How do you afford green fees/range balls?

[jackn]

Am i missing something or are fees in america really expensive?? Over here for a local i suppose public course but maybe not it is about £150 per year. I did a bit of caddying this year at a private club and got payed minimum £40 (about $80) per round! It was sweet! Easiest money in the world!

[DaveyH]

my home course championship the best in the area is £70 a year.(140$).The other course i play at is £50($100).I work in a pro shop so never need to buy balls and the ranges we have you use your own balls which is great for hitting 5000 balls in one day !

[The Chicken Connoisseur]

Well, my parents just pay for it.

 

But, I have a membership at a very high-end club in California, and we're splitting the fee with another family.

 

We only pay $150 a month, it includes discounts in pro shop, free unlimited range balls, and free unlimited play on a course that's normally $120.

[The Chicken Connoisseur]

Parents.

[Sandpiper3]

Back home was a member at my home course, 400$ a year and unlimited golf and range. Now at college where my team plays out of we get unlimited play and range out of our home course 5 miles downt the road.

 

Past having to walk to the course down the highway every other day, its pretty good. Not the longest or toughest course by any means, but the greens are amazing which make up for it.

[Rambler]

i caddy a lot. twice a weekend or more. usually $40 a loop can pay for a lot if you save it.

[WilsonStaffMan]

I work in the pro shop which means free golf, free range balls, and I get all my gear for cost.

 

Can't beat it.

[JDorfler]

Here's what you do.

 

1. Realize High School is nothing more than social hour and a place to find out who puts out, who is getting the most, who is on drugs, who is dealing the drugs, and who doesn't care.

2. Isolate yourself by getting a job after school that keeps you away from all that crap, thus putting you in the "who doesn't care" group.

3. Realize due to your anti social behavior you have no idea what you want to be when you grow up and join the Army. I recommend telecom.

4. After you get out, make sure there's a war coming. Decide you would rather be a contractor in the war instead of getting pulled back in as a regular soldier.

5. If you were smart enough to never get married to a western woman and not try to buy a home during the "housing boom" you will probably have no bills while earning quite a lot of money in a really crappy place.

6. Stay out there for as long as you can stomach it, investing every dime you have in stocks.

7. Use said money to start a business and name yourself EVP or something.

8. Work, then go golfing.

9. Set up meetings on golf courses and play in charity tourneys.

[MB1981]

One perk of being a golf pro! I dont have to!

[justyn]

I pay for my 8 year old 1 round a week and one large bucket (110 balls) and this is only if he does well in school. The only draw back is I have to pay full price for him since it is too hot to go out past noon and I would only have to pay 15.00 (its cooling down).

[daboomer]

The club I work at is super private and only have like 300 members we can only play the first monday of the month but if all the members come in early im able to get in 9 holes plus during the day when nobody is at the course playing I hit range balls

 

 

Do you work at Pablo Creek?

[LJ_GOLF1]

I caddy at Bellerive, so getting to play there every Monday isnt bad.

 

 

CCPGOLF... How did you get into caddying at Bellerive? I'm just interested.

[Baycal92510]

Well my secret is I run a golf course mon-fri, and that gets me free play at our courses plus others in northern california that we are friends with. I also get free range balls and lessons from any of our awesome teachers. Now if you have a real job and love golf my advice is to try and work some sort of part time deal. we have guys that only work a few hours here and there and still get almost all the same as me, I even have a guy who hasn't worked in the pro shop in months, just kinda helps out here and there ...even he gets playing privliges

[astamm8]

i worked at a private club. was a pretty crap job as most of the members and the pro were wankers. but, i didn't have to work all that much. unlimited access to the practice facilities which were very nice, and unlimited access to the course, when it wasn't busy. which pretty much only meant sat. and sun. early. i played and practiced a lot. i can assure you, that i wish i had that kind of access now. i also caddied a little, but worked in the bag room for the sole reason that people that only caddied got much, much worse access to the course and facilities. i'd recommend finding a course with a liberal play policy like this, if possible.

[k-unit]

get a job at a course. I work at a public muni in my town. its the best. get paid well, free range balls, flexable hours, and $340 a year for all the golf you can play. Im not leaving!

[jedidan]

i work for american golf corperation, free range balls and all the free golf until i quit or get fired. i just started playing 4 days a week. its dope.

[Samsquanch]

I work at the local golf course, so I get it free. Quite a deal :)

[TheOrange2002]

If none of the above options are appropriate for you, then you learn to make the most of your practice time.

 

Build your own net in your garage, practice your swing with out hitting balls, do strengthening drills, etc.

 

When you do hit a bucket, make every shot count, have a purpose for every ball in the basket.

 

Chipping and putting can be free ...

[JJGolfer]

Im fortunate enough that im a member at a private club and my parents cover my fees for the entire season, and occasionally a lesson and a dozen balls

[birdiemachine11]

My birthday present every year is membership fees to my course.

[TTT]

job

[MatthewT]

I ref hockey during the winter months (october-march), that pays for alot of my golf, I work at my golf course in the summer, but I dont receive any benefits

[cpyne]

One way I do it is that I'll go out to the TPC at Deere Run just a 1/2 mile away, go chip for an hour or so with the balls the guys have left on the practice green. Then collect those and go hit em for another hour. It's free, and it's great practice.

 

But this summer I'll be working at our city courses so that'll be free golf and range so I won't have to be stealing range balls all the time.....can't wait.

[deRaiLeD]

I work at a golf course, I can play whenever i want for free and hit as many range balls as i want for free.

Its pretty much the life...

[beachgrovejunior]

membership at one course near my house+range pass which my parents pay for

and i am starting work at a course about 10 minutes away where i get free golf for working there

[bulldog8b]

Public courses are the way to go as far as jobs go unless you can work a deal with a private club's manager.

 

 

I would disagree with this sentiment that you should work at a public course. I've worked at both a public and a private course and I found that the private club has been much better. At the public course, I found that many of the people I would meet didn't really show any respect for the game. They would show up in undershirt tank tops, get insanely drunk and not really care about the game or those that took it seriously. On the other hand, the private club had a much friendlier atmosphere. The members actually care about you (many have asked about future college and career plans- conversations I never had at the public course) and are very willing to help you whenever possible. Also, the members that are there actually respect the game. When you pay a $12,000 buy-in and then another couple grand in annual golf fees and restaurant fees to be a member at the club, you are probably going to care more than the once a year golfer who gets upset with the $20 greens fees. Surprisingly, the private club members actually tip better than the public course players. Once they see who hard you work on a repeated basis, they seem to be more willing to slip a $5 or $10 your way every so often. While the club I work at doesn't restrict when the proshop staff can play or practice, I would probably still rather work there if they did just for the simple reason that the atmosphere is so much better. Plus the pro is an awesome guy who genuinely cares about his employees.

 

I found the exact opposite. I worked at a private course back when I was in school and it was OK because it was never really busy, but the members almost never tip, you only get to use the course 1 day a week, after noon and it's on the course maintainance day. Other than we didn't really do anything, it was a crappy job.

 

If you work at a course, get a job at a public course, but make sure it is a half way decent course, not one where they let people play in tank tops and the green fees are $20. At that kind of place you pretty much have to expect that kind of stuff. If there are any resorts near you, get a job there, people on vacation tend to tip really well.

[Sanders27]

Range membership = $200 for the year

 

1 Round = $58

 

Hitting close to 3000 balls in the past month = about a half penny a ball ;)

[t.bahama]

I list stuff on ebay for a guy who owns a range, so free range balls. I usually buy a membership at the local muni so I walked many holes for one flat price, but the muni sucks. Too many people who have no idea what they are doing and no desire to get any better. Good course though. I am going back to school in the fall so no membership this year, $750 I could not spare. So I am turning into a range rat. Hopefully when I am done with school I can afford to join some place at least semi-private.

[roseman334]

I work at a upscale public course that costs around 235 bucks a pop, but once a week i play for free or go to the range, and sometimes ill go with my brother to a driving range near by. Usually I play at my own club during the spring and summer and play whenever I want.

[Baraethon]

My dad pays for range buckets, but he golfs as well so he is sympathetic. We are members at one of the 2 courses around here, so we pretty much always play there, but when we don't he usually pays.