Page 50 - GBC winter 2015

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GBC: It is great that you implemented this initiative again in 2015. Compared to 2014, did you market or promote it differently?
CC - We really promote it to our tournaments and group events who find the 8” cups a great option for their golfers.
TGC - We continued to promote and market wide cups via our social media platforms, emails, and newsletters as we did in 2014.
SH - We included this in all our tournament packages as an incen- tive and a great way to bring fun to their tournaments, many of which may not have had regular players. MH - While our marketing efforts did not change, we started to see more inquiries regarding the Big Cup Golf. Our returning staff were also more diligent in informing our customers about the program.
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GBC: How was the reaction to the larger cups this year?
CC - There was much less reaction this season, as customers are now accustomed to seeing the second cup on our greens.
TGC - By reducing the number of days offered, our customers were more receptive to the wider cups. SH - No change in reaction.
MH - We have seen less and less of the initial negative reaction from the “die-hard” golfers than we saw in the first two years and more pos- itive reactions from grandparents and parents introducing their kids to the game.
For the average golfer, it is a nice change and because we see many players who are not concerned with scoring, they play the big cups guilt free and feel like pros when they make pars. We also had one Hole-in-One on the Big Cups and the person was as excited as every other Ace golfer I have ever seen.
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GBC: Typically, who used the larger cups this year?
CC - We had many tournaments and group events use the 8” cup. Several company tournaments, family reunions, and church groups found the larger cups a great option for their golfers. We still see many parents teaching younger kids with the big cups on a daily basis. Overall, tournaments who have chosen to use the larger cup this season for an event have all expressed a great, fun experience for their golfers.
TGC - At Thunderbird, our clientele is mainly older golfers, juniors and beginners, so we had a cross-section of those demographics using the 8” cups.
SH - At our facility, it is mostly juniors and families who use the larger cups.
MH - The majority of players are juniors playing with grandparents or parents but we also see our Women’s League members using them as the league is non-competi- tive and scoring is not their priori- ty. We do see some accomplished players bringing someone new to the game to try the Big Cups as well.
GBC: Have you changed the dates and/or times that the larger cups are available?
CC - We continued to offer the second (larger) cup on every green for the entire season.
TGC - Our wide cups were not available as frequently as in 2014 based on customer feedback. We reduced the number of days per month in 2015 that we had the 8” cups from four times to one day per month.
SH - In 2014, we had the large holes out on Mondays for the junior program all season. This year we also added them on Sundays for our “Family Funday Sunday.”
MH - We continued our Thursday Night Big Cup Golf program which ran from June 25th to September 3rd. It was designed to coincide with the school summer break. This season we had an increase in the number of players taking advantage of the program. (The program was 5 holes of golf on the Big Cup Course from 5:30 to 7:30 for $12.50/adult and free for juniors 18 and under. Groups of up to 6 were permitted.)
50 Golf Business Canada