The Pellucid Perspective - April 2023 - 8

GOLF
TECHNOLOGY
they are using; I'm getting an extreme " Déjà vu " experience.
With a 3 year winning streak and Course Utilization reaching
historic highs; the golf industry is also attracting both investment
and tech sector interest not seen since the 1990s.
Pellucid has been contacted by at least 4 private equity firms in
the last month and provides monthly reports to another. And,
of course, technology has changed in a big way - automated
web browsing powered by AI fueled bots are mining data like
never before. In some cases this represents a wonderful opportunity
to make better use of the " dark data " created by your
Tee Sheet/POS platforms. However,
it also means that some enterprising
people can figure out how to use
your publicly accessible information
without your knowledge, let alone
your consent.
As some of you know, I have
tracked technology use in the golf
industry since the appearance of the
first electronic tee sheets in the late
1980s. We have served as advisors
to many of them - most notably 17
years with Fore Reservations! as they
grew into the largest Tee Sheet/POS
vendor in Daily Fee golf. We got to
watch the dot.com boom and bust
of the late 1990s and early 2000s. In
my 20+ years advising Pellucid; we
have dissected more platforms and
analyzed more consumer/golfer data
than anybody in the golf industry.
If nothing else, that qualifies me as
an old dog that is able to recognize
some of these old tricks.
The Tee Sheet is the most important
tool and asset of any daily fee
golf operation. It is the inventory that the golf course factory
produces; which makes your control and management of that
asset probably your biggest task. This also means any 3rd Party
access you may grant must be done carefully and protect your
interest in your most valuable asset. Your customer base is your
second most valuable asset and you also need to make sure any
3rd Party arrangements do not affect your control over both.
At the heart of most of the old dot.com boom internet Tee
powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and the huge advances
in server computer speeds.
One of these " new dogs " wants to set up a community where
golfers can buy and sell high demand tee times. Apparently, golfers
will be able to look at a variety of courses and make offers to
the existing reservation holder in order to get the tee time they
want. The concept is intriguing and uses " blockchain " technology
(the software used in the cryptocurrency space) and the creation
of Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for the tee times available. This
platform is using emerging technology and has many nice community
functions; but there are issues.
It will need Tee Sheet integration (from
Tee Sheet/POS providers) and permission
from the golf course to access their
inventory in order to get market traction.
Remember, however, that they
currently have the capability to look at
your tee sheet inventory and make reservations
without your permission.
The second one is more convenYou
need to be aware
of these developments
and make sure you
protect your major and
most important assets
- your tee space and
customer base.
tional. It is simply designed to be a
marketplace where golfers can more
easily find an aggregated variety of
tee time options at an assortment of
golf courses. Again, this " new dog " has
some interesting community components
and allows for pricing set by the
golf facility - they are simply mining
and combining your data onto their
3rd Party site. They also have plans
to capitalize on the current high demand
environment to charge golfer
rates above the price shown for your
inventory.
The third platform is the most brazen.
This one is simply going out and
getting your inventory and presenting it on their site. They can
do this without your permission. This is another example of
new technology that can take advantage of current practices
for displaying tee times and making reservations over the internet.
All
of these platforms have a couple things in common.
Time platforms was their primary reliance on " convenience
fees " citing the success of the " Ticketmaster model " . As we
look at these " new dogs " ; they must think that the current
high demand and utilization provide that same opportunity.
They also appear to be relying on those fees being paid for by
the golfer. We should add that convenience fees paid by the
golfer are also being used by other 3rd Parties to pay for their
services; some as a substitute for barter and some as a way to
enhance services without requiring additional barter times.
There is one big warning sign that is emerging. If you have
your tee time inventory up on the internet; that inventory data
can be " mined " and " scraped " using automated browsing " bots "
8 The Pellucid PersPecTive
They are all seeking to steer golfers/consumers to their sites
- they represent an option designed to get golfers to go away
from seeking out a specific course (yours) which is a basic
threat to your goal of establishing a relationship with and
loyalty from your customers. Also, for the golfers booking
through these sites, the convenience fees actually add to the
cost of playing your course.
Fortunately, we have the lessons from the dot.com bust and
the fact that golfers are consumers. The convenience fee model
didn't work for Book4Golf, e2e, Greens.com and other high
flying internet golf reservations platforms that failed during
the bust. The golfers quickly figured out that they could save
the fees by calling the golf course or going to their site. This
was a major reason that the level of internet golf reservations
April 2023
http://www.dot.com http://www.dot.com http://www.dot.com http://www.Greens.com
The Pellucid Perspective - April 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Pellucid Perspective - April 2023
