Golfers being ripped off?

[3offTheTee]

...and the cheaper entry fee for members in an open irritates me. Played in an over 60s open Am/Am at my club this year - £12 for members and £20 for non-members. I find this embarrassing. I invited 3 guests and told them would pay £18 each.
First prize was won by a team of 4 members which I found even more embarrassing. (£48 team as opposed to an £80 team) The members don't win cheaper prizes for their cheaper entry fee. If members don't want to pay the same entry fee, then they don't have to play, leaving more tee-times for non-member teams.
I don't seem able to persuade the-powers-that-be of this, however.

Very true what you say. if with say a week to go if not full they MAY consider opening up ro members at a cheaper rate. We have winter Opens from October entry fees £10 and £15 including bacon roll and coffee. Normal summer green fee around £50.

Saw a course today with a 4BBB @£240 per pair. it was full. Class course

 

[JonnyGutteridge]

We have to acknowledge that a large percentage of uplift is salary’s for the tour pros wearing the stuff!

Notice how Nikes prices rocketed the year they signed Rory on 250mil

Very true - and I can't help but find it a little irresponsible from the manufacturers.

Kind of like how SkySports don't care about how much they bid for the football tv rights, these manufacturers don't care about how much they pay the top sportsmen, because the cost is passed on in it's entirety to the consumer. Yes with golf stuff, we have the choice (whereas with Sky/Football, you kind of don't!) but there isn't that much choice with golf clothing and equipment, without compromising significantly on quality.

Primarily with golf it's the tee times that I wince at. I can play Hindhead for free, Blackmoor as a guest for £40 and frankly why would I pay full whack to play anywhere else? Old Thorns £60+, Pyrford £70, Blacknest £35-40, courses which are not even in the same league for more money? Liphook at £60 and Hayling at £50 with a County Card are blowing them out of the water with their value for money.

Yet - the tee sheets are full at all of the above. So economics 101?

 

[sunshine]

There has always been a huge market for golfers who think that the most expensive item must be the best.
I had an old colleague who decided to charge a fortune for golf lessons,
His diary soon became very full even though he was a useless coach.
He was brilliant self at self publicity though.

Such a good point. Perception v Reality.

You see this everywhere, the whole fashion industry is based on this. It's amazing that when people push their pricing, someone somewhere is always prepared to pay up.

 

[GB72]

Golf manufacturers have also done a sterling job in letting golfers believe that what they buy of the shelf has anything more than a passing resemblance to the equipment the pros use. Even with something as smple as a golf ball, you do not see Titleist promoting the fact that some pros prefer and still use their older models rather than the latest and greatest version that they have just developed.

 

[Backsticks]

Golf manufacturers have also done a sterling job in letting golfers believe that what they buy of the shelf has anything more than a passing resemblance to the equipment the pros use. Even with something as smple as a golf ball, you do not see Titleist promoting the fact that some pros prefer and still use their older models rather than the latest and greatest version that they have just developed.

To be fair to them, the gear manufacturers, on clubs in particular, have a very tough job. With drivers for example, the size and COR, and graphite shafts, mean all drivers are the same, as far as making a difference to anyone's game, and have been for 15 years.

So the difficult of creating an illusion of annual evolution, improvement, and 'tech' as they call it, is not to be underestimated as a challenge. They have come up with some good tricks, like changeable weights, adjustable shafts, sliding weights, aerodynamic foils, down to the purely cosmetic swooshes, colour schemes, and the likes. Coming up with that illusion, in a way that doesn't actually spoil the club is technically difficult, costs money, and it must be passed on to the customer. Not to mention the paying of pros and TV advertising, which forms part of the marketing whole. In a way, the less you can actually offer, the more you must charge to create an impression of what is not really there. Thus £400 drivers.

 

[GB72]

To be fair to them, the gear manufacturers, on clubs in particular, have a very tough job. With drivers for example, the size and COR, and graphite shafts, mean all drivers are the same, as far as making a difference to anyone's game, and have been for 15 years.

So the difficult of creating an illusion of annual evolution, improvement, and 'tech' as they call it, is not to be underestimated as a challenge. They have come up with some good tricks, like changeable weights, adjustable shafts, sliding weights, aerodynamic foils, down to the purely cosmetic swooshes, colour schemes, and the likes. Coming up with that illusion, in a way that doesn't actually spoil the club is technically difficult, costs money, and it must be passed on to the customer. Not to mention the paying of pros and TV advertising, which forms part of the marketing whole. In a way, the less you can actually offer, the more you must charge to create an impression of what is not really there. Thus £400 drivers.

Well put. Thing is, with Youtube and soclal media, I reckon that most companies could ditch mainstream media advertising budgets. Sending out preview info and review samples gets you free print media coverage and various Youtube 'Stars' only need the club, a few freebies for giveaways and the odd jolly to a golf tournament. They will quite happily promote the hell out of the addition of 'turbulators' to your driver as they need content almost daily.

 

[GB72]

A post on another thread gave me a reminder on how the price of golf watches/GPS devices is erring on the rip off territory. The technology involved is far less than that of most smartphones and smart watches but they cost more than all but hte most premium of those, they cost far more than other sport tracking watches and massvely more than a car GPS (which have gone down in price as tech becomes cheaper whilst golf watches and GPS keep going up)


Yes, I know Skycaddie map everything by hand but the subsciption cost should cover that

 

[Robster59]

Such a good point. Perception v Reality.

You see this everywhere, the whole fashion industry is based on this. It's amazing that when people push their pricing, someone somewhere is always prepared to pay up.

Patsy sums it up in the first 15 seconds!