One of the consistent themes heard at the recent Golf Inc. Conference in La Quinta, Calif., was the need to make golf fun again. Speaker after speaker warned that clubs holding rigidly to “you-must-do-this-but-you-can’t-do-that” policies are going to pay a steep price in the long run.
Does it still make sense to ban cell phone use? Why does someone need to wear a coat and tie to sit down and eat a hamburger? Lifestyles of the American public are changing and clubs that put too many frivolous restrictions on members or guests are just going to drive away potential customers.
The most obvious target of these no-fun critics is dress codes at clubs, specifically those that ban jeans, either on the course or in dining rooms. Longtime golf industry executive Tom Frost cautioned attendees at the Golf Inc. Conference that the industry is excluding an entire generation by not permitting golfers to wear jeans. Attorney and session moderator Randy Addison described an uncomfortable situation in which he and his wife were asked to leave a club’s otherwise-empty dining room in the middle of the afternoon simply because she was wearing jeans.
It’s a controversial topic at many clubs. Some do relax the rules to allow “casual nights.” But traditionalist members don’t always understand why policies need to change.
Should golf clubs scrap the strict dress codes to allow more casual attire such as jeans? Is it practical to require coats and ties in dining rooms today? If you know of clubs that have moved away from such policies, how have they managed it without alienating long-time members? We’d like to hear your opinions.
