Off to the Hunt

[DenisO]

I will report back with my disappointments and displeasures shortly...

[Marcos]

Lucky guy. This is on my bucket list as we have never had the pleasure to play it. Hope to get out one day.

[quinner]

About the course or Pablo's game?!

[DenisO]

The Good:
- Nice range, grass in the practice area is good. Lots of balls everywhere for chipping in the short area
- Fairways are quite nice, almost like carpet. Members do a good job of filling their divots with sand.
- Clubhouse is big, good service (overly good, I think she was trying to pickup Pablo)

The Bad:
- More than a couple of greens that are in pretty bad shape. One of them should not even be open, at least jvincent stuck it so close he didn't have to putt on it and had a tap in bird . It was just dirt. There was an enormous industrial fan beside it, I don't know what the hell it was doing but it looked weird. The ones that were in decent condition ran nicely though. The greenskeeper needs to be fired
- Too many maintenance people on the course the entire day
- Course is overrated. We played the tips, really not that long or overly difficult, don't see how it can be almost a rating of 74. Just stay out of the deep bunkers
- The rough around the greens were sometimes sparse and it was mud with a bit of grass. My fault for being in the rough though I guess haha.
- None of the holes stood out in terms of wow-factor.

That said, the weather was perfect and overall I enjoyed my round a lot. I'll probably play again next year (once a year kind of thing) unless I play in some tournaments hosted by them.

[jvincent]

Good summary. Upon reflecting while washing my clubs, I'll be sending the GM an email about the conditions.

[nokids]

We need someone with an expertise in grass to fix a few of these greens. Habsfan?

On a serious note, yes the greens of West 1 and 4 should be closed. They started the season in good shape, but have deteriorated as the season has gone along. I'm sure everyone there is embarassed by them, I know I am.

[Adska]

Good summary. Upon reflecting while washing my clubs, I'll be sending the GM an email about the conditions.

Good luck with that... Let me know how that interaction goes!

[jvincent]

Email has been sent. We'll see what kind of reply I get.

[habsfan]

The Good:
- Nice range, grass in the practice area is good. Lots of balls everywhere for chipping in the short area
- Fairways are quite nice, almost like carpet. Members do a good job of filling their divots with sand.
- Clubhouse is big, good service (overly good, I think she was trying to pickup Pablo)

The Bad:
- More than a couple of greens that are in pretty bad shape. One of them should not even be open, at least jvincent stuck it so close he didn't have to putt on it and had a tap in bird . It was just dirt. There was an enormous industrial fan beside it, I don't know what the hell it was doing but it looked weird. The ones that were in decent condition ran nicely though. The greenskeeper needs to be fired
- Too many maintenance people on the course the entire day
- Course is overrated. We played the tips, really not that long or overly difficult, don't see how it can be almost a rating of 74. Just stay out of the deep bunkers
- The rough around the greens were sometimes sparse and it was mud with a bit of grass. My fault for being in the rough though I guess haha.
- None of the holes stood out in terms of wow-factor.

That said, the weather was perfect and overall I enjoyed my round a lot. I'll probably play again next year (once a year kind of thing) unless I play in some tournaments hosted by them.

of course they love em, they probably think Pablo is a millionaire.

[nokids]

I tell them I'm poor. They lol.

[Johnyc]

Any luck with a response?

[jvincent]

Nothing yet but it was a long weekend. If I don't hear by Friday I assume no response will be coming.

[nokids]

The same greens that were aweful on Sunday were in greener/better shape on Monday. See John, your email is already making a difference!

[DenisO]

That massive fan must be doing the trick?

[BC MIST]

Good summary. Upon reflecting while washing my clubs, I'll be sending the GM an email about the conditions.

Am curious as to what you information they will get from your comments that they don't already know.

Tis the season of high heat and humidity which causes severe stress to grass and to maintenance crews and many courses do suffer some damage from various fungi that if not detected immediately do their dastardly deeds. FWIW, the course was in immaculate condition when the Alexander of Tunis tournament was played in early July.

[DenisO]

I think it would've been nice to at least be notified before the round starts that two of the greens I'd be playing were in really bad shape. They'd then get an A+ in customer service.

[jvincent]

Like Denis said, it would have been nice to have been notified in advance of the state. As with all things customer relations managing/setting expectations are key.

If I'm a member hosting a guest then I want them to be impressed/happy with the conditions since that reflects on the me and the club. I fully understand that greens are tricky and in my email, which I have not received a reply to, I stated that. But the lack of notification was simply bad customer service.

If the conditions we saw existed at any of the higher end public courses (Marshes, Loch March, Equinelle, Stonebridge) you can be sure there would have been an uproar here. I'm positive the members at the Hunt are not happy.

[nokids]

If I understand your position John, you wanna do North/South this weekend?

[jvincent]

If it's free, you bet.

[Adska]

Just my opinion, but I think it's the responsibility of the member bringing you out to let you know about the state of the course. It's not like 1 and 4 West green became unplayable overnight - those have been struggling for a while.

I can assure you that the member base is not happy about the greens either.

[habsfan]

Just my opinion, but I think it's the responsibility of the member bringing you out to let you know about the state of the course. It's not like 1 and 4 West green became unplayable overnight - those have been struggling for a while.

I can assure you that the member base is not happy about the greens either.

yeah exactly, blame Pablo, how do u handle refunds Pablo?

[big easy]

Am curious as to what you information they will get from your comments that they don't already know.

Tis the season of high heat and humidity which causes severe stress to grass and to maintenance crews and many courses do suffer some damage from various fungi that if not detected immediately do their dastardly deeds. FWIW, the course was in immaculate condition when the Alexander of Tunis tournament was played in early July.

I always thought this was precisely what superintendents were paid for...and a shared responsibility from the staff and members to provide any information to guests regarding the condition of the course. Otherwise, assuming you had to pay for your round, I would expect that they get back to you with something. Private golf courses pride themselves about their membership and condition of the course. Whenever one is not up to the appropriate standards, they should inform the guests that the experience may not be up to what one would expect. I once had a boss who said "I don't want excuses, I want service". I guess this is even truer nowadays as the golf industry is highly competitive.

[BC MIST]

I always thought this was precisely what superintendents were paid for...

Those knowledgeable in turf maintainace will correct me if I am wrong but applications of fungicides are very expensive and while some are applied as preventatives beforehand, others are applied as curatives only when symptoms appear. While having the superintendent constantly checking susceptible areas is ideal, there are obviously occasions when they are missed, particularly when they happen over night. Certain types of fungi can ruin good turf in a very short time and while unfortunate, occasionally they are missed and some damage is done. To expect perfection is unreasonable.

To be informed of such damage is good PR, particularly at public/semi private courses who derive much of their income from daily players. However, I agree with Adam that while a private club should provide their members with a notice outlining the problem and the course of action, it is the member's responsibility to inform their guests. And further, it is not the position of a guest to write to the club criticizing the conditions and telling them how they should handle this. Rather, it is the members responsibility to convey this information, if they choose, to the Greens Committee, which oversees this aspect of the club.

[DenisO]

Pablo, based on the green fee of $117, you now owe me (117/18*2) $13. Please have the money for me by next week, or you better watch out for your knees!!
Also, stating how the 'green' is actually completely 'brown' when getting ready for our approach shots does not count as warning me in advance

[big easy]

Those knowledgeable in turf maintainace will correct me if I am wrong but applications of fungicides are very expensive and while some are applied as preventatives beforehand, others are applied as curatives only when symptoms appear. While having the superintendent constantly checking susceptible areas is ideal, there are obviously occasions when they are missed, particularly when they happen over night. Certain types of fungi can ruin good turf in a very short time and while unfortunate, occasionally they are missed and some damage is done. To expect perfection is unreasonable.

I do expect something close to perfection because as a member to a private course, I am asked to pay what is an unreasonable amount of money for an experience that is different than any other public golf courses. When I play substandard golf courses with my buddies, I know exactly what I have to expect. In addition, superintendents of top golf courses are rarely alone. They may count on a number of assistants or other experienced employees that, as part of the team, are also expected to make proper interventions not to have greens that are ruined/damaged in the middle of the summer.

To be informed of such damage is good PR, particularly at public/semi private courses who derive much of their income from daily players. However, I agree with Adam that while a private club should provide their members with a notice outlining the problem and the course of action, it is the member's responsibility to inform their guests. And further, it is not the position of a guest to write to the club criticizing the conditions and telling them how they should handle this. Rather, it is the members responsibility to convey this information, if they choose, to the Greens Committee, which oversees this aspect of the club.

Agreed.

[Bouboude]

I find some of you guys are going a little overboard with this. Greens can be lost quickly and to get them back takes time. We are lucky in Ottawa we do not get the heat that some of the places down south get with there bentgrass greens. Stress on them during dry and warm summer months makes it real difficult to maintain them. I have never played the Hunt but if it is to much for you guys just go play somewhere else.(Eagle Creek had nice greens on the weekend and so did Stonebridge)

[Bouboude]

Big easy if you find the cost unreasonable you should consider not being a member there.

[jvincent]

And further, it is not the position of a guest to write to the club criticizing the conditions and telling them how they should handle this. Rather, it is the members responsibility to convey this information, if they choose, to the Greens Committee, which oversees this aspect of the club.

Last time I checked, I was a big boy and was capable of voicing my opinions to those who I feel are responsible.

The nice young lady at the pro shop happily took my Visa and charged me for the green fee. If the arrangement were that members were the only ones who could pay then it would be a different story.

If the folks running the Hunt Club don't care what the opinions of their guests are, then that's their choice.

[nokids]

Good save by Tiger. Even through 3.

[habsfan]

Big easy if you find the cost unreasonable you should consider not being a member there.

big easy could buy you and rent you at will