No more playing off fairways until March :(

Not too often I agree with Homer but Im with him on this one, cant see me staying at a club that introduced this if there were other options around that didnt. Same argument with winter tees and temp greens for me too. The other side of the coin is our greens and fairways take a little longer to recover in spring but I prefer that and the chance to play the full course almost all year round
 
We had our centenary on the old course and our 125th a couple of years back and neither have had any need to resort to this. If it's so wet and muddy I'd question whether it should be open. We've simply roped off areas around greens to make players walk away from fringes to give those areas time to recover over the winter and spring. We've never had any issues with grass growth or coverage since the course opened. For the money I pay (comparable to most of the other members clubs, neither over or under priced) I don't want to be hitting off mats. It's that simple. I'd want the green staff and management to provide a very persuasive argument to make me change my mind. No other club I know of in my vicinity have done it or ever seen the need to do so and they aren't having issues either
 
therod said:
Really. So Royal Ascot, in their centenary year introduce mats to make sure the course is pristine for next summer, and you would leave.

This was done at the request of the course manager and agreed by the committee. You wouldn't accept that :confused: you can't like it very much.

You would benefit. It makes chipping and pitching easier:rofl:
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Why so personal? For what it's worth, I pay annual subscriptions like most posters and demand annual use of a course as a result.

£450 for all year use btw. :-p
 
Having been at a club that required mats and one that made them optional, I can honestly say that they certainly made a difference. The fairways at my old club were consistently in a better condition than those at my new club.

The soil around here means that the majority of clubs have them. I don't like them, but thems the breaks and no amount of complaining is gonna make it better.. Still, we've always got the great NW Links to drive over to when the need for mat free golf arises..
 
Oddsocks said:
+1 , if rather find another course to get my winter fix at, if I wanted 3 months of that I'd join a driving range
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I think I'd baulk at a sub over £1,000 and have to use a mat and would probably join Homer and Oddsocks. "The three nomads"
 
virtuocity said:
Why so personal? For what it's worth, I pay annual subscriptions like most posters and demand annual use of a course as a result.

£450 for all year use btw. :-p
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It's not personal, just examining homers proclaimation that starts with 'I'.

It's normal for open rota courses to have mats prior to hosting the event. Would you leave there too?

Seems a bit absolute to me,
 
Never use mats at our course but a course about a mile away does and I'd say our fairways are in better condition all year plus ours gets a lot more use due to a larger membership.

But I can see the reason behind it, I doubt id leave my course if they brought it in but It would make me think twice about joining a course that uses them.
 
I think if it was for one Winter, with a view to having a perfect course for a special occasion like a Centenary, I could probably live with it, but if it was to be every winter it would be a deal breaker for me.
 
therod said:
It's not personal, just examining homers proclaimation that starts with 'I'.

It's normal for open rota courses to have mats prior to hosting the event. Would you leave there too?

Seems a bit absolute to me,
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I don't see what your issue is. I've explained my stance and why I wouldn't stay. It's a personal choice and for the money I have to pay around here it's a criteria I play off grass all year
 
Imurg said:
I think if it was for one Winter, with a view to having a perfect course for a special occasion like a Centenary, I could probably live with it, but if it was to be every winter it would be a deal breaker for me.
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I'm not sure what will happen next year, I suspect that they'll keep the rule in place.

We have a couple of problem fairways, they needed to be reseeded after last winter and were GUR until may.

I'm of the view that I'd rather play off mats for 3 months in the winter playing once per week, and the course be great when I'm playing x3 more rounds.

I definitely wouldn't make me leave for a substandard course which didn't have mats.
 
We introduced mats a couple of years ago, a good number of members were unhappy but it did make a massive difference come the start of the season and the majority now agree that they are a good thing. We do have the option of playing from the first cut of the rough as I prefer doing as I'm not overly keen on the mat but can honestly say I did not give any thought to leaving due to them being introduced.
 
I'm another who'd baulk at mats for the price we pay. I absolutely love the club I'm at but if mats came in, I think I'd be asking The Three Nomads if I could make up a fourball.
 
HomerJSimpson said:
I don't see what your issue is. I've explained my stance and why I wouldn't stay. It's a personal choice and for the money I have to pay around here it's a criteria I play off grass all year
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What I pay , i believe is comparable, and I'd like to see the course at its best. That for me is value, aslo I'd defer to the course manager whose knowledge is better than mine.
 
14 weeks of golf for me, assuming no closures is nearer 35 rounds and to be honest it's a field and my experience is that the grass grows back no problem. I wouldn't be happy to play off a mat and agree with others who would consider their position if it were introduced. I can't understand why anyone is unhappy with that
 
therod said:
What I pay , i believe is comparable, and I'd like to see the course at its best. That for me is value, aslo I'd defer to the course manager whose knowledge is better than mine.
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Possibly you do pay the same but I've no issues with the condition of our course, especially in Spring and Summer. That's the bottom line. Our green staff and the new head green keeper (well he's into the second year of a three year programme since joining) has done a great job. The club has just paid for extensive drainage works on the low lying holes (12 and 13) and cleared drainage ditches and already we're seeing some improvements in the first few weeks
 
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