Bucks County Golf

Did ya see where "hot lanes" are popping up all over the place? These so called "Lexus Lanes" apparently reduce congestion on the roads but can become quite costly for drivers.

The unpopular "Car Tax" is being increased in Virginia, Slick Eddie is hell bent on raising money by instituting tolls on Pennsylvania's interstate highways like Route 80. Closer to home the Scudder Falls Bridge over the Delaware River is slated to have tolls implemented in the near future.

I bought an airline ticket recently and booked a car at the same time. Seven different taxes, usage fees, terminal fees and who knows what else.

The new health reform bill will begin the taxing of medical devices, and the States are starting usage fees from everything from high school sports and libraries. And don't get me started on red light cameras that are there for "safety" but are really huge revenue producers.

This all got me thinking about the cost of playing golf.

People always complain about the cost of green's fees. Everyone is always looking for a bargain.

Here's an idea: Why not pay a green's fee for, say, 80 strokes on the golf course. Walk into Jim Bogan's pro shop at Bensalem and pluck down $30 bucks on the counter. For that you get the use of a cart and the golf course for 80 shots.

Hit less shots, get a rebate. Naz Gagliardi and Matt Foust will love that!

Anything over 80 shots, well, there's a $1-per-stroke addition. Those who want to continue playing (past the front nine, knowing some of the guys I've played with) will be paying big bucks to play golf that day. Those who leave after 80 shots, well, not only will be they be saving money but cutting the time for others to play the course.

Of course, there are problems with this approach. When you hit a ball out of bounds and receive the stroke a distance penalty, you really didn't hit that first ball onto the golf course. Some would argue that shot shouldn't count among the 80 shots included in your fee. Guess you'd get a rebate there.

By the same token, do mulligans count extra? Perhaps you can by mulligans at a discount, say 3 for a buck, prior to your round. Those wouldn't count toward your 80 stoke total.

And what about gimmies, those putts that are good without hitting them. Do they count?

Seems to me some cheap players will be giving shots from off the green in an effort to keep their stroke count low.

There's a real idea here. Average scores will be reduced, and who isn't for that? The time to play a round will be reduced, and everyone wants that. Revenues for the golf courses will increase, bringing management on board.

Less strokes equals lower handicaps as well as faster rounds. More strokes means more revenue for operators. Sounds like a plan.

Now, how about if practice swings get taxed, er, charged a quarter each?

Comments (4)

Show/Hide comments

 Show/Hide comment form