OVER THE last twelve months many of our golf courses have begun to enter the real World and offer some competitive priced golf to our golfers. We have seen more and more flexibility enter the market with staged payments and even weekly membership available at some clubs. This is a far cry from the days when the clubs were calling all the shots and were charging stupid prices for a round of golf.
The big question though is; have they acted too late and have they made too many cutbacks in order to get competitive? Certainly we have seen wholesale redundancies in the golfing community but let’s all hope that the long term results will make all this worthwhile.
Every single golf course in Spain needs more customers and if they deny that fact then they are lying or want their golf courses repossessed by the banks to get out of the financial mire they have got themselves into. With the state of Spanish banks that is not very likely so there are very many opportunities for the resident and holiday golfer to take advantage of. All of our golf societies should now be out visiting the golf course managers securing deals for next season. The golf course managers should be biting your hands off to secure bookings where you deal direct and no commission has to be paid out.
For the small groups of golfers, deals are there to be done even if you are only playing as a twosome or even just once a month, the courses need your money to pay their costs. The golf courses are now aware that to get something in the bank is much better than nothing at all. As I have said many times to those running golf courses, the grass will grow anyway so you may as well get some money in rather than have to pay the staff from reserves that are dwindling at an alarming rate.
Unfortunately there are many golfers out there who will see the struggles of the golf courses as just reward for their greed during the property boom and when the exchange rate was somewhere we are unlikely to see it again for some time. The golf courses are no different than any other business that was here during the good times, all businesses overcharged to a certain extent and thought the good times would never end, and not just the Spaniards either.
So whether you are single golfer or a society secretary get out there and secure yourself a deal that should last many years more than the current one. The opportunities are there for all to benefit make the most of them before it’s too late and we lose our precious golf courses which are in short supply anyway in some parts of our region.
Win a round of golf for 2 including buggy at the beautiful El Plantio Resort in Alicante
Answer the question below correctly to have a chance to win. The winner of this fantastic prize will be picked at random at the end of each month. Send your entries by email to
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. The decision of the editor of Round Town News will be final in making the winning selection.
Question for 15th June 2012:
How many major championships did Seve Ballesteros win.
A. Four
B. Five
C. Six
All answers must be received no later than 5pm on 30th June 2012 to be entered into June’s draw, which will be made on July1st. The winner will be announced in RTN on July 6th 2012.
The Professional Scene
SLOW PLAY by tour professionals is what many blame for the slow play we see in amateur ranks. How good it was to see Chief European Tour Referee John Paramour dish out a one shot penalty at the recent Wales Open. Unfortunately the penalty was given to Ross Fisher, a player admired by many and one you would not necessarily associate with slow play. The European Tour should be congratulated for their bravery in tackling this blight on the game, maybe the amateur ranks will soon follow suit.
The effects of the previous week’s punishment certainly did not upset Fisher as on Saturday he once again found himself in contention at The Nordea Masters in Sweden. The pace of his play was certainly considerably better as he continued to climb back up the rankings.
Lee Westwood would almost certainly be World Number One by a street if he could putt as well as Luke Donald. After eleven missed putts from inside eight feet in round four Westwood still found himself atop the leaderboard to claim his fortieth win on Tour and his third Nordea Masters, a great confidence booster heading to a major championship. Fisher finished five shots behind in second place while a resurgent Sergio Garcia actually found the touch with his putter and finished in third place.
Meanwhile over in America Rory McIllroy added The FedEx St Jude Classic to his schedule in an attempt to get some confidence back. It paid off handsomely until he came to the 72nd hole on Sunday when he took a triple bogey seven that saw him drop from first to seventh place in the event, nevertheless he gained some much needed confidence before he took the four hour flight to San Francisco.
The young ladies of GB & I aspiring to rise to the Ladies Tour put on a wonderful display at Nairn to secure The Curtis Cup, the amateur version of The Solheim Cup, for the first time since 1996 winning 5 of the singles matches on Sunday.
Golfing tip of the week
What is wrong with trying to hit the ball straight every time? Give a tour player the option and they will pick straight every time over trying to control a ball that moves one way or the other. Practice hitting it straight to get the most from your game.
Noel Eastwell Golf Academy at El Plantio
Quality coaching at reduced rates for RTN Golf Club members, contact Noel on 639 730 891.
22May2013
