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Mike_Young

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Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« on: September 09, 2012, 07:37:32 PM »
When you play a club in another town as a guest what are some of the things you can pick up from the course and clubhouse to tell one the type of players that play there? 
I'll start with one:  the type of divots on the back tees of the par three holes will speak volumes.  what else? ;D
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Randy Thompson

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #1 on: September 09, 2012, 07:55:43 PM »
How crowded it is during the weekdays!
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Bill_McBride

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #2 on: September 09, 2012, 08:06:02 PM »
What percentage walks.

The golf shop gives out daily pin sheets. 

There are big towels available to the players.
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David_Elvins

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #3 on: September 09, 2012, 08:12:58 PM »
The numbers on the handicap board in the locker room. 

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jeffwarne

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #4 on: September 09, 2012, 08:15:45 PM »
Mike
There are NO divots on our back tees
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Bill_McBride

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #5 on: September 09, 2012, 08:17:06 PM »
Quote from: jeffwarne on September 09, 2012, 08:15:45 PM
Mike
There are NO divots on our back tees

All driver length?   ;D
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Mark Johnson

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #6 on: September 09, 2012, 08:18:24 PM »
some more


quality of practice facilties
quantity of people at the practice facilties (especially the putting and chipping green)
bucket of water at 1 and 10 to wet towel
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Jason Walker

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #7 on: September 09, 2012, 09:19:04 PM »
Quote from: Bill_McBride on September 09, 2012, 08:06:02 PM
What percentage walks.

The golf shop gives out daily pin sheets.  

There are big towels available to the players.

Not sure any of these apply at my club, and by any measure we have one of the best playing memberships in the GAP (Philly) area.

A few of our characteristics:

-75%+ rounds are carts
-no pin sheets
-no big towels
-160 yard max "warm-up" range
-no water bucket
-a near empty practice facility (save for some of the seniors who regularly use it)
-some horrific back tee divots (we have a combo set of tees utilizing the back tees on 11 holes)

Not sure what it says other than there's probably nothing more telling than looking at the handicap board.
« Last Edit: September 09, 2012, 09:23:05 PM by Jason Walker »
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Mike_Young

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #8 on: September 09, 2012, 09:33:11 PM »
As Jason says:  his club doesn't have much of the "cool" golf signs so many relate to good clubs.  I'm not talking about looking at the handicap board or the type towels they have. 
Yea the range can tell you much.  If the divots are in small areas and are level smooth compact divots vs. a club where the divots are deep, unlevel and spread over a 5 foot area then that tells you alot.  It doesn't matter how long it is. 
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Sam Morrow

Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #9 on: September 09, 2012, 09:34:41 PM »
I've noticed that most clubs I've played with very good playing memberships have a very good practice green that is often the center of the action.
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Mark Steffey

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #10 on: September 09, 2012, 10:26:07 PM »
overrated & oversloped (low)

underrated & undersloped (the guys i look to invite to m/g's  ;D )
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John Ezekowitz

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #11 on: September 09, 2012, 10:33:43 PM »
There are some confounding factors here (i.e. amount of play), but I think the number of repaired ballmarks you see on greens is a good indication. Ballmarks mean members are hitting greens, repairs mean they do it regularly enough to remember to fix them.

Of course, this indicator is less valid at links courses or places with super F&F conditions.
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mike_beene

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #12 on: September 10, 2012, 01:03:27 AM »
Unless you are being hustled,the gold standard is the presence of a ball retriever in the bag.
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Carl Nichols

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #13 on: September 10, 2012, 11:43:03 AM »
Quote from: mike_beene on September 10, 2012, 01:03:27 AM
Unless you are being hustled,the gold standard is the presence of a ball retriever in the bag.

Agreed.  Though you might not want to overlook the towel clipped to the belt. 
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Ben Sims

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #14 on: September 10, 2012, 11:55:25 AM »
The amount of elbow or knee braces on the membership's over 50 crowd.  Any time I go play in the dogfight at my club and I see some older gentleman with an elbow or knee brace, I look for another group.  Those dudes are playing through nagging pain or injury, which means they're invested.  Which means they're probably good.
« Last Edit: September 10, 2012, 11:58:15 AM by Ben Sims »
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BCrosby

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #15 on: September 10, 2012, 01:27:05 PM »
A well capitalized club with a sabby locker room and clubhouse.
« Last Edit: September 10, 2012, 01:31:22 PM by BCrosby »
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David Davis

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #16 on: September 10, 2012, 01:40:17 PM »
I don't think these rules fly outside the US. I also don't think you can walk into any club in the UK or Ireland, ok any club I've been to and assume anything but the fact that these boys can play, of course they will nearly all modestly state that they cannot and are a bunch of hackers. Don't be fooled by the lack of bathroom attendants to hand you the towels when you get out of the shower and squirt the shaving cream in your hand before you shave, the fact that the valet service doesn't seem to be working today, there is no tended bag drop or the guy that normally cleans your shoes after the round is missing....

No divots on the back tees probably will mean the ground is too hard to make divots without bending your clubs permanently.

Just assume they all can play. That's safer.
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JLahrman

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #17 on: September 10, 2012, 01:44:17 PM »
Quote from: mike_beene on September 10, 2012, 01:03:27 AM
Unless you are being hustled,the gold standard is the presence of a ball retriever in the bag.

Agreed...just walk through the bag racks and come up with a rough percentage.

The amount of water on the course, and the frugality of the members must also be considered.
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Brad Klein

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #18 on: September 10, 2012, 09:51:40 PM »
Telltale signs of phoney clubs/courses/facilities:

-Mandatory long conversation with guard at gate house in middle of nowhere
-Bag drop guys wearing radio head sets
-Courses that automatically load your bag on a golf cart
-Continuous, paved, curbed cart paths
-Club with the full plastic kit on each tee of ball washers, benches, cemetery stone signs for hole
-Green speed(s) posted for each hole
-Yardage markers on sprinklers to front/middle/back of each green
-Players with oversize golf bags who load them on the cart backwards so their names show or they can show the brand of their bag
-Scented cooling towel handed out behind 18th green
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John Kavanaugh

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #19 on: September 10, 2012, 09:56:06 PM »
Every great private club has a shoe guy more interesting than your host.
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Sam Morrow

Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #20 on: September 10, 2012, 11:23:03 PM »
Quote from: John Kavanaugh on September 10, 2012, 09:56:06 PM
Every great private club has a shoe guy more interesting than your host.

Who you can place a bet with, for entertainment purposes only. Actually great locker room guys could be a solid thread.
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Steve Lang

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #21 on: September 11, 2012, 12:11:12 AM »
 8) when the mga is aka the men's gambling association and how stiff the bloody mary's are served...
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David Davis

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #22 on: September 11, 2012, 06:19:20 AM »
Brad, I think I'd quite like two items on your list to be done more often.

Front/mid/back distances on sprinkler heads. Great if you are only playing the course once, speeds up play as well. Plus outside the US we don't all have Bushnells to make up for there being no distances marked anywhere. I like to know the distances even if I'm not good enough to hit them every time and I'm not good enough to guess which iron it is and be right more than 80% of the time. Does this mean you are against yardage markers all together or just the over exaggerated marker every few yards?

Scented cooling towels being handed out behind the 18th green. This sounds great, how come I've never had the honor of experiencing this? I'm all for more scented cooling towels, especially if they are followed by personal massages from the Swedish (women's) bikini team.
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Scott Sander

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #23 on: September 11, 2012, 06:50:51 AM »
...the course is great, but the pool and tennis courts look like hell. ;)
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Dan Herrmann

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Re: Hints that tell one the handicap of a membership at a club.
« Reply #24 on: September 11, 2012, 07:18:10 AM »
Better yet - no pool or tennis courts.
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