Streamsong to "pursue massive putting green"

[Amol Yajnik]

From a Q&A on GolfDigest.com with Richard Mack, who works for Mosaic and helped develop the idea of Streamsong:

GDS: Are there any plans to expand the property?

RM: We're pursuing development of a massive putting green, a la Bandon Dunes and Pinehurst, in 2014. And this falls into our discussion into six- and 12-hole loops. You also can get families and guests to go out and have a fun putting contest. We have a very interesting area for it. It'll be adjacent to the Lodge. I think it'll be very compelling. It'll be fun, and the land will allow us to add a little craziness to it. But it will also ensure that people who are at the Lodge, can still have that golf DNA to it. And you don't necessarily need to get into our Sprinter shuttle to the golf courses to enjoy a golf component. That's something we're looking at in 2014.

GDS: How about plans to build more courses?

RM: The sky's the limit. There are things in place. We could always opt toward a short course. There are a lot of people who get excited over that.

We'll be methodical. But we have plenty of opportunity. And plenty of land owning the acreage [16,000 acres] we do. And the land is in close proximity to the Lodge and the clubhouse. We feel extremely compelling golf could be developed. It's something that our customers will tell us. If there's demand for more, we'd certainly be interested in pursuing it.

There's things that are in place. We could always opt toward a short course. [The question would be] how does a short course fit into a facility with multiple championship-regulation courses. There's a lot of people who get excited over that. And in terms of additional golf, people who come out to Streamsong, because it is a destination, they're there for a purpose. Having more than 36 holes, whether it's 54 or 72 holes, time will ultimately tell. But certainly the ability to have more golf, maybe folks will stay for three nights instead of two nights. So we just made this significant investment to our infrastructure with a beautiful Lodge that 200-plus people can stay at. We have the base infrastructure investments behind us. So now what we want to be able to do is continue to offer compelling golf that would be on the scale and the class of the best golf resorts ahead in the years ahead.

GDS: Any timetables in place on this?

RM: We're studying it right now. And hopefully, if things go well, the plan is for implementation and to have the putting green built in 2014.



Read More http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-tours-news/blogs/local-knowledge/2014/02/how-did-streamsong-come-to-be-a-qa-with-its-visionary.html#ixzz2t5eTwrb3

[Patrick_Mucci]

My question is:

Are golf clubs stored at the Clubhouse or at the lodge ?

If your clubs are at the clubhouse and the putting green at the lodge, that's an inherent problem.

[Rees Milikin]

My question is:

Are golf clubs stored at the Clubhouse or at the lodge ?

If your clubs are at the clubhouse and the putting green at the lodge, that's an inherent problem.

They will have plenty of these for visitors to rent.

[jeffwarne]

My question is:

Are golf clubs stored at the Clubhouse or at the lodge ?

If your clubs are at the clubhouse and the putting green at the lodge, that's an inherent problem.

We all have our crosses to bear in life....

[Michael Whitaker]

My question is:

Are golf clubs stored at the Clubhouse or at the lodge ?

If your clubs are at the clubhouse and the putting green at the lodge, that's an inherent problem.

Maybe they will have caddies fetch your putter for you and read the greens... for only $40 plus gratuity. A bargain! 

[Garland Bayley]

My question is:

Are golf clubs stored at the Clubhouse or at the lodge ?

If your clubs are at the clubhouse and the putting green at the lodge, that's an inherent problem.

They will have plenty of these for visitors to rent.

I think that green one has Patrick name on it.

[JR Potts]

Should change the subject heading to "Streamsong to Totally Rip-Off Bandon Concept and use in Florida."

I have to say - I took my second trip to Streamsong a few weeks ago.  Again, it was really nice.  However, given the high cost and litany of golfing options available, I'm not sure I'm going to go back anytime soon unless there's something else drawing me there....and a big putting green isn't going to do it.

[Greg Tallman]

Should change the subject heading to "Streamsong to Totally Rip-Off Bandon Concept and use in Florida."

I have to say - I took my second trip to Streamsong a few weeks ago.  Again, it was really nice.  However, given the high cost and litany of golfing options available, I'm not sure I'm going to go back anytime soon unless there's something else drawing me there....and a big putting green isn't going to do it.

High cost in relation to what?

Using your land for something that has created buzz elsewhere is not a smart move?

Litany of golfing options where?

[Rees Milikin]

Litany of golfing options where?

Quantity over Quality = Florida golf

[JR Potts]

Should change the subject heading to "Streamsong to Totally Rip-Off Bandon Concept and use in Florida."

I have to say - I took my second trip to Streamsong a few weeks ago.  Again, it was really nice.  However, given the high cost and litany of golfing options available, I'm not sure I'm going to go back anytime soon unless there's something else drawing me there....and a big putting green isn't going to do it.

High cost in relation to what?

Using your land for something that has created buzz elsewhere is not a smart move?

Litany of golfing options where?

Across the globe.  Unlike some on here, I'm limited to two to three trips per year.

Re: high cost, yeah, it's expensive.  $400 dollar room...$300+ for 36 holes....$250+ for caddies for those two rounds.  Yeah, if I'm dropping that much money, I'm going to experience other places.

[Patrick_Mucci]

My question is:

Are golf clubs stored at the Clubhouse or at the lodge ?

If your clubs are at the clubhouse and the putting green at the lodge, that's an inherent problem.

We all have our crosses to bear in life....

Jeff,

Do I have to do all your thinking for you ?

After dinner, retrieving your putter to engage in a little night putting on an illuminated putting green, without the Dean's daughter, is made problematic if your clubs are back at the Pro Shop and the putting green is at the lodge.

Logistics man, logistics............... and a little common sense.

You have so much to learn and I can only devote so much time.

[Mark Fedeli]

The hotel is completely detached from the golf in a way I found to be somewhat awkward, so a putting course is great news. A lighted short course would be an even better idea, but they expressed pride to me about the hotel's separation from the golf, so we shall see.

I'm just back from a trip and stay at the lodge. The golf was phenomenal, of course. But as I've worked in the hotel industry for years, I was particularly curious about the accommodation aspect.

The new hotel... let's just say it's not the relaxed vibe one imagines from an isolated, minimalist golf mecca (unless that mecca is in the Meatpacking District). I also found its rates to be outrageously priced, even coming from NYC. I expect the Best Western Bowling Green and Holiday Inn Express Bartow to see some increased business as a result. The hotel portion of the Stay & Play essentially came out to $325 per person/per night, tax included, for sharing a room. That represents serious negative value as you could save about $125 pp/pn by booking off-package hotel and golf.

I will say that the service was fantastic and not at all overbearing. They were particularly adept at handling our awkward arrival/departure times. The locker rooms and staging area out front the clubhouse were key.

It's pretty clear they are angling for both the hardcore, Bandon-loving, destination golfers as well as spa junkies, couples, and those for whom golf is but just another available activity. I'm not sure that combo has been attempted before so it'll be interesting to see how it plays out. I'm very excited to get back to those courses but not as excited to have another drink at Fragmentary Blue.

Sorry for rambling. I know there have been a gazillion Streamsong threads but just wanted to add some details about the new lodging.

[Daryl David]

Agree on the lodging comments. The prices are way out of line. Not even 12 dollar hot dog out of line. Farther.

There is really an incentive to stay off site. Lakeland is not that far and not a bad town. Since green fees are not higher for those staying off site, I am not sure why you would. The hotel is the exact opposite of what a golf group is looking for. (unless you are some rare breed of hipster golfer)

[Eric Smith]

I would like to thank Streamsong Resort for being so busy three weeks ago that I couldn't get 36 hole tee times on either of the days I was hoping to play. Kudos to them I say. Their being unable to accommodate my request allowed me to venture to Bandon for the first time and I've been on cloud 9 ever since!

[Patrick_Mucci]

Eric,

You can't fault Streamsong for being busy, that's a tribute to the product they've created.

I wonder how much of the hotel pricing is driven by the amortization schedule they've chosen ?

Does anyone know what the occupancy rate has been ?

What would they have to reduce the price of a room to, to make it attractive ?

And let's not forget that Bandon charges $ 400 a night for the cabin rooms

[William_G]

Eric,

You can't fault Streamsong for being busy, that's a tribute to the product they've created.

I wonder how much of the hotel pricing is driven by the amortization schedule they've chosen ?

Does anyone know what the occupancy rate has been ?

What would they have to reduce the price of a room to, to make it attractive ?

And let's not forget that Bandon charges $ 400 a night for the cabin rooms

huh, are you saying that $400/nt for their best room (2 or 1 person) is high, all the while you can stay at the Inn overlooking #18 at Bandon in a double or king for max $370 for the room (1 or 2 folks)

while at SS, "The hotel portion of the Stay & Play essentially came out to $325 per person/per night, tax included, for sharing a room."

the analogies soon will end w/ Bandon albeit the management will remain the same with Kemper

the putting should be free and they will have lots of drink holders, LOL

I hope they encourage putting inside out while holing out, and they dissuade people from keeping score

[Daryl David]

Not really sure what the price for stay and play really is. A friend arranging a small group trip to SS had 3 of the travelers all begin calling reservations on the same day and calling back each day for the next 3 days.  In total that was 9 separate reservations requests for the same date range. The callers were given 7 different quotes on the stay and play package!  The golfer getting the lowest quote (which happened to be $339 vs. the high of $575) booked the whole trip for the group while the others canceled their Higher priced reservations.  It seems that SS might be more affordable than it seems if you ignore the website and just keep calling. Sounds a bit like airline capacity pricing models are being used or the reso agents are not well trained.

[Mark Fedeli]

Eric,

You can't fault Streamsong for being busy, that's a tribute to the product they've created.

I wonder how much of the hotel pricing is driven by the amortization schedule they've chosen ?

Does anyone know what the occupancy rate has been ?

What would they have to reduce the price of a room to, to make it attractive ?

And let's not forget that Bandon charges $ 400 a night for the cabin rooms

I would've found the $400-$450 off-package rate reasonable, versus the $600-$650 package rate. It's their perogative, but we would have stayed an extra night or two, and played more rounds there, if that had been the case. We're not afraid to spend money, but as it was, it just felt too exploitive. That said, I felt the golf was perfectly priced for the season and quality.

We were there Feb 10-11, which I believe is exactly two weeks after it opened, and never saw more than one or two other groups of people in the hotel or in the bar/restaurants at night. The courses were very busy during the day and the staff had everything running like clockwork.

 

[Mark Fedeli]

Not really sure what the price for stay and play really is. A friend arranging a small group trip to SS had 3 of the travelers all begin calling reservations on the same day and calling back each day for the next 3 days.  In total that was 9 separate reservations requests for the same date range. The callers were given 7 different quotes on the stay and play package!  The golfer getting the lowest quote (which happened to be $339 vs. the high of $575) booked the whole trip for the group while the others canceled their Higher priced reservations.  It seems that SS might be more affordable than it seems if you ignore the website and just keep calling. Sounds a bit like airline capacity pricing models are being used or the reso agents are not well trained.

That's interesting. We did ours over the phone and saved a bit versus online but $339 sounds crazy to me. After the 36 holes and breakfast that's essentially a free room. Also surprising that the quotes would go down after the other reservations were booked. What dates are they going?

[Daryl David]

Not really sure what the price for stay and play really is. A friend arranging a small group trip to SS had 3 of the travelers all begin calling reservations on the same day and calling back each day for the next 3 days.  In total that was 9 separate reservations requests for the same date range. The callers were given 7 different quotes on the stay and play package!  The golfer getting the lowest quote (which happened to be $339 vs. the high of $575) booked the whole trip for the group while the others canceled their Higher priced reservations.  It seems that SS might be more affordable than it seems if you ignore the website and just keep calling. Sounds a bit like airline capacity pricing models are being used or the reso agents are not well trained.

That's interesting. We did ours over the phone and saved a bit versus online but $339 sounds crazy to me. After the 36 holes and breakfast that's essentially a free room. Also surprising that the quotes would go down after the other reservations were booked. What dates are they going?

I believe the trip is mid October.

[Ben Carey]

I just returned from a stay at the Lodge and was thoroughly disappointed with everything related to the new hotel and lodging. The course and lodging at the clubhouse are great - but the lodge is a totally different experience.

When I returned, I found out that I was overcharged by close to $2k for unauthorized charges on my credit card by the lodge. After multiple calls and messages that were never returned, I was left with the only of option of disputing the charges. Yes, they're new and just getting their feet under them - but this is ridiculous.

As far as the legit charges go - they are excessive. I was charged $18 for a Moscow Mule (and they weren't even served in a proper mug). My wife called to ask if they could "put some beer in the fridge" for my arrival (it was my birthday). They responded "absolutely" - called her back to tell her it was "taken care of" - and they proceeded to let her know that the 12 pack cost her $120.

I have a lot of love the courses, but the lodge has managed to completely kill the experience for me and leave a bad taste. While Streamsong certainly has some great golf, they are far from the "Bandon of the East."

Massive putting green or not, I'd recommend staying at the clubhouse if you make the trip. Better atmosphere, better food, better prices.