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Thomas Dai

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What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« on: December 21, 2020, 03:12:02 PM »

2020 hasn’t so far been much of a year what with Covid.
Trying to look at least a little on the bright side for a moment what, if anything, has been good golf wise so far during 2020?
Atb


David Jones

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #1 on: December 21, 2020, 03:31:26 PM »
I’m in East Lothian and it’s been quite incredible how busy the golf courses have been through summer, autumn and into winter.


Since May we have been able to play golf throughout the various different lockdowns, as a result the golf course has become the place to spend time with friends and family when few other options are available. Some have discovered the game, some have reignited their passion. It’s been frustrating at times not to be able to get a tee time (!) but it’s been wonderful to see the role that golf has played in the community. That’s something at least!
« Last Edit: December 21, 2020, 03:33:57 PM by David Jones »

Pete Lavallee

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #2 on: December 21, 2020, 06:15:07 PM »
Golf here in the States has been much quicker with no removing the flagstick and no need to rake bunkers. Placing your ball a club length in the bunker has made our muni courses 1 day a week bunker grooming work out great. Even with a perfect lie every time it’s still not easy!
"...one inoculated with the virus must swing a golf-club or perish."  Robert Hunter

Tim Martin

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #3 on: December 21, 2020, 06:25:39 PM »
Walkers/walking had a big resurgence. Clubs with historically stringent policies as to carts, caddies and pushcarts relaxed them. The game at least in the short term is simpler.

Pete_Pittock

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #4 on: December 21, 2020, 06:33:28 PM »
some numbers to ponder through
 https://www.oga.org/handicap-hub-nerding-out-2020-numbers?utm_source=GHIN%20E-Revision&utm_medium=Dec.%2015


Tee times are harder to come by, clubs asking us to advise them when your tee time will be unfilled. I wonder how many more kids and family will take up the game after this weekend's TV.


Score posting is easier.

Peter Sayegh

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #5 on: December 21, 2020, 06:55:41 PM »
Needed a reason to really lose weight.
Made me want to walk and play golf. Did all three.
And met great people.
What a great game/hobby/pastime!

jeffwarne

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #6 on: December 21, 2020, 08:35:59 PM »
Walkers/walking had a big resurgence. Clubs with historically stringent policies as to carts, caddies and pushcarts relaxed them. The game at least in the short term is simpler.


Many golfers (re)discovered that golf, not all the trappings, are what provides the enjoyment.
Much simpler.
Counting our blessings.

"Let's slow the damned greens down a bit, not take the character out of them." Tom Doak
"Take their focus off the grass and put it squarely on interesting golf." Don Mahaffey

Pat Burke

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #7 on: December 21, 2020, 08:58:52 PM »
Well, more people in many places are walking and discovered the value just being on a golf course can bring.


If as an industry, we can capture the interest and not get greedy trying to “catch back up” we could see a pretty nice growth in interest


Lot of kids and families are finding the game in our area

JohnVDB

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #8 on: December 21, 2020, 09:26:18 PM »

For golf in general, it seems like a lot of people have tried the game or rediscovered an interest in it.  Also more people seem to be walking which is good.

Personally, at the beginning of the year I bought a small 1-bedroom place in Dornoch. Because of that I was able to go over in July, do my two weeks quarantine and spend 3 more months there.


Here in NJ, I’ve rediscovered the joy of playing municipal courses and meeting lots of Everyman golfers.


Because of this, my average cost of a round of golf this year was just over $15.




Matt_Cohn

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #9 on: December 21, 2020, 10:59:42 PM »
Pace of play has been great due to increased spacing between tee times.

Adrian_Stiff

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #10 on: December 22, 2020, 05:44:45 AM »
If I had to sum things up I would say 2020 has been a very very good year for golf. All due to the Covid pandemic, golf has seen a big increase in play and the values of playing the game have been re-patriated to the world.
A combination of whats good for golf and good for turf.
The Players Club, Cumberwell Park, The Kendleshire, Oake Manor, Dainton Park, Forest Hills, Erlestoke, St Cleres.
www.theplayersgolfclub.com

Ira Fishman

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #11 on: December 22, 2020, 07:59:38 AM »
1. I have not heard a single person complain about getting a bad lie in a bunker. People are just happy to be outside and playing.


2. People are more appreciative of the golf staff.


Ira


David Wuthrich

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #13 on: December 22, 2020, 09:40:47 AM »
Some clubs that would NEVER allow push carts are allowing them and I don't think there have been any adverse effects! ;D ;D ;D

John Kavanaugh

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #14 on: December 22, 2020, 09:49:43 AM »
It doesn't feel safe to go to the club just to hand out Christmas money.

Ira Fishman

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #15 on: December 22, 2020, 10:30:00 AM »
It doesn't feel safe to go to the club just to hand out Christmas money.


We gave ours to the Club Manager and Golf and Tennis Pros. They were more than glad to hand them to their staffs.


Ira

Eric Smith

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #16 on: December 22, 2020, 10:31:55 AM »
GCAer Barry Doyle won the 2020 5th Major!



Steve Lang

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #17 on: December 22, 2020, 02:13:51 PM »




Golf.com's Sub Par Podcasts with Colt Knost & Drew Stoltz...  watching amatuers can be entertaining like the NLU guys or the gm_golf kids, but the weekly Sub Par has presented some excellent content in 2020 with current young tour players and others like McCord, Barkley, McMahon, & Manziel.  Link to their premier from Feb 2020 BC (before Covid)


https://youtu.be/KVcJbMlqSMA

Inverness (Toledo, OH) cathedral clock inscription: "God measures men by what they are. Not what they in wealth possess.  That vibrant message chimes afar.
The voice of Inverness"

Lou_Duran

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #18 on: December 22, 2020, 09:11:36 PM »
I've been thinking real hard about this and I am coming up mostly with blanks.  Played a lot, but not well.  Walked a lot, but have gained weight.  Traveled minimally, but have re-discovered a couple of courses that I really liked.  With little cost to me, I played a small part in reigniting the interest in golf in a hard-working family man who now has the time and resources to return to the game after leaving it for many years.  Perhaps gaining greater appreciation for little things I've taken for granted in the past?


Big fears: bad habits taking hold (e.g. not raking bunkers), new people coming to the game without taking the time to learn the customs, etiquette and courtesies of the game, and golf operators who might interpret the surge as the new normal and become complacent.       

Steve Lang

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #19 on: December 22, 2020, 09:29:41 PM »
 8) Lou,
Please tell me, if you're doing any cart ball  that you don't have a bluetooth speaker with a siren's voice calling out yardage, in between blaring country tunes or perhaps a waltz for timing the swing.Now retired, still looking to play north in Dallas,  maybe in 2021, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year man!
« Last Edit: December 22, 2020, 10:51:01 PM by Steve Lang »
Inverness (Toledo, OH) cathedral clock inscription: "God measures men by what they are. Not what they in wealth possess.  That vibrant message chimes afar.
The voice of Inverness"

Pat Burke

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #20 on: December 22, 2020, 10:08:50 PM »
Playing for a living, in many ways gave me a different perspective about the game.  It was about trying to get better and compete (and make a living). It’s weird, I loved practicing and competing.  I have loved teaching, especially helping kids.  But I have also in many ways struggled in a life of golf with uncertainties, injuries, and security.


As a kid, I loved golf courses.  I got to play countless Nj and NY golf courses as a kid.  I drew golf courses in notebooks.  I took a job on a maintenance staff to learn more at 18.


I always played better in tournaments  on courses I just liked.  Kingston Heath, Royal Melbourne, Pebble etc


It’s funny how much “the golf course” has meant to me my whole life, even while sometimes the “business” made me dislike the game.


In a year that has sucked for the world, my dysfunctional experiences in golf absolutely make me feel it makes sense that golf would do well.  It’s a bizarre game that requires a certain craziness to excel in

Sean_A

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #21 on: December 23, 2020, 02:50:26 AM »
1. I have not heard a single person complain about getting a bad lie in a bunker. People are just happy to be outside and playing.
Ira

Maybe the reason for this in the UK is folks can move the ball.

Ciao
New plays planned for 2024: Fraserburgh, Turnberry, Isle of Harris, Benbecula, Askernish, Traigh, St Medan, Hankley Common, Ashridge, Gog Magog Old & Cruden Bay St Olaf

Terry Lavin

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #22 on: December 23, 2020, 02:57:42 PM »
It doesn't feel safe to go to the club just to hand out Christmas money.


We gave ours to the Club Manager and Golf and Tennis Pros. They were more than glad to hand them to their staffs.


Ira


Like many, our club has a holiday fund for club employees. This year, the members contributed nearly $100K. This came after we spent the golf season tipping like crazy, because we were so appreciative of them working so hard during a public health crisis. In a way, everybody who works at Beverly was a front line worker, people who worked their asses off so we could get out asses off the couch. Bright side of a dark time.
Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.  H.L. Mencken

John Kavanaugh

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #23 on: December 23, 2020, 03:18:56 PM »
Absolutely. One of my bright spots this year is a sweetheart who makes me off menu milkshakes. I wish I had more to give.

Mike_Young

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Re: What, if anything, has been good so far golf wise in 2020?
« Reply #24 on: December 23, 2020, 03:28:15 PM »
Covid basically brought golf back....more than any Topgolf or Kids in trees on golf or First Tee or Hook a Kid or any of that stuff.  And people that had dropped it years earlier realized how much easier it was to play with larger drivers etc and began to like it again...also made them realze that kid travel sport leagues were BS and they could play normal baseball etc and then golf with kids....
"just standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona"

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