all this time I thought the biggest problem at the range was people TAKING balls and putting them in their bags
Jeff,
I thought about this other side of the coin at the beginning of the thread, and maybe it has been mentioned somewhere in the 6 pages. I think we would all agree that taking range balls to play the course isn't acceptable, and for the life of me I can't see the difference in bringing your own balls to hit on their range.
Similar case: A guy pays the lower rate for walking, then hitches rides on a partner's cart between several holes. He justifies this by saying the seat was there anyway, that it doesn't cost the course any more for his ass to be parked in it for a few green-to-tee rides, that he did it for "pace of play", and that he walked every actual golf hole.
While he is correct about the empty seat, the bottom line is that he is stealing services from the course, pure and simple. You can't be a little bit pregnant or a little bit dead, and stealing only a little bit is still stealing.
Swing a weighted club, or buy some range balls. Support the muni, and be glad they're still there and operating. And if you decide to take your business elsewhere, don't be surprised if they, too, frown on stealing services. Just sayin'...