Would you have reported him?

I'm not sure about that. If he was holding up play by doing that, I'd complain to the marshal. If he was keeping up, where is the harm?

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Sometimes when I am playing alone, and there is a good gap between me and the group behind me I will play a few different balls. I do it to test the performance of different balls as well as just getting more practice in. I never thought of it as stealing.
The harm is that you pay to play the course ONCE, not 3 times. It would be no different than if a course were mostly empty and a person holed-out and then went back to the tee box and played the hole again. Its stealing golf.
Every time Ive reported someone to the clubhouse for this (its happened maybe 5 times in the past 10 years), the offender was asked to leave the course, so apparently Im not alone in thinking its wrong to play more than 1 ball.
 
The harm is that you pay to play the course ONCE, not 3 times. It would be no different than if a course were mostly empty and a person holed-out and then went back to the tee box and played the hole again. Its stealing golf.
Every time Ive reported someone to the clubhouse for this (its happened maybe 5 times in the past 10 years), the offender was asked to leave the course, so apparently Im not alone in thinking its wrong to play more than 1 ball.

Wow I have done this when it's a backuped? You would complain about me? I can't believe that
 
The harm is that you pay to play the course ONCE, not 3 times. It would be no different than if a course were mostly empty and a person holed-out and then went back to the tee box and played the hole again. Its stealing golf.
Every time Ive reported someone to the clubhouse for this (its happened maybe 5 times in the past 10 years), the offender was asked to leave the course, so apparently Im not alone in thinking its wrong to play more than 1 ball.

I have played multiple balls on many occaisions, at the behest of my PGA proffessional. He has played golf for 50 years, he says it's ok. I'll keep doing it until someone at the club tells me not to.
 
So when you guys that play a second ball do. Are you actually teeing one up and playing it into the cup? Or do you just hit another ball every now and again. I do that after a duffed shot just to see what happened. Or to see if I can actually work it a little. I've tried goin tee to cup but get confused as to what ball is my scorecard ball. I'm not lookin for an argument nor am I judging I'm just curious.

edit: I do count the duffed shot on the card. The extra ball hit is just to keep my frustration level down.
 
You did the right thing. Most ppl would have looked the other way but you stood up for want you felt is right.
Playing more than you paid is steeling and trespassing if truth be told. If ppl want to think its ok....so be it!

+1 Best opinion I have read.
 
I'd like to think I'd have done the same as the OP. But I certainly cannot say I haven't played multiple balls on a few holes....

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We got a course that has an unwritten rule about playing till you dropped. All they ask is if you ride you pay for another round. Walkers that know the rules like slow play and letting people thru are all set.
 
You did what you thought was right, 'nuff said.

I'm guilty of jumping on a few extra holes occasionally late at night but I would NEVER DREAM of cutting in front of a group and holding them up.

If I was the guy, I'd be like, "busted".
 
So when you guys that play a second ball do. Are you actually teeing one up and playing it into the cup? Or do you just hit another ball every now and again. I do that after a duffed shot just to see what happened. Or to see if I can actually work it a little. I've tried goin tee to cup but get confused as to what ball is my scorecard ball. I'm not lookin for an argument nor am I judging I'm just curious.

edit: I do count the duffed shot on the card. The extra ball hit is just to keep my frustration level down.

Both, if I'm playing alone on a busy day, I will sometimes play two balls from tee to cup. It's the only way to not be waiting 5 minutes on every shot.
 
To me it's a completely different thing play two balls than blatantly jumping in front of other groups and playing another 9. At my home course 11-17 are across the street from the rest of the course and hidden from view of the club house, I've seen a lot of people play that loop of holes over and over again, cutting in front of several groups. Anytime I see it, I report it.

My course is semi- private, I'm a member and get unlimited golf for my dues so playing two balls is not an issue for me, you would never see other members playing the loop in the back like that either.

You did the right thing.
 
I would have left it alone.

That's not stealing, that's called being a golfer.

Years ago before the reservation system was instituted at Bethpage, the starters only worked until about noon.
It was common practice to finish 18 in the morning, walk over to one of the other courses (there are five) and if no one was on the first tee, we'd just stick a peg in the ground and off we'd go.

At another course, one time I finished 18 and walked over to the 10th and was about to tee it up when the head pro and a few of his buddies rolled up ready to play the back nine.
I looked at him and he at me and he said, "Go ahead, we don't want to hold you up".

I thanked him, teed off and played the back nine.

I've been doing stuff like that for as long as I can remember and everyone I've ever played with has as well.

I would never rat somebody out for that.

Speak for yourself....you're not speaking for me, a golfer. I swear, just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you SHOULD. Gods man, where is your code? Whatever, apparently we don't have to deal with certain posts any longer.

I've seen it a few times and told the staff. Whether or not they cared I haven't a clue.
 
Speak for yourself....you're not speaking for me, a golfer. I swear, just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you SHOULD. Whatever, apparently we don't have to deal with certain posts any longer.

I've seen it a few times and told the staff. Whether or not they cared I haven't a clue.
So what got JWL banned?
 
at the end of the day this guy is stealing from the course and is well aware of what he was doing. public muni's here in ireland dont usually have starters and even less chance of having a marshal. if a guy or group tried to jump in ahead of me i would gladly tell him where to go, seeing as i have gone to the effort of booking my tee time turning up on time and most importantly paying the right amount for what i intend to play. he is stealing and he knows it.
 
i think you did the right thing, even though i dont know if i would have done it, it would depend on my mood
 
I'm a golf course employee too, but on my home course it's unlikely that he would get past me. The 10th tee is just to the left of my booth, the 18th green is right in front of me, and the 9th green is to my right. Part of my job is to record the time each group turns and finishes. Since I also check all players in, I know how many holes they've paid for, and I know what group is due on the turn and who is due to finish in 18. When someone shows up unexpectedly on the 10th tee, I'm on it immediately. I've sent the ranger up the 10th fairway many times after someone who only paid for 9 and thought he could get lost in the shuffle when the rest of his group had paid for 18.

One time this year it was a twosome that made the turn, both only having paid for 9. The ranger was busy elsewhere (we have 36 holes of golf on the property), so the head pro grabbed a cart and went out to check on them. They promised to pay when they finished, and the pro told me to watch for them on 18 when they came in to be sure that they did. However, they never came up the 18th and the ranger couldn't find them anywhere, even though they were seen still playing on 16. What we figured was that they played 17, then cut across our Par 3 course to the parking lot and headed home. The one mistake they made was paying by credit card. The head pro just pulled their credit slip and changed the charge to 18 holes. So they got charged for 18, but only got to play 17.

Another favorite is one guy paying for 18 holes riding while his buddy pays for 18 walking. By the time they are on #2 both will almost always be riding. The ranger watches for that stuff. We have a time card that is placed on each cart with the starting time and the number of paid riders in the cart - the card can be seen from 200+ yards away with binoculars. When the card says one and there are 2 occupants.... :nono:

People try to get away with stuff like that all the time, and we have pretty much seen it all and it's rare that we fail to catch them at it any more.

Sounds like your course has a lot of staff & is really on point. What do you guys do about slow play? At one course I play at if fall more than one hole behind they make you skip a hole.


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I imagine I would have reported it. Like others have said, I've had quite a few times where I've skipped a couple holes to get around some slowpokes then I return later to get them in. If I was questioned about it I'd simply show my scorecard and explain the situation. An extra ball here and there is no big deal especially if the group in front is holding up the whole course. I have on occasion played two balls tee-to-cup, but that was on an unlimited play course that was empty.
 
I would have reported it as well. After all its the fees we pay that go towards keeping the courses we play in good condition.

My nephews and I paid for 9 holes on Weds but ended up playing 18. After the round I went to the pro shop to tell the pro we had played an extra 9 holes each and to pay the extra fees. It would have only been £4 each but that's not the point. He let us off because we were one of the first to go back afterwards to pay the extra.
 
I wouldn't be so quick to judge. There have been a couple times, while playing by myself, that I skipped a few holes because a threesome or foursome wouldn't let me play through. I would come back to play those missed holes when the course geography and pace of play allowed. I would never jump directly in front of another group though.

Mentioning it to the clubhouse was appropriate, but don't condemn until you know the other side of the story. Let them hash it out.
 
Sounds like your course has a lot of staff & is really on point. What do you guys do about slow play? At one course I play at if fall more than one hole behind they make you skip a hole.


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Usually the course assistants are on top of it and keep things moving as best they can. On our usually busy mornings (every day from at least 7AM to 11AM) rounds can extend to 4.5 hours, but rarely any longer than that.
 
Our course is pay for 18, there is no 9 hole rates but once you pay for 18 with cart you get to play as much as you like until dark.
 
Because teetimes are perishable inventory, I dont see a huge problem with it. In the end it can really only benefit the golf course. Maybe he was a member? At the club I work at, I literally do that all the time. Theres no green fees or teetimes, so jumping around is not uncommon for me at least. That being said, I only do it when the course is empty. I would never do it at another club, or a club that I am paying to play at.

Is this a situation where the person could be a member at that course? If so, he can pretty much do whatever he pleases because he has paid for the year. I do disagree with JWLI though, not because of what he did, but the attitude he took towards it.


Honesty is never a bad thing, and I think you made the right call
 
I would have left it alone. "Stealing" may be a stretch. What about when you make a reservation at a course, show up and find the course has aerated their greens and never informed you, or if there are temporary tees, or the fairways are in terrible shape, or you find yourself stuck behind an outing of once-a-year golfers that you were never informed of when you made your tee time? Are these instances of "stealing" your money? This stuff happens all the time.

I've played extra holes and never considered it stealing. I'll have to discuss this with the priest at my next Confession!
 
This is one of the age old questions in golf. Should someone be reported for playing extra holes that they may not have paid for.

Quite frankly I would have reported him as well and left it at that.

You say that it was a muni which probably means that everyone has to pay a fee each round, no matter who they are. Here in UK munis have different levels of 'membership' in that you can be a member and pay annual fees that entitle you to play in comps and get handicaps etc but you still have to pay a green fee, reduced though, each time you play. The other one is where you pay no annual fee and pay the full green fee each time. In both of these cases, anyone playing EXTRA holes should be reported so that the matter can be dealt with in the correct way.

The course that I play is not a mini and green fees for visitors, no matter whether they are with a member or not, are per round. If however, you wish to play more than 18, the fee for the extra round is less than the first, so 36 holes would equate to about 27 holes in money terms.

No matter whether a muni or private course it is not up to each 'member' to be judge & jury in cases like the OP's post, but it IS their responsibility to report such things.

For those on here who say it is not stealing and they do the same, please don't come and play my course as you would be thrown off. It most definately is stealing.

When you pay a green fee you are not paying for a product as such, but you are paying for the use of that course for the length of time it takes you to complete 18 holes. Once you complete your 18th hole your contract with the golf club has ended.
 
Would you call the police if you saw someone stealing a car? Would you scold a child for stealing candy? From big to small stealing is stealing.
Imagine if all those that thought it was ok to steal the course resources played consecutively… you would want to do more than report them.
 
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