Green Fee and Cart Fee Increase, Food and Beverage Overcharging "Only in Name Public Course," National Rights Commission Recommends "Strengthening Public Course Management and Supervision"
Domestic golfers have recently been bruised by the abusive practices of golf courses enjoying an unprecedented boom due to the 'COVID-19 special.' Photo by Golf.com
[Asia Economy Golf Specialist Reporters Kim Hyunjun and No Urae] "Golf courses have the upper hand."
Mr. A, who lives in Seoul, booked a tee time at K Golf Course in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province on the 30th of last month. He had been looking forward to a round with acquaintances, but heavy rain poured from the morning of the play day. Judging that playing would be difficult due to the severe weather, he and his companions decided to postpone. However, the golf course gave a ridiculous response to the booking cancellation request, saying, "At least three people must arrive on site for it to be possible." Recently, golf courses have been exhibiting excessive arrogance.
The domestic golf course industry is experiencing an unprecedented boom due to the impact of COVID-19. Overseas golf travel has become difficult, and even golf beginners (golfer + child) are flocking because golf is perceived as relatively safe compared to other sports. This fall season, even weekday bookings were fully booked a month in advance, making securing tee times quite challenging. This is why golf courses are sharply raising green fees and cart fees and acting boldly.
Before COVID-19, weekend green fees were around 200,000 KRW, but they have soared to the high 300,000 KRW range. Cart fees have increased from 100,000 to 120,000 KRW, and caddie tips are at least 130,000 KRW. It is interesting that public courses are approaching or even exceeding the prices of membership courses, which is a strange phenomenon. Public courses were created in 2000 with the purpose of popularizing golf. Unlike membership courses, they are exempt from individual consumption tax (21,120 KRW) and receive various tax benefits such as property tax reductions.
Due to the impact of COVID-19, overseas golf travel has become difficult, leading the domestic golf industry to actually enjoy a 'boom'.
The problem is that the structure has degenerated into one that increases golf course profits. The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) surveyed the average usage fees by region for 354 public courses and 158 membership courses in May and found that in the metropolitan area, Chungcheong, and Honam regions, the difference was only 1,000 to 14,000 KRW, and some public courses in Chungcheong were priced 5,000 KRW higher. They explained that they "recommended strengthening supervision of public golf courses to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Fair Trade Commission."
The ACRC’s investigation found that out of 512 courses, 434 (84%) charged excessively high prices for food and beverages or effectively forced the use of ancillary services such as restaurants and caddies. During the National Assembly audit in October, there was criticism over profiteering, such as a bottle of Makgeolli costing 12,000 KRW when it should be around 1,000 KRW, and snacks like tteokbokki costing 36,000 KRW. The ban on bringing outside food means players cannot prepare their own meals. Package reservations that include accommodations like golf hotels are standard.
The ACRC proposed solutions including strengthening management of public course green fees and user status, revising the standard golf course terms and conditions to prohibit forced use of ancillary services, banning recruitment of pseudo-members or granting priority usage rights, and specifying sanctions for violations. Although golfers’ voices are growing louder, with petitions such as "Golf Course Profiteering in the COVID Era" appearing on the Blue House’s National Petition Board, improvements remain distant.
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