Bay Area Golf Course Survey Results
(Ranked by overall score)

This set of pages provides analysis of the surveys our members recently received. These surveys asked members to rank all the public golf courses within 125 miles of Berkeley. Members were instructed to rank courses in terms of their own feelings about which courses they would prefer to serve as venues for future tournaments. Each course listed included information on weekend green fees and distance from Berkeley, so members could factor those elements, as well as their impressions of the course, in their decision. Below is the results of the 28 completed surveys we've received as of 12/15/01. Data may be sorted in various ways by clicking on headers. Header explanations listed below. Those of you who failed to get your survey in on time will have to live with these results until the next time we do this, likely in two years.

The results seems to indicate that our members prefer playing upscale courses. High marks were also given to courses in good condition, and courses that were perceived as good bargains. Surveys also suggested that there is an interest in playing a broader selection of courses. At the recent board meeting it was agreed that the current balance of courses, upscale vs. affordable, on our schedule is probably just about the right. So no dramatic changes will likely be made in this direction. However, the board will be looking over the survey results in determining which courses our membership prefers playing. It is interesting to note, perhaps not surprisingly, that many of the courses we play regularly scored in the top-10. In fact, of the courses that have hosted three or more UCGC tournaments in the past four years, only Las Positas and Adobe Creek failed to score in the top-10. (These two courses, incidentally, also failed to score in the top-30, however, in defense of Las Positas, it has been the most highly attended venue over the past several years. As for Adobe Creek, it received the second highest total of "F" scores, behind Crystal Springs) Poppy Hills was the run-away high-scorer, ranking as a top-10 course in 19 of the 28 completed surveys and ranking as a top-20 course in 23 of them. 

• Score = Uses the following formula to arrive at an overall course score: [(A*.9)+(B*.8)+(C*.7)]-(F*.9) Basically it tallies the marks received. The only drawback to this is that courses which received few or no votes, positive or negative aren't given much of a rating. For instance, a course like Lockeford Springs, were it to have been given enough votes, one way or the other, would probably have ranked  much higher than a 30 way tie for 102nd(0 points). Another shortcoming is that a decent course like Cherry Island ranked poorly due to a single vote. 

• A - Number of A's course received. Each A signifies that this course ranked as a top-10 course for the member.

• B - Number of B's course received. Each B signifies that this course ranked as a top-11-20 course for the member.

• C - Number of C's course received. Each C signifies that this course ranked as a top-21-30 course for the member.

• F - Number of F's course received. Each F signifies that, for one reason or another, the member did not like this course. It must be stated that many of the F's courses received were given when the member felt the green fees were too high. Affordability, therefore, provided for several negative marks.

• $ - Weekend green fees, with cart.

• Miles - Miles from Berkeley

• #T - Number of UCGC tournaments this course has hosted over the past 4 years.

Other Survey Responses

The survey also contained a set of questions relating to what members consider important to them in their decision to participate in a given tournament. These choices have been ranked. Most interesting in these averages is how little consideration members gave to expense as a factor in their decision. It appears that, for the most part, people prefer to pay more and play a well-designed and well-conditioned course, rather than playing a mediocre, yet inexpensive course. After course design and course condition, people tended to rate proximity as the next important consideration.

Members ranked each item 1-9(or 1-10) in order of importance. The lower the average score, the greater importance attributed.

 

	Reasons for not participating	Avg. score
1st	Schedule conflict / Family responsibilities	1.89
2nd	Too far to drive	3.58
3rd	Course doesn't appeal to me	3.81
4th	Injury / Ailment	4.58
5th	Members of my group aren't playing	4.96
6th	Too expensive	5.00
7th	Slow play	5.96
8th	Weather too hot/cold	6.04
9th	I never win	8.52

 

	Important to our members	Avg. Score
1st	Challenging courses	2.96
2nd	Interesting courses	3.15
3rd	Course condition	3.69
4th	Courses that are new to me	4.15
5th	Scenic courses	5.00
6th	Nearby courses	5.33
7th	Inexpensive courses	7.00
8th	Familiar courses	7.15
9th	Walk-able courses	7.35
10th	Easy courses	8.77

What We Learned

The data we collected from theses surveys is very insightful for learning how our members feel about certain courses. It also helps us understand the considerations that determine member participation in given events. Improvements to the way the survey was administered would provide a more equitable evaluation of each course. In a few years we'd like to provide another similar survey, but instead of rating only 30 courses, have everyone rate every course they've ever played, rating them either A, B, C, D or F. This would achieve a broader sampling of evaluated courses and a broader spectrum of ratings.