Mobile Phones

[Michael Morandi]

I’m sure this topic has been brought up before but what is the appropriate use of mobile phones at a golf club?  I’m all in favor of restricting calls in the clubhouse to a designated area, typically a phone booth, and I’m not crazy about the constant checking of texts and emails around the bar. But I’m also not in favor of requiring that the phone be left in the car, nowhere to be found on the hallowed grounds of a club. Most clubs allow for golf carts so long as they are used with proper discretion. Why ban the use of mobile phones on the course when used with discretion, such as checking texts and emails?  Is our game so precious  that it needs to be shut out from the rest of the world while playing it?  Discretion is the operative condition. Don’t impact your fellow golfers. It’s as if the clubs that forbid them on the grounds are saying we are a more pristine golf venue.  Maybe so but this is a sure fire way of limiting the rounds of those with outside responsibilities who need to be reachable. Certainly don’t play if you know you are urgently needed all round long but an occasional business or family related text that your group doesn’t even know you checked?  Discretion!

[Tim_Weiman]

Michael,


I’m happy to leave my phone in the car and just receive texts on my Apple Watch which can do quick replies like “ok, sounds good” or “busy now, will call later”, etc.


If promptly responding to a call is important, I can do that to.


Tim

[Adrian_Stiff]

We had this conversation 15 years ago in this group. I think I was a lone voice then in what would happen.


Mobile Phones on a golf course are essential now. If a club banned them and there was a serious incident I would imagine it would open the flood gates for a substantial financial loss in the courts. There can't really be a club that would not allow them.


Polite use is about all you can expect, some have cockrell noises for ringtones still which is very unpolite IMO.

[A.G._Crockett]

Sadly, most tournament play now, both club and state association, utilize Golf Genius for live scoring, so avoiding having your phone with you is more and more problematic.




That said, live scoring is a far cry from making and taking phone calls while playing. 

[Tim Taylor]

Yeah, the proliferation of GPS and scoring apps would make an outright ban difficult.


Tim

[Tommy Williamsen]

Clubs that have previously banned cell phones are slowly modifying their rules. I played a couple of NJ courses last year that allowed them on the course but not in the clubhouse, except in the locker rooms. On the other hand, I played a course in Florida that demanded you leave your phone in the car.

[Ian Mackenzie]

My take as this has been a topic of frequent discussion:


1. There are those clubs that ban ALL electronic devices, even range finders. OK, fine, they are in the minority, so let them enjoy their little game. (Chicago GC and Onwenstsia in Chicago area.)


2. There are those that seek to limit "live conversations" on cell phones and restrict them to designatated areas: parking lot, locker rooms, the old "phone booth" in the club.


But, in most circumtsances that I have seen, clubs allow "non-verbal communication" on cell phones: text, email and of course photo sharing with others.


I am a huge advocate of the "slippery slope" mantra that certain restrictions are essential to prevent your members lounge, mens grill and dining rooms from turning into an effing Starbuck's.


Sadly, it puts the "enforcement onus" on the staff at these clubs and that's never easy.


At our club, there is a member who is a physician and he routinely would pull up a seat at the bar, take out his laptop and "work" while eating lunch. This is what happens when basic rules arent enforced.


Finally, at a member's urging, he was told by staff that it was against club rules. This guy pulls the "I"m a doctor and I'm dealing with patients" line of BS before he was instructed to deal with his...ahem...CLIENTS in designated areas of the club.


If you allow widespread use of phones and computers, your club will resemble a coffee shop within 60 days....

[Michael Morandi]

Ian,


You make very good points, which is why I included golf carts in my original post.  Players who routinely violate the appropriate use of carts are often reprimanded and can lose the privilege of using them. The same should apply to mobile phones. Becoming Starbucks is not an inevitability.


Michael

[Ian Mackenzie]

Ian,


You make very good points, which is why I included golf carts in my original post.  Players who routinely violate the appropriate use of carts are often reprimanded and can lose the privilege of using them. The same should apply to mobile phones. Becoming Starbucks is not an inevitability.


Michael

Michael: Re. phone calls....NO ONE begrudges a member who, while on-course, excuses him/herself for minute, walks to the hole's periphery and makes a quick call.


What is concerning is the possible evolution of this whereby members or guests are having full-on "deal closing" convos while playing. THIS is simply not allowed.


...Unless, of course,  you live in Florida where decorum and civility (at most courses) has degraded to the point where clubs should direct their members and guests to where the cell or WiFi signal is strongest.

[Kalen Braley]

Ian,

This is where norms get tricky.  I would much rather put up with a guy who takes the occasional phone call and is a loud talker...any day and every day.... over golfers who feel the need to blast music the entire round.   And these days, the later seems to occur far more often, but I'm just one data point.

[Wayne_Kozun]

Keep it on silent and don't hold up play.  Otherwise who gives a f#$%?


I carry my phone while playing and look at it from time to time as I use it for yardage and I have Arccos sensors on my clubs that connect to my phone to log location and I use the phone to verify/enter my score for each hole.

[Wayne_Kozun]

If you allow widespread use of phones and computers, your club will resemble a coffee shop within 60 days....

With the prevalence of WFH in the Covid and post-Covid era, my club in Toronto has designated a meeting room upstairs in the clubhouse as a business center.  Some members will work for a few hours in the morning before going out to play golf.  Over the last decade or so we have significantly relaxed the cell phone policy and the world hasn't ended.  Most clubs here in Canada have done the same, but they have generally been less stuffy in these areas than US clubs.  For example - I am not aware of any clubs in Canada that force the wearing of long pants - RM and Mt Bruno in Montreal did require knee-highs with shorts but that was the worst of it.

[DFarron]

Have a close friend of mine who every time we play golf he slows up play by being on his phone, checking texts etc. Makes me feel like golf is secondary to talking on the phone.


I don't think anyone has a problem with phone calls being taken for an emergency but in my experience they are rarely used for emergencies.


Personally I put my phone in the bag and don't pull it out again until I'm done. I like disconnecting from the world for 4 hours.

[Tim_Weiman]

Yeah, the proliferation of GPS and scoring apps would make an outright ban difficult.


Tim

Regarding GPS apps, I prefer using one on my watch rather than my phone. Much easier to use.

[Tim Martin]

If you aren’t on the golf course and in or around the clubhouse what’s the concern with heading to your car to make phone calls? My biggest issue is people not wanting to listen to someone else's call so if you are on the course put it on vibrate and handle any urgent calls/texts with discretion out of earshot of your playing partners. Finally there is a wide disparity of opinion as far as what is urgent.

[Craig Sweet]

right up there....but not quite...with music.

[Adrian_Stiff]

At our club, there is a member who is a physician and he routinely would pull up a seat at the bar, take out his laptop and "work" while eating lunch. This is what happens when basic rules arent enforced.


Finally, at a member's urging, he was told by staff that it was against club rules. This guy pulls the "I"m a doctor and I'm dealing with patients" line of BS before he was instructed to deal with his...ahem...CLIENTS in designated areas of the club.


If you allow widespread use of phones and computers, your club will resemble a coffee shop within 60 days....
This has made our staff laugh at a club still stuck in the Iron Age.

[Charlie Goerges]

This has made our staff laugh at a club still stuck in the Iron Age.

This is kind of my reaction too. Wouldn't you rather have the doctor at the club, spending his money there than somewhere else?


That said, I like the peace and disconnection that can occur, but it's a real losing battle in most cases I'd imagine. Once people who are currently under 40 make up roughly half of players/members/customers, it will be impossible to maintain most of these rules.

[Chris_Blakely]

Clubs that have previously banned cell phones are slowly modifying their rules. I played a couple of NJ courses last year that allowed them on the course but not in the clubhouse, except in the locker rooms. On the other hand, I played a course in Florida that demanded you leave your phone in the car.

If the round is moving at the correct pace, I never use my phone.  However, to demand you leave your phone in the car and in Florida that would be a very very hot car and ruin your battery is the definition of asinine.   I can guarantee I will want to have the phone with me on my drive to and from the course so this rule is essentially necessitating I leave it at home is beyond silly.  If the actual rule is your phone is not to be seen, fine.


Chris

[Ian Mackenzie]

This has made our staff laugh at a club still stuck in the Iron Age.

This is kind of my reaction too. Wouldn't you rather have the doctor at the club, spending his money there than somewhere else?

Yes, actually. I would welcome the doctor take his dues and F&B revenue elsewhere.


The doctor knew the rules before he wrote his check. If he wanted to break or flout those rules, he couldve chosen a club with no such policies.


Many clubs offer a break from these tiresome norms and, solely while a member and their guests use these facilities, it's not too much to ask that they use their electronic devices conspiciously.


Hey, you might like that your club soon morph to resemble the LIV Golf Tour...so be it.
I see the golf club to be a welcome respite from the invasion of supposed necessary communication foisted on us by cell phones.


They arent making us any happier, so if these 40-somethings want continued access to devices that degrade human happiness, then I will know that will be my cue to move to Dornoch finally.


"You cant change people, but you can CHANGE people."....

[Adrian_Stiff]

This has made our staff laugh at a club still stuck in the Iron Age.

This is kind of my reaction too. Wouldn't you rather have the doctor at the club, spending his money there than somewhere else?


That said, I like the peace and disconnection that can occur, but it's a real losing battle in most cases I'd imagine. Once people who are currently under 40 make up roughly half of players/members/customers, it will be impossible to maintain most of these rules.

We reckon we would lose 99% of our business if we said NO PHONES, we love the idea of a doctor bringing his laptop to the club to work and buy his lunch and a drink with us.

[Thomas Dai]

I have a digital camera. It’s also a mobile phone (amongst a few other things).
Atb

[Mark Pearce]

This has made our staff laugh at a club still stuck in the Iron Age.

This is kind of my reaction too. Wouldn't you rather have the doctor at the club, spending his money there than somewhere else?

Yes, actually. I would welcome the doctor take his dues and F&B revenue elsewhere.


The doctor knew the rules before he wrote his check. If he wanted to break or flout those rules, he couldve chosen a club with no such policies.


Many clubs offer a break from these tiresome norms and, solely while a member and their guests use these facilities, it's not too much to ask that they use their electronic devices conspiciously.


Hey, you might like that your club soon morph to resemble the LIV Golf Tour...so be it.
I see the golf club to be a welcome respite from the invasion of supposed necessary communication foisted on us by cell phones.


They arent making us any happier, so if these 40-somethings want continued access to devices that degrade human happiness, then I will know that will be my cue to move to Dornoch finally.


"You cant change people, but you can CHANGE people."....

Just as a matter of interest, what harm is this doctor doing?  Why does his behaviour upset you so much?


As to the coffee shop comment, there's an ongoing discussion on a podcast here which features the (always interesting) Eddie Pepperrell as to whether golf clubs would be better (and more successful) places with a coffee shop vibe rather than a pub vibe.

[Adrian_Stiff]

Ian, the club sounds like a snobotorium.


If it does not change (which it will) it will be defunct.

[Wayne_Kozun]

If you aren’t on the golf course and in or around the clubhouse what’s the concern with heading to your car to make phone calls? My biggest issue is people not wanting to listen to someone else's call so if you are on the course put it on vibrate and handle any urgent calls/texts with discretion out of earshot of your playing partners. Finally there is a wide disparity of opinion as far as what is urgent.

Who cares?  I DGAF if I am at the range or putting green and the person beside me stops for a few minutes to take a call or to send an email/text.  It isn't impairing my enjoyment. Holding up play on the course to take a call is a different story, but hopefully you can have his/her peers to shame him to not slow down the group.