Superb article Jezz!

[Dodger]

Just finished reading Jezz's article 'Picture Perfect' in which he talks about how many clubs sell themselves short with dreadful half cocked pictures on the club website.

How true this article is and it is a huge bugbear of mine with my own club,I have on numerous occasions told the Board that the pictures that are on our website are nothing short of horrific and our biggest asset(the course)has to be marketed in a better way but despite me repeatedly banging on at them about how poor our website is (especially with lack of good quality pictures to seduce the possible golfer) and promises of changes the website remains terrible.(Was this article penned after checking out the venue of the GM England v Scotland Jezz??!!)

As a person who when picking new courses to play on lads tours always uses the look of the course on the club website as a yardage stick I feel that what I am telling them is correct and I can't tell you how much is pisses me off to see our site is still not doing what it should do to entice people to come and play.Indeed I had kinda given up on trying to get my message across until I dropped another huge hint at a meeting last week with our Captain!!

Time I think to drop this great article in front of the clubs main shakers noses to see if this might do the trick and get that rocket up their stuck to the seat arses!!

 

[Smiffy]

The thing that really gets my goat over golf course descriptions is when you see an advert or website that entices you to "come and play our 6,800 yard championship course" and then they stick you out on the yellow tees where the course measures just under 6,000 yards and charge you the same amount of money for it.
There should be something you can do under the trades descriptions act.

 

[Sneds]

I agree, I read this article thoroughly. Some courses would have such a better reputation if they had a professional website and made sure that the course was in good condition, not just the greens and fairways, but everything from signage to the next hole and distance markers.

In my opinion it makes the course much more welcoming to visitors also.

 

[DCB]

Not sure I agree with your thoughts there Smiffy.

If every visiting group got the chance to play off the back tees they'd all take it wouldn't they. Trouble is most visiting groups are of a fairly mixed ability, so there are going to be a lot of guys who struggle to enjoy their days golf.

The other side of the coin is that with all the visiting traffic, the back tees would be so cut up and worn that the members would be playing off really poor tees come a weekends competition. iF it was my course that recieved traffic and treatment like that, I'd be complaining bitterly.

 

[Dodger]

Ask....in certain places you can play off the tips if handicap permits,I know that you can do this at my place.I have been given the option at a few places.

 

[DCB]

Dodger, did you play at the new course at Aviemore last year. Did you look at the website before booking/going to play. Did you feel the course lived up to the billing on the website ?

Just wondering, I heard from someone else who thought whilst very nice, the pics made it look better than it was.

 

[Smiffy]

Trouble is most visiting groups are of a fairly mixed ability, so there are going to be a lot of guys who struggle to enjoy their days golf.

To be given the choice would be nice though....
I know at Charthills (Faldo course in Kent) the starter put me and three mates out on the yellow tees. We complained that the course was too short, he asked our handicaps, and then said we could play off the whites. We had a much more enjoyable game. If I were playing with some guys off much higher handicaps and they didn't want to play off the back tees then I would respect their decision and play off the forward tees. But as I say, it's all about choice. On a lot of courses, you don't have one.

 

[Dodger]

Trouble is DCB the website was worse than horiffic so the very few pictures that we did see didn't make a difference it was still a quality track.But as you know up there you could make an awful course look like Crans on the right day what with the mountain backgrounds plus heather/bracken/wildlife etc so catch it on a great day with the lens anything would look tantilizing!

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I know our website has made a difference not so much in enticing new members or society bookings, but in making member information such as booked tees and times for monthly stableford/medals readily accessible. Add in things from the secretary, captains information etc and it ensures that even if you can't get to the club for several days/weeks you still know whats going on.

I don't tend to base a decision to play on the quality of a website. I thought Lydd was pretty poor in that they didn't have a card of the course only diagrams of each hole but it wouldn't have stopped me playing there

 

[Robobum]

If every visiting group got the chance to play off the back tees they'd all take it wouldn't they.

Don't think that will necessarily be the case. Our course was always only playable from the yellows unless for comps. Three years ago a decision was made that general play could be from any tee, the only players to really take this up and go from the white blocks were those that played for the A team and some of the improving juniors. Most roll up games were still played from the yellow markers. Folk just wanted to enjoy their game rather than puff their chest out off the tips.

At the more famous tracks perhaps it would be an idea to play a composite course where the signature holes like the 10th @ The Belfry were played as seen in Pro tournaments. I would be annoyed to shell out considerable money only to get to that hole and find that it was only 150yd carry over the water

Agree with Smiffy that a choice would be nice, although a quick word with the pro/ starter can sometimes sort it.

 

[viscount17]

I haven't read the article yet but,

1. If a club advertises 'come and play our championship course' then this should be offered or it should state the handicap necessary to play it.

2. as a high-handicapper, I would never opt for yellows if whites were on offer.

3. were it possible, far too many golf websites could have been designed in the '50's. obviously amateur, god-awful colour combinations, terrible fonts, a layout only Lowry could have been proud of and a complete lack of imagination. There are equally many on otherwise quite good sites where the golf is obviously not the main interest.
far too many have obviously no idea what a potential customer would be interested in - because they never turned it round and asked themselves 'what would I want to know?'

 

[theeaglehunter]

I agree with what has been said by all. Fortunately my clubs significantly aged website has relatively recently been replaced with a more up to date, if still not ideal, version. It is definitely much better than before though- some of the hole pictures could be bigger to give a true taste of the course but in general it is very good. Oh and a few people now who I have signed in as guests have said they think the club should upload a course plan to the website, which may also be an idea.

 

[bobmac]

I went to a club once to play in an Open competition.
The guy I was partnered with had downloaded the course info on the holes off the clubs' website, printed it and made himself his own yardage chart.
The shop were selling them for £2.
I felt better later as I made sure he got the first round in.

 

[viscount17]

I scanned my clubs shotsaver so that I could put in the course changes made over the last couple of years before giving it to a friend.

It is (expeletive deleted) annoying that courses will still charge full price for out of date information and can't even be bothered to print a correction sheet.

 

[USER1999]

The yardage charts at my course are so out of date they are a nonsense, especially off the medal tees.

SkyCaddie, you know it makes sense.

They have also revisited the web site, which is now better, but still pretty poor.