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Back to the muni

ezra76

Well-Known Member
Feb 5, 2006
12,412
16
I went back to Triggs today to play a round with my buddies there. I'm not going to play at Valley (private course) yet in the month of August. I've mentioned on here that they just up and decided they don't have enough money, so they charged every member an extra $500. The president told my boss that because I'm under the corporate membership that my boss would be liable for the fees. I'm going to talk to the guy. I have no problem paying my current bill but that's it, I'm done, want out. I signed up for $208 a month and that's all I can afford.

Anyway, Triggs was fun. I've always loved the course. The main differences are pace of play, course condition and green speed. The greens there are slow as molasses compared to Valley. The only putts I got to the hole were downhill. It's a great driving course and sets up well for me off the tee.

So, looks like it's back to the muni's for me. A word of caution for anyone thinking of a private membership... whatever they "say" it is a month, double that and you'll be in the ballpark. I know they must be up to their necks with pissed off members. They were advertising on TV $300/month for the full membership. Try more like $600 when all is said and done along with the assessment. Those guys are all going to have back to back bills pushing $1000. I'm sure running cable TV ads didn't help with the budget either. I know one thing, I'll be damned if I'm paying for it. I'll quit my job to get out of it if I have to.
 

jerome

Well-Known Member
Aug 25, 2006
85
0
Yep, the private clubs are really hurting all over. Here in town we have a pretty new Palmer course that has no flooding problems while the CC is down by the river. The members over at the CC have been getting assessed as well and now they announced they are going to operate as a public course the rest of the year. If I paid a couple G's for a private course and they went public after taking my money it would be the last time they would see any of mine for sure.
 

SCGolfer

Well-Known Member
Jan 12, 2007
760
0
It is not even remotely worth it to be a member of a private club here. I have played a county owned course all summer long for $25 bucks. It is always is great shape, has a driving range, three practice greens and concrete cartpaths all the way around the entire course. If I play 4 times a month I have spent $112 if I hit a bucket of balls each time. The only time you will have any trouble is they have a lot of sunday morning tournaments....but we usually keep it to friday afternoon. You just can't beat it.


Jason
 

BigJim13

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Moderator
Aug 13, 2006
11,840
3,154
It is not even remotely worth it to be a member of a private club here. I have played a county owned course all summer long for $25 bucks. It is always is great shape, has a driving range, three practice greens and concrete cartpaths all the way around the entire course. If I play 4 times a month I have spent $112 if I hit a bucket of balls each time. The only time you will have any trouble is they have a lot of sunday morning tournaments....but we usually keep it to friday afternoon. You just can't beat it.


Jason

Yeah, thats kinda the way it is here in Souther VT. With the exception of a few Uber private courses up north with initiation fees that range from alot to "are you freakin' kiddin me" the course conditions are all pretty much the same. The one course that I would join in a heartbeat if I had the money is reasonable, $2500 initiation fee and around $2k for the year. But its a really nice course and also public. I will stick to my $22 (weekend rate) muni course thats 10 min from my house, it gets the job done and is decent.
 
OP
ezra76

ezra76

Well-Known Member
Feb 5, 2006
12,412
16
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #5
I have to say, I've yet to play a public course that even remotely compares to the condition of a private course. Pace of play as well. They cut, roll and cut a new pin every morning on the greens. Triggs is actually one of the better public courses maintainence wise and it pales in comparison. It's like a 10yr. old car vs. one with 0 miles on it. Of course I don't drive a new car either...
 

MGP

Clubmaking Ho
Supporting Member
Apr 21, 2007
1,996
24
I have to say that joining a club here last fall was the best thing I ever did. I decided to give up my NFL season tickets and that paid for over half the golf membership.

$220/mo. with taxes, no initiation fee, 7 day golf w/carts included, range and practice facilities included, no spending minimums. We have 27 holes too so it really doesn't get boring or hard to get on the course. The course is private but they do let the public on -- but they charge about $25-$30 more than most of the municipal courses in the area so we aren't overrun with drunken douchebags like a lot of the public courses.

Like Ez says, even though this place isn't fancy it is sooooooo much nicer that any of the municipals around here. It's a tough layout even though it's not long and well maintained (except maybe for the rock... err... sandtraps :laugh: ) People are mostly there to play golf and they are courteous and move around the course pretty fast.

Last Sunday I played on a moments notice. It was about 3:30pm and I was bored. I checked the weather and saw it was going to be the last nice day for a while even though it was windy. I decided to head out to the course about 4:00 and got there about 4:15 thinking it might be busy and I could at least get in 9 holes. The parking lot was almost empty. When I went into the pro shop they said I could go off #1 right away if I wanted to. I hit some putts and warmed up then headed to the 1st tee.

Right as I hit my tee ball, a guy about 40ish rolled up with his 13-14 y.o. son. I told them they could play along with me if they wanted to and they did. They were both pretty decent golfers, polite and fun to play with. The son is in the summer Jr. league and was practicing for a tournament this week. We cruised around 18 in a little over 3 hours and we really didn't hurry, just played ready golf.

There is no way that would have happened on a Sunday at any public course around here.

I feel for you guys that live in areas where the private clubs are ungodly expensive or exclusive. It took me a couple years of searching all the local private courses to find this club but I am really glad I did.
 

Pa Jayhawk

Well-Known Member
Nov 15, 2005
7,196
62
Country
United States United States
I have to say, I've yet to play a public course that even remotely compares to the condition of a private course. Pace of play as well. They cut, roll and cut a new pin every morning on the greens.
My last course and current one are fairly comparible if not better than many of the private courses I have played. I have actually played a great deal that are better and do the same.

Actually one of the best kept courses I ever played was the last I belonged too up to last year, unfortunately they lost their Super that previously was at Pine Valley and Harbortown prior to that. Guy running the course was an idiot and the reason he left, and because the course is now up in limbo he left because he had no assurance he would keep his job the entire season. It was a real trajedy, and is reflected by the current conditions of the course.

All a matter of getting a good Super and dedicated grounds crews. They have more groundskeepers at our current course, and it shows. Although both are what you may consider semi private based on the circumstances, but are still open to the public. Would compare both to the private Nicklaus course a couple miles away, or at least I would have up to what I saw last year.

Pace of play on our current course is fantastic as well, although the same could not be said about the other, alot of that had to do with the layout of the course over 13 miles round trip and spanning 1300 acres. Alot of it also relates to what they charge the public. The member fees are very reasonable, but the fees to the public run a bit steep in comparison to the other courses around.
 

EddieC

Well-Known Member
Feb 1, 2006
377
2
I have to say, I've yet to play a public course that even remotely compares to the condition of a private course. Pace of play as well. They cut, roll and cut a new pin every morning on the greens. Triggs is actually one of the better public courses maintainence wise and it pales in comparison. It's like a 10yr. old car vs. one with 0 miles on it. Of course I don't drive a new car either...

Do they paint the inside of the cup lip white? I love that for some reason.
 

fisher

Well-Known Member
Nov 16, 2008
1,263
0
I played an up scale public course last week as a single and the senior citizen starter put me with a couple in their 60s. The course was not busy and I would have been just as happy to play alone but the starter insisted on making me wait 20 minutes while the tee was empty anyway. I see them coming and I'm thinking Are You Kidding Me!!! They tee off on the first hole and both of their balls are lost. Hole after hole these two are in the woods, in the fescue. Thankfully the woman gave up after about the 9th hole and just watched from the cart the rest of the way. Six, yes Six hours later we finished and I was once again reminded why I play at a private course and why I always will. I can play this $100+ beautyful public course for free any time I want but rarely bother cause I just can't take the pace of play. I don't think I've ever had a round there that was 4.5 hours or less. No thanks.
 

FATC1TY

Taylormade Ho' Magnet
May 29, 2008
2,878
0
I like pace of play. I get that at the semi-privates I play at. Anything over 4 hours 15min, just plain pisses me off.

That said, I live in an area that is OVER RUN with private courses. Most of the courses here ARE private. Explains the 5 courses within the city, all with terrible courses, and 5+ hour rounds. Even those are $35+ to play.

I'm willing to spend more, to place a nicer course, with better people, and better course conditions.. While you always have your exceptions.. I've easily found that generally speaking, the more I pay for a round, I usually have a more enjoyable round of golf, via the people I'm with/encounter and the course conditions.
 

SCGolfer

Well-Known Member
Jan 12, 2007
760
0
Just to follow up my point. I guess living in this area and being close to Myrtle Beach and Santee which are two pretty big destinations for golfers I am spoiled by the cost and condition of public courses. Private courses don't succeed here....you have way to many options for cheap golf. And the public courses have to be in great shape or they don't get any play. One of the newest courses in the area was built for the University of South Carolina and was private. It was like 40,000 a year and it cost guest like 75 bucks to play. It went under within 5 years and is just back open with a new name and the public can get on now.

I live 15 minutes south of downtown (columbia) and have 3 courses within 5 minutes of my house. One has been closed for 6 months....they dug up the greens and completely rebuilt them.....they are about to reopen next week. It is a public course that cost about 40 bucks to play on the weekend and even before they shut down it was one of the best around here. I have played one of the local private courses and it was in unbelievable shape....but it also cost the guy I was playing with 350 a month and had a 200 dollar minimum in food....and it cost me 65 bucks to play as a guest. It wasn't in any better shape than the county course I play for 25. For 550 bucks a month you can play some serious golf around here....heck I won't hardly spend 550 for the entire summer golf season.


Jason
 

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