Pool Cheaper Than Golf?

Johnnyt

Johnnyt

Burn all jump cues
Silver Member
How much money does the average golfer spend on equipment and course fees. I haven’t played golf in years so I really don’t know the prices of golf equipment anymore. I’m just trying to get an idea how cheap pool is, equipment wise compared to golf. I would think bowling is cheaper than both of them. Thank you. Johnnyt
 
My guess is the average golfer will spend more. The average golfer I see around here in NC is constantly buying new clubs looking for that club that fits them perfect. The cheapest green fees I can find around here are $20 for 18 and that doesn't cover the cart. Add on the cost of golf balls which are far from cheap nowadays and you have a good chunk of dough.

One hall I go to I can spend $16 a month and that makes my pool time unlimited for $8 a day. Much like golfers love getting clubs I love cues, but they are more of collectibles to me than finding the perfect cue. Also unlike golf balls I probably will never lose my CB, or any other accessory.
 
Golf Clubs

I have bought a new driver on average each year for the last 6 years at $400.00 and up each. I usually get about $100.00 for the old one when I sell it.
My Golf bag averages around $2500 any time I go to the course. All will be obsolete within 1 to 2 years. It would not be uncommon to see a golf bag with equipment costing $3000 to $4000 dollars in it. Then you get the guys who buy custom made clubs and the price goes up from there. If you took your time and would buy last years clubs you could equip yourself pretty nicely for about a $1000.00 to get a good starter set of clubs.

Golf has seen an incredible amount of new technology in the last 10 years.
 
No doubt golf way more pricy than pool.
$400 driver, $200 in 3 & 5 woods, then $100 for a hybrid, then a set of pings for $800. Oh yeah don't forget an Oddsy putter for $100.
That does not include practice on a range or even playing.
 
Golf is for sure more expensive than pool, but bowling is way cooler than both of them. Did you ever drop a bowling ball on your foot? You see stars, my friend. (1)

(1) George Castanza
 
Here's a simple question....

Nowadays there are open event weekly nine ball tournaments nearly anyplace you look, where you can play against some of the top players in the country for a $20 entry fee. How much do you think it would cost you to enter a golf tournament with someone like Ernie Els or Vijay Singh? Pool is the greatest sports bargain there is, and it's not even close.

Of course the downside to this is that the players are starving, but some of them need to lose a little weight, anyway.:groucho:
 
I play both, and I can say without a doubt that golf probably approaches being four or five times more expensive than pool. This month, I'll head over to my home course and plop down $600 for a membership, and $450 for the yearly cart rental, and that's just the start of things. One of the most expensive things about golf is the constant upgrade of equipment. Technology is definitely in a boom in the golf department these days, so there's something new and better every single year. It's very easy to get sucked into the allure of new clubs, bags, shoes, clothes, balls, etc. And while we're mentioning the balls, a dozen golf balls can cost as much as $50 :eek:
 
I don't golf but I think it depends on what level you take it to.

Here in Mi you can go to a par 3 Metro park and carry a few cheap clubs and bang the ball around. Now consider going to a smoky PH for $10/hour and some would prefer the golf course. But you can also find specials for $5 to $10 for the whole afternoon of pool. If you really look hard you can find places that have free pool on certain days.

Some people take group golf lessons that can raise the cost a little. Many pool players are just social players who are content on banging the ball around and don't really want to get better.

Now consider having a home table after the initial cost it is hardly anything.

If you are serious about pool and take professional lessons it can get expensive but overall it is still cheaper than golf.
 
equipment aside, it seems pretty close for $/time spent around here.

Pool 7$/hr (cheapest is 2$ daytime till 4)

Golf 15$/18 (walking), takes about 2.5 hrs = 6$/hr

Bowling 2.75$ a game, 3 games take about an hour = $8.25/hr
(may be outdated, haven't bowled in awhile)

In pool you can split time with someone and golf has practice greens that can take up a lot of time for free. It seems to me that for time entertained, bowling cost more than you expect, and golf is cheaper than you expect (especially if you go the membership route).
 
The pool scene where I'm working in TN is vastly different from TX. A large majority of the action is on 7' tables. Very good tables, not junk like back home, but I prefer 9'. Most action takes place too late for me to get much involved (I make money building, not playing pool) and everyone plays tournaments with nice player auctions. I have enjoyed playing big tournaments in Atlanta, Nashville and Louisville and there are very good players in Clarksville and surrounding KY area. Most rooms are heavily smoked in which is rough on me, I stopped smoking five years ago after thirty years of a two to three pack a day habit. I decided to pick back up on golf after a ten year hiatius. In my mind the related costs are close. Man has the golf technology taken a giant leap forward. Either sport bears out the saying- the difference between men and boys is the price of their toys.
 
Taxi said:
Nowadays there are open event weekly nine ball tournaments nearly anyplace you look, where you can play against some of the top players in the country for a $20 entry fee. How much do you think it would cost you to enter a golf tournament with someone like Ernie Els or Vijay Singh? Pool is the greatest sports bargain there is, and it's not even close.

Of course the downside to this is that the players are starving, but some of them need to lose a little weight, anyway.:groucho:
Click to expand...

Joined December 2007 and this is your FIRST POST??? Wow, that has got to be the forum record!!!

Maniac
 
Most of the responces so far have golf costing more as a hobby. After the price of your cue and case, and tip tools, pool is a pretty cheap hobby compared to most of the other sport hobbies. Johnnyt
 
Golf usually is much more expensive, but doesn't have to be. Those who switch out clubs every year, take trips to special courses,etc...will spend a ton more money. Most of it depends on how nice a course you want to play on...Pebble Beach is 300-475 a round.

You can go chip, pitch, and putt balls all day long out in the sunshine for free,though, at multiple places. Some par 3 courses do 10 bucks all day just like many pool halls.

A local 18 hole course has a 5 dollar, walk after 4 pm deal around here. Hard to beat that.
 
Golf is definitely more expensive. Just consider how much its going to cost Tiger in the next short while.
And yet another Tiger joke, Groan!
 
I have never played golf, so my opinion is not completely informed...

In pool you can buy a decent $100 cue, replace the tip once a year, and hold the stick together with a rubber band in the trunk of your car. You can also have 5K in equipment on you when you enter the pool hall. This is just players, collectors will of course have many times that invested.

In golf, you can probably buy a set of Wilson clubs for $100. Buy the cheap balls. Like pool, you can also have 5K in your bag when you go to the course.

So the equipment seems to be a wash. You can make it as cheap or as expensive as you want in either sport.

Probably the biggest difference is what it costs to play. In both sports, you can find places that will cost less than $5 per hour. But the max on pool might be $20 an hour, where as the max in golf might be hundreds an hour, if you are in an exclusive golf club.

I think you can take lots of sports, and play them on the cheap, or the SUPER expensive, depending on how caught up you get in the equipment and where you play. Its really up to the individual which way they want to go.

I also don't think the cost you pay has any bearing on the quality of your play in most sports. We've proven this time and time again in pool, and I would bet the golf specific forums have had the same discussions there as well.
 
twal said:
No doubt golf way more pricy than pool.
$400 driver, $200 in 3 & 5 woods, then $100 for a hybrid, then a set of pings for $800. Oh yeah don't forget an Oddsy putter for $100.
That does not include practice on a range or even playing.
Click to expand...

Really, how about a $25,000 Black Boar or any of the other top of the line custom cues? Many that start at $1000 and rocket up. I think people spend what they want to and what they have the means to spend.
 
I wonder if the golfers are comparing apples and oranges sometimes. Is the golf course a government subsidized course? You know, a public course? If the course is owned by the city with no taxes and gets government welfare to support the sport its not really a fair comparison. There are very few places besides a community center that subsidized pool with a payment from the government. Real estate taxes and property rent is the biggest expense for both sports. Pool is cheaper by a long shot in comparable neighborhoods.
 
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