The launch of the new HowDidiDo app earlier this year has been both immediate and emphatic. Within the first week, the platform had surpassed 100,000 registered users. In less than six weeks, that total has reached over 200,000, which is a remarkable show of engagement during what has been one of the wettest and most disrupted starts to a UK golf season in recent memory.
But the story behind the relaunch of Europe’s most-engaged golfing community is about far more than impressive initial download numbers. It represents the culmination of 18 months of listening, planning, rebuilding, rethinking and unifying three separate member apps into one cohesive system – designed to future-proof club golf for everyone.
Why rebuild?
Since its rise to popularity in the mid-2000s, HowDidiDo has been one of the most recognised names in club golf. However, as the digital expectations of golfers have evolved, so too has the need for a more integrated and intuitive experience for both club members and club administrators.
Since the introduction of WHS and into the post-Covid era, golf clubs were increasingly operating across multiple systems, therefore their members were often navigating across separate apps depending on their club’s software provider. This system may have been functional for many, but it was also very fragmented for the end user.
With a combined market share of around 80 percent of all UK and Ireland golf clubs using either Club Systems or intelligentgolf golf club management solutions, the two market-leaders made it their mission to rethink everything, completely rebuilding three of the most used apps in golf and combining them into one.
Rather than incremental updates, the teams embarked on a full software rebuild from the ground-up with one clear objective: To create a vastly improved, unified member experience for all golf club members.
“We didn’t want to just give HowDidiDo a fresh lick of paint, we wanted to reimagine how golfers interact with their golf, the clubs they are a member of and the wider HowDidiDo community. It had to be faster, more intuitive and built specifically for golfers to enhance their everyday experience at the club. With the huge number of golfers that use HowDidiDo daily, we knew it was a big job, but with the combined experience of intelligentgolf and Club Systems’ product teams working together we knew it was well within our reach,” said George Stead, Content & Brand Manager.
Three apps into one
Arguably the most significant element of the project was the integration of three previously separate members’ apps into one single platform: HowDidiDo (classic), ClubV1 Members Hub and igMember – all hugely popular platforms in their own right. The objective was to create a single login, a unified interface and one cohesive HowDidiDo community serving club golfers across all supported systems.
This meant that behind the scenes integration required careful planning around data architecture, authentication, booking systems and payment processing – all while ensuring clubs could maintain their own settings and controls within their chosen software package across either ClubV1 or intelligentgolf. Both companies understand the importance of giving club administrators the choice to use their preferred software supplier, with the new app servicing the golfer.
The result is a platform that feels seamless to the member, while remaining flexible and robust for club operators handling the demands of around 2,000 golf clubs.
The brand evolution
Alongside the technical rebuild, the new product launch marked a deliberate evolution of the HowDidiDo brand too.
The platform has long been associated with handicap changes, tee times or ‘just the place I go to look at the latest comp results’. However, the expectations of modern club members have expanded significantly, as has the overall functionality of HowDidiDo. The new identity reflects a much fresher, broader role: a central access point for everything a golfer may need at the club: booking, payments, stats, handicaps, results, club communications and even golf news from the wider community.
The visual refresh still has nods to the legacy brand with some similar colour palettes, however it prioritises clarity and usability over novelty.
Regarding the interface, navigation has been simplified, typography refined and accessibility improvements embedded throughout that reflect the modern approach. The objective was not to create something visually disruptive, but something intuitive and dependable that reflects the varied needs and digital confidence levels of HowDidiDo’s membership.
Overall, this shift signals a broader strategic repositioning – from a results portal to a comprehensive member engagement platform for everyday interaction.
A detailed look at the new features
To be the all-encompassing platform required for over 2,000 golf clubs and around a million active real-world golfers, the all-new app had to have a large suite of robust functionality, built specifically around real-world club golfer behaviour.
The guiding principle throughout development was straightforward: reduce complexity while strengthening reliability.
Tee booking
Since the post-Covid move to regular online tee booking being the norm, it remains one of the most frequent and time-sensitive interactions within any club by its membership. The new platform places significant emphasis on clarity around availability, release times and booking status.
The refined countdown functionality has been updated to ensure bookings open precisely when intended. Further improvements have addressed issues such as time synchronisation, refresh behaviour and booking visibility at release – all areas that can cause frustration for the golfer if inconsistent.
The booking journey itself has been streamlined heavily, with clearer visual cues around available slots and improved handling of partial team bookings.
Members can now join incomplete team bookings more reliably, reducing administrative burden on clubs and simplifying coordination between players.
Competition entry and results
Competition functionality has also been strengthened considerably. Members can enter competitions, view start sheets, track results and access live and post competition leaderboards within a cleaner, more consistent interface.
Where relevant, associated bookings now display reliably within the ‘upcoming competitions’ view on the app dashboard, ensuring members can clearly see their scheduled participation.
Further enhancements are scheduled for release in the coming weeks, including refinements to marker attestation. These developments are designed to support the integrity of competitive play while making the presentation of results more accessible.
Integrated payments and finances
Digital payment expectations have evolved rapidly in recent years, and club software must reflect this shift. Giving HowDidiDo members the ability to make quick payments, view club account balances and pay subscriptions at the touch of a button is extremely important for not only members but also the cash flow of a golf club.
The new app strengthens in-app payment capabilities for competition entries, open events and club charges. Apple Pay integration has also recently been added to the payment functionality, offering members a faster and more familiar payment experience. By embedding payments more naturally into the booking and competition journey, the platform reduces the need for separate processes or manual reconciliation.
Fresh user experience and accessibility
With the previous platform, the user experience was admittedly tired and in need of a long overdue re-design, therefore a significant proportion of development was dedicated to accessibility and usability improvements.
Enhancements have been made to scrolling performance, optimisation for smaller devices, dark mode rendering and overall text clarity. These adjustments may appear incremental in isolation, but collectively they improve consistency across the wide range of devices used by members.
In parallel, navigation has been simplified to reduce unnecessary steps between core tasks such as booking, entering competitions and reviewing results. The new dashboard gives golfers a snapshot of everything they need to see at a glance and the handy navigation bar gives golfers the ability to interact with their golf in just a single click.
Other areas of functionality that have received a complete overhaul are Score Entry, WHS Handicap Tracking, Score Entry, Stats, Club News, Community Challenges (formerly known as Sponsored Competitions), Open Competitions and daily engaging golf content – now visible in the all-new ‘Explore’ section.
Club Systems Product Manager, Connor Warburton commented on the rebuild process: “Bringing three established systems together under one new roof was a significant undertaking that required close collaboration across development, operations and support teams, along with extensive testing to ensure day-to-day club activity remained unaffected. A great deal of work happened behind the scenes to deliver something robust rather than rushed and the initial feedback we’ve received from clubs has been great.
“Now that the platform is live, we’re looking forward to seeing golfers use it consistently throughout the season and continuing to refine it based on real-world feedback. This is just the start for HowDidiDo!”
Not just a golf results app
Alongside the core booking, competition and membership functionalities, the new app introduces an all-new Explore section, designed to further broaden how members interact with the platform.
Explore provides a daily feed of golf content covering instruction, equipment, travel, tour coverage, amateur golf, club stories and partner updates populated by a team of sought after and experienced golf writers.
The aim is a simple one: to give members a reason to open the app even when they are not booking a tee time or entering a competition, instead of having to navigate to other apps to get their daily fix of golf content.
Members have the ability to like, comment and share content, allowing conversations to develop around topics that interest them. This adds a more social dimension to the platform and helps strengthen the sense of community within the club environment.
By combining operational tools with relevant golf content, the new app moves beyond being purely functional and becomes a hub for everything golf!
Looking ahead
With the core app now launched to all Clubs Systems’ clubs and current members of the legacy platform, attention turns to the next stage of development with user feedback at the forefront of decision making.
“Many of the refinements we’ve already implemented have come directly from club and user feedback – I’d like to personally thank every club and user that has been in touch. Working directly with our customers to meet their needs has always been at the heart of how Club Systems and HowDidiDo have evolved products,” said Connor Warburton.
Next on the roadmap is the launch of the new, free-to-use HowDidiDo website which will extend access across desktop and mobile browsers, giving members flexibility in how they engage with their club.
After that, the rollout to intelligentgolf clubs and the migration away from the igMember app in the coming months will further expand the shared ecosystem, bringing more golfers together on one platform.
As the platform continues to evolve, and if early adoption across the UK and Ireland is any indication, HowDidiDo is well and truly on its way to becoming the new home of club golf.
What members have said
Many golf clubs have already shared their positive feedback on the new app…“Overall, it’s excellent – really smooth to use, very intuitive, and it’s already proving itself. We had our first competition back on ClubV1 at the weekend and everything worked perfectly, so well done on that. All the additional features and improvements are great, and the members have picked it up quickly.” Greystones Golf Club
“Finding the new app is much more stable and easier to navigate. Particularly like how all information required is immediately available on the home screen. Thank you!” Bishopbriggs Golf Club
“The new app looks very clean and user friendly. One hundred percent improvement from the previous app – well done!” Arscott Golf Club
“Looks class being three apps in one – so far it all looks easy and very informative.” Yelverton Golf Club
Download the new HowDidiDo app on either iOS or Android by scanning the QR Code or visiting HowDidiDo.com today
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