Erik Anders Lang’s GolfCard Aims To Reward Golf’s Most Avid Players

Golfers are getting something the sport has never truly offered before: a credit card designed entirely around their passion for the game.

The new GolfCard, which is being rolled out to those on an initial waitlist as part of a limited release this month, is billed as the first premium rewards credit card built specifically for golfers. Powered by the Mastercard network and built in partnership with Highnote, GolfCard turns everyday golf spending into exclusive golf-related perks — from private club experiences and curated travel to fittings, lessons, and more.

Early GolfCard adopters will have access to what founder Erik Anders Lang calls “a new kind of golf and lifestyle membership,” blending the access of a travel loyalty program with the culture of a sport that’s thriving post-pandemic.

Lang, the creator of Random Golf Club and a filmmaker who has spent the last decade chronicling golf’s culture and community with his Adventures in Golf series, says the idea came from years of listening to golfers — and noticing what didn’t exist for them.

“I love golf for the community,” Lang says. “I’ve seen how much passion and investment go into the game, and yet there’s never been a financial product built just for us. If you’re going to invest in golf, your spending should give you something meaningful back.”

The Why Behind GolfCard

Lang says his entry into the sport was “in spite of myself,” having not grown up as a golfer and having little early interest in the game he’d ultimately fall in love with after being introduced to it by his brother in 2009. That passion led him to a unique career — producing storytelling content that transcends the boundaries of traditional golf culture, building Random Golf Club into a global community that champions inclusiveness and accessibility, and collaborating with some of the industry’s leading brands.

Through those experiences, he found himself surrounded by golf entrepreneurs, club owners, and players who, despite their enthusiasm, lacked a unifying benefit or reward structure for the money they already spent on the game.

“There was this cultural gap,” Lang says. “We suddenly had millions of people saying, ‘I want to spend time on the golf course,’ but the solutions offered to golfers weren’t keeping up. I wanted to create something with real utility; something that rewarded the grinders who play, travel, and invest in the game all year long.”

The “a-ha” moment, Lang recalls, came when he was studying airline loyalty programs and heard a quote from the CEO of a major airline who said something to the effect of the airline being a credit-card company that happens to fly planes.

“That’s when it hit me — there are credit cards for everything, except golf,” Lang said. “And that’s how GolfCard was born.”

How It Works

GolfCard operates as a full-fledged credit card, backed by Mastercard’s global network and benefits, but has a unique rewards structure:

• 3x points on all golf-related spending, including green fees, lessons, pro-shop purchases, and gear
• 2x points on travel and dining
• 1x on all other purchases
• 5x–10x points at in-network GolfCard partners

Points can be redeemed for premium golf products and access to bucket list experiences through a number of partners including travel companies like Golf Traveller and GolfBreaks; retail brands such as Worldwide Golf, Manors, Trendy Golf and Fore All; as well as instructional companies like GOLFTEC, TrueSpec, True Swing, and Arccos.

“We’ve always believed that a golfer’s passion should be rewarded. GolfCard offers an innovative way to do that,” said GOLFTEC President and CEO Joe Assell. “As a founding partner, we’re able to offer new ways to reward our loyal customers and give back to the community that fuels our industry.”

The program also extends into areas rarely covered by typical credit cards — including the potential to earn rewards on private-club dues, an idea Lang and his team have discussed with several single-owner clubs.

“Everybody wants points, even members who are already paying monthly dues,” Lang says. “GolfCard can deliver value to private-club members while also helping those clubs reward loyalty in new ways. It’s a business model where everyone can win — the golfer, the partner, and the game itself.”

Access, Not Just Points

For Lang, GolfCard isn’t about competing with generic rewards programs. It’s about access — the opportunity to transform everyday spending into moments that matter to golfers.

“The story isn’t ‘earn points,’” Lang says. “It’s ‘what’s on your bucket list?’ Maybe it’s playing 36 holes at a dream course, or a week in Scotland, or getting fit by the same people who fit the pros. Credit cards have always been about access, but we’re giving golfers access to the parts of the game they’ve only imagined.”

GolfCard also aims to serve as a curator and concierge, helping members discover where to play, stay, and practice — especially as more golfers travel domestically and abroad. “If someone’s heading to a new city and wants to know where to play or get a same-day fitting, we want GolfCard to be the trusted resource,” Lang says.

Community and Utility

Like his work with Random Golf Club, Lang sees GolfCard as a community-driven platform first and foremost. That means growing carefully, prioritizing early users, and learning from their experiences before scaling. There is a waiting list for the card in the early stages as it’s being rolled out.

“The waiting list isn’t about exclusivity for its own sake,” Lang says. “It’s about making sure the first people we serve get an 11-out-of-10 experience. GolfCard is complicated — you’re literally building a financial instrument– so we want to get it right. At the end of the day, this is about serving golfers in a way nobody else currently does.”

Lang describes the project as “a creator’s leap into financial services,” but one guided by the same curiosity and authenticity that shaped his media work. “I never thought I’d create something like this,” he says. “But I can’t wait to hear what members want next. That’s always been the most rewarding part of anything I’ve built.”

$100 Billion+ Industry

Driven by increased levels of participation and play in the post-Covid era, golf is a $100 billion+ annual industry in the U.S.

GolfCard offers a way to align that economic power with experiences that bring golfers closer to the game they love, providing connection and personalization.

“Golf is about playing,” Lang says. “It’s about the moments, the travel, the people. GolfCard is a financial tool, yes, but it’s really about helping golfers go deeper into their game, and making the best decisions possible to experience it to the fullest.”