Tee Time Booking Policies for Private Clubs

Tee time booking policies decide who plays when at a private club, and few policies generate more committee mail. A good policy is short, written down, applied the same way by the app and the pro shop, and designed around the club's real demand rather than a template from another club. This guide covers the decisions every golf committee faces (booking windows, release times, guest rules, standing times, cancellations and blocks) and includes a sample policy you can adapt.

Start with demand, not rules

Before writing policy, look at how the sheet actually fills. Pull a season of tee sheet data and answer:

• Which days and times fill completely, and how far in advance?
• Which times go unused, and why?
• How many rounds are members, guests, events and leagues?
• How often do members cancel late or not show?

Most clubs find a small number of peak blocks, usually weekend and holiday mornings, generate almost all the conflict. The rest of the sheet needs little regulation. Write strict rules where demand is tight and loose rules everywhere else.

Booking windows

A booking window is how far in advance a member can book. It's the most important lever in any policy.

Windows by member class

Many clubs set windows by membership category, reflecting different dues and privileges:

Check your bylaws. Some clubs grant equal booking rights to all golf members; others tie windows to category. See membership category.

Release time

The window opens at a fixed time each day, for example 7:00 a.m. seven days out. A predictable release is fairer than a rolling window, but it creates a race at the release minute. For times where the race is intense, a tee time lottery often works better than tighter rules.

Separate windows for weekdays and weekends

Some clubs open weekday times further out and weekend times closer in, or run a lottery for weekends and first-come booking for weekdays.

Who can book, and for whom

• Organizer books the group. One member can book the foursome, including partners who never use the app. The shop can book anyone by phone.
• Partner names required by a deadline. Clubs often let a member hold a time with "TBD" players until a cutoff, such as 48 hours before play, after which unnamed spots are released.
• One time per member per day. Prevents holding a morning and afternoon time "just in case". Define it as a minimum gap between start times, such as four hours start to start, so it's easy to explain and enforce.
• Maximum holdings. Limit how many future weekend times one member can hold at once.

Group size at peak times

To make the most of scarce times, many clubs require foursomes, or at least threesomes, in peak blocks. Singles and twosomes may be allowed to book but can be paired by the shop. State plainly that the club may add players to incomplete groups in peak times.

Guest policy

Guest rules balance member access with the club's revenue and its members' wish to host.

Limits on how often the same guest plays each year protect the club from de facto non-member use. It matters for private clubs' tax status as well as access; see nonmember income and 501(c)(7). The glossary entry on guest fees covers the basics.

Standing tee times

A standing tee time reserves the same time every week for a regular group, such as the Wednesday men's group or the Thursday ladies' nine. Standing times are valued by the members who have them and resented by those who don't.

Write rules for:

• How standing times are awarded. Application, seniority, or committee approval.
• How long they last. A season, with renewal on application, rather than indefinitely.
• Attendance requirements. A group that consistently fields only two players should lose or shrink the time.
• Releasing unused spots. If the group won't use the time, it should be released by a deadline so others can book it.
• Limits. A cap on how much of the peak sheet goes to standing times.

Cancellations and no-shows

Late cancellations waste the scarcest times. A workable policy:

• Deadline: cancel by a set time, commonly 24 or 48 hours before the tee time, for weekend and holiday times.
• Consequences: a warning, then a short booking suspension, or a charge, applied consistently.
• Recording: the system should record no-shows so the committee acts on facts, not memory.
• Refilling: freed times go to the waitlist immediately.

Blocks and holds

The sheet also carries non-member play and club use. Decide in advance how much of the sheet each can take:

• Member events and tournaments, including shotgun starts
• Leagues and men's and ladies' days
• Lessons and junior clinics
• Outside outings, if the club allows them
• Maintenance, aerification and frost delays

Block times well ahead, and show members why the times are unavailable ("Ladies' 9-hole league") rather than leaving gaps that look like favoritism.

Tee intervals and capacity

Tee time spacing affects both capacity and pace. Tight intervals add times but create waits on the first par 3 and the turn. Wider intervals improve pace but reduce times. Many clubs use different intervals by time of day, tighter early and wider when the course is busiest. For more on how spacing affects the round, see pace of play at private clubs.

App and pro shop parity

The same rules must apply whether a member books in the app, calls the shop or walks in. When the shop can override limits for some members, the policy stops being a policy. Staff should be able to override, because judgment matters, but overrides should be logged and reviewed.

A sample tee time policy

This is an example to adapt, not a recommendation for every club.

1. Booking window. Full golf members may book 7 days in advance, starting at 7:00 a.m. Social members may book weekday times 3 days in advance.
2. Weekend mornings. Saturday, Sunday and holiday times before 11:00 a.m. are allocated by lottery. Requests open Sunday and close Wednesday at 6:00 p.m.; results are published Wednesday at 8:00 p.m.
3. Group size. Weekend and holiday times before 11:00 a.m. are for groups of three or four. The golf shop may pair incomplete groups.
4. Player names. All players must be named 48 hours before the tee time. Unnamed spots are released.
5. One time per day. A member may hold one tee time per day.
6. Guests. Members may host guests at any time except weekend and holiday mornings before 11:00 a.m., when each group may include one guest. The same guest may play no more than six times per year. Guest fees are charged to the host's account at check-in.
7. Cancellations. Weekend and holiday times must be cancelled by 6:00 p.m. two days before play. Two late cancellations or no-shows in a season result in a two-week suspension of advance booking.
8. Standing times. Awarded for the season by the golf committee. Groups must field at least three players on average or the time is reviewed.
9. Blocks. Club events, leagues and maintenance are posted on the sheet at least two weeks ahead where possible.

Reviewing the policy

Review once a season with data: fill rates by block, guest rounds, standing time attendance, late cancellations and no-shows. Change one thing at a time and tell members why. For the next level of detail on allocating peak times, read how a tee time lottery system works.

How Bubs handles booking policies

The Bubs tee sheet enforces booking windows by member class, opens the sheet at the club's release time, and holds a selected time while the member builds the group so two members never book the same slot. Guest limits and guest fees apply automatically, with fees charged to the host's account at check-in, and blocks, standing times and a waitlist are part of the same sheet. The rules apply identically whether the booking comes from the member app or the pro shop.