Golf Question of the Week: Has a Tough Economy Affected Your Expectations of a Quality Golf Experien
Scenario #1: I played a course a few years ago that, to the average observer, looked expertly manicured. Beautiful. Lush green throughout. Maybe the scenery distracted me as I pushed my tee shot on one hole about 10 yards off the fairway, into the primary cut of Bermuda rough.
Problem was, the ball settled into the rough to the point where I couldn't see its final resting place from the tee box. So we drove off to the landing area, scoured the rough for my ball, and after a few minutes of vigorous searching finally gave up.
I grudgingly dug a ball from my pocket to take a drop. No sooner does the ball leave my fingertips than it lands at my feet - and is immediately devoured by the same rough, completely invisible to the naked eye as I'm standing right over it. It takes an additional minute just to relocate the drop. No real surprise, then, that it takes two whacks just to get that ball back on the fairway.
Scenario #2: I played a different course just a few weeks ago. Lots of dormant Bermuda surrounding fairways and greens that were just starting to green up after a chilly winter season. In a nutshell, not the visual you'd expect to find on a postcard. But the greens were rolling smoothly, fairways were a bit firm but well-conditioned, and the rough was brown but manicured.
One of my wayward tee shots finds that rough, but I locate it easily, and it's playable. I skull it out of the rough on the first shot, but can't blame the course for the fact that my swing still needs a lot of work.
Putting my own (lack of) golf skills aside for the moment, I ask you: which scenario would you rather deal with on the golf course?
I ask this after reading a good column by Trent Bouts in The Sun News earlier this week. He reminds us that, when it comes to how we view the aesthetics of a golf course - and how that, in turn, affects our perception of a quality golf experience - perception is not always reality.
It's a worthwhile read that I encourage you to take. And after you do, we welcome your feedback on what your expectations are these days for a quality golf experience.
Mr. Maggio-
I’m glad you brought this up as it gives me the opportunity to pass along the views I’ve come to hold on the effect of today’s economy on the golf sector.
The short answer is: I don’t think that the economy changes anyone’s expectations of a quality golf experience. Instead, I feel that the economy drastically changes their ability to meet those expectations. It’s not that we don’t want the same things we wanted before…it’s just that our ability to spend money on those things has been compromised.
That belief is what has driven me to found and launch AzaleaGolf.Com. Though our site currently does and is planning on doing many things, the first major event we’re working towards is the 2009 Maverick National Amateur Championship—to be held in both Myrtle Beach and Southern Pines later this summer. The Championship honors the work of late, great course design legend Michael J. Strantz—who kicked off his solo design career at the Caledonia Golf & Fish Club right here in Pawley’s Island.
Host venues for this Better Ball of Partners Match Play Championship include Caledonia, True Blue Plantation, Tot Hill Farm Golf Club, Tobacco Road and Pinehurst #2. The winning team will get the opportunity to fly out to Los Angeles for three days to attend the Final Round of the 2010 Northern Trust Open and play host venue Riviera Country Club the day the Club reopens for member play.
One of the elements to the Maverick Am that separates it from other golf events this summer is our Local Qualifying process designed specifically to keep the event accessible to golfers nationwide in spite of the economic hardships being felt by all in 2009. These qualifiers work much like satellites to events like the World Series of Poker—X players put up Y dollars with the winning team(s) advancing to the opening weekend of the Championship in Pawley’s Island, SC. This way, golfers can earn a competitive summer golf experience of the highest caliber at just a fraction of the usual cost.
We feel that golfers shouldn’t have to change their expectations of a quality golf experience. Instead, golf companies should work to find creative ways to meet those expectations while remaining sensitive to the pressures we’re all feeling under the weight of today’s uneasy economy.
If you or your readers would like to find out more about the 2009 Maverick National Amateur Championship they can send us an email at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or log on to our website.
Sam Kestin
President, Founding Partner
Azalea Enterprises, LLC (AzaleaGolf.Com)
Mr. Kestin,
This tournament has one of the most unique structures I’ve seen. Appreciate the efforts to help us golfers find a way to play some top notch golf in this crummy economy.