Dunmurry Springs showing initiative

fireplace1982

I see that Dunmurry Springs has a special deal on at the moment, €10 for a round of golf Monday to Thursday!! Thats unbelievable. I know that their financial problems were pretty much sorted in late 2008 when the dropped the entrance fee to membership, and now this.

I think it shows a bit of cop on given the current economic crisis. Why have a half empty course early in the week when you can have a very busy course (which it is at these rates), bring in cash and show off the course to more prospective new members (the course is in great condition). If more new courses followed their lead and dropped their high green fees (i know a lot of them have, but not by enough) you may not hear of so many in financial straits.

I often fly cross country and have seen with my own eyes Golf courses not merely quiet at say 1 o clock on a tuesday afternoon, but completely empty... no wonder they are going under. Get the punters out there, even if they are only paying a tenner a round, at least there is money coming in, most will spend a couple of quid in the pro shop and then have lunch/dinner in the clubhouse, some will enquire about membership if they are suitably impressed and if one in one hundred punters join...result!! If you have faith in the quality of your course it makes sense.

P.S, I am a member of Dunmurry, i can imagine some people balking at the idea of their club allowing 'the riff raff' in for a tenner, but i think it shows business accumen.

Kimbot

I have to agree that this is a great idea to get people into Golf clubs when they are not busy.

Kevinmarkham

Personally I'd take 30 quid and go and play Rathcore (€20) in the morning and pop down to Dunmurry Springs in the afternoon. Great courses and in great condition too - two of my favourites in the area.

http://golfcoursesireland.blogspot.com/

jimjo

fireplace1982 wrote: »

I see that Dunmurry Springs has a special deal on at the moment, €10 for a round of golf Monday to Thursday!! Thats unbelievable. I know that their financial problems were pretty much sorted in late 2008 when the dropped the entrance fee to membership, and now this.

I think it shows a bit of cop on given the current economic crisis. Why have a half empty course early in the week when you can have a very busy course (which it is at these rates), bring in cash and show off the course to more prospective new members (the course is in great condition). If more new courses followed their lead and dropped their high green fees (i know a lot of them have, but not by enough) you may not hear of so many in financial straits.

I often fly cross country and have seen with my own eyes Golf courses not merely quiet at say 1 o clock on a tuesday afternoon, but completely empty... no wonder they are going under. Get the punters out there, even if they are only paying a tenner a round, at least there is money coming in, most will spend a couple of quid in the pro shop and then have lunch/dinner in the clubhouse, some will enquire about membership if they are suitably impressed and if one in one hundred punters join...result!! If you have faith in the quality of your course it makes sense.

P.S, I am a member of Dunmurry, i can imagine some people balking at the idea of their club allowing 'the riff raff' in for a tenner, but i think it shows business accumen.

I think that’s a great idea, more clubs offering good value golf the better. The unemployment rate is only getting higher, people in work are being hit with levy’s or are taking pay cuts, the country is crying out for these types of deals.

Its a bit away from me (40 miles) but for €10 I'd drive there and play the course, will look forward to it.

toggle

fireplace1982 wrote: »

I see that Dunmurry Springs has a special deal on at the moment, €10 for a round of golf Monday to Thursday!! Thats unbelievable. I know that their financial problems were pretty much sorted in late 2008 when the dropped the entrance fee to membership, and now this.

I think it shows a bit of cop on given the current economic crisis. Why have a half empty course early in the week when you can have a very busy course (which it is at these rates), bring in cash and show off the course to more prospective new members (the course is in great condition). If more new courses followed their lead and dropped their high green fees (i know a lot of them have, but not by enough) you may not hear of so many in financial straits.

I often fly cross country and have seen with my own eyes Golf courses not merely quiet at say 1 o clock on a tuesday afternoon, but completely empty... no wonder they are going under. Get the punters out there, even if they are only paying a tenner a round, at least there is money coming in, most will spend a couple of quid in the pro shop and then have lunch/dinner in the clubhouse, some will enquire about membership if they are suitably impressed and if one in one hundred punters join...result!! If you have faith in the quality of your course it makes sense.

P.S, I am a member of Dunmurry, i can imagine some people balking at the idea of their club allowing 'the riff raff' in for a tenner, but i think it shows business accumen.

Is that anytime Monday->Thursday? and do you need to book ahead?

Thanks
Toggle

ozymandias10

nothing on the website about it yet

GreeBo

Would you not be afraid that the course (greens esp) will get destroyed by so many people playing who have no vested interest in keeping the course properly?

I'm basing this on the fact that after every society/open in my club the greens are covered in unrepaired plug marks. Not that all the members do it, just that its particularly bad after these events. With €10 a round I would worry it will just get dogged.

Then again, I suppose if its that or go to the wall....:(

soundsham

have to worry about greens being battered,bunkers being raked etc
not to say all members are perfect far from it
but it does happen when courses are used by more non members than members..imo

tough choice but it would be nice to sse a staff member have the odd scout around and be seen to say it to a few groups .just to keep people on there toes and get the perception that you are being watched

L.O.F.T

soundsham wrote: »

have to worry about greens being battered,bunkers being raked etc
not to say all members are perfect far from it
but it does happen when courses are used by more non members than members..imo

tough choice but it would be nice to sse a staff member have the odd scout around and be seen to say it to a few groups .just to keep people on there toes and get the perception that you are being watched

I played yesterday evening, bunkers not being raked properly, greens had a good amount of unrepaired pitch marks and no staff on the course to ranger. Lots of golfers are good for revenue but the lack of a ranger is not helping the course. If there is a visable ranger out and about it cant but help.

soundsham

sorry to hear, that its a pain when courses are butchered especially at this time of year when they should be at their prime

short term views from management maybe, dont know the situation ther, I know blarney in cork is the same
capt prize there this week so all the one hit wonders will be there and saying couse is fantastic whereas th guys that play there reg could tell ypu a few stories...green staff told no overtime stay at home at weekends for last 2 months:eek:..beat that for neglect

Kevinmarkham

Continuing to go off topic - the unrepaired pitchmarks are the things that cause the most damage, but is it worse to have an unrepaired green or have people repair the pitchmarks in completely the wrong way - ripping out the grass and/or leaving a bigger hole.

If you have a big society, actively encourage members who are going out afterwards to repair greens, or have a greenkeeper go around and do it properly after the society have finished. Extra effort I know, but at least it will be done right and the greens will stay in good nick.

And once, just once, I'd like to see a society turn up and have to pay a fine if pitchmarks aren't prepared properly. I know it'll never happen, but it would give me a warm, fuzzy glow all over.

GreeBo

Kevinmarkham wrote: »

Continuing to go off topic - the unrepaired pitchmarks are the things that cause the most damage, but is it worse to have an unrepaired green or have people repair the pitchmarks in completely the wrong way - ripping out the grass and/or leaving a bigger hole.

If you have a big society, actively encourage members who are going out afterwards to repair greens, or have a greenkeeper go around and do it properly after the society have finished. Extra effort I know, but at least it will be done right and the greens will stay in good nick.

And once, just once, I'd like to see a society turn up and have to pay a fine if pitchmarks aren't prepared properly. I know it'll never happen, but it would give me a warm, fuzzy glow all over.

The previous Sec Manager in Newlands used to ask random people to show him their pitchmark repairer, if you didnt have one you were asked to leave.

JCDUB

GreeBo wrote: »

The previous Sec Manager in Newlands used to ask random people to show him their pitchmark repairer, if you didnt have one you were asked to leave.

Magic idea!

I played the back nine in my club yest evening and I reckon I repaired at least 30 large and noticeable pitchmarks, I hate nothing more than this.

I would be delighted if our staff randomly asked golfers (both members and non-members) to see their pitch mark repairers.

In fact I might suggest it.

Sorry for OT posting/rant:o

Great idea from Dunmurry provided the course remains well kept, fair play to them.
BTW played Rathcore this morning, for €20, highly recommended, a great course, and great value!!

jimjo

Sorry have to jump in again, I feel people are emphasising on the negatives...We should be encouraging this type of deal.

I play a lot in Elmgreen and trust me the place is packed in the evenings with some people not repairing their pitch marks and some being slow, and trust me these things really piss me off, however for the greater good its making golf accessible to people on different salary scales. People just need to be gently reminded in the pro shop (or wherever they pay their green fees) about good course management.

I hope more courses like Elmgreen €10 before 10am, Dumurray Spring €10 Mon – Thurs, Balbriggan €20 before 10am Mon - Fri, Turvey €15 Mon-Fri, Donabate €15 after 6pm, Hollystown €10 each for a four ball on a Monday do more of these deals, they offer value on a day/s that clubs would not normally be busy.

Get people into the club and than the multiplier affect occurs, people spend money in the pro shop, tee’s, ball’s, stroke savers etc the club benefits, money from green fees than any food or drink purchases in the clubhouse and than on a Monday or Tuesday the club doesn’t feel dead and depressing, as there’s a bit of life around the place!!! I feel the positives completely outweigh the negatives….

DonkeyPokerTour

Ok way off topic now, but I looked on the internet, 100pitch mark repairers is about 15-20euro from e-bay. Why don't clubs just buy 1000 of them and give one to every society member every time a society goes out. Would cost the club next to nothing, and would reduce the amount of unrepaired marks. Personally I try and repair 2 on any green I get to my own and another one, but I'm not 100% sure I'm doing it right. There's like 50vids on you tube about it but they all seem slightly different, anyone want to post the definative one?

Back on topic, are there any other courses in the area for €20? 3 courses in a day for €50, reckon a 16 handicapper could go round all 3 in under 110 strokes each, all in the same day?

Regards
Ian

PhilipMarlowe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-ZzT8yMnmg

Alzar

DonkeyPokerTour wrote: »

Ok way off topic now, but I looked on the internet, 100pitch mark repairers is about 15-20euro from e-bay. Why don't clubs just buy 1000 of them and give one to every society member every time a society goes out.......

Ian,

With all due respect, it's not wholly down to society golfers.

I was in Cork GC recently & they had on display, a photo of one of the greens. It must have had 50 red flags on it, each flag represented an unrepaired pitchmark. The caption on the photograph (IIRC) said something along the lines of "Each flag denotes an unrepaired pitchmark on the 16th yesterday. There were no society/greenfee golfers playing yesterday!"

Everyone playing golf has a part to play in the upkeep of the course, whether society golfer or local member. I remember playing my home track (Castlecomer) during the winter just gone & commenting on how many unrepaired pitchmarks i had attempted to repair. There were no societies playing during the winter, the lack of repair was due to members, simple as.

Al.

DonkeyPokerTour

Alzar wrote: »

Ian,

With all due respect, it's not wholly down to society golfers.

...

Your 100% correct, however anyone who play's regularly will usually have a pitch mark repairer (they may not use it, but they usually have one). Some society golfers (i'm a member of a society myself so I know) don't even have a coin never mind a ball marker for the green and use a tee to mark there ball. So giving them one may not get them to use one but it might at least get them aware of the situation.

Members are a problem too, perhaps include a pitch mark repairer in the membership pack, what can that cost the club? A euro maximum?

paulanthony

DonkeyPokerTour wrote: »

Ok way off topic now, but I looked on the internet, 100pitch mark repairers is about 15-20euro from e-bay. Why don't clubs just buy 1000 of them and give one to every society member every time a society goes out. Would cost the club next to nothing, and would reduce the amount of unrepaired marks. Personally I try and repair 2 on any green I get to my own and another one, but I'm not 100% sure I'm doing it right. There's like 50vids on you tube about it but they all seem slightly different, anyone want to post the definative one?

Back on topic, are there any other courses in the area for €20? 3 courses in a day for €50, reckon a 16 handicapper could go round all 3 in under 110 strokes each, all in the same day?

Regards
Ian

Highfield GC €25 weekdays
Edenderry GC €20 weekdays
Craddockstown €25 before 9.30 weekdays
Curragh €25 before 13:00 weekdays
Newbridge €25 weekdays
Knockanally €20 Mon-Thur Before 10am

I'd probably do either

1. Rathcore very early,
2. then Knockanally if you can make it before 10 (only about 15 mins drive) .
3. Then Dunmurray Springs last as there appears to be no time limit.

Total: €50

or

1. Rathcore very early,
2. Curragh if you can't make it by 10
3. Then Dunmurray Springs last.

Total €55

*P

fireplace1982

To the best of my knowledge this offer was only open for June and may now be closed. Good points made about more pitch marks on greens and bunkers not being raked. Peoples ability to rake bunkers and repair pitch marks should have nothing to do with whether you have a vested interest in it, i rake bunkers my repair pitch marks whether im playing on a public course or st. andrews, as everybody should.

The point is , it shows inititaive from Dunmurrys management to give this a go, even if it is once off... its probably unsustainable for prolonged periods due to the maintenance issues unless more satff are hired to offset the damage done.

This initiative was not done to avoid financial meltdown within the club as things are actualy going quite well with a lot of new members, it was used as a marketing tool as well as getting money in during a quiet time of the week. kudos.

Whyner

I'm playing here on Sunday morning, it's only €20 as there is an open on all day. I asked was it €50 as it says €55 in some parts of their website and she replied "no, only €20 but you will be behind a 3 ball rumble", no probs there.......made my day and it's not even 3 bells

L.O.F.T

Whyner wrote: »

I'm playing here on Sunday morning, it's only €20 as there is an open on all day. I asked was it €50 as it says €55 in some parts of their website and she replied "no, only €20 but you will be behind a 3 ball rumble", no probs there.......made my day and it's not even 3 bells

Thats a great deal, well done. There is however the monthly medal in the morning, 3 balls, followed then by an open 4 person team event from 10am onwards.
site link with info http://www.dunmurrysprings.ie/
No mention of 3 ball rumble?

Whyner

L.O.F.T wrote: »

Thats a great deal, well done. There is however the monthly medal in the morning, 3 balls, followed then by an open 4 person team event from 10am onwards.
site link with info http://www.dunmurrysprings.ie/
No mention of 3 ball rumble?

That's cause I'm a dope and booked Rathcore instead, ah well, heard they're both good. Luckily my cousin called up to change the tee only to find out we didn't have one , phew!

L.O.F.T

Whyner wrote: »

That's cause I'm a dope and booked Rathcore instead, ah well, heard they're both good. Luckily my cousin called up to change the tee only to find out we didn't have one , phew!

If ye can swing a day off they have an open singles every Thursday for €20 and on the 19th they have a Intermediate Scratch Cup (hcp 10-17) - €25

paulcorr

its the societys that keep most golf clubs afloat.if you start to treat them like second class citzens they will soon stop playing your course and will move on somewhere else.THEN YOU WILL HAVE TO LET MORE STAFF GO BECAUSE YOU DONT HAVE ENOUGH BUISNESS.most socetys are fine some are not the same as some members are fine some are not.Im sure you have been out wit members who have not repaired pitch marks i have and i just look around the green as i walk on and repair the pitch marks.Its not rocket sience were not all tiger woods or harrington were not ALL PERFECT just because were not members of your golf club.

Golf Pro

Dunmurry have an Open 4 Person Team this Sunday for €120/Team, sounds good to me...