Budget Beater: Book Discount Tee Times With The Golf18 Network

With over 3,500 courses in their data base, the Golf18 Network has a course to please almost every golfer out there. From booking a weekend tee time at your local course, to planning where to play on your next vacation, they have you covered. The Golf18 Network utilizes the ability to work with local courses to book out their last minute tee times to save players 50, 60 and even 70% over booking directly through the course. Of course, that doesn’t always mean that there is going to be a weekend slot for when you want to play, but keep checking back as times open up based on what the course releases.

The Golf18 Network has booked out over 3.2 million tee times for users throughout the world, Based on a 50% savings off the average round cost of $40, that equals $64 million in savings for golfers that have used the service. Just doing a check as I type this, I can grab a tee time at the Nile Shrine Golf Club about 45 minutes from me for 32% off the regular rates. If I want to play closer to home, Blue Boy West is listed at 62% off the original pricing (and has a cost of just $15 a round!) and is only 15 minutes from my home.

Probably the strongest aspect of the Golf18 Network is the fact that they cover so many markets in the US and into Canada. Don’t expect miracles, like getting on to Pebble Beach for $50, but sign up for their mailing list and try them out today. Currently, they are running a special that will give you a $25 credit after you book your first tee time. That would mean I get a $15 round at a local course and $25 to spend on a nicer course later – or just use it for another free round at Blue Boy. The deal gets even better when you use the Golf18 Rewards program. When you book a number of tee times during the year, you earn credits, and reduce the fees you will pay for booking tee times all year long. If you book 50 tee times in a calendar year, your account will receive a total of $240 in credits and you will never have to pay a booking fee again. The more you book, the more you earn.

Overall, the Golf18 Network is a great way to stretch your golfing budget a bit further. While they don’t have access to course in every market, the ones that they do have offer up an exceptional value and real savings. The Golf18 Network captures the spirit of my “Budget Beater” series to a “T” – great prices, good value and lots of opportunity to save money and still play great golf. If you are new to the program, don’t forget to sign up for an account and get your $25 credit after you book your first tee time!

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Stroke Saver: Course Management Begins At Home

No matter how many times I see it happen, it always amazes me. A foursome arrives at the course 30 minutes before their tee time, grabs some coffee, starts loading up their cart and heads over to wait in line at the first tee. After 15 minutes they are called as on deck and they pry themselves out of their cart to stretch out a bit. A quick bend or two and they reach into their bags for their drivers and head over to the tee box. The first guy takes 2 minutes to check his stance with a club shaft, then takes four or five practice cuts before scuffing his tee shot 20 feet past the ladies tees. The next guy fairs a bit better by pounding it 100 yards out there, but 100 yards to the right. The next two guys manage to find a bunker and the right rough, but their round is basically destroyed right from the get go.

If you want to go out and have a great time with the guys and not worry about scoring, then by all means, don’t pickup that scorecard at the pro shop and go have fun. But if you are expecting to go out and compete with the boys, make sure you mentally setup the round at the range the week before. Start with a few warm up shots, then play the course in your head and out on to the range. Begin by mapping out your ideal clubs in to each green, then work backwards to the tee box. So, for example, at Riverbend Golf Course in Kent, WA, from the blue tees, the first hole is 347 yards. Normally in the past, I would have ripped a driver 275-290 down the middle (or into the trees) and left myself a 1/4 to 1/2 wedge into the green. Fortunately, it’s much easier to hit a comfortable 3 iron off the first tee and follow that with another full swing of a 9 iron or wedge.

Continue this process at the range by picturing the hole in your head and working through the holes with your clubs. What Iron would work best off the tee here or there. How would your strategy change if they move the tee boxes around or lengthen a hold 10-15 yards. What if they play the par 3’s short or give you a harder pin placement. Imagine all the possible scenarios while you practice. If you get a bucket with 60 balls in it, you can play almost the entire course and warm up quite easily. Just remember, don’t work the big sticks too much. In fact, with my pre-course card for Riverbend, I have 18 shots (out of 36) that would be made with a 5 iron or less on the course. That means over half my practice should be with those shorter clubs. The sharper those short irons and wedges get, the closer to the flag stick those scoring shots will go. This doesn’t mean go hit wedge after wedge at the range flags, but playing out the shots you need to reach the stick on every hole you are going to play.

Don’t get me wrong, starting off with a round with a booming drive down the middle sure sends a message that you’re serious about beating the course into submission that day, but even the tour pro’s are happy to hit 70% of their fairways with a driver. This leaves them a 30-40% chance that they miss it and that percentage is even worse for you. There’s nothing like your rounds starts off in the trees, or worse. Instead, the smarter, and safer play is to poke a long iron or hybrid off the tee and leave yourself a nice full shot into the green. Making a chart like above for your next round and see how the numbers work out for you. If I play mine to a “T”, I end up with 36 shots from tee to green and only hit my driver 6 times over 18 holes. If I can manage to hold my puts to 2 per hole, I should walk off the course even par without taking any major chances or hitting that “killer shot”.

If you want to play competitive golf, wait until you get on the first tee to start your course planning, your chance of being successful take a pretty serious hit before you even start. Again, this is a tip for those that want to shoot better, not just go out and play. Think of it as tournament golf verses recreational play. If you’re playing to win, even if it’s against yourself, a bit of pre-planning will go a long way.

Equipment Deals: Save 20%, $280 Off TaylorMade’s R15 Driver And More

If you are in the market for anything golf related, Father’s Day week is usually the time to find a great deal on it. As retailers try anything to get you to spend your hard earned money at their locations, you will find amazing markdowns and deals on everything from clubs to bags and apparel to balls. The first deal of the week isn’t a particular item, but rather, it’s a $50 coupon off any purchase of $250 or more at Golfsmith or Golfsmith.com. Just use code JUNE125 to get this great deal placed in your cart. If you can’t find enough to fill your cart to the $250 mark, grab the $20 savings off $125 purchase or more. Both deals come with free ground shipping as well.



Golfsmith.com also has a fantastic deal on a driver that will help give you the confidence to find more fairways. The TaylorMade R15 driver series is at liquidation pricing with many models moving past the 50% off stage. If you are in the market for a new driver, this R15 deal is a tough one to beat. Using code JUNE125 at checkout will also save you an additional $20 on this item, unless you choose to add another $30 to the cart, in which case you would save an additional $50 on this purchase.



You can also grab one of the best values on the market today in the Garmin Apporach G6 GPS unit for $149.99. With detailed information on every hold on the course available to you, your scores should get better and better. Knowing how far the bunker on the right is or if that front pin placement makes the shot a 9 iron or PW will only make your scoring improve. The Garmin G6 deal can be combined with the JUNE125 promo code to bring the final price down to $129.99, or about the same as some entry level units from manufacturers that you’ve never heard of before. You can grab the Garmin G6 from Golfsmith.com and receive free ground shipping as well.
Whether you need some new shoes, balls or clubs, this weeks deals should fit just about everyone out there. If you’re working on your target game, the Garmin G6 can help. If you need a few extra yards off the tee, the TaylorMade R15 driver should be able to help you there. If you already have it all, but just need a few more accessories or even a funny driver cover, the JUNE125 promo code at Golfsmith.com should give you a great deal on what you want. Don’t forget that the free ground shipping promotion applies to these deals as well!

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Budget Beater: Save On Local Courses Through GroupOn

If there is one thing that is better than saving on golf equipment, it’s saving on a round of golf. While playing early bird rates and afternoon rounds can save you some cash, a bit of planning ahead can do even better. One of my favorite sites to save is good old Groupon.com. Groupon often has specials at local courses that can save you anywhere from a few bucks a round to a pretty good chunk of cash. Earlier this year, I picked up a round of golf for two with lunch for $49. This was at a course that normally costs almost that much for a single to play.

The $19 deal at Gateway Golf Course in Sedro Woolley, WA, includes golf and a hot dog lunch for two or you can book a foursome for $39. The Groupon deal includes a round of golf for your twosome on the 5582 yard repeating 9 hole course. Normally, this deal will set users back $58 for the golfing, plus the hot dog lunch. Of course the deal is only good for 90 days from the date of purchase, so make sure to take advantage of the deal when you buy it or you are just going to be tossing money away. Any way you look at it though, a good deal from Groupon is a great way to stretch that golfing budget a bit further.

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Stroke Saver: Why Do I Play Old Clubs?

One of the most common questions I get asked on a regular basis is, “Why do you play old clubs?” Well, I’m usually very direct in answering this one, then quick to follow up with a question of my own to them. I play old clubs because I hit them very well, they feel great in hand and most importantly, I have the confidence in them to hit any shot I need at any time I need it to happen. After spouting off this quick reply, I usually follow up with, “How many shots did your new clubs shave off your last round?”

A lack of confidence in their current set of clubs is why most people get on the new gear bandwagon. They remember those rounds last year where they could have shaved a stroke off 5, or hit it just a bit closer on 16 and saved their round. What they seem to forget is that an extra hour of putting practice with that old putter may have made the putt on 2 so they didn’t need to shave that stroke later in the round.

Changing out gear and trying new stuff is always fun, but don’t ever expect to get better by just changing out your clubs, balls or shoes. The biggest reason why those new clubs hit the ball better is because you think you can hit them better. You go to the range more to get used to them. You spent a lot of money on them so they need to work better than your old ones. Confidence goes a long way to pulling off a shot on the course and that should be the goal of your next set of clubs. Whether they come from a thrift store rack or a custom club fitting, confidence is where the game is won and strokes are shaved off the card.

As for me, I’ll keep hitting these or another similar set Wilson irons until the heads have nothing left on them. Sure, I’ll reshaft them someday and probably have to re-groove and sandblast the faces again, but they are worth the effort to keep knocking 7 irons stiff from 165. Now, go get your clubs and get out to enjoy a nice round.

Equipment Deal: Wilson Zip Golf Balls Are An Incredible Value

Back in the day, I played two balls in tournament play. The first was the Titleist Tour 100 Balata and the second was the Maxfli HT100 balata ball. Both of these provided a cover that would shred and get knocked out of round, but they felt so good coming off the club head that I just didn’t care how long the ball lasted. That was tournament play, not the meaningless practice rounds and $5 rounds I played with friends. Those rounds were filled with Nitros, Ultras, and Ram Tour Balatas, or the under $1 balls. Today, I’m mostly search for those decent under $1 balls which I have found in the Wilson Zip. The Wilson Zip comes in at just $.83 a ball, and has an aggressive spin rate and has that perfect click coming off the club face and putter.

The 302 dimple pattern brings back memories of the Molitor 302 and a few others from my younger playing days. The flight pattern on the Wilson Zip is low enough to play through most conditions, but still produces enough arc to stop the ball on most putting surfaces. Putting the Zip is also a very pleasant experience as well. The slight click off the face gives you the feel of contact, but the softness of the cover provides you with a very light feeling at contact. I like to think of the Wilson Zip as the little brother to the Duo line. The current Wilson Golf lineup includes 4 different ball models, the Zip being the lower of them. The Duo and Duo Spin are the mid and upper-mid range, while the Tour FG is the highest offering from them.

The performance of the Duo line was very similar to the Zip for me, but the lower ball fight of the Wilson Zip is what lead me to packing them in my bag. The cost of them was also a major consideration since I was really tying to keep the costs under $1 a ball. The Duo’s cost double what the Zips do, and without much in the way of a performance increase for me. That pretty well made the decision for me: an $.83 ball that performs as well as a $3-4 ball and feels better than a $1-2 ball? Yep, that’s what made it in my bag and you can have them in your bag as well by just clicking here.

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Budget Beater: Always Buy Used Or Last Year’s Models

Let’s be honest. Golf equipment prices are crazy. $1000 for a set of irons. $400 for a driver. $250 for a hybrid. $300 for a putter. If you are bag shopping right now, you’re well aware of the fact that purchasing your new setup will cost you thousands of dollars. In fact, $2000 is almost considered escaping  with a bargain when purchasing a new “pro line” set of clubs. While we can’t all get lucky finding an almost new set of Cleveland TA6 irons for $10 at a local garage sale, you can shave $100’s off that new set if you start looking at the used market first.

For example, the Titleist 716 AP1 irons run $899.99 new, but at 2ndSwing.com you can grab a set for $629.99. The great part about purchasing used clubs is that someone else has already taken the retail hit on them, so you don’t have to. Golf clubs are like cars, the second they leave the lot, they aren’t worth as much. You can also get a very good feel for the success or failure of a club by how many are available in the used market. You never want to see a current club be overly available in the used market. This usually means that they weren’t hitting them well and they have moved on to something new. There is one thing about buying a used set of irons though, make sure that the clubs you purchase have a very good return policy. If you have never hit them before, you’d hate to plop down $500 on something that you end up hating. At least you should be able to get your money back out of them if you get a good enough deal.

Another way to save is to purchase last year’s models new, like Taylor Made R15 460 driver. It can be found for $249.99, or $250 off the original $499 price tag in the Golfsmith Outlet section. While that’s not a used deal, per se, it’s a great price on a very relevant piece of hardware that will serve you very well for years to come. Buying new, generation old clubs is a great way to save quite a bit of money on new equipment. You’ll still find the used equipment to be a bit cheaper, but the fact that you can go to a store and still hit the 2015 clubs and buy them new at a discount is certainly appealing when making an investment this large.

The last piece of advice to buying used clubs is to be open to hitting everything. As someone who has spent 12 of his 15 years playing using forged blades, going to a cavity back iron doesn’t interest me one bit. That said, finding a quality set of irons for dirt cheap makes it easier to think about in the future. While the club styles may change, an almost new set from 2005 is going to be just as playable as a almost new set from 2012. In fact, except for a few dings and nicks, my set from 1988 clean enough to play with today. Just because I prefer the thin top line of the blade style head, doesn’t mean I won’t consider a bigger head. If I strike the ball well with a club, it starts looking good to me, regardless of the actual look of the club head.