The Colorado Golf Expo was from February 17 -19, 2023. Over 10,000 consumers paid $15 ($13 for seniors and military) for the opportunity to seek discounted golf in 2023 and pay $29 for a small bucket of balls to demo the new equipment.
The Expo, held at the Colorado Convention Center, is certainly an entertaining and attractive venue for the golfer. But is it a good deal for golf courses?
There were 89 exhibits, including Clothing Manufacturers, Equipment Companies, Golf Associations, Health Facilities (chiropractors, eyewear, stretch labs), Tourism offices, and 26 golf courses, of which 13 are located in the Denver metroplex. 11 golf courses were owned by municipal governments.
What was readily apparent is that the best golf course operators, daily fee owned, did not exhibit, i.e., Colorado National, Fossil Trace, Golf Club at Bear Dance, Green Valley Ranch, Ridge at Castle Pines, etc.
We talked with several companies selling coupon books from $39 to $59 that provide golfers significant discounts on many golf courses through the State of Colorado. The owners at Avid Golfer and Green Saver both commented that they are having increased difficulty getting the better golf courses to participate. Thus, their revenue is adversely impacted.
Realizing that the utilization of golf courses has increased from 52% before the Pandemic to over 70% in 2022, it makes little sense to me why golf courses continue to discount.
Download this file to see the folly of promotions and gimmicks offered: Download
What do you think?
