This Week at WorldGolf.com: Jan. 11, 2006

The golf world's ever expanding weekend

Thursday is not the weekend. You know this. Your kids’ school knows this. Your boss sure knows it.

Only those in the golf industry cannot seem to grasp this simple concept.

For you see more and more courses putting Thursday under their weekend rate greens fee. Try running around at the stroke of 5 p.m. in the office Wednesday, screaming, “Woo hoo, weekend’s here!” and you’re liable to get fired. Or at least ordered to meet with a "concerned" human resources counselor. Make Thursday the beginning of the weekend in the golf industry and you’re liable to get promoted.

And tick off your paying customers. Of course, when’s the last time anyone worried about that in the golf world?

Friday is bad enough. Charging the weekend rate to the paper pusher who snuck out of the office early, risking his livelihood, on a Friday afternoon, is a slap at hardworking 9 to 5ers everywhere.

Where do you think this is? Europe of the 1970s?

Even all those wild-and-crazy, life-before-work museum countries with siestas are starting to crack down on leisure during work hours. Anyone who gets away to play a round of golf on a weekday - and Thursday and Fridays are still weekdays - should be rewarded, not punished by the golf industry.

Instead, it’s an extra charge for this day, an extra charge for that day. Even the movie theaters - which unabashedly price bottles of water at two times the markup even hotels dare - do not charge extra if you see the flick on Saturday night instead of Wednesday night.

And it’s not just the popular resort courses in hot spots like Scottsdale, Las Vegas, Palm Springs and Myrtle Beach that hit golfers up for the weekend rate on Fridays. And now, in some cases, Thursdays.

The most run-of-the-mill courses in the most podunk towns go with the same basic pricing model. They may not have anyone on the course Friday, just like they didn’t have anyone on the course Tuesday. But by grand golf decree, they’re going to charge you $25 more for Friday.

Golf is a game with a lot of great traditions. This is not one of them.

And golf course executives moan about next-day, tee-time services? If golf courses priced their courses more honestly themselves all the outside agencies catering to hackers who actually value their money wouldn’t have a chance.

Then again, maybe these money-grabbing courses are onto something.

Thursday as the start of the weekend? I could live with that. Time to hit up the European castle-dwelling boss with a new proposal. I work in the golf world after all. Monday through Wednesday is the week, Thursday through Sunday the weekend. Suddenly, it sounds perfectly logical.

Surely, speed-golfing legend President Bush could be convinced that everyone needs a little more free time in the great outdoors.

Now, leave me alone. It's almost Wednesday night. TGIW.

As always, WorldGolf.com welcomes your comments.

Carnegie Links at
Skibo Castle still
a work in progress

Carnegie Links at Skibo Castle in Dornoch, Scotland brings a golfer face to face with history, as well as giving a view of Andrew Carnegie's wealth and golf addiction. While Skibo Castle is an exclusive private getaway for well-heeled captains of industry, patrons of the arts and celebrities - Madonna was married here - the golf is still finding its legs, but improving at every turn as the owners work to make the links match the castle.

Also: Your key to visiting the birthplace of golf

Let them eat bogeys!
Enough with brutal golf
courses no one can play

It's time for course owners, architects, head pros and golf writers to stop hyping courses with frighteningly high USGA slope ratings and bunkers bigger than Iwo Jima. Otherwise, Chris Baldwin writes in his latest On The Spot column, we'll be left with a lot of courses with a ton of plaques on the wall and nobody in the fairways except with the Tour's in town.

Also: Reader Reviewers cleaning up with Free Club Friday

Keeping your head
down doesn't mean not
not to 'load' your back leg

Golfers can get so into keeping their eye on the ball, they'll forget to correctly shift their weight during a swing, or 'load their back leg.' In order to maximize your power you must load up your back leg by turning and moving off the ball during your back swing to create additional energy by letting momentum build. After all, this is what centrifugal force is based on, and is necessary for a strong swing.

Also: Stuart Appleby talks about his Mercedes victory