Golf’s popularity has surged in recent years, with rounds played across the US up 13% in 2020 and 19% in 2021, while holding steady in 2022, based on research by the National Golf Foundation.

In parallel, expectations for the player experience continue to rise. According to research by the NGCOA and USGA, 84% of course owners and 74% of players rate pace and flow of play as a top 3 player experience factor.

With courses seeing a higher volume of rounds season on season, ensuring a steady on-course flow is a critical part of whether players enjoy their rounds.

We will outline 5 ways your course can improve pace of play, turning it into an asset that grows your bottom line and keeps your members and guests loyal.

IMPROVE STARTER ACCURACY

• Starting late immediately puts each playing group at a disadvantage, as they will need to make that time up in order to stay on pace.
• Track and measure your starter accuracy on a weekly and monthly basis, making reporting on this part of your team’s KPIs.
• If starter accuracy is low, identify the issues and put a plan in place to fix these.

MANAGE THE GAP INTERVALS

• When gap intervals are too tight, bottlenecks can form, negatively affecting pace of play. Overly lengthy gap intervals reduce tee sheet capacity, having an adverse effect on both availability and revenue.
• Track and measure the effectiveness of different gap intervals over time to find the optimal fit for your course.
• These may differ depending on the time of day, the day of the week and even the course layout for that day. During periods that play quicker, gap intervals can be tightened to increase revenue without impacting the player experience.

PRO TIP: Tagmarshal’s Gap Time Monitor collects real-time gap interval data and identifies opportunities to optimize these intervals, creating additional capacity and green fee revenue.

IMPROVE HOLE SETUPS

• Make pin placement easier on holes that traditionally are more difficult to play, especially during peak traffic times. Very few golfers are going to complain about shooting a low score!
• The same logic applies to which tee boxes are allocated on specific days.
• Assist players with yardage markers so they can hit more accurate approach shots.

IDENTIFY PACE OF PLAY ISSUES PROACTIVELY

• Having a clear view of which playing groups are starting to affect field flow means that you can intervene before the rest of the field is negatively affected.
• Ask slow-playing groups how you can assist in getting them back into position, framing the intervention in neutral terms and the marshals as service ambassadors.
• Where possible, build out player profiles so that you can assign specific tee times based on their pace of play history.

PRO TIP: Tagmarshal’s real-time, birds-eye view of course flow highlights where each playing group is and uses algorithms to identify potential pace of play issues before they worsen. Management can view the Live Map on a desktop, tablet or mobile screen and send player assistants to address these.

IMPLEMENT A PACE OF PLAY POLICY AND KEEP GUESTS AND MEMBERS INFORMED

• If golfers can see that management is serious about tackling pace of play, and are given a goal time and the tools with which to achieve it, they are far more likely to buy into these efforts.
• Communicate the course’s goal time repeatedly via email and phone exchanges, and throughout the clubhouse.
• Ensure each group is informed on the tee of what is expected from them and how they can stay in position (ready golf, playing from the right tee and so on).
• Keep the conversation going with regular data-driven updates on the course’s pace of play results.

Focusing on the five methods outlined above as a starting point, your course can turn pace of play into an asset during a period when golf’s popularity continues to rise.

At the same time, you need to be smart about how you maximize revenue opportunities while still providing an enjoyable day out for golfers.

Ultimately, whereas other top player experience factors such as course conditioning require sizeable investments, implementing steps to improve your course’s pace and flow of play can show immediate results.

Labor shortages, coupled with rising inflation, mean that the modern course owner is increasingly turning to technology to streamline operations and enhance the player experience.

Terravita Golf & Country Club’s 18-hole golf courses unfold in and around the area’s lush Sonoran Desert at the foothills of Black Mountain.

The club has been dubbed ‘the friendliest private golf club in the Valley of the Sun’ and with wonderful mountain views to one side and sweeping valley vistas on the other, it is easily one of the most beautiful places to play in Scottsdale.

Our Quick 9 series continues with Matt Kloppenburg, PGA Head Golf Professional at Terravita, who opened up about his love for the sport and how his team works hard to elevate the member experience.

How would you describe your morning routine to kickstart your day?

The morning starts early with my kids and then transitions to the golf course. I check the tee sheet and check in with the outside service team to ensure that everything is in order for the day. I then spend the next handful of hours in meetings, walking the range greeting members and guests and supporting the team. I make a point to check in out on the course and with our superintendent see what the members are seeing and hearing. I find time to answer emails and phone calls in my downtime.

Has golf always been your first love? What other sports/teams are you a fan of?

Golf always came secondary to hockey for me as I played collegiately and grew up in the Midwest (Wisconsin) where that was a more prominent sport than golf.

Tell us about your role at Terravita Golf Club? Why is it important?

I am the Head Golf Professional at Terravita Golf Club. My role is to be an ambassador of the Club, be the face of the golf operation and be a leader to the men and women I employ.

Why has your course decided to invest in Tagmarshal?

Pace of play is always a “hot topic” of discussion at any facility, especially a private golf club. We have a very small fleet of golf carts at our property due to 70% of the golf membership owning their own private golf cart.

Therefore, we needed to find a solution to combat pace of play without forcing the membership to install GPS devices in their aging golf carts. Tagmarshal allowed us an option to do so.

Since the implementation of the Tagmarshal system, how have your customers responded to the on-course experience?

The response from our membership has been overwhelming support of this software as they are knowledgeable of where others are at and the pace of play standards here at the club.

This has only assisted the professional staff’s ability to monitor and speak to issues on the golf course in a timely fashion.

Describe Tagmarshal in three words. 

Reliable, User-friendly, Data-driven

What is your dream golf destination? Why?

Ireland / Scotland golf trip with friends. This area of the world is where golf was developed and has some of the finest golf courses that individuals can play.

Your best golf moment?

Playing Bay Hill with my grandfather, father and Arnold Palmer before he passed.

If you could be a caddie on Tour, whose caddie would you like to be and why?

Max Homa – he is a down-to-earth guy who embodies what a PGA Tour player should represent through his values and easygoing personality.

Watch our latest on-demand webinar, “How Toad Valley uses tech to efficiently manage the player experience and generate additional revenue,” and gain insight into how the 50-year-old public course has improved pace and flow of play through the use of technology.

Learn from the best as Allison George, an NGCOA board member and Toad Valley’s General Manager, in conversation with Bodo Sieber, CEO, Tagmarshal, details how this has resulted in enhanced player experiences, ultimately generating additional revenue.

The webinar is available on-demand right now!

ABOUT THE WEBINAR

Webinar Topic:
How Toad Valley uses tech to efficiently manage the player experience and generate additional revenue

Expert Guest:
Allison George, General Manager, Toad Valley, and NGCOA board member

Golf and entrepreneurs go hand-in-hand and there are so many great stories of golfers who had an idea and turned it into their business. On Green Shoots, Ryan Ballengee talks with golf-industry guests to get the backstories on their product ideas, development, sales and what it’s like to have a job in golf.

In this episode, Tagmarshal co-founder Bodo Sieber joins Ryan to talk about the pace of golf post-COVID and how Tagmarshal is helping hundreds of facilities move faster and become more profitable with data.

Listen to the podcast below to hear Bodo and Ryan in conversation:

REGISTER NOW

Join us for an exciting webinar, titled “How Toad Valley is using tech to efficiently manage the player experience and generate additional revenue,” taking place on Tuesday, 16 May at 10am CDT.

Allison George, an NGCOA board member and Toad Valley’s General Manager, will share valuable insights into how the 50-year-old public course has improved pace and flow of play through the use of technology.

Learn from the best as Allison, in conversation with Bodo Sieber, CEO, Tagmarshal, details how this has resulted in enhanced player experiences, ultimately generating additional revenue.

Webinar Topic: How Toad Valley is using tech to efficiently manage the player experience and generate additional revenue

Date: Tuesday, 16 May 2023

Time: 10am CDT

Expert Guest: Allison George, General Manager, Toad Valley, and NGCOA board member

What you’ll learn:

• Why player experience matters – and which factors are critical to success
• How Toad Valley is using automation to efficiently manage their player experience
• How golfers have responded to the use of technology
• The impact automation technology has had on revenue and how Toad Valley is optimizing this using their screens

Register now to join this webinar!

REGISTER NOW

MEET THE PRESENTER:

Bodo Sieber, CEO, and Co-Founder of Tagmarshal