The Links Card is the next evolution of a discount card.
We’re creating a network of partner courses that are using collective marketing benefits to drive traffic into hard to market slots – expiring tee times.
From members
From partner courses
Years in the business
gaps filled every year
Remember, our primary goal is to protect your brand so we encourage you to use restrictions in order to limit your offer to where you need results. That might be 24 hour advanced booking and limited to Mondays after 12pm or no limit booking 7 days a week. It's wherever you want results.
Tighter restrictions can limit traffic but it protects your brand and yields.
This is a very common question and concern for both courses and golfers. How many times can an offer be redeemed?
Because of the nature of our platform, our default is unlimited because we want to continually drive results into the time frames you need whether or not it's accomplished by the same golfer over and over. This creates a long term affect where value golfers are pushed into slots you need filled - ie, turning them into an effective yield management crowd.
However, you're welcome to limit the number of uses. Just add it as a restriction.
Once we have our restrictions set, it's time to figure out an offer to drive traffic into our desired time frames. First, consider the opportunity cost. If your tee time expires at $0, what would you wish you had sold it for?
Next consider the restrictions. If you have broad restrictions like 7 day advanced booking and good anytime then we suggest smaller savings. If you're using 24 hour advanced booking on weekdays only, we suggest a larger discount to motivate action.
We will say that the most successful offers are tighter restrictions + bigger savings.
Of course, there are plenty of other factors to consider like audience size, demographics, or even the season. Luckily, your offer isn't set in stone and you can change it anytime throughout the year.
Carts are another opportunity for win-win.
Including them can boost the effectiveness of your offer and keep your pace of play where you want it.
90% of our partner courses include them.
This is the savings off your retail rates for greens fees and cart fees, if applicable.
Not currently a partner course
Emerald Vale Golf Club, situated in the charming town of Manton, Michigan, offers an exceptional golfing experience for players of all skill levels. Established in 1997 and designed by renowned architect Bruce Matthews III, this 18-hole public course boasts a challenging yet enjoyable layout that keeps golfers engaged throughout their game. Measuring approximately 6,800 yards from the gold tees, the course features a par of 72 and incorporates strategically placed bunkers and thick roughs that add an element of difficulty. With a slope rating of 130, Emerald Vale provides a fair challenge without being overly demanding for average golfers. The well-maintained fairways and bent grass greens ensure excellent playing conditions from April to November, the typical golf season in the region. Additionally, the club offers practice areas and driving range facilities for golfers looking to hone their skills before hitting the links. Emerald Vale Golf Club's scenic beauty and captivating layout make it a popular choice among locals and visitors alike, offering a memorable golfing experience in the heart of Michigan.
Golfers' experiences at Emerald Vale Golf Club have been varied, resulting in a mix of positive and negative reviews. While some players have lauded the course's layout and the friendly nature of the staff, others have expressed concerns about certain aspects of the course conditions. Positive feedback highlights the "excellent" layout and the course being described as a "nice open course." However, there have been complaints regarding the slow pace of play, with one reviewer describing it as "glacial at times."
In terms of course conditions, opinions differ. Some reviewers have praised the overall conditions, describing them as good or even excellent, with only minor issues related to the greens. However, others have pointed out problems such as over-watered fairways and the presence of weeds. Despite these criticisms, many reviewers still recommend Emerald Vale Golf Club for its enjoyable layout and the friendly demeanor of the staff.
The Links Cards, a reputable golf course rating system, provides valuable insights into the perceived value of Emerald Vale Golf Club. While the course offers a challenging and scenic layout, along with friendly staff, certain drawbacks, such as the occasional slow pace of play and inconsistent course conditions, have been noted. The Links Cards emphasizes the importance of considering individual preferences and expectations when evaluating the overall value of the golfing experience at Emerald Vale Golf Club.
*Our information is based on reviews and descriptions from across the internet
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold M: 72.6/130 | 395 | 592 | 357 | 408 | 172 | 391 | 548 | 430 | 165 | 3458 | 452 | 376 | 153 | 468 | 320 | 342 | 554 | 215 | 447 | 3327 | 6785 |
| Blue M: 70.5/124 | 390 | 562 | 314 | 400 | 149 | 384 | 537 | 401 | 155 | 3292 | 424 | 350 | 138 | 462 | 303 | 335 | 503 | 204 | 414 | 3133 | 6425 |
| Black M: 68.3/122 | 357 | 539 | 297 | 372 | 136 | 358 | 517 | 354 | 149 | 3079 | 414 | 295 | 108 | 434 | 281 | 314 | 490 | 171 | 385 | 2892 | 5971 |
| Red W: 70.0/122 | 310 | 420 | 285 | 339 | 124 | 332 | 423 | 326 | 123 | 2682 | 370 | 265 | 77 | 384 | 237 | 291 | 409 | 149 | 355 | 2537 | 5219 |
| Handicap | 12 | 4 | 14 | 2 | 16 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 18 | 3 | 13 | 17 | 11 | 15 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 1 |
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 72 | 6800 yards | 72.6 | 130 |
| Blue | 72 | 6474 yards | 70.5 | 124 |
| White | 72 | 6030 yards | 68.3 | 122 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 5277 yards | 70.0 | 122 |
**We have not verified the course website. Many links are based on google search results**
Our partner courses have come to love, enjoy, and look forward to their staff memberships each year.
We offer free memberships for your employees to use at other partner courses for access to the same perks available to our paying members. Your staff's cards will carry your courses' name and their name so they're identified as industry insiders.New in 2022: an unofficial industry rate program. At the request of several partner courses, we're creating a section in our listings for insider rates that are only visible and available to registered staff members. Participation by your course is optionalYour staff memberships will stay active as long as your course remains active on the platformOur members call your proshop and identify themselves as Links Card members. When paying their greens fees, they show their membership card to your staff.
You can restrict it to a 1 time offer or allow our members to redeem it as many times as they'd like.
Most of our partner courses allow for unlimited redemption because the special offer restrictions are so beneficial yields.
We don't charge our partner courses to participate on The Links Card platform.
Our revenue comes from selling memberships to golfers to access the special offers.
We simply want you to have the systems in place to reduce $0 tee times, even if they are rare for you.
Our platform allows you to create offers that increase demand during times that you need it, even if it's as small of a window as after 2pm on Mondays.
From what we've seen, it's the time frame when chances of bookings drop drastically and the expected value of a tee time rapidly approaches $0. For most courses, it's the last 24 hours before a tee time.
24 hours if our default but you're welcome to extend your offer out to meet the needs of your course. For example, a more rural course may want to use 72 hours while a resort near a city may want to use 24 hours
Great question and you absolutely can!
It's easy enough to build out an audience of value golfers. From what we've heard from our partner courses, the more difficult and time consuming part is utilizing them without damaging your brand.
Instead of adding another set of processes to your to do list, you can leverage The Links Card and our process to increase your yields for free.
If your course is consistently booked with foursomes and zero gaps, we congratulate you!
The Links Card is a platform that let's you put systems in place to reduce $0 tee times, even if they are rare for you.