Many times we’ve talked about some gift ideas for golfers, but we usually reserve that for around the holidays. Every once in a while though, we’ll throw in a mention of golf birthday gifts or courses that have used a free round of golf on your birthday as a promotion. We’ve recommended clubs, balls, equipment and clothing. But it’s funny…we very rarely recommend simply a round of golf itself.
So my birthday was yesterday. And as expected, a round of golf was on someone else – my oldest son in this case. Lucky enough to have my birthday fall during golf season here in the northeast (thanks mom & dad!), it seems that once a year I manage to find a way to get a free round of golf. Whether it’s my stinky golfing buddies or my stinky golfing kids, going back over the last few years at least, a round has been one of my birthday gifts.
We take our friends and family out to dinner or out for a few drinks for their birthdays. We’ve suggested buying our golfing family members and friends some golf clothing or equipment. So why not just take them golfing? I like to use my golfing time for more than just playing golf. We all like to use the time to hang out with our buddies while enjoying the game we all love. We don’t always need more “stuff” for our birthdays. Some of us just want to hang out with the people we love and enjoy spending time with, while doing something we all enjoy – so how about some golf?
As the golf industry as a whole continues to struggle, maybe part of the answer is to focus a bit more on the game itself rather than the clothing or high-end equipment that goes along with it. After all, it’s the golf courses that are closing their doors, not the golf equipment or clothing manufacturers. If you can help by taking your friends or family members golfing rather than buying them a polo shirt, then besides spending some quality time while playing a game you all enjoy anyway, doesn’t that help the golf industry as a whole? After all, if the course closes, then all the equipment you have isn’t going to matter.
