 Fall at Black Butte Ranch presents unique opportunity to sharpen your game
Lower rates, good weather, among reasons why fall is a time to get better
The end of the golf season is a fact of life in the Pacific Northwest. At Black Butte Ranch, we enjoy the spoils of a warm, dry summer and a near idyllic fall, but we know all great things must eventually come to an end.
But some make the mistake of putting their clubs away early, wasting what is arguably the best time of the golf season: Fall colors, off-season rates, easier access to optimal tee times, typically fantastic weather, and a quicker pace of play all make September and October a fantastic time to play.
What even well-seasoned golfers often neglect to do this time of year, though, is to use the latter part of the golf season to actually improve their games. It may seem counterintuitive to focus on getting better just as your golf game is about to go dormant for winter, but many of the same characteristics that make fall so appealing to play can make it a prime time for game improvement.
Why does fall present such an opportunity? Here are four reasons:
Knowledge is power: By now you have spent an entire season on the course, and certain truths about your game’s shortcomings should be evident. Perhaps you’ve been struggling to control your driver, or inconsistent putting has yielded too many three-putts over the summer. Maybe a bad habit has developed that has led to some ugly shots around the green, or maybe the mere thought of swinging a mid-iron strikes fear in your soul.
Whatever the issue, by this time of year you should have a feel for what has gone wrong. With that knowledge and a little late-season focus on those issues, the fall can make for a perfect time to break that habit and be ready for the next golf season.
Use a more open course to your advantage: The summer crowds are long gone, leaving behind a typically savvy group of golfers who are all trying to make the most of the final months of the season.
With less-crowded-courses, especially during midweek days in the fall, there is just a bit more freedom to play a second ball, especially if you’re playing as a single or as part of a twosome. This allows more opportunity to work on your game’s shortcomings in a real on-course setting, which is often a better way for most of us practice-starved hackers to sharpen our skills.
Your teacher is waiting: The professionals at Black Butte Ranch are an in-demand bunch, and that goes double during the summer. With a full calendar of ever-popular clinics and camps, the summers are most certainly busy.
But in the fall, the PGA professionals at Black Butte Ranch have just a touch more time in their schedules to offer one-on-one lessons and customized, small-group lessons. Putting their professional know-how to work will get your swing back on track and you on the path to better golf.
Play more: Game improvement is impossible without playing regularly, and the more you play the easier improvement becomes. But so often golfers wind down their season well before he needs to end. Use off-season rates to your advantage to play more golf.
Play as much golf as you want on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays for just $99 at either Glaze Meadow or Big Meadow. And in October, we drop to the lowest rates of the golfers season: $54 during primetime and $49 after 1 p.m. In October, the fall unlimited golf package begins at just $99 per night, Guests stay in a Black Butte Ranch lodge room, receive one day of unlimited golf at both Big Meadow and Glaze Meadow for each night stayed, a Black Butte Ranch logo cap, a 20 percent merchandise voucher at the Black Butte Ranch golf shops, and an accommodation microbrew amenity.
Squeezing in as much golf as you can while the weather is good and the rates are affordable is a no-brainer whether you’ve been struggling or not. And a well-spend fall will have your game ready when spring returns next year.
Book a tee time online, call 855-210-5305, or the Golf Shop at 541-595-1545. Call 866-901-2961 to take advantage of Black Butte Ranch’s golf packages. For more information on how to take a lesson from any of our Black Butte Ranch instructors, call 541-595-1294.