Tipping at a lesson

[x-man]

I have a question I have a lesson tonight at a nice resort. I was wondering if you tip your golf pro or not. I googled it and didn't really find an answer so was wanting your guys opinion on here
Thanks

[Kieran123]

On a resort? I would. ( depending if he did a good job )

But not back home.

[x-man]

Ok thanks I was thinking the same thing. I have had lessons with the local pro and haven't but kinda thought a resort I should

[sean_miller]

  x-man said:

Ok thanks I was thinking the same thing. I have had lessons with the local pro and haven't but kinda thought a resort I should

Did you pay extra for the lesson or was it some sort of all-inclusive deal?

[x-man]

It's not part of any package.

[sean_miller]

  x-man said:

It's not part of any package.

So then you're paying extra for the lessons already?

[SpoiledRotten]

I'll have to use my tipping method with anything. If it's a job where the most of their income is from tips, then I tip according to their service, attitude, disposition, etc. I don't tip someone for cutting my hair, which many people do. When I sit in a chair, it takes the barber about 15 minutes to cut my hair. He charges 18.00, and that's cheap from what I've heard others say they pay. But he's making $72.00/hr. No! He's not getting a tip. If a waitress takes care of me in a restaurant, serves me well, has a happy smile, gets me what I want and in a timely manner, I'll tip them accordingly.
Some people think they are supposed to tip anyone that performs a service. Bull! Do you tip your doctor after a appointment?

If the golf pro works for tips, then he'd get a tip. Hard for me to believe that he's working mainly for tips though. Sorry about the long paragraph, but I'm picky when it comes to tipping someone.

[wkdspd]

  SpoiledRotten said:

I'll have to use my tipping method with anything. If it's a job where the most of their income is from tips, then I tip according to their service, attitude, disposition, etc. I don't tip someone for cutting my hair, which many people do. When I sit in a chair, it takes the barber about 15 minutes to cut my hair. He charges 18.00, and that's cheap from what I've heard others say they pay. But he's making $72.00/hr. No! He's not getting a tip. If a waitress takes care of me in a restaurant, serves me well, has a happy smile, gets me what I want and in a timely manner, I'll tip them accordingly.

interesting theory... not sure if I agree though. if you spend 15 mins in your barber's chair, how much time do you think they spend handling your payment, then cleaning up for the next person? another 5 mins, give ot take, which makes your $72/hr drop down to $54/hr. and then what about the time he spends hanging out doing nothing when the shop is slow - do you think he's booked solid 8-10 hours a day? on top of that, next to shoes, typically your hair shares the #1 spot as the most distinguishing and telling part of your physical personality - I dont know about you, but Im willing to pay more and then show my appreciation for someone with the skills to make me look good (at least with my hair ), so my haircuts are $20 and I drop another 20% on tip, which makes for a $24 visit every 4-5 weeks or so, which isnt a bad deal. I followed that instance out to make a point - as someone who has put themselves through school working from tips (I waited and then bartended for 6 years through college) I have developed a pretty keen and experienced 'philosophy' on tipping etiquette. Here it goes... get ready... when dealing with the service industry, (anywhere tips are expected to make up any portion of the employee's wages) if the service is standard, YOU TIP. if it's better than standard, TIP MORE. and here's the rub, if its not a service where tips are expected to make up part of the employee's wages, but they still go out of their way to make sure you're taken care of better than the standard, FIND A WAY TO TIP. at the coffee house - regular drink and no smile? no tip. drink with a smile and courteous service? tip. ANY restaurant - regular service, 15%. better than average, making sure Im cared for? 20%+(depending). Your doctor scenario is a GREAT one - my doctor takes great care of me, going out of his way to check up on me when Ive come in for something, getting me samples of meds I need to take, etc. It would be incredibly rude of me to ask his office staff to charge my insurance another 20%, or try to add it to my bill - so once a year at Christmas I send him a gift cert for a round of golf for 2 at his favorite course... it only costs me about $100, and I know that he's aware that I REALLY appreciate the attention I get from him. This is how it is for EVERYTHING - too many people think of tipping as a tax on service, where the reality is that tipping is really both a show of appreciation and a guarantee of future service. Dont you think that bartender is going to set your drinks up even better the next time you come around after that appreciative tip you left? Dont you think that barber is going to take a little extra time to make sure your hair is just right next time after you showed you appreciated it last time? as for the OP, if the pro does a great job, I say tip him. now I agree that pros arent making their living off of tips, so if its just an average lesson and nothing really stands out from it much from a regular observed practice, then no the standard payment is probably fine, but if shows you something you didnt know, helps you pull in that quick hook or hard push, gives you a move that saves an errant wedge, then yeah, show him you appreciate it! To me, that little display of appreciation is well worth it knowing that the person I just dealt with has gone above and beyond. sorry that was so long, but too many people just dont get it with tipping... and honestly unless you've relied on tips for your livelihood, you just dont have the correct perspective. the reality is, anyone who deserves the tip will be obvious and will be able to make their living from tips, and anyone who isnt working hard enough for tips wont be in the business long enough for it to matter anyway.

[senorchipotle]

wkspd... you need to read my thread on tipping. the only reason why i have to tip is because of people like you. tipping for a haircut? that was insanity 5 years ago. but because of people like you, stylists/barbers have become accustomed to it, and now they expect it or they look at you funny when you take all your change and leave. so what, do i now have to worry about my doc improperly diagnosing me or pushing me to the end of the list cause i didn't buy him a round of golf or an hour at the asian massage parlor? wtf man? the only, only reason why i tip at restaurants is because they are paid less by the hour, which in itself if f'n ridiculous. am i a cheap bastard, no. i just like to pay the price on the sign. and coffee, don't get me started on coffee. why the hell would you pay someone extra for doing their job?!?

anywho, op. don't tip your pro, it's his f'n job dude. he's supposed to give you lessons for a price. if he wants more money, he can raise his fees or get another job.

[sean_miller]

  senorchipotle said:

wkspd... you need to read my thread on tipping. the only reason why i have to tip is because of people like you. tipping for a haircut? that was insanity 5 years ago. but because of people like you, stylists/barbers have become accustomed to it, and now they expect it or they look at you funny when you take all your change and leave. so what, do i now have to worry about my doc improperly diagnosing me or pushing me to the end of the list cause i didn't buy him a round of golf or an hour at the asian massage parlor? wtf man? the only, only reason why i tip at restaurants is because they are paid less by the hour, which in itself if f'n ridiculous. am i a cheap bastard, no. i just like to pay the price on the sign. and coffee, don't get me started on coffee. why the hell would you pay someone extra for doing their job?!?

Coffee - I'm thinking of keeping the slips of paper from fortune cookies. There are words of wisdom on one side and potential winning lottery numbers on the side. As I drop them in the tip jar / bowl sitting at the cash register, I'll give a wink and a "you're welcome". Tipping for a $4 cup of coffee that costs 4 cents to brew - HAHAHA!

[motteler621]

  senorchipotle said:

wkspd... you need to read my thread on tipping. the only reason why i have to tip is because of people like you. tipping for a haircut? that was insanity 5 years ago. but because of people like you, stylists/barbers have become accustomed to it, and now they expect it or they look at you funny when you take all your change and leave. so what, do i now have to worry about my doc improperly diagnosing me or pushing me to the end of the list cause i didn't buy him a round of golf or an hour at the asian massage parlor? wtf man? the only, only reason why i tip at restaurants is because they are paid less by the hour, which in itself if f'n ridiculous. am i a cheap bastard, no. i just like to pay the price on the sign. and coffee, don't get me started on coffee. why the hell would you pay someone extra for doing their job?!?

People tip hair styists because they only get a percentage of the price and also mainly because it is a very personal service.

[wkdspd]

  senorchipotle said:

wkspd... you need to read my thread on tipping. the only reason why i have to tip is because of people like you. tipping for a haircut? that was insanity 5 years ago. but because of people like you, stylists/barbers have become accustomed to it, and now they expect it or they look at you funny when you take all your change and leave. so what, do i now have to worry about my doc improperly diagnosing me or pushing me to the end of the list cause i didn't buy him a round of golf or an hour at the asian massage parlor? wtf man? the only, only reason why i tip at restaurants is because they are paid less by the hour, which in itself if f'n ridiculous. am i a cheap bastard, no. i just like to pay the price on the sign. and coffee, don't get me started on coffee. why the hell would you pay someone extra for doing their job?!?

LOL... I HAVE read your thread on tipping, and chose to leave it alone for a reason. You seem like a good enough guy from the couple of times we've met, so I'll maintain some friendly banter here... it might do you some good to spend a little more time thinking/researching tipping since its such a huge part of the society we live in - the tipping norms you see today arent because of people like me, tipping has been around as long as payment for services has been existence (read: literally thousands of years). Im not saying anyone should pay someone extra for doing their jobs, lol... thats ludicrous! pay attention to my post - Im saying you should pay extra for the pasrt that is NOT part of their jobs... attitudes like yours are a large contributor to the DEATH of customer service in our society - if you get what you pay for, and all you expect is for them to do their job, then those people treating you like crap but still providing the 'service' is the outcome... so I have no problem showing some financial appreciation when someone goes above and beyond their 'job' to make sure Im getting the best service possible. does that mean that you should get lesser quality of work from your doctor than I? of course not! but dont expect your doctor to check up on you like he does me, and dont expect him to give you free samples of meds that you need like he does me... the argument could EASILY be made that YES, you ARE a cheap bastard, comparitively. I work very hard for my money, am very speciific about the ways I spend it, and make sure that I ALWAYS set enough aside to use for tips. lets look at it another way - not sure what you do for a living, but in my company we get bonuses a couple times a year for exceeding goals. I bust my tail and ALWAYS exceed goals, and work to stretch the ones Im given even further to make the company perform better. When I work harder, my company saves/makes more money, and they show their appreciation by giving me a bonus. There are other folks in my same general position, that just plug along doing the minimum required work for their 'job', but technically are doing their job. the company doesnt pay them bonuses. extrapolate from there... all Im saying is that showing individual appreciation works wonders - if more people showed their appreciation for that extra 'above and beyond', then maybe more folks would work harder, and our society wouldnt be experiencing the abysmal customer service death that we are. just doing your 'job' cuts it for some people, maybe they lacked a good work ethic role model growing up or whatever, who knows, but they dont feel the need to go above and beyond for anything. other people recognize that they can do more than what is required, and they perform at a higher level just because they can and its right, so I feel inclined to show them appreciation above the regular pay rate. thousands of years man...

[sean_miller]

  wkdspd said:

attitudes like yours are a large contributor to the DEATH of customer service in our society - if you get what you pay for, and all you expect is for them to do their job, then those people treating you like crap but still providing the 'service' is the outcome...

I suppose that's one way to look at it.

Another way to look at it, is that over-generous tipping, regardless of the level of service provided, has led to a sense of entitlement among both people employed in the service industry and their employers. We don't need to provide "good service", because those schmucks are gonna tip anyway. Suckers! Things are expensive enough as it is without having to subsidize other people's employees. The topic was tipping a guy giving golf lessons. Unless his lessons lead to me winning money, then the money I pay up front is more than fair. Considering how many times I've extolled the virtues of my instructor to other people, he should be tippiing me!

[rjwiggall]

  SpoiledRotten said:

I'll have to use my tipping method with anything. If it's a job where the most of their income is from tips, then I tip according to their service, attitude, disposition, etc. I don't tip someone for cutting my hair, which many people do. When I sit in a chair, it takes the barber about 15 minutes to cut my hair. He charges 18.00, and that's cheap from what I've heard others say they pay. But he's making $72.00/hr. No! He's not getting a tip. If a waitress takes care of me in a restaurant, serves me well, has a happy smile, gets me what I want and in a timely manner, I'll tip them accordingly.

I'll bet you're really bald you cheap a**! JUST KIDDING... Totally kidding and couldn't help myself. But I always tip my hair stylist/cutter/whatever :)

[x-man]

Just an FYI the pro didn't expect a tip. When I got out my wallet he said I had already paid inside before the round. However I felt he did a great job and helped me out a lot so I tipped him.

[SpoiledRotten]

  rjwiggall said:

I'll bet you're really bald you cheap a**! JUST KIDDING... Totally kidding and couldn't help myself.

Far from bald!

My dad is almost 80 years old and has as much or more hair than I do, which is a head full. I don't believe I'll ever be anywhere close to bald. I pay extra for "above and beyond". I'm no where close to cheap either. I don't tip someone just because "they" think they should get it no matter how they do a specific job. I've never worked for tips, but if the server comes to my table and has a bad attitude, he/she is telling me that they are not trying to make my meal any better. At the time of the tip, I let them know that their service as well as their attitude had a lot to do with what I left them. I like what someone else said that so many tip just because then think they should no matter how pour the service was. I don't. If they earn it, they get it. If not, they can learn from the experience and if they want to make make tips, they better learn how to treat their customers. I get sick of pour service. Now, don't say that if I would tip more I would get better service. I don't remember ever getting a single server twice in my life, so that can't hold true for me.

[ajschn06]

I think tipping in general is stupid. Even at a restaraunt, obviously I do it, but only because I don't want spit in my food next time. They are getting a paycheck, it's not my responsibility to pay them...

[SpoiledRotten]

Tipping, or "pay for performance" is not generally "stupid" to me. It certainly has it's place. A physician, or hair stylist, or any other such service is not the place for it in my book. About the only place it's appropriate to me is at a restaurant. Anyone else controls what they charge. How many times have you sat in a waiting room of a physician's office for over 20 minutes. I've sat in them for a couple of hours because the physician wants to keep that waiting room full, not considering the quality of your time being dwindled away, waiting. He just wants to be sure the money keep flowing in. Buying a physician a round or two of golf is totally ridiculous. He should be buying his "customers" a round or two every year. They spend the big bucks for the education because they know the return is more times than not, very good. They set their prices, just as the hair dresser does. They know how much they have to make to run their business. If the hair stylist (barber) doesn't have enough customers to keep his/her shop running, then he/she isn't doing something right, but it's not my responsibility to contribute to their welfare funds. It means they need to stop charging 20.00 - 50.00 for a hair cut, then expect a tip on top of that, especially in this day of the shaved head. As far as a previous poster saying that he does it to get free med samples, HA. Those samples don't cost that doctor anything, and the vendor is giving them to him to use on his Guinea pigs.... you. They pad the doctor's pockets enough because he is their customer and the vendors want to keep that doctor as a customer, so why should the doctor get a huge tip from the vendors and a tip (gift) from his customers after he has charged 80.00 for an office visit, 45.00 for a shot of whatever, a lab fee, a processing fee, a clinic usage fee, a filing fee, a air conditioning fee, and who knows what other kind of fees that seem to line up at the bottom of the invoice?

Where does the tip stop? When you go into the Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, etc., and you can't find what you want, do you tip the person that just showed you what isle it is on? No! That is the person that probably should be getting the tip. They didn't have to drop what they were doing and walk with you to make your shopping a better experience. That doctor that sits in his office all day, surely doesn't need a tip more than that poor guy making probably 7.00/hr and struggling to make ends meet, but you take those for granted. Most would say that they chose to work at Walmart, knowing what the wage/hr was going to be, but then so did the hair stylist, golf pro, or anyone else that chose the line of work.

Long post, but hey, if you enjoyed reading it.... send me a tip. I'll provide my paypal account via private message.