It’s a sad time of year when the golf season winds down. The clubs get put away, courses begin to close up shop and the weather just doesn’t seem to cooperate anymore. You know you’re at that point when it seems there’s nothing else to look forward to for the rest of the year. Maybe, just maybe, you might get one more nice weekend…but it’s not all that likely.
But let’s say that one nice weekend does come along in mid- to late November. Where are you going to play? Do you take your chances with one of the few remaining open courses? How about those courses running their “Fall Specials?” You know, a course that normally runs about $45 to walk 18 is now charging $30 with a cart. It sound like a great deal…but is it really?
Knowing that the season is winding down, and all of these courses are now in the process of their seasonal layoffs, it goes without saying that the maintenance and upkeep of the course is now on the back-burner. Yeah, they lowered the price, but they’ve also lowered the quality of the course. It’s pretty simple really. The fewer people working at the course, the less work is getting done.
You certainly can’t blame the course. Obviously, at this time of year fewer golfers are hitting the links. So it only makes good business sense to cut costs. But in an attempt to still make some late season money, they run some specials. Sounds like a plan. So why not take advantage? Well, because of what I said earlier…the course is no longer being fully maintained. So the question is, do you take advantage of the lower costs even though the conditions are deteriorating?
Many won’t take advantage…but I’m not one of them. Discount golf you say? I’ll take it! I’ve said it before, I don’t care where I’m golfing…as long as I’m golfing. Now there are exceptions. There are some courses that I won’t play for free. But for the most part, you can count me in. For instance, I have a course roughly 15 minutes from my house that’s running one of these specials. It’s a nice course. Not a great course, but it’s no mortar range either. Normally, the greens fees run $42 for 18 holes (tack on $16 more to ride). But during the fall special? $35 with a cart! Well worth it for a course of its caliber!
So I ask…do you take advantage of these specials? Are you the type who will play anywhere if the price is right? Or do you feel the price is not worth it if the upkeep is lacking? I know how I feel. I’m gonna play anyway. So if I can play cheaper? It’s a no-brainer.
Swing ’til you’re happy…especially when it costs less to do so!
Richter Park is down to $34 down from $96. Such a deal