Why Don't Most Public Golf Courses Offer College Rates?

[golfindude1]

On 11/19/2020 at 5:29 AM, mcanadiens said:

If you are living near the San Jose State main campus, you probably can't do much cheaper than Rancho del Pueblo. 

I don't care who you are, $15 and $17 greens fees are about as low as it gets. 

Six minutes from campus.

Rates & Fees

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Rancho Del Pueblo Golf - San Jose, CA

 

I practice but don't play on the course. But I'd love to play the 18-hole locations. I also have a Excel sheet that keeps track of all the rates available from every public golf course in my county. The average cost is around $30-$40 on a Weekday (excluding Friday) Afternoon.

On 11/19/2020 at 2:07 PM, jamo said:

I'm sympathetic to the idea that it would be nice if the people who could less easily afford golf could be given a discounted rate, but you should ask yourself who golf courses generally give discounted rates to, and why. The answer, from what I've experienced, are juniors and seniors. 

• The reason for seniors is obvious: most golf course tee sheets are wider open when people are at work (morning and midday during the week), which is when seniors are more likely to be not working and out and about. 
• The reasons for juniors are partially the same (in the summer, at least), but also because juniors have more of their lives in front of them, and if you can hook them young with low rates they're more likely to keep coming back. 

Now, ask yourself: do those reasons apply to college students? Definitely not for the first one. College students generally have classes midday during the week. The second is also not applicable because college students are transient. They're only going to be there for four years, and they're probably not going to be there during the summer, when they go home. So there's no real economic reason, from the course's perspective, to give them a discounted rate.

I'll add three more points:

• Check out the club golf team. Mine had a deal with a (surprisingly nice) local course that let us get free range balls and play rounds for next to nothing. You didn't even have to play in the tournaments. And the university subsidized the team, so there were no dues. 
• All of your points do actually show up somewhere in the golf world: cheaper private courses. Most private courses in the $1k-$5k yearly range offer significantly reduced rates for people in their teens, 20s, sometimes up to like 35. The reason, I'm assuming, is because they know people in that age range are less likely to be able to afford the full dues, but they want to keep the age range of their membership somewhat diverse. (Their reasons, thus, aren't really the altruistic ones you're arguing for.)
• If you're trying to use this as the basis for a thesis or something, that's an incorrect (albeit increasingly common) usage of the phrase "to beg the question." You're really looking for "to raise the question." Begging the question is a whole separate thing. 

Thank you for the explanation.

I've already established a club at my university for that specific purpose. There are multiple challenges to being a new club including fundraising, recruiting, reputation, etc. COVID certainly hurt a lot of people. I'd say that if the club shows up with good numbers regularly, then perhaps the golf course can negotiate for any further discounts.

I've done a survey on what my members are available to come out and practice/play. The popular answers are that they would like to play on weekday evening or a weekends all day. I think weekday twilights could be the potential first step into getting discounts on college rates. Yes, some of them will be there for four years, but there's a chance that every new freshman class will people that play golf.

My university is well-known for being a commuter school and there's a good chunk of the student body that's from my county and neighboring counties. There is less than 10% of the population in my county that's between the ages of 18-24 (~100K-150K+) and I'm sure there's plenty of them who would like to play. It's not like all 100K of them are going to go on the golf course and at least play a round every year. Not trying to make an argument, but just throwing that out there.

Thanks. English and Writing weren't my favorite subjects in high school.

[golfindude1]

2 hours ago, FlyingAce said:

Using your same simple logic - if you cannot afford to pay for golf, then don’t play. Plain and simple. We all have to make sacrifices once in a while.

Why expect golf courses (or anyone) to give you a handout so you can do something that you cannot afford to do? Why should they? Finish school, get a job and when you are that 40-something, you can afford to pay for your own rounds like everyone else.

I am that 40-something. I play golf because I can afford it with time and money. My housekeeper doesn’t play golf because she cannot afford either. That’s life. The last time I heard someone said “this is not fair” was when my 12 yo nephew didn’t get to have chocolate ice-cream because all we had was vanilla.  I told him to grow up and buy his own icecream. 

 

[David in FL]

21 hours ago, Vinsk said:

Sounds like pre-MED....lol.

Geography...

Can you make enough money with a degree in geography to ever afford to play golf?  🤔

Edited November 21, 2020 by David in FL

[colin007]

If I owned a golf course I'd prolly give serious consideration to offering a student rate. I would prolly also eliminate the senior rate.

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, colin007 said:

If I owned a golf course I'd prolly give serious consideration to offering a student rate. I would prolly also eliminate the senior rate.

Damn seniors.  Old, slow, crotchety... wear white belts.

[colin007]

4 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Damn seniors.  Old, slow, crotchety... wear white belts.

They're a huge nuisance (to me) at my local Muni. I honestly can't stand them

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, colin007 said:

They're a huge nuisance (to me) at my local Muni. I honestly can't stand them

Do you plan on being a senior one day?

[woodzie264]

17 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Damn seniors.  Old, slow, crotchety... wear white belts.

 

9 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Do you plan on being a senior one day?

@colin007 would never wear a white belt though

Edited November 21, 2020 by woodzie264

[phillyk]

49 minutes ago, colin007 said:

They're a huge nuisance (to me) at my local Muni. I honestly can't stand them

They come in and say super senior, instead of regular senior, and I usually shoot back that, in that case, we charge double. Once you hit 80, we charge more. 

[phillyk]

16 hours ago, StuM said:

I am a little confused,  you say costs are up from last year, then say some teed needed more work but that does not change total. If the maintenance crew is paid hourly then more work = higher cost.  You also said some work was denied (“told no to many things”) and the cost still went up.

just because the additional revenue was not spent on maintenance does not mean more maintenance was not required.  
 

I have never worked at a course and will not claim expertise but I am not convinced that cost is not impacted by rounds played.  I retract my deferral.

 

It’s more about prioritizing tasks. If tee boxes need to be sanded or something, that will take away from maybe mowing one day. Doing something with the tees won’t add onto their current work load.

I will step back a bit from what I said before. To some extent more work will need to be done with more play, but I don’t think it’s as much as some are thinking. Also, grass type does make a big difference on wear and tear/strain and ability to grow back. The best I can say then, is that more play didn’t increase maintenance that much at my course. The hope is that because of getting more play, that more revenue is generated thus helping to push purchases for updating the course and equipment. But those would be capital improvements not a standard maintenance budget. 

[David in FL]

6 hours ago, colin007 said:

If I owned a golf course I'd prolly give serious consideration to offering a student rate. I would prolly also eliminate the senior rate.

😝

 

6 hours ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Damn seniors.  Old, slow, crotchety... wear white belts.

No white belt, and try to keep up with me!  
 

😂

Edited November 22, 2020 by David in FL

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, David in FL said:

no white belt, and try to keep up with me!  

😂

You know I was joking.  Some of my best golfing friends are seniors.

[David in FL]

1 minute ago, Double Mocha Man said:

You know I was joking.  Some of my best golfing friends are seniors.

Truth be told, I hate following the old farts too!  😂

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, David in FL said:

Truth be told, I hate following the old farts too!  😂

There was a gentleman I used to play behind in the mornings on the back nine.  He was a single and I could barely keep up with him... and I'm a fast golfer.  He was 89, carried his own clubs.  Sadly, he passed about two weeks ago.  We had some fun conversations when I cranked up the afterburners and was lucky enough to play through him.

[colin007]

It's the old guys at my course who play from the white tees, using driver on 130 yard par 3s and still not able to reach.

 

@David in FL is NOT your typical 78 year old.....

[rob0225]

On 11/19/2020 at 9:59 PM, golfindude1 said:

College Students have a ton of other options for part time jobs and I don't see how it benefits me compared to joining clubs that are focused on my major. Sure, some of the skills from seemingly unrelated fields can be applicable for life, but I don't see it. So thanks, but I'll pass on that opportunity.

And there is the crux of the issue.  You'd rather have "fun" than get a job to pay for your golf.

[StuM]

57 minutes ago, rob0225 said:

And there is the crux of the issue.  You'd rather have "fun" than get a job to pay for your golf.

I'm not sure that was the point he was trying to make.  I think he is saying instead of joining clubs or getting part time jobs related to a hobby he would prefer to get a job where he can get experience in his career field.

[Bonvivant]

College aged folks are the last people golf courses want playing. I'll give 3 reasons that I see for this, and people can comment on each points' validity.

1.) The college aged crowd drinks, and you better believe they aren't buying all of their booze from the clubhouse. This is a liability for a number of reasons, from revenue to legality.

2.) College aged people do not take care of the course as well as other groups (but they aren't that far behind the average ball basher). From divot replacement, to pitch mark repair, and the worst of them all....improper cart management. They take their toll on the course in a way that most others don't.

3.) This one is more obscure and general, but I'll just say "respect for others". There is another hot thread on the forum about music being played on course. The only age group I see that does this "without exception" is 19-25 year old players. Not letting others play through can be put in here as well. Lack of yelling fore or hitting into others could also be here.

With all of these points (particularly the last one), college aged players aren't the only ones that do these things, but they seem to be the largest offending group (in my eyes) and I would see no reason to give them a discount. It's like giving a discount to minors that hang outside of a convenience store smoking cigarettes....they are the last people you would give a discount to.

This post is mega cynical, and I will gladly play with a group of students (and hopefully teach them some stuff during the round). I just wanted to add some stuff that I hadn't seen covered in earlier posts.