Plastic Products

[Golf Green]

HI. I know that golf courses are progressively banning plastic based products such as plastic tees but also disposable bottles etc. I would be interested to know how your golf clubs are reacting to this and of course your own personal views?

 

[Hook DeLoft]

I haven’t seen that here but I would be all for it. 

[BKordon]

I haven't seen this but the tees that both my previous club, and the one I'm at now, use biodegradable tees. I think they are actually corn resin based. I don't personally use them, as I use wood. I break all tees and go through 12-16 tees a round, but don't like how the ball comes off of plastic. Typically, when I break one with a drive, I use it on the next par 3. I also bought a box of 10,000, as my kids both play. It should last a couple of years and I got a great price. 

I would fully support banning plastic on a golf course. I use a refillable insulated bottle anyway. 

[Kansas King]

I don't know if I would be too concerned about plastic on the golf course. I think banning plastic would be difficult from a business perspective as most courses can't afford to risk losing even a small portion of their membership and the sales of drinks in plastic bottles. Plus, things like plastic tees and bottles don't seem to actually be a problem on the course. I would be happy to see a recycling can or two on the course but beyond that I don't think it's really an issue.

I understand the whole green push to eliminate single use plastics and I'm not against it but for me, tees are not single use. I typically get 2 - 5 rounds out of one tee. I typically use broken or short plastic tees on par 3s and I rarely lose a tee. Getting rid of plastic bottles would be great but it's hard to enforce and unless the club is a well-off private club, and courses are unlikely to risk it. My other thing with going after plastic tees is that they are so insignificant in the world of plastics. Sure, you can argue everything matters, but eliminating 100% of plastic tees in the world wouldn't register on any scale anywhere. Plus, are plastic tees actually less green than traditional wood tees? I'm guessing the cost of transporting and milling lumber probably is as bad for the earth as producing plastic tees in a factory with a much smaller footprint. Plus, the amount of waste to make wood tees is actually tremendous. I know there is the one company that glues the two pieces together to reduce waste but even then, is the process actually greener and less wasteful?

I think the most pragmatic approach to reducing plastic waste on courses is lobbying for recycling bins and more eco friendly cups. People are still going to want their drinks on the course, so a paper cup is probably the best you can do their if the course has a fountain. You may still have straws and lids to deal with but it is an improvement. 

[Kenny B]

Right now we can't even have garbage cans on the course, let alone recycle containers.  We carry a plastic grocery bag tied to the cart for trash, but we won't have those available much longer.  We have more trash blowing in from the supermarket across the street than is generated on course.

I don't see plastic tees being a problem, even though I think they are more common now than in years' past.  Most players put their broken tees in a collection tray.  Maintenance crews do a good job maintaining a clean tee box every day, and this is a muni.

[Kanoito]

I can understand the issue with plastic tees, since they can damage machinery and such... but we got recycling bins on every hole for cans and bottles, so it's the same recyling mentality we apply at home.