No Reservations for Singles?

[ZANDER1994]

Yesterday I called a golf course and asked to make a reservation as a single. 

“Yeah sure let me see here... er, um”

After listening to about five minutes of the guy on the phone clicking a computer screen I hear him whisper something to his boss and he responds

”Oh, uh, actually we do not take reservations for singles”

I say “oh, alright that’s okay. So if I just show up tomorrow you think you’ll be able to get me out by pairing me up with someone? I don’t mind that at all”

The response I got was “Uhhh, I mean. We will try our best”. 

This morning I showed up to the golf course and stated I had called, but they didn’t take reservations for singles. The guy behind the counter sort of chuckles and just tells me they are fully booked and there is no way I could get out today. So I packed my bag up and I’m about to drive somewhere else  

I find this incredibly annoying and it is not the first time this has happened to me. I understand golf courses need to maximize their profits by booking as many foursomes as possible, but I think this could be done a lot better. Imagine if you wanted to book a hotel, or a flight or something people commonly enjoy by themselves and were told ‘sorry, we prefer vacationing families and thus you’ll just have to take your chances without a reservation’ every time you wanted to travel somewhere alone. 

What are your thoughts on the policy? Has this happened to any of you before?

 

 

Edited March 24, 2019 by ZANDER1994
Typos

[upndown21]

Find a new course or get some buddies. Don’t sweat the small stuff. 

[billchao]

54 minutes ago, ZANDER1994 said:

Yesterday I called a golf course and asked to make a reservation as a single. 

“Yeah sure let me see here... er, um”

After listening to about five minutes of the guy on the phone clicking a computer screen I hear him whisper something to his boss and he responds

”Oh, uh, actually we do not take reservations for singles”

That's weird. I know a lot of courses won't let you book an empty tee time as a single but they'll add you onto a two or threesome. I have also played at courses that don't like sending out singles for whatever reason and if you showed up when there are open slots, they'll wait a little to see if another single shows up to pair you with or send you out with a later group that has an opening.

I have never seen a place that won't take reservations as a single at all.

54 minutes ago, ZANDER1994 said:

I say “oh, alright that’s okay. So if I just show up tomorrow you think you’ll be able to get me out by pairing me up with someone? I don’t mind that at all”

The response I got was “Uhhh, I mean. We will try our best”. 

This morning I showed up to the golf course and stated I had called, but they didn’t take reservations for singles. The guy behind the counter sort of chuckles and just tells me they are fully booked and there is no way I could get out today. So I packed my bag up and I’m about to drive somewhere else  

I hesitate to call it bad customer service, but if they knew they had a full sheet at the time you called, they should have told you over the phone. If there were openings at the time you called and they got filled up afterwards, I can understand, but then that brings us back to the whole not taking single reservations thing.

54 minutes ago, ZANDER1994 said:

I find this incredibly annoying and it is not the first time this has happened to me. I understand golf courses need to maximize their profits by booking as many foursomes as possible, but I think this could be done a lot better. Imagine if you wanted to book a hotel, or a flight or something people commonly enjoy by themselves and were told ‘sorry, we prefer vacationing families and thus you’ll just have to take your chances without a reservation’ every time you wanted to travel somewhere alone. 

Hotel reservations aren't really an apt analogy. They sell the room no matter if you travel as one or four. They're not charging per person, where one person booking a room prevents them from making 4x the revenue because four people can't book that same room.

54 minutes ago, ZANDER1994 said:

What are your thoughts on the policy?

It's dumb. Take your business elsewhere.

[mcanadiens]

It's a shame the course in question didn't have the guy answering the phone a bit better trained, but the policy is pretty normal.

No course I'm aware of will normally book singles. On the phone, they should be able to give you a reasonable idea if they can get you paired with someone or out on your own.

If its busy, they won't promise.

 

[Patch]

Some where, and I don't remember where I read it, a discussion took place about singles not having any rights getting on, and while playing on a golf course. I go out as single several times a year, so I just wrote it off as not important. 

When I go out as a single, 99% of the time I get out. Most of those times I get paired up with another group of golfers. Sometimes with other singles who are waiting. I even get out out on some "members only"  (that I am not a member of) courses from time to time. 

I think in this day an age, any courses that turn down a single, they are in great financial shape. I also think those courses are very few, and far between, and are probably not affordable to most golfers anyways.

 The single just needs to move to another course, who has a better appreciation of that single's pocket book. There seems to be plenty of them around. 

 

[TRUCKER]

I'm interested to hear what NMGOLF has to say about this. The couple times a year I play a public course and book online, I always see spots open for a single, twosome, or threesome. And I wouldn't consider you being angry about this "sweating the small stuff". I think you have a legitimate complaint.

[Vinsk]

1 minute ago, TRUCKER said:

I'm interested to hear what NMGOLF has to say about this. The couple times a year I play a public course and book online, I always see spots open for a single, twosome, or threesome. And I wouldn't consider you being angry about this "sweating the small stuff". I think you have a legitimate complaint.

@NM Golf....

Edited March 24, 2019 by Vinsk

[dennyjones]

In our area there are courses will not take a reservation but will tell you to show up and they will work you in with another group or let you play solo if there is an opening.   This isn't the norm.   Most courses unless it is close to league play will allow a single to play almost anytime.

[bkuehn1952]

I prefer courses that actively work to pair up singles, make threesomes, etc...  If a course ignores singles or refuses to pair up groups, they tend to fall down the list for me.

In the case of @ZANDER1994, as others have said, he should have been told the course was scheduled to be very busy and he might not get out if he just showed up as a single.

I have no problem with courses not taking reservations for singles as long as they will place a single with a twosome or threesome as available or allow an online reservation to "join" a group.

Finally, I have no patience with groups who say "we prefer to play as a twosome (or threesome)."  If that is your preference, then pay for the greens fees of four players, come with a group of four, or join a club that allows members to do that.

[jmanbooyaa]

I can’t say this has happened to me. I play as a single often. I always get paired with a 2 some or 3. In fact the course I play the most always tells me not to make a tee time. As a single they are more than happy to send me out. 

[Yukari]

Is GolfNow or a similar apps available in your area?  If I can't book it directly through the course website, I often check GolfNow or similar websites to book as a single.

[colin007]

At my local course, the issue that is raised is somewhat the same thing and also the opposite. When you call my local course to make a tee time, they just give you a tee time, they don't ask how many players you have so if you only have one it's the same as if you have four, they don't know how many people you have until you show up. In my mind this makes absolutely zero sense whatsoever. So if I'm a single, they can't tell me if there are any twosomes or threesomes for me to join. It's a local muni course and it's run by a bunch of no talent ass clowns.

[Buckeyebowman]

I think it's also important what time of the day you wish to play. Is it a "peak" time? There are any number of courses around here where if you want to get out as a single early on the weekend, it's not happening! but, if you can show up in the middle of the day after the initial onslaught, you can go right out! And yes, some courses are run better than others. 

[downbylaw11]

One of the hardest to book courses in my city has a no single policy, and opens 2 day advance booking for tee times online at midnight, and believe it or not, i tried to book online once, woke up at midnight, and too many people were online at once and the server was crashing.  you can pay a fee and book more than 2 days in advance, but the idea of that is disgusting.  they do allow singles to play, but you have to show up and be put on a waitlist which is typically 15-20 people long and they just slot you in if there are no shows.  I did this once after showing up at 8am, waited till 10 or so, and not one golfer had not shown up so they allowed myself and 3 other singles to play just the back 9.   You also can't get put on the waitlist over the phone.  A few other courses won't let you book as singles either.  frustrating shit, and I agree with your post.  They can certainly find a better system. 

[mchepp]

Very poor form on the part of the golf course. I'd highly recommend you write the General Manager of the golf course an email and tell them what happened to you. Your story has you being a reasonable person, I doubt they want people feeling like the course doesn't care about you.

I have found that I am very skeptical if they won't take a tee time for 1. I often won't go. It is just too risky to have what you described happen. I can only very rarely wait around for an hour and wait for a opening for a single. I find if I call and the place has a 3 some already set for 9am (as an example) the person will just put me in the open spot. Problem solved. If they won't do this I probably won't play there.

[cristphoto]

I don't know of any courses in my area that let you book a time as a single. As others stated they will typically look for a threesome or twosome to pair you with. 

[MacDutch]

I never had this problem in 10 years playing golf. Played on my own in lots of European countries, also Florida and Arizona. Sometimes you get paired, some times you play by your own.

Once they said ‘you don’t have standing as a one ball’. So people in front of you don’t let you play trough, which is fine by me.

[RussUK]

Never had a problem. I play as a single a lot. I think the courses i play see any booking (whether single or multiple) as revenue.

Does seem a little discriminatory towards singles and a bit short sighted of the club turning away a paying punter but if its their policy then take your business somewhere more deserving.

The club in the OP should have made it clearer that single bookings were not permitted, at least that way @ZANDER1994 wouldn't have wasted both time and fuel.