Greenwell Point Bowling Club has joined a growing list of Shoalhaven clubs that have restricted entry to those from local postcodes.
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After the decision was announced last week, secretary manager Ross McMillan said the choice was a "no-brainer".
"Out of our total membership of 2751, 2512 are residents of 2541, 2540," he said.
"We're just trying to keep our members and staff safe."
Mr McMillan said most of the club's business was local. The risk of closing for 14 days if a COVID-19 infected person visited from out of area didn't make economic sense.
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He said there was concern about people not doing the right thing when traveling.
"There should still be a ban on non-essential travel," he said.
"We're in a pandemic. In 1914 the Spanish flu killed millions - stay home and try to stop these things from happening."
He said the feedback from members had been overwhelmingly positive.
Many members are older, and highly vulnerable to COVID-19.
"We're looking after the people who look after us all year," he said.
"Our model at the moment is we're a restaurant, we have the bar and that's it and people are happy to just have a couple of hours out and go home."
The board also had an eye on the bigger picture. Mr McMillan said there were concerns that if NSW went back into lockdown, many clubs would not survive.
It is understood that Ulladulla, St Georges Basin, Culburra and Mollymook clubs have instituted similar entry restrictions.