Managing brand image at a golf course or country club is always a challenge. My partners and I have been researching the perception of dress codes at golf courses and the impact of rules on brand image.
Let me summarize what we’ve found and provide a branding perspective on a divisive subject…
When it comes to changing the rules on what you can wear on the golf course, the debate rages on. Some people believe we should stick with the traditional old rule: slacks and collared shirts at all times. Others say that the stodgy old rules should be relaxed.
Our secondary research shows that the issue is fairly evenly divided by age. Baby boomers, who have spent their entire lives adhering to the old-school rules, are more likely to say “no change needed.”
Easy for them to say. Golf shirts are a main staple of their everyday wardrobes.
Young people don’t wear golf attire around the house so they’re mostly in favor of relaxing the rules. They’d like to just wear their normal hipster attire on the golf course.
Interestingly, the younger crowd is not dead set against ALL the rules of fashion behavior. As one 29-year-old player said, “I don’t mind the collared shirt rule. I get that. Just don’t make me tuck it in.”
Another young man said, “I’m fine with no hats in the clubhouse, and stuff like that.”
On the other side, some old guys have their metal-cleated heels planted firmly in a bygone era.
“Dress codes are what turn young men into gentlemen,” one guy said.
Wow. I think it’s more about sportsmanship and behavior on the course than it is dress codes.
In any case, golf operators are going to have to find the middle ground because Gen X and Millennials are going to out-number baby boomers in the very near future. It’s an undeniable demographic fact.
Clearly, a reasonable, common-sense approach is best. You don’t want to let your course’s etiquette guidelines turn into a fashion police exercise.
Here’s what not to do…
One summer day a few years ago I agreed to meet my cousin for an afternoon round at a nicer, daily fee club in Bend, Oregon.
As I drove in I noticed the driving range was packed with all sorts of people… from young kids with their parents to teenagers, young couples, and of course old men. Some of the kids were wearing tee shirts. There were ladies in athleisure wear and even a couple pairs of sweat pants.
My cousin had been out “camping” in his Mercedes Sprinter van, so he didn’t have his usual golf attire. But he looked perfectly respectable in a fashion tee, Bandon Dunes hat, color coordinated shorts and Footjoys.
You could tell he’s a player, but when we checked in the guy behind the counter said, “You have to have a collared shirt.”
“Really? There are a lot of people out on the range without collared shirts,” he countered.
“Yeah, well I can’t let you on the course that way.”
Our pleas for sanity fell on deaf ears and my cousin ended up buying an over-priced, pro shop shirt. For him, the brand experience was ruined before he even got to the first tee. He will never set foot on that course again, and the shirt went straight to Goodwill. I’m not kidding!
Inconsistent enforcement, inflexible customer service, and tone-deaf rule setting adds up to one thing:
Bad branding.
Golf course operators have to look at the big picture when they’re setting rules and figuring out enforcement procedures.
For instance, there are regional and local variations in fashion that apply. If you’re down South people still dress up to go out for breakfast. There’s more formality there.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, not so much. If you see someone in downtown Bend wearing a suit you know he’s a lawyer from outta town. Golf course dress codes should reflect those nuances of local lifestyle. At Bend Golf & Country blue jeans are allowed. It’s in their bylaws.
There are many problems with the enforcement of dress codes. Consistency, for one.
For instance, the rules always go out the window when the weather’s bad. Nobody’s going to make you wear a collared shirt when it’s the base layer underneath a sweater, a puffy jacket and and a shell. So if you’re not enforcing the rules one day, why would you the next?
Another problem is the type of clothing that’s being worn these days. With stretch denim the line between jeans and slacks is blurred. And what about leggings and yoga pants for women? Plaid shirts have collars, but they look out of place on the golf course. Are you going to outlaw those too?
Who really wants to go around with a tape measurer to make sure socks are the right length? Is the marshal going to act as the fashion cop and make everyone tuck their shirts back in and turn their hats back around on the 5th tee?
Unless you run a private club with a small membership base it’s almost impossible to enforce the idea of traditional attire on the course.
In the 1930’s most everyone wore suits and ties on the golf course. That evolved in the 50’s and you’d see ultra-cool Arnold Palmer sporting cardigans and smoking cigs.
Fashions come and go and every generation thinks theirs is the best.
But the tide in golf is changing once again. So maybe it really is time to get with it and abandon those rules that were grandfathered in back in in Ben Hogan’s heyday.
A simple statement of “appropriate, tasteful attire” might just be enough. So it’s up to the operator to define “tasteful.”
Just a shirt with sleeves and shorts with a hem.
Comments