We have established why golf can not survive when if you have to ask what your hot dog costs you can't afford it. It's a $2000 nut, enjoy it and don't sweat the details.
John,
As a consumer, we all get to make choices. When I wrote my initial reviews from week one of Steamsong's opening, I was very positive about the courses and the experience. I appreciate that SS gives us the choice of carrying, walking with caddy, or riding.
In two years from now, I am the "target golfer" for Streamsong as I like great golf, I am in Orlando twice a year, and I really don't make that many hardcore buddy trips just to play golf. Most people here will move onto other courses once the initial buzz fades, but I will still be around and calling Pete to make the trip.
I too prefer to just pay the price and enjoy the experience. We typically get Disney Annual Passes for the theme parks because we like to come and go at the parks without having to worry about our breakeven point. Have dinner "in France" (at Epcot) for two hours and just enjoy the experience.
Nobody is ever going to accuse Disney of offering cheap food up the road, but a $12 hot dog at Disney would piss me off. I never feel like Disney is in it for the money, and intellectually I know they are as a public company with shareholders in the USA. That is the delicate balance that Streamsong needs to find with their premium pricing model.
You can call me cheap all you want, but until I control a monopoly like you
, I will continue to compare Streamsong to Disney and Mountain Lake rather than Highlands Reserve or Deltona. That is a good thing for Streamsong as they would go broke quickly with Deltona pricing.