Players 1st and Golf Inc. announce the courses that players love most
Players 1st and Golf Inc have announced the winners of the inaugural Players Choice Awards, recognizing clubs that have delivered outstanding customer experiences as measured by feedback from their guests.
The Players Choice Awards is a collaboration between Golf Inc. and Players 1st, a software and data analytics provider that conducts online surveys of golfers to provide feedback to clubs. Over 200 clubs participated in the competition nationwide, utilizing the Players 1st platform to collect golfer feedback with the winners decided based on over 20,000 completed surveys received during the July and August survey period.
“With the Players Choice Awards, we wanted to recognize courses that are embracing customer-experience technology and bringing their guest feedback into the boardroom to make decisions,” said Peter Smith, Players 1st senior vice president and general manager. “By putting the customer at the center of their operations, these courses are aligning their strategies to respond to what matters the most to their members and guests and improving their business performance as a result.”
Leading the pack in the overall in the nation-wide competition was Yocha Dehe Golf Club – part of the Cache Creek Casino and Resort in Brooks, Calif. The Troon managed facility demonstrated exemplary scores from its guests, achieving the overall highest Net Promoter Score over the two-month survey period.
“Being a part of Cache Creek, we are given all the tools to do our job and do it well,” said Will Foust, director of golf at Yocha Dehe. “The hotel and casino set the bar extremely high in customer service, as does Troon. We have an extensive onboarding process and annual training to
support our objectives.”
In addition to the national winner, several regional facilities were honored for their overall customer satisfaction performance.
Turtleback Golf Course, owned and operated by Wilson Golf Group, topped the list of mid-west courses. “Turtleback is a public course maintained to the level of a private club. Our focus is conditioning and customer service, period. You take care of those two things, and you take care of 90% of the business,” said General Manager Kevin Carter.
For the northeast, Kebo Valley Golf Club in Bar Harbor, Maine lead the group as the overall winner. “Golfers who enjoy and appreciate pure golf gravitate to Kebo Valley,” said Peiter
DeVos, head professional. “We have a mix of local and traveling golfers and provide both with an unforgettable experience.”
The Links at Galloway, a public course in Memphis, Tenn. took regional honors for the south-east region. “The course is short by today’s standards,” said Mickey Barker, administrator of golf for the city of Memphis. “It is walkable, plays fast, has large greens in great condition and is in a beautiful, park-like setting.”
Langdon Farms Golf Club and the Gamble Sands Golf Club tied for the top spot in the northwest region. Located in Aurora, Ore., Langdon Farms is managed by Scottsdale based OB Sports. “We are fortunate to have owners (brothers Chris and Tom Maletis) who know what it takes to run a top-notch operation,” said General Manager David Stead. “I think we have one of the best maintained courses in the state and being friendly is fundamental for us. You treat people like you want to be treated.”
Gamble Sands Golf Club, another OB Sports managed facility in Brewster, Wash., also posted excellent results. “We like to treat all of our customers as though we were hosting them at our homes,” said General Manager Brady Hatfield. “We believe strongly in making memories and providing customers with an experience rather than just a round of golf.”
In addition to the overall winners, courses were also recognized for excellence in atmosphere, course conditions and perceived value. The full list of winners is given below.
