Bethpage Complaint - What is a golf course’s responsibility?
December 1, 2009 by deo_lookout · 13 Comments
I got this email in yesterday… Thought I’d post it, unedited.
On a recent trip to the USA I was fortunate enough to secure a game at the Black Course on Sunday 15th November. I was given a tee time at 12.42 pm. After paying for for my round I made my way to the practice range to warm up and was informed that the average time for a round on the black course was 5 1/2 hours and that there was no way that I was going to complete my round. I was told that I would most likely get to the 14th hole before darkness set in. After taking 3 hours to play the front 9 we finally played the 14th in darkness then made our way back to the club-house. Despite the slowness of the round I was enjoying the challenge of the course. My playing partners, all New Yorkers, were not hackers and I play of a handicap of 9 but we had to wait an eternity on each tee before we could play our shots. I write to express my amazement the the club can sell a round of golf knowing that it will be impossible to complete the round at that time of the year. Coming from Australia I had no idea when I made the booking that it would be dark at 4.40pm. I am the Vice Captain and Board Member at Concord Golf Club in Sydney, one of Sydney’s leading golf clubs, and I know that we would be prohibited from selling something that we could not deliver. I would have thought that the club should not be selling tee times after 11.30 am, at the latest, at that time of the year. I realizie that there is nothing that can be done now but thought that I should register my complaint as I felt short-changed at the end of the day and it spoiled what should have been a very pleasant experience.
Yours Sincerely, GB
What do you think? Post your comments below…
I ran into a similar situation when I recently played Harding Park in San Francisco. We had a late tee time on a Monday afternoon… the course was jammed. We ended up looping back thru the front nine (which was empty) and only finished 15 holes.
I contend that a course should not charge full price for a partial round.
@deo_lookout
I totally disagree. Sour grapes. This guy should have checked. What time does the sun set in Australia???
You have to realize that this course is government owned. Not only do they not know better, they don’t care that you couldn’t finish your round. They probably sold times until 3pm that day too. As for the slow play - many people out there think that since they’re on a US Open course they can play like they’re competing and play slow as hell. Since the state owns the course they might send out an inept ranger to tell people to pick up the pace but since it’s NY the golfer would tell them where to stick it. Public courses just don’t have the amenities that private clubs like your own have. I’ve been playing the Black for 40 years and it hasn’t changed - except the rocks are gone from the traps and the greens aren’t made of concrete
@Bones
With two US Opens and millions of dollars of investment, this course has been propelled into the upper echelon of golf courses. As such, they should live up that billing.
one of the problems is “no rangers”!
just because it’s apublic course doesn’t mean your not obligated to keep the pace of play moving. this is basic “golf etiquette. u can’t take 15 minutes to look for a ball. drop another an continue play. anyone trying to beat the course is either naive or a dreamer.
get rangers out there to pick up the pace and yes, don’t sell a deal you can’t deliver on. why not just discount the green fee and post a sign stating: “whatever u get in is up to the luck of the sun.”
Bethpage does offer twilight rates on all courses, but unfortunately they start at 2pm in the late fall/winter. Many other LI courses will offer twilight at 12 noon or 1 pm and the pace will be much faster than Bethpage Black. I agree with GB, if a course wants to charge full price, then they should ,make sure that they allow you a reasonable chance of completing your round.
@Paddy B
Agreed. I’m sure volunteer rangers wouldn’t be hard to find.
More golfers = more cash. Bethpage has bills to pay; you can’t blame them for sending out as many groups as possible. That said…you can’t blame ‘GB’ either for feeling, “short-changed at the end of the day.”
There’s got to be some compromise between meeting paypoll, greeens fees and number of groups.
Anyone from Bethpage out there care to comment?
Bethpage is a scam……… Where else could they get away with that.!!!!!!Ever try to get a phone reservation??????How could all the tee times fill in seconds?????BUT….If you have 500.00 $ you can get any tee time you want off of the internet on many different sites??????I’ve been told by many different people that you can ONLY get one tee time a week over the phone….IF that is the case then how do these guys have almost anytime you want??????I’m a 9 and a 5 1/2 hr round there is a joke…….
obviously, j forney feels strongly…the post brings up a few interesting points.
1. There are people out there willing to pay-up for even a 5 1/2 hour round at Bethpage Black. I’m fine with that as long as Bethpage gets the extra dough. It could effective subsidize everyone else. And, to it’s credit, there are those walk-up times every morning. Never used one of those 3rd party services that charge extra for a guaranteed time, anyone have an experience?
2. The phone system at Bethpage is needlessly difficult and easily gamed. A random weekly lottery for non-transferable greens fees would solve this. Here’s how it could work: a player would indicate interest via the phone or online, perhaps even indicating a preferred time of day. The entry period would close seven or ten days before the tee time. Next, the lottery is run and players are called/emailed/texted with have 24 hours to confirm.
3. Given the demand, should a player be able to play everyday at Bethpage? What’s great about these courses is that they are public and open to everyone. No problem here with limiting the number of times a player can play per week.
I went to play Bethpage Black back in November on a very cloudy day. I paid my $60.00, then went to tee off. I took one shot, then the skies opened up. I was so drenched, that I had to go back to the clubhouse thinking that I would receive a raincheck. Well, to my surprise, the clerk at the clubhouse could care less that I paid $60.00. She basically told me to stick it. Her smug attitude was very unprofessional. Ive been playing golf at Bethpage since I was twelve, Im now 50, and have never been treated so poorly in all my life.
Most courses will inform the player how much time is left to play in the day. And warn the player if the time is short and probably cut his green fees. I’ve seen that happen in other public courses not state owned, namely Rock Hill Country Club, in Manorville. They advised me that I would have trouble finishing the 18 holes. They cut the green fees to appropriate amount.
The telephone reservation system is a joke. In November I tried calling at the exact minute the lines open for a week, and after several days of “all circuits are busy, try again later” I finally got through, made a request for a morning tee time on the Black, to which the automated response was was “the best available time is 3:45″ . I think that sunset was to be around 6 that day. Why can’t they get online reservations like Eisenhower or all of the other (privately owned) public courses on Long Island?
I have been professionally caddying at Bethpage for the last 11 years. Yes, there are 2 third party services that provide tee times for an additional cost, I am not associated with them but I am sure that you can find them on the internet somewhere. In addition, I love the game of golf and have a passion for it, especially for the challenge of the Black course. this said, if pebble peach which is a public course can get away with charging $500 for a round of golf than, $250 would be more than reasonable to play Bethpage Black, at $50 for instate residents & $100 for out of state residents, this is a bargain believe me!!! After playing 18 at Bethpage Black you fell like u played well over 36 holes, what an experience!! If anyone is in need of a professional caddie for the Black I am available at your convenience & I come prepared with a full knowledge of every hole, aiming locations off the tee boxes, as well as Bushnell laser yardage reads. mattbmedia@yahoo.com