Playing Golf when the Course is closed

[flopdarock]

the course i work at is open year round except for christmas day... the proshop/clubhouse/cartbarn are all closed... there are no pins in any of the holes... but as a "christmas present" to everyone thats in the know... the course can be played... the managers/ the super/ club pro... all say its okay to play... but its pretty much a "secret" to limit it to the employees and friends... since i walk most of the time anyways and am familiar with the course(no pins)... its great to bring a few buddies out for a quick round...

ive also heard from friends that work at other courses... a few of them do the same thing even tho some places might be sketchy to walk onto

[MrKadash]

Public or private, whether you've paid yearly dues or not, the course is closed if it's posted as such. My private club is posted closed until it is posted as open. We take trespassing very seriously here, as should all courses, no exceptions.

[kfowler]

IMO, unless you have agreement from the course, it's wrong to play a course when it's closer.

[HoosierGolfer]

I think there is a major difference on this topic as to whether or not you are a member at a course. Like I said in my other reply, my home course is never closed with the exception to maybe after a heavy rain or other event. It also closes either the front or back nine for maybe a outing or special event, but normally it is open.
However, there is a nine hole course in my home town and I have been a member there in the past, and there were times when it was very slow in the evening with no one playing and they would just lock the door and go home. If you were a member, you could still go ahead and walk and play. If you were a none member you would not be allowed to play as you would have not paid a green fee. If they were closed for a course problem, they would have a sign out that said the "course is closed for all play".

[Range King]

If I got caught playing on my closed home course, I would be banned for 3 months.

So no playing on my closed homecourse, even though I am a member.

And it would never occur to me to play at another course, because if it is closed, there is no way for me to pay the greenfee.

[ChappyEight]

I would think that there could be some insurance ramifications for someone being on the course without the course being open, i.e. if someone were to break an ankle on uneven terrain, drowned in a water hazard, etc.

Sure, it's probably unlikely, but I would imagine that the course's insurance would take issue. Therefore, I would venture to say that no, unless you've been specifically instructed that you can play if the pro shop is closed, stay away.

[HytrewQasdfg]

I never understood how this worked. My local muni is empty, no one is there, its closed, pro shop, restaurant, offices, etc are all closed and empty. Are you allowed to just go any play golf? Or is it that you just do it and if they catch you you're in trouble?

Are you asking if tresspassing is OK?

Would you mind if some stranger entered your house and slept in it while you were on vacation (afer all, you're not using it)? Would you mind if someone borrowed your car while you were at work as long as they returned it by the time you were ready to go home? The bottom line is the golf course isn't your property. You shouldn't be using someone elses property without their permission.

[iacas]

Public or private, whether you've paid yearly dues or not, the course is closed if it's posted as such. My private club is posted closed until it is posted as open. We take trespassing very seriously here, as should all courses, no exceptions.

Since I feel (perhaps wrongly) that this may be directed at me a little, I'll point out that the courses I was referring to marked as closed. They're private property so the public stays off of them regardless, but the course is wide open.

I also call the superintendent before I head out to make sure he won't be doing any construction or whatever and that I won't be doing any damage. If my courses ever posted a "closed" sign, I wouldn't go (or I'd seek clarification). P.S. Lake View is a member-owned course, so I'm not entirely sure the trespassing argument has quite the same merit. Technically, I partially own the course, the clubhouse, etc.

[klaymon]

My question on all this would be: Why is the course closed to begin with? Usually, this would be because the course is not in playable condition. So, regardless of whether you are careful or not, you are potentially doing damage to the course. If it's simply a seasonal thing, that could be different but I would still not do it without approval of someone with authority at the course.

[iacas]

My question on all this would be: Why is the course closed to begin with? Usually, this would be because the course is not in playable condition. So, regardless of whether you are careful or not, you are potentially doing damage to the course. If it's simply a seasonal thing, that could be different but I would still not do it without approval of someone with authority at the course.

My course closes (as in "no pro shop staff, halfway house not open," etc.) December-March, for example, but on occasion we get a good weather day and people venture out to golf.

And as I said, the times I go out, I'm not doing any damage (at least not any more than a normal golfer any other time of year). I don't walk on the greens if they're at all soft and my visits are all cleared by the superintendent.

[neudi]

We do this all the time here. When winter is coming, the nicer private courses close way before the public courses, so we hop on and play. Last November we hopped on at Kanawaki (private course where the movie "The Greatest Game Ever Played" was filmed) and played 36 holes in 5 hours. The course had been closed for 2 weeks, and the greens and fairways were nicer than the course we play in the middle of the summer. I'd say try it, the worst that could happen is you get kicked off.

The worst that can happen is not just getting kicked off. Especially on a private course, you can be prosecuted. A public course will not care much, but if a course is closed it is probably closed for a good reason. We close the course only when there is a good reason because if you play on frozen greens, even if they look fine, you can destroy them for the coming year. I would say talk to the professionals there and see if it is alright before you try it.

[iWALK18]

Is it OK to take items from a store when the door is open and no one is in there?

That's not really a good analogy in my mind, because stealing an object deprives the owner of revenue resulting from its sale in the future. Walking on a golf course doesn't harm the owner in that way.

[ChappyEight]

True, but isn't the owner being deprived of revenue by people not paying the greens fee for a facility that the owner maintains?

[neudi]

That's not really a good analogy in my mind, because stealing an object deprives the owner of revenue resulting from its sale in the future. Walking on a golf course doesn't harm the owner in that way.

You are still stealing a product/service when you play golf without paying. How is that not a good analogy?

[iWALK18]

True, but isn't the owner being deprived of revenue by people not paying the greens fee for a facility that the owner maintains?

I will concede that. But then again, he wouldn't have that revenue if I didn't walk on as well. I guess your point gets stronger though as the impact a golfer has on the course increases.

[iWALK18]

You are still stealing a product/service when you play golf without paying. How is that not a good analogy?

Its over simplified; you're comparing apples to oranges.

Let me ask you this: If you walk in the winter, is the golf course still there when you leave? Are you depriving the owner the ability to sell that golf course to others in the future? I'm not saying that this proves its OK to walk on a closed course without paying, I'm just saying yours is a weak argument given the differences between the situations.

[Surefire]

I will concede that. But then again, he wouldn't have that revenue if I didn't walk on as well. I guess your point gets stronger though as the impact a golfer has on the course increases.

How about the extra wear and tear you cause?

You'll still take divots, make footprints, pitchmarks, spike marks etc... Just because a game of golf is not as tangible as a physical item in a shop, doesn't mean it cannot be stolen. How about sneaking into a movie theatre? Is that ok?

[goblue107501]

I would say playing on a public course that is closed wouldn't be right. It is probably closed for a reason, if they wanted golfers that day someone would be there. I wouldn't play just out of fear of getting into some sort of trouble.

Private courses are another matter. If you pay dues and are a member, I doubt anyone would care unless the conditions were such that they didn't want anyone playing (frost/frozen greens, regular maintenance day, tournament, etc.), but you should probably check ahead of time. The course I grew up at had a gate on the parking lot. If you were a member you were given a key to the gate and one to your cart shed, so that you could play even if no one was there. Usually in the off season there wouldn't be anyone in the clubhouse until after 8, so if you got there before that you were allowed to play even though the course was technically closed. If the conditions were bad and they didn't want anyone to play, someone would post a note on the gate or door and you knew to go elsewhere.