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Signs of Golf

March 9, 2015 | By Greg D'Andrea | 1 Comment

Let’s face it, the people who run golf courses don’t trust us.  I’m not saying they’re not justified in their distrust, I’m simply stating a fact. If you want proof, all you have to do is read some of the signs you come across on the course.

I myself have seen countless signs on tee-boxes, by greens and of course, plastered all around the clubhouse and proshop. Below are a few signs that I just had to snap a photo of…

One thing courses do to try and keep golfers from hitting into one another is devise warning systems. I’ve seen super tall flag sticks planted in the middle of a fairway so you can waive back to those on the tee that it’s OK to hit. I’ve seen bells placed in the fairway to ring and I’ve even seen a periscope setup on the tee so golfers can tell when the group ahead is out of range. But the sign below takes the cake…

Golf hole instructions
Portland Golf Course (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

Apparently the urge to relieve yourself is far too great on this tee-box…

Tee Area Not A Pee Area
Topstone Golf Course (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

How about this one – Are golfers drowning themselves after bad approach shots? OK, maybe they just don’t want you fishing out balls from the pond, but who’s taking the cart beyond that point??

Danger golfers!
Tunxis Plantation – White Course (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

I love signs on the first hole because they tell you a lot about the course you’re about the play. Some courses do it right – for example, a 9-hole course close to my home used to have a sign that read “No one is offended by poor play, but everyone is offended by slow play” – I never forgot it, even though the sign is long gone. Other courses, well…see below…

Golf sign
Airways Golf Course (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

But some course managers also have a sense of humor too – check out these two signs:

tomb stone golfer
Pine Valley Golf Course (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

And perhaps my personal favorite…

Golf Hole From Hell
Airways Golf Course (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

If you liked these, check out the entire Pinterest board we’ve dedicated to golf signs:

Follow GolfStinks’s board Signs of Golf on Pinterest.

Filed Under: Golf Life Tagged With: golf cart, golf course, golf signs, signs on the golf course

What Animals are Lurking on your Golf Course?

October 15, 2014 | By Greg D'Andrea | Leave a Comment

(photo
Turkeys roaming the fairway at Woodhaven Country Club, CT (Photo by Greg D’Andrea)

This past weekend, I was playing a local 9-hole golf course and was held-up on the third tee because of a flock of turkeys in the fairway (see photo above). This is why I love golf – because it’s out in nature and not some fenced-in field somewhere.

And fall is a good time to spy creatures on the course as many are out and about foraging. Earlier this year, I saw a few deer in the fairway during one round, but they were too fast for me to get a photo.

Besides the obvious birds (including hawks, geese, ducks, swans, cranes, roadrunners, etc.) and many deer and squirrels, I’ve also seen foxes; rabbits; alligators (on Hilton Head Island, SC); snakes (on multiple occasions); chipmunks; coatimundi (on a course in Mexico); lizards; frogs; bison; turtles; and even some cool fish (including a koi-stocked pond on one course). I’ve also seen a scorpion stinger stuck into a course worker’s boot (though I didn’t see the actual scorpion).

Coatimundi just off the cart path - the Golf Club at Moon Palace, Mexico
Coatimundi just off the cart path – the Golf Club at Moon Palace, Mexico (Photo by Greg D’Andrea)

What I have not seen is Bigfoot – though I’m still holding out hope (someone in the Pacific Northwest must have seen a squatch on the course??).

bigfoot stole my golf ball
I think Bigfoot just stole my golf ball!

Anyway, we’ve started our own photo collection of animals on golf courses on our Pinterest page – check out the board: Creatures on the Course (see below).

Follow GolfStinks’s board Creatures on the Course on Pinterest.

So, what creatures have you seen on your local course – anything cool, scary or interesting? Let us know in the comments!

Filed Under: Golf Life Tagged With: alligator, bigfoot, creatures on the course, golf course, Hilton Head Island, Sasquatch, wildlife

When A Golf Course Isn’t Used For Golf

July 7, 2014 | By Chris Chirico | Leave a Comment

thGrowing up, my hometown had three golf courses.  One was a pretty, but tough, eighteen hole course.  Another was an easier and inexpensive, but always well manicured, nine-hole course.  And last but not least, was a horribly maintained, bombed-out, mortar range of a nine-hole course which, I’m sure due to the low cost of greens fees, convenience and familiarity, was very popular with the seniors and some kids just learning the game.  I played there once and still consider it to be some of the worst money I’ve ever spent.

But part of what made that particular course just awful was the fact that there were alternate uses for the course outside of golf.  For instance, if I remember correctly, one of the local schools used part of the course for soccer practice.  Soccer practice!  A bunch of teenagers running around the course with cleats!

However, around this time of year, I’m remembering the main alternate use for the course – the town’s Fourth of July fireworks show.  See, the town in which I grew up didn’t really have a town green or a general public space outside of a state park.  So there was nowhere really conducive to setting off fireworks…except the golf course.  I mentioned earlier the convenience of the course…it was only about a mile from the intersection of the two major roads that run through town.  It was close to lots of businesses and shopping areas, so there was plenty of parking and places for people to setup chairs or blankets to watch from pretty much anywhere at any angle.  It was the perfect spot.  However, the condition of the course was sacrificed for it.

In hindsight, to me anyway, it was worth it.  The course is gone now, replaced by a new middle school which was more important anyway.  I no longer live in the town, but as I understand it, the fireworks are still blown off there.  Concerts are held in the same place as well.  Thinking about it now, did one town really need three golf courses anyway?  However, I guess that’s a couple of different arguments for another time.

Swing ’til you’re happy!

Filed Under: Golf Life Tagged With: 4th of July, fireworks, golf course, Independence day

April Brings Fools To The Golf Course

April 1, 2013 | By Chris Chirico | 1 Comment

You know what’s funny?  Some of the tall tales you hear out on the golf course.  Seriously, many of the stories and claims I’ve heard from golfers/friends I know, I half-expect the words “April Fools” to follow.  So what is it that compels golfers to make up these stories?  What is it that makes a golfer feel like he or she needs to tell stories (i.e. – lie)?  Does it make them feel superior to other golfers?  If that’s it, then what’s the reason for needing to feel superior?  Can’t you just admit that you stink?  What’s so bad about stinking at golf?

Let me give you a few examples of some stories I’ve heard from friends/golfers which I feel were worthy of an “April Fools” follow-up:

1.  While standing in front of a 380-390 yard par-4 – “I drove this green a few times.”  I’m sorry, but who do you think I am?  You do remember that we’re friends, right?  I’m not a complete stranger ya know.  You swing a wiffle bat with the same speed as if it’s a 40 pound log, and you sure don’t swing your golf club much faster.  I’m not 100% sure I’ve ever seen you hit even a 300-yard drive, but you drove this green a few times?!  Please say “April Fools.”

2.  “When I used to play regularly, I hit 320 yard drives all the time.  I probably averaged 320-330.”  OK, as of this very moment the longest average drive on the PGA Tour is 307.2 yards.  But you…somehow you are out-driving the longest average hitter on the tour….THE PGA TOUR!  You know, where the professional golfers play.  Again, please say “April Fools.”

3.  “I’m pretty close to being a scratch golfer now.”  OK, you play golf once a week…tops.  We play together several times a year and I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve seen you break 90.  Now I know you’re pretty good…much better than me, but somewhere between the last time we played and now, you’ve managed to shave about 20 strokes off your game?  You’re good.  But again, I’m going to require you to say “April Fools.”

So again I have to ask, why the stories?  Does claiming you’re a better golfer than you actually are somehow make you feel superior to others?  Even if you’re full of crap?  Do the people who lie about their golf games lie about other things in their lives as well?  Are they able to cook their dinner better/faster than they actually do?  Does their car accelerate quicker than it actually does?  Are they able to send a fax quicker than everyone else at the office?  Let me try.  I once shot a 71 at Bandon Dunes.  I won a long drive competition against John daly once.  Last year, I was happy when I broke 100, but I’m shooting pretty close to par just about everywhere I go.

Nope, that’s not working for me.  I just don’t feel good lying about my game.  Oh, wait….April Fools.  There, that’s better.

Swing ’til you’re happy!

Filed Under: Golf Life Tagged With: April Fools' Day, golf course, golf stinks, golfstinks, pga tour

Are Golf Course Closures a Good Thing?

February 20, 2013 | By Greg D'Andrea | 1 Comment

According to a recent report from the NGF (National Golf Foundation), new golf course openings are at “historic lows,” while course closures continue to pile up. While many will take this as a negative sign within the industry, perhaps we should look at it from a different angle?

Here’s a breakdown of golf course openings and closures last year:

golf course openings and closures
Source: NGF

So what does the above graphic tell us? Well, that in 2012, only 13.5 18-hole facilities opened compared to 154.5 that closed. But beyond that, it tells us that the closures mostly stemmed from Daily Fee and Muni-type courses (90%). And of those, nearly 70 percent had greens fees under $40.

So what?

Well, this means lower-end courses are the ones folding. While that may not bode too well for your particular community, it might be a good sign for golf as a whole. Courses offering 18-holes of golf for under $40, at least in my area, are typically not the most well-maintained tracts of land around; there are usually waits on multiple tee boxes; and inevitably end up becoming training grounds for newbie golfers (hence the backups on the course – not from overuse, but instead from slow play).

Let me be clear here: Not every 18-hole facility with greens fees under $40 fits my description above – but, it is extremely difficult to operate a respectable 18-hole course in today’s economy…especially for under $40 per round. Thus the ones that are run the risk of being understaffed and in disrepair (prime candidates to buckle under tough economic times).

Now, there’s nothing wrong with learning the game at an inexpensive course, but perhaps a full-sized 18-hole facility isn’t the best place? There are many decent and inexpensive “9-hole” or “par 3” or “executive” courses out there (which are excluded from the graphic above) that offer a wonderful learning opportunity for newbies. This is where you need to go if you are transitioning from the driving range to the course.

No one asked for this economy, but the reality is we have it. And perhaps the 150+ courses that closed last year will ultimately benefit the golf industry as a whole. Because what we are left with is survival of the fittest. The better 18-hole facilities will remain – and that bodes well for when those golf newbies are ready to make the transition from a 9-hole or executive course to a bigger facility. They will not be disappointed with what they find – rather they will get to experience the best golf has to offer.

And if that happens, then you will have golfers for life.

Filed Under: The Economics of Golf Tagged With: economics, economy, golf course, golf courses, national golf foundation, ngf

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