunch of people, viz women with a past and men with no future, I was told in jest.

Susan Liang is a lawyer who likes to speak her mind on issues that concern the man on the street