2025 Golf Rates
 

The new golf rates are out.

Most of the rates look like they stayed the same, although Palmer Legends is back to being a "premier rate". I guess since they've re-done all (3) courses, it's time to raise the price.

No Evening Rate any longer is a bit odd. I'm sure they have a reason for it, but it's disappointing.

No mention of a "9 Hole Rate".

What does it say about 9 holes,……….at the bottom of your thumbnail?

For resident member, before taxes, versus last year:
Orange Blossom up 2.75%
Hacienda Hills up 8.66%
Southern Oaks up 3.97%
Palmer up 12.95%
All other Championship courses up 3.6%

On next page of rate sheet:

9 hole rate before 8:00 and after 1:00 on weekdays and anytime on weekends

They never have had an evening rate during high season, just unlimited play for the 9 hole rate after the afternoon wave on 27 hole courses and after 2:00 on the 18 hole courses. Probably because the days are so short (not in late April and May).

Back in the day, during high season you could play 27 holes, based on availability, during the PM wave. That was discontinued a few years ago.

As it has been said; “if you want to dance you have to pay the fiddler”. If you have an out of town golfer you might want to take a trip out of the bubble for a round or two of golf. Then you can compare TV golf courses to others apples to apples so to speak. Maybe not. It’s just darn convenient to play right here in TV.

Membership enhancement, here I come.

I don't know, I can't read it and the quality wasn't good enough to blow it up. Does it have a 9 hole rate?

I couldn't find the Rate Sheet on the GolfTheVillages Web Site ... it was posted to a private group on Facebook, this morning.

So I just looked and found the 2nd and 3rd page on the Golf The Villages website. The "after the wave" rate remains ... you can play unlimited golf for the 9 hole rate after the 2nd Wave and after 2:00 pm at the 18 hole courses. Curiously, that rate doesn't begin until 3:00 pm right now (when it's really of little or no value, due to darkness).

Here it is…..
https://www.golfthevillages.com/what...r2024Rates.pdf

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Unlimited play starts at 2:00 pm for 18 hole courses once the rates change on January 1st. It’s on page 4 of 4 on the rate sheet posted on Golf The Villages.

Sorry, I typed 2 and meant to type 3 ... which is what struck me odd, as currently that rate doesn't begin until 3 pm.


BTW, the PNC Father/Son Tournament beings in Orlando, on Saturday. If you're looking for someone to root for, Stewart Cink and his son Connor will probably be in the mix, they won it back in 2013. I believe Stewart parents and Connor's grandparents still live in Caroline in The Villages.

The problem is that the rates are based on two seasons that significantly overlap some of both the shortest and longest days of the year. They used to have three seasons with different rates, busy season, shoulder season, and slow season. That made more sense in my opinion.

The after 3:00 rate is of little value for December but makes sense in June, and they both are part of the same rate sheet. The after 2:00 rate in January is very appropriate given how short the days are (and how expensive full rates are during that time), and gives golfers a chance to get in a round later in the day at a decent price in late May when the courses are practically empty. Check out availability of tee times in the afternoon in late May. Before 2:00 there are lots and lots of open times. Between 2:00 and 3:00 they are packed.

I agree. I don't understand why the "in season" rate continues after April and doesn't begin again, until January. Most seasonal type things seem to run with "in season", "off season" & "shoulder seasons".

Oh well, I'm thrilled that they still have the After 2 pm rate and the prime time increase was minimal. That & all the courses I play, are in good to very good condition.

golf
 

I always take guestts off site to play.

Realize that the owners have computers and can track demand for golf and whatever they do makes no sense. Pay a lesser rate in December than in May. Courses in S. Florida high season is usually 11-1 thru 4-30.

Golf
 

Getting pretty expensive but what isn’t?

If you play each championship course once it will cost you 5.28% more (tax included) than in 2024 during winter season. I’m sure summer rates will go up a similar amount. They’re just doing their part to encourage the Fed to keep reducing interest rates.

I considered it, but I think you’ve got to consistently play TV courses twice a week to come close to breaking even.

There is a page 2 that shows Unlimited play rate after the afternoon wave it after 2 on the straight 18 hole courses. It says you pay the 9 hole rate.

It’s a ripoff when you consider “residents” are driving their own golf carts.

The solution to being "ripped off", is not to play any of the courses. Fairly simple solution.

How does not paying a golf cart rental fee make the new prices a ripoff?

I’m joining at the monthly rate for the month of March, when I have a revolving door of my buddies coming down to play. I’ll save almost $20 per round, my guests will save almost $6 per round, and we’ll get preferred t times over resident members. I’ll break even in about 7 rounds and will easily play at least 20 times that month. It’s a no brainer.

Plenty of golf courses outside The Villages include a cart with their greens fees. By "bringing your own cart", The Villages courses don't have to lease and maintain a fleet of golf carts. You can probably discount their greens fees about $20 each to make the championship greens fees realistic. I realize that some people prefer to ride their own carts, but doing so just takes away that expense from the courses' bottom line.

There is no discount for using your own cart, there is an additional fee for use of a course cart.

Are you suggesting the courses should require residents to use course carts, increase their fees by $14, and remove the cart rental fee?

When the courses are in the condition they're in right now (at least the ones I play), it's the best golf deal in Florida.

As pedestrian as most of TV's courses are, there's not a golf course within 40 miles that compares with TDS or Palmer (Laurel/Riley Grove). Perhaps even Hacienda and Glenview either.

Check your math. For 5 months of the year priority members save $19, the other 7 months $10(some slight variation among a few courses and I'm just doing morning wave). This is a weighted average of $13.75/round. With a single priority membership at $840/year, that comes out to 61 rounds to break even, or 1.17 rounds/week. A couple at $1050/year needs 76 rounds between them (38 each/year or 0.73 rounds/week each to break even). And that assigns $0 for having 1 priority point vs. 6 when making a request, which can be quite valuable in high season.

Golf is fairly expensive in the villages if you want to play alot and all championship courses. I didn't do the exact math, but looking at the charts it is something north of $6000/yr to play 100 rounds/yr. Thats $500/month which is comparable to the dues at many private clubs throughout the country. But it is what it is. Before I came here I've had years when I played 200 rounds. I'll think twice before doing that here (I am still very new).

There are surely not many 1st Class Country Clubs in the USA, you can belong to for $6000/year. More like $10,000 - $20,000+ in most parts of the country.

I have a raft of friends in Naples and none of them are paying less than $12,000/year for Membership, plus Initiation fees of $50,000+

Should be a discount from current rates when bringing your own cart. Otherwise, $70 should include a cart like nearly all of the outside courses IMO.

There is. If they had to supply carts, the Greens Fees would be significantly higher.

That's why you can $70 to play in TV and a comparable course that provided a cart, would be $100+.

Call Juliette Falls, Candler Hills or Skyview and see what they want for Greens Fees.

You'll find out fairly quickly, golf in The Villages is a good deal.

Try booking on GolfNow or TeeOff with a GolfPass membership (which quickly pays for itself) and you may change your mind.

Well, first of all, that’s not a problem.

But yes, I’ve been avoiding it up until now (moved in 3 months ago) because the difference was only roughly $9-10 per round. But these ‘in-season’ rates show the difference is more like $19 per round. This makes it much easier to make it worth it. I’d probably make it up by end of May, and would easily make it up by end of next year.

I've probably booked 750 rounds on GolfNow through the years, when traveling.

None of the courses I mentioned can typically be booked on GolfNow and I just searched a 40 mile radius from TV, to see if GolfNow has added any decent courses and didn't find a one.

TeeOff is basically the same access as GolfNow and both are owned by NBC Sports Group.

Candler Hills, Mission Inn, Deer island, Arlington Ridge and others are all bookable on Golf Now. What other good public access courses do you know of that are within a 40 mile radius of The Villages?

Go try to book Mission Inn or Candler Hills on GolfNow. No Mission Inn Tee Times and only a couple of Candler Hill times and only during the next 3/4 days (there was a "Hot Deal" available cheap).

In season, both Mission Inn and Candler Hills typically only use GolfNow randomly, when they have some extra Tee Times to fill and the price is over $100.

I wouldn't put Deer Island in the same category as TDS, Palmer, GlenView or Hacienda. It's a goofy design and was in awful condition the last time I played it.

The villages championship courses are not like a "first class country club" by any stretch of the imagination if by that is meant an exclusive fancy one.

Naples is notoriously expensive for golf.

At my home club in Nashville Tennessee I pay a senior rate of $475/month and paid a $10K initiation. Its one of the best courses in Nashville (for whatever that is worth). Most of the clubs in Nashville are at about that same rate, although some have higher initiations. My brother belongs to a nice club on cape cod Massachusetts and pays slightly less than me, but he does have a food minimum. A have a good friend in Huntsville Alabama who belongs to a nice club there and pays less than $400/month but does have a food minimum.

Those three data points are what lay behind my comment that you could join a private club for $500/mo. Maybe my sample is not representative...don't know.

Or maybe all of Florida is just expensive for golf. I also belong to a club called Reunion resort in Kissimmee and there I pay rate closer to your Naples friends. It was a $10K initiation and then $870/month plus $30/round. But that $870/month includes tennis, pool, gym and other amenities. The other amenities are paid for separately from championship golf in the villages. Naturally, I will resign the Reunion membership at some point now that I am here.

I think your numbers are fairly close and representative. A mid-tier Private Club is probably $6000-$8000 in most parts of the country. A 1st class club is probably $10K-$15K, depending on location. I pay about $6800/year in New Hampshire. The club I left in MA is about $13,500/year.

On Cape Cod, I'm guessing, but I suspect a club like Cranberry Valley is around $7500/$8500 a year and a place like the Ridge Club is probably $12K-$14K? Just a guess. If I'm not mistaken, Old Sandwich (not official on the "Cape) is about $15K/year, but also has an initiation of $100,000+.

I don't know of many club w/o Food Minimums, but they're out there. My NH Club doesn't have one.

Also keep in mind that you get to golf 12 months in Florida, while the season is much shorter in northern states. My CC in NY was only $4500/year with no greens fee, $10/ cart rider and $125/month spending minimum from April--Nov. But....the clubhouse was closed from 1/1-4/15, the pro shop closed 10/31-4/15, and realistically golfing season was 5/1-9/30 with many cold and rainy days. As a result, while working, I would get only 30 or so rounds in each year, it cost me over $200/round, if one wanted to look at it that way. Here, I'm playing between 150-200 rounds/year averaging about $55/round with priority membership. Total cost more, but cost/round much less given # of rounds and length of season.

I'm guessing those numbers are a few years old? I don't know of any decent private clubs in New England, that you can belong to for less than $6500/$7000 a year. I'm sure there are some out in the sticks, but I don't know where. Dues have been increasing exponentially the last few years.

As I'm sure you know, if you try to justify Country Club Memberships on a "cost per round" basis, you're not really a country club player. The numbers never work. We had many members at my prior club, who were in the $500-$700/round range. At Myopia Hunt Club, the dues are probably in the $12,000/year range and if you play more than 15-20 times a year, you'll likely get a letter that says you're abusing your privileges.

You are correct---those numbers are 11 years old. No idea what the same club costs now.