Golf Town

[eye2's]

First of all, I want to let it be known that I have no affiliations nor any biasis whatsoever towards or against any retail golf establishment. I'll buy where and when the price, need and mood suits me. For example, last year I bought a good putter and shoes from Pro Golf Discount and the year before I bought a new set of irons from the pro-shop at the course I belong to.

Having said all that, I just wanted to share the following independent, informal pricing survey I did on Sunday and Monday:

PING Driver 380cc Titanium SI3 model is $477 at Golf Town and $499 at Chuck Brown's. However, the matching fairway woods are $329 at Golf Town and $299 at Chuck's.

Taylor Made Drivers: 400cc R540XD and the 460cc R580XD are $499 at Golf Town and $476 at Chuck's.

PING So/Lo golf balls are $29/dozen at each location.

CALLOWAY Golf Balls CU-35 Red and CU-35 Blue both priced in the mid-$20 range, are $2 cheaper/dozen at Golf Town.

PRO V1 and PRO V1x Golf Balls are $63/dozen at Golftown but "only" $56 at Chuck's.

Unfortunately, both establishments didn't have any Canada Cup's in stock.

It appears by this small sample that neither establishment holds a decided advantage at least as far as pricing is concerned.

[broken27]

I have yet to take the trip to GolfTown, since I live close to Chuck's. I wonder if they will have their prices drop once they get a bit more settled in here in Ottawa. Seems like they'd have the buying advantage over Chuck's, which normally results in price reductions. At this point of the season, or what should be the season, people are making their last minute buys, stocking up on balls, so I can see why they'd keep high prices.

Hopefully all these golf stores will get together and decide to simply slash prices in half for no reason other than it's a nice thing to do!

I'm holding my breath, starting......NOW

Dan

[gwil]

Be careful - I have priced 2 different sets of irons and each time they were cheaper at Chuck Brown Golf.

[yun]

I have yet to take the trip to GolfTown, since I live close to Chuck's. I wonder if they will have their prices drop once they get a bit more settled in here in Ottawa. Seems like they'd have the buying advantage over Chuck's, which normally results in price reductions. At this point of the season, or what should be the season, people are making their last minute buys, stocking up on balls, so I can see why they'd keep high prices.

Hopefully all these golf stores will get together and decide to simply slash prices in half for no reason other than it's a nice thing to do!

I'm holding my breath, starting......NOW

Dan

breathing is for chumps anyways

[broken27]

Be careful - I have priced 2 different sets of irons and each time they were cheaper at Chuck Brown Golf.

Well, I can't really afford to buy golf clubs all the time, so there's no worries. I'm about as @nal as you can get with pricing stuff out.

Thanks for the head's up though!

Dan

[broken27]

breathing is for chumps anyways

Why'd we do so much of it on Sunday then? Damn, we could have shot WAY under par if we had just stopped breathing......

Dan

[Deep Woods]

I'm holding my breath, starting......NOW

Lesbians everywhere will be happy...

[broken27]

Lesbians everywhere will be happy...

Yippee!!! Couldn't care any less than I do, man... Really.

Dan

[Deep Woods]

Yippee!!! Couldn't care any less than I do, man... Really.

Your sense of humour is intact...

[S2H2Lover]

GolfTown claims that they will price match + 5% off any competitor. Anybody try this yet? Hopefully they won't be as nasty about it as Staples is, but it's worth a shot.

[Big_duck]

Your sense of humour is intact...

Jeez, can't you guys keep your little squabble to one thread.


I'm taking 3:2 odds that Broken gets the last word.

[broken27]

Jeez, can't you guys keep your little squabble to one thread.


I'm taking 3:2 odds that Broken gets the last word.

Issue hopefully resolved on PM.

This doesn't count as "last word" though......

Dan

[Deep Woods]

This doesn't count as "last word" though......

He's right.

[Kilroy]

This pissing contest has now spread over 3 threads. I closed the first, so you open a new one for the expressed purpose of arguing.

Please go back to your corners and do not hijack any more threads with this.

[Deep Woods]

This pissing contest has now spread over 3 threads. I closed the first, so you open a new one for the expressed purpose of arguing.

Please go back to your corners and do not hijack any more threads with this.

Ooops...sorry, please close the 4th thread I just opened. I figured we were safer in an isolated "off topic" thread...

[BC MIST]

Visited GolfTown on Friday and like most, I was initially impressed with the appearance of the store, and the large variety and availability of equipment. However, being a clubmaker, I am biased against OEM equipment as being overpriced and not necessarily assembled in the best manner, regardless of what label is on the head.

I walked by the club assembler and noticed that the price to regrip a club was $1 plus the cost of the grip. Does that mean that they will install a Lamkin Crossline grip for $3.07?

One person was impressed that they had a whole aisle of just tees. So? A 250 bag of 2.75" tees cost $16.95. I can get them cheaper elsewhere.

In the 45 minutes I was in the store, not one salesperson came up and said to me, "Can I help you with anything?" Sure, they were busy, but they still had time to congregate and have a Coke.

The appearance of Golftown should cause Chuck Brown's to bring some of its prices in line with their new competitor, so that we all benefit. In principal though, I would still rather buy items from a locally owned and operated store, where possible, rather than a large chain, however, I will still buy where the price is right, particularly if it is the 19th Tee.

If I just want to look at golf stuff on a rainy/snowy day, then Golftown would be the place to go.

[Andru]

You've never bought a golf gift for anyone have you?

All those rows of seemingly useless items like the tees and the goofy stuff make great gifts for people who want to buy golf gifts for friends and family. I've received 500 tees as a stocking stuffer. My Mom isn't going to walk into some small driving range store to buy tees for me for XMas. She'll pop into golftown because it looks like a normal big box store with tons of stuff to buy.

I had great help from everyone. I bought a pair of shoes. and a bag. I think the store manager helped me with the bag. Top notch service. I tried on 7 pairs while the sales associate juggled 4 people not bad. Only other service that has come close was Pro-Golf on Kirkwood. I've never really liked Chuck's to be totally honest. It was always just OK.

I don't think pricing is the issue if they were to gurantee that they'd have to check every single item they sell against the competitior everyday. So it's possible some items will be more or less expensive on any given day. That's the nature of retail.

It's the selection that sets Golftown apart. I've done the price match inToronto. I went to golf town with a price from dimarco golf and they matched it. Even though Dimarco didn't have what I wanted in stock.

I know Chuck Browns will match as well. It's up to you. Here's my dilema and everyone has a different one. When I go to buy gear. I'm usually looking for something very specific. There's a better chance I'll find it at Golftown. If your dilema is distance it's just too far. then go to chuck browns. But remember you're only seeing half of what's really available.

I'm not going to lie. I like golftown ( no kidding ). I like going to a store and seeing all of the clubs and gear you don't see anywhere else. I saw a 13 degree Driver with a regular shaft. Have you ever seen that? Never. Usually you have a choice of 3 lofts but only in 1 shaft flex for each. Did any of you see the taylor made display? have you ever seen so many different combinations of drivers and fairway woods in this city? It was awesome every loft in every shaft.

[Deep Woods]

You've never bought a golf gift for anyone have you?

I like golf town in principle, its just too far for me. My brother and my father's birthday is coming up, and part of the gift, as always, will be a gift certificate for Chuck browns.

[Andru]

I like golf town in principle, its just too far for me. My brother and my father's birthday is coming up, and part of the gift, as always, will be a gift certificate for Chuck browns.

I'm not sure if you got what I was saying. Maybe you did and this is redundant, but BC made a comment about the rows of tees being kind of useless and I was just giving a marketing example of it's effectiveness and purpose. I personally don't liek Chucks or T&L but I wouldn't drive 45 minutes to go to golftown either.

Though I did go when I was in Toronto. Does that count?

[hoolio]

In the 45 minutes I was in the store, not one salesperson came up and said to me, "Can I help you with anything?" Sure, they were busy, but they still had time to congregate and have a Coke.

That's odd, I couldn't get them to leave me alone. I think at one point I ducked in behind a display rack just so the swarm couldn't find me. Next time i'm going to go in wearing a Ghillie Suit made from old golf clubs and umbrella's I have sitting at home just to try to blend in.

[broken27]

I'm not sure if you got what I was saying. Maybe you did and this is redundant, but BC made a comment about the rows of tees being kind of useless and I was just giving a marketing example of it's effectiveness and purpose. I personally don't liek Chucks or T&L but I wouldn't drive 45 minutes to go to golftown either.

Though I did go when I was in Toronto. Does that count?

I would imagine that each of us has different opinions as to what we look for in a golf shop. Personally, Chuck's is about a 3 minute walk from my house, and the staff has always treated me very well. They were extremely helpful in getting me equipped with my first set of decent clubs. The guy took a ton of time explaining the merits of various club sets, and ended up recommending a reasonably priced set of Wilsons. Most salesmen I've ran into were so busy pushing the latest "top of the line" stuff that they didn't listen to my budgetary concerns or my ability level. I ended up trying out some really nice, very expensive clubs that I couldn't hit properly at T&L. I didn't even bother trying the $1899 set of Callaways that they tried to sell me at Pro Golf.

$400 I spent at Chuck's and got exactly what I was looking for. An intermediate player set with great learning potential.

I do however think that next time I go to buy clubs, I'll keep Chuck's in mind, but definitely compare other stores again. Likely going to go custom built though, since I don't really care about brand names all that much. My wife still hates my clothes because they don't have Hilfiger or Ralph Lauren on the tag..... :shake

Dan

[Andru]

Oh yeah. I guess it's the locaiton and the person that helps you. I've had a great experience at pro-golf myself. Maybe it's because I deal with Murray all the time.

I shouldn't have stated my dislike for Chuck Browns it's based on some small personal experiences. T&L well. I've never heard anything good about that place for golf. I did have a good experience buying skis though.

Note: Go to golftown and try the Nike Dry fit Shirts. They're like silk really sweet for those 30 degree muggy days.

[Deep Woods]

I'm not sure if you got what I was saying. Maybe you did and this is redundant, but BC made a comment about the rows of tees being kind of useless and I was just giving a marketing example of it's effectiveness and purpose. I personally don't liek Chucks or T&L but I wouldn't drive 45 minutes to go to golftown either.

I did. Despite that, and the "we match price" thing, I'll still go to CB's. If Golftown had opened in the Rideau Centre, I'd be there more often.

[Colby]

Oh yeah. I guess it's the locaiton and the person that helps you. I've had a great experience at pro-golf myself. Maybe it's because I deal with Murray all the time.

I shouldn't have stated my dislike for Chuck Browns it's based on some small personal experiences. T&L well. I've never heard anything good about that place for golf. I did have a good experience buying skis though.

Note: Go to golftown and try the Nike Dry fit Shirts. They're like silk really sweet for those 30 degree muggy days.

I agree with the Pro Golf statement, I've had nothing but helpful service from the place, and I also deal with Murray in most cases, but the others have been fine also.

I'm not sure why they would have tried to sell you a set of $1900 Callaways Broken, they have all kinds of clubs, and I've seen them deal with people with all kinds of budgets.

[broken27]

I agree with the Pro Golf statement, I've had nothing but helpful service from the place, and I also deal with Murray in most cases, but the others have been fine also.

I'm not sure why they would have tried to sell you a set of $1900 Callaways Broken, they have all kinds of clubs, and I've seen them deal with people with all kinds of budgets.

Maybe the guy was new or something. Or maybe his commission was bigger on the $1900 clubs. I really don't know. All I can say is that he instantly went to the more expensive clubs, and seemingly stopped listening to me at that point. I told him about a million times that I wasn't able to pay that much for golf clubs (I'd get a membership somewhere if I could afford to pay that much for anything golf-related). Still, he kept on talking the clubs up, which made me feel very "poor".

Not suggesting that it's a bad place to shop, just that I had a bad experience there. I'll still go back in the future, just to see what's up. But I'm staying away from that idiot if I see him there, assuming he hasn't been fired. Wish I could remember his name....

Dan

[Deep Woods]

All I can say is that he instantly went to the more expensive clubs, and seemingly stopped listening to me at that point. I told him about a million times that I wasn't able to pay that much for golf clubs (I'd get a membership somewhere if I could afford to pay that much for anything golf-related). Still, he kept on talking the clubs up, which made me feel very "poor".

That's 2 things we agree on. I hate salesmen that do that, and I immediately leave.

[broken27]

That's 2 things we agree on.

Lucifer just got frostbite.....

Dan

[mkemila]

Yeah.....you guys behave or it's of to the vet.........snip snip

This pissing contest has now spread over 3 threads. I closed the first, so you open a new one for the expressed purpose of arguing.

Please go back to your corners and do not hijack any more threads with this.

[Chris]

I like the personal touch of the small business. I too went to Golf Town and just found it too BIG for my liking.

I was asked if I could use some help and the staff seemed friendly, but it was too chaotic.... I bought a golf glove... Later I went to Chuck's, chatted with the staff and found the same glove I bought was $3 cheaper at Chucks..

[gumby]

i too took the trek to golftown just to look around and everyone is right..its huge, but i had been at both c.b and pro golf so when i checked prices on things i wanted some were lower, and others were higher...ya gotta know what u want and the cost at the other places...for me its a long drive, cant figure out why they wouldnt have located some where more central, but thats not up to me..in the past i have delt mainly with pro-golf and bought two sets of clubs the first was an intermediate set, and after a while a high end...and there never was any problem with them trying to make me buy what i couldnt afford, they just took the time to make sure i got what i wanted. anyway i think that having a big box store like that will bring prices down a bit, bu its still worth checking at all the stores to see who is cheaper, and im sure that whatever your favorite store is, and yuou have bought from them before they will match the other prices just to keep you as a cstomer.