Difference between club and syndicate?

Is it just that syndicates have only one lake? Syndicates seem to be more expensive.

What's the difference between a club and a syndicate?

B&F

Syndicates are waters where prospective members are vetted, and a limited number of members also, A syndicate can hold the rights on one or more waters.

Strictly speaking there is no difference between a club than a syndicate, as all clubs that I'm a member of reserve the right to refuse or retract membership without prior consultation being given.

Its a snobbery thing, exclusivity, I've got something you ain't.

I've never been a member of a syndicate, but I imagine that the organisation of a fishing syndicate is less formal than well established fishing clubs. Syndicates are usually set up to rent a stretch of water or a still water. The founders of the syndicate look for other like minded anglers who are willing to share the costs of renting the water. There will probably be a written set of rules but they will be less detailed than fishing club rules.

I think that if a syndicate buys outright a water, then it will need to have much longer rules. In particular there needs to be a rule setting out how the syndicate members share the value of the water if the syndicate should ever be wound up.

The word "syndicate" is also used in angling as a mild term of abuse, as in "I fished this barbel water for a quid a year until that toffee nosed syndicate came along and made the farmer an offer he couldn't refuse"

Keith2 said:

The word "syndicate" is also used in angling as a mild term of abuse,

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We in the Port and Stilton Club do view syndicates with disdain, rather than abuse. Far too free with their offers to join.

Membership of the Port and Stilton Club is so desired that reputable and long standing members of this forum are willing to debase themselves in all manner of ways to achieve membership...and, even having done this, often find Spider's crippling financial demands are too much...ask Ed!!!!

(Seriously I suppose a syndicate is a form of club...tends to have far fewer members and often significantly higher fees...and sometimes quite restrictive conditions)

BapAndFuro said:

What's the difference between a club and a syndicate?

B&F

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About £300

BapAndFuro said:

Is it just that syndicates have only one lake? Syndicates seem to be more expensive.

What's the difference between a club and a syndicate?

B&F

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The differences are many and varied:

A syndicate will often:

1. be more expensive that the local club prices,
2. have a far lower number of members,
3. be less often fished than the local club waters,
4. have long term agreements with the riparian owner(s)
5. rarely suffer from litter problems.

A stillwater syndicate usually attracts the single species angler whereas a river syndicate offers secluded fishing, often never seeing another member on the stretch.

We have 2 quite large local clubs in my area who between them have many stretches of both the Hampshire Avon and the Stour, as well as literally dozens of lakes and ponds. From a personal point of view, and with very limited fishing time, I would never be able to get real 'value' from the clubs (and I've been a member in former years of both of them)

Given my restricted number of days where I can fish, I prefer the syndicate approach as I can guarantee to get one of the swims on the river that I want to fish, and I appreciate the seclusion, and (if you like) the exclusivity of the syndicate.

Other will differ of course, but then it would be sad world if we were all the same, right?

Syndicates first started out as a group of friends or invited members all clubbing together to raise the money to rent/lease a water for their own use only -- somewhere where they could go and be sure of a swim on their 'own' water,and where they could all share information about baits and methods etc.

And just to confuse you further - you also have club waters with 'Night Syndicates'.
Where you can pay extra to become one of a select membership that are allowed specific access to a water/waters during hours of darkness without being bothered by the normal club riff-raff and hoy-polloy that one gets during daylight hours!

Syndicate stillwaters are always trophy carp fisheries and some, so I am led to believe, restrict fishing for other species with minimum line strength rules etc.

Club stillwaters, on the other hand..well actually these are now mostly carp fisheries too and some even remove overhanging trees, snags or weedbeds (if these haven't disappeared already in the presence of large carp). Check out any club website and the fish photo section will be large overweight carp mirror, large overweight carp linear etc etc.

Now, if there were some tench and rudd syndicates out there - old fashioned estate lakes of the type that the National Trust has progressively banned fishing on since the 1980s - then i might open the wallet.

chub_on_the_block;892599[B said:

]Syndicate stillwaters are always trophy carp fisheries [/B]and some,so I am led to believe, restrict fishing for other species with minimum line strength rules etc.

Club stillwaters, on the other hand..well actually these are now mostly carp fisheries too and some even remove overhanging trees, snags or weedbeds (if these haven't disappeared already in the presence of large carp). Check out any club website and the fish photo section will be large overweight carp mirror, large overweight carp linear etc etc.

Now, if there were some tench and rudd syndicates out there - old fashioned estate lakes of the type that the National Trust has progressively banned fishing on since the 1980s - then i might open the wallet.

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No they're not ........... Over the years I've been a member of, and helped organise a few syndicates -- two were estate lakes containing bream and tench, another was an estate lake which we fished for bream -- I was a member of another lake that was a carp and catfish water and NONE of them had restrictions about line or other species .......

Ok Ed..I stand corrected. However, I am sure that most stillwater syndicates are carp focussed. Don't get me wrong, i enjoy some carp fishing - particularly floating baits and stalking tactics for low doubles but would rather target other species most of the time and would rather not get smashed up by a carp once i have a swim going for good roach or whatever. From what i hear about rivers getting ottered I am getting a bit concerned that stillwater carping at a fenced venue will be the only option in some areas.