Greens fees and expectations

[inthehole]

I for one completely agree with the OP.   $320 is huge money to play one round of golf.    Anyone ponying up that much money SHOULD have an expectation that they should be treated well and with equal respect to a member.   If I hit a golfnow hot deal and practically stole the tee time, that's another story ... but paying absolute top dollar comes with some expectations...

[Phil McGleno]

I for one completely agree with the OP.   $320 is huge money to play one round of golf.    Anyone ponying up that much money SHOULD have an expectation that they should be treated well and with equal respect to a member.

Why when the member paid significantly more? Prices mean different things to different people. $320 might be a lot to you but it might be much less than what a member pays if you figure out his cost per round.

[inthehole]

Quote:

Originally Posted by inthehole

I for one completely agree with the OP.   $320 is huge money to play one round of golf.    Anyone ponying up that much money SHOULD have an expectation that they should be treated well and with equal respect to a member.

Why when the member paid significantly more?

Its ONE day, not the cost of an annual membership.    Apples and oranges.

[Phil McGleno]

Its ONE day, not the cost of an annual membership.    Apples and oranges.

It is not apples and oranges. It is dollars and dollars. If the average member pays $600 per round played why should they not have a slightly better spot on the range reserved for them? Also, that is the ONLY difference here, right?

[inthehole]

Quote:

Originally Posted by inthehole

Its ONE day, not the cost of an annual membership.    Apples and oranges.

It is not apples and oranges. It is dollars and dollars.

If the average member pays $600 per round played why should they not have a slightly better spot on the range reserved for them?

Also, that is the ONLY difference here, right?

If a member is paying $600 for a round of golf based on an annual membership, he's not playing enough

[Phil McGleno]

If a member is paying $600 for a round of golf based on an annual membership, he's not playing enough

That is irrelevant and not the topic. Point being the comparison is the same: dollars to dollars. Even if the member is getting a discount per round it is because it is effectively a volume purchase that comes with other perks - like a nearer section of the range. @CarlOwen is that your only legit beef-That you had to hit from a farther away section of the range?

[bkuehn1952]

Needless to say, this experience has really soured me. And will probably keep me from ever trying another TPC. Has anyone had similar TPC experiences, or is this just an a poorly run club?

I have played the TPC Las Vegas and the TPC Old White (Greenbrier).  Both were excellent experiences.  It sounds like you just had a bad day at TPC San Antonio.  It is hard to imagine that the course operates like you described on a consistent basis with 6-7 hour rounds.  The membership would rebel and the public would stop coming.

[RayG]

Okay- I read along here and I just wanted to ask if you were a TWOSOME, or a foursome. You said you paid your $640 for the two of you. And when you showed up at the starter there was another foursome waiting for the same time, and a foursome on the green, etc... If THAT is the case, then there are two sides to the story- Why they put you out as a twosome in the first place? And if you were a twosome- you should have expected a bit of a slow day playing as a 2 in between all the fours out there. I don't know about ALL the TPC's out there, but the TPC Tampa Bay (and I suppose ALL of them) are no real comparison to the TPC Sawgrass. The TPA Tampa is an okay course, but not exactly the experience of Sawgrass. It certainly isn't worth the ridiculous prices they get in season, but in the off season, it can be had for a third the price and worth it.. once. Unlike the one you visited, range balls were extra and the range is for everyone.

[74hc]

The range bucket was not free. It was priced into the green fees.  Nothing's free, guys, nothing.  It's just like those dozen of golf balls with an extra 6 for free.  It's not free, it's just factored into the price.

[dkolo]

The range bucket was not free. It was priced into the green fees.  Nothing's free, guys, nothing.  It's just like those dozen of golf balls with an extra 6 for free.  It's not free, it's just factored into the price.

They were free because he hit them and got his money back.

[ay33660]

If I were a member at the TPC type of club (where public play is allowed) I would want to make sure the guests are very happy and feel they got their money's worth. My reason for that would be even though I am paying monthly dues. I know that the amount of public fee revenue goes towards lower or maintaining my monthly dues.

I am a member at a totally private club (ie where the only way someone can play is as a guest of a playing member). There the rationale for treating a guest as good or better than a member is because the guest is a GUEST. Doesn't everyone treat guests to their house better then regular family members?

[Phil McGleno]

I am a member at a totally private club (ie where the only way someone can play is as a guest of a playing member). There the rationale for treating a guest as good or better than a member is because the guest is a GUEST. Doesn't everyone treat guests to their house better then regular family members?

The members are guests of the club too. Guests who pay more money. The analogy falls apart there. Diners in a restaurant are the guests. Only the employees and the owners are not guests.

[DrvFrShow]

Those of us who do not make $2000/wk should not post in this thread.

[ay33660]

The members are guests of the club too. Guests who pay more money. The analogy falls apart there.

Diners in a restaurant are the guests. Only the employees and the owners are not guests.

Two different cases.

Case 1 - for courses like what the OP was talking about which are essentially public courses with members who pay a monthly fee so they can have unlimited golf, access to lockers etc. In that case I was suggesting that it would be in the member's interest to make sure that the daily paying guests were happy because those daily fees help to either maintain or reduce the member's monthly dues. i belong to a club like the TPC courses a long time ago. They had 36 holes where one 18 was for members only and the other for public play. There was no separation in the driving range and both courses were in great shape. We members knew that the more public play and the more we could charge because of a superior product for the daily players the better it was for the club overall and would help in maintain our own member dues at a good level. This proved true as in the 10 years that I was a member there was no increase in our dues.

Case 2 - I discuss a completely difference scenario whereby I am talking about a totally private course and in that case the daily rates do not have an impact on our operations but we like to treat our guests well because they are our guests.

Case 2 is has really nothing to do with the OP's issue. I guess I should not have included it as it obviously only served to cause confusion or am I confused about the confusion.

Don't understand your reference to restaurants?

[BuckeyeNut]

Hi all,

I was at the San Antonio TPC last week and had a very poor experience. Let me explain.

We arrived one hour early for a late morning tee time. At the pro shop we paid $640 for two greens fees which included a cart and range balls.

The first thing to rub me the wrong way was that they segregated the driving range. Non members were asked to hit from an area wholly separate and honestly, so far away from the member's range, it felt insulting.

Two, we get to the starter 3 minutes before our tee time which happened to be the same time as another foursome. It turns out, the other foursome was running late and teed off fairly promptly. That said, another foursome was just only beginning to putt on the first green.

After nearly 1 hour of what was obviously stacked up slow play, we left following the putting green of the third hole and headed back to the pro shop. We explained that we hadn't 6 or 7 hours to play a round-nor thought it was reasonable to wait 10 minutes before every shot. He was ungracious and refunded our money without apology.

Correct me If I am wrong, but when you spend this kind of money, you should be treated no different from club members and they should have at a minimum, 12 minute spacing on the tee sheet. This is not a $50 muni course where you grin and bear it, but supposed to be a world class elite facility.

Needless to say, this experience has really soured me. And will probably keep me from ever trying another TPC. Has anyone had similar TPC experiences, or is this just an a poorly run club?

Consider yourself extremely lucky to get a refund because this isn't warranted for slow play.   My 2 cents..........you get what you deserve, but you got better by receiving a refund.    If you expect speedy play, you should have played at sunrise with the "Dawn Patrol"........When I play golf while on vacation, I always get the first tee time.   If you play more than 2-3 positions behind the first on a course like that, you should expect a clusterFK.    Shame on you for not planning better..........IMO....they should have charged you for the greens fee for taking a tee time position on the course, and maybe refunded 9 holes for the cart since you didn't make the turn.  Consider yourself lucky............because you didn't deserve the full refund.

[Phil McGleno]

Don't understand your reference to restaurants?

That does not surprise me. The point was that ALL players are guests at the club. Seriously the only difference is what-He had to hit from a different section of the range? So what? Why is that even an issue? The members are guests at the club too. And they are not paying by the month for their membership fee: http://www.tpc.com/sanantonio/membership .

[newtogolf]

Don't understand your reference to restaurants?

Not all country clubs offer equity memberships.  Some clubs sell non-equity memberships that just provide priority tee times, reduced fees, lockers, etc.  If you have a non-equity membership you're not an owner you're just a regular customer versus someone who walks off the street so there isn't an sense of ownership from the membership or vested interest in "guests" enjoying their experience.

[mcanadiens]

The full refund was pretty lucky for you. If you were asking me for a refund, it would be a nine-hole refund only.

On the other hand, it would seem like $640 ought to get you something. Tee times probably ought to be a solid 10 minutes or more apart, instead of the queue on the first hole that usually greets me on my munis. To me, that's crazy money that I couldn't dream of dropping on a round of golf. The range thing probably would have annoyed me as well.

Chalk it up to a lesson learned and a pretty cheap one at that.