Solving Golf's No-Show Problem in 3 Steps

The golf industry faces a persistent and costly problem: the dreaded no-show. These unfilled tee times have been estimated to cost the industry over $1 billion per year. While the game has seen a surge in popularity, the no-show issue has proven resilient. In a recent survey by the NGCOA, 50% of golf courses reported that no-shows have remained steady in 2025, and a further 20% indicated they have actually seen an increase.

Fortunately, success in combatting no-shows is possible. Golf courses that have successfully tackled this issue consistently find that clear policies and rigorous enforcement are the most effective tools for turning the tide. Here are the three essential steps to solving your no-show problem.

Step 1: Set Clear Policies

The foundation of any successful strategy is a clear, concise set of rules that inform golfers of their financial responsibility when booking a tee time.

• Set Booking and Payment Policies: To ensure commitment, require either prepayment for the full round or a secure card-on-file to hold the reservation.
• Set a Cancellation Policy: Clearly define the window for a full refund.
  • How far in advance do golfers need to cancel to receive a full refund?
  • How much is the fee for late cancellations (e.g., within 24 hours)?
• Set a No-Show Policy: Define the financial consequence for golfers who don’t show up without canceling.
  • What refund (if prepaid) will be given to a no-show (if any refund at all)?
  • What no-show fee (if using card-on-file) will be charged?
• Set a Short-Show Policy: Address groups that show up with fewer players than booked (e.g., booking for four but only three arrive).
  • What fee will be charged for the missing golfer?

Step 2: Implement Policy with Your Tee Sheet

Having policies written down is not enough; they must be integrated into your booking technology for effortless enforcement.

• Automate Cancellation Policy: Configure your cancellation and refund deadlines directly within your tee sheet system. This allows the software to automatically apply the correct fee or refund based on when a customer attempts to cancel, ensuring consistency.
• Require Digital Agreement: Add the full terms for your cancellation, no-show, and short-show policies to the online booking flow. Require customers to check a box indicating they have read and agree to these terms before they can finalize the booking.
• Save the Agreement Record: Be sure your tee sheet provider saves a permanent, dated record of the customer agreeing to the terms. This digital evidence is critical if you ever need to dispute a chargeback.

Step 3: Enforce Your Policy Consistently

This is where many courses fall short. Many golf courses do not enforce their policies strictly; in fact, 25% of courses have indicated they don’t enforce their policies at all. This is often due to the fear of customer backlash, including chargebacks (a fear perhaps justified by the fact that 86% of courses said they almost never win chargeback disputes).

However, consistent enforcement is the only way to make the policy effective:

• Address Communication: Golfers surveyed indicated that policies aren’t always clearly communicated. By making the customer check a box (Step 2), you’ve resolved this issue.
• Trust the Fair Charge: The majority of golfers surveyed agreed that charging a no-show fee is, in fact, fair, provided the policy was clearly communicated beforehand.
• Choose the Preferred Method: Interestingly, golfers often prefer card-on-file over full prepayment, as it feels less restrictive upon booking but still guarantees the course a way to enforce the no-show fee.
• Win the Chargeback: Many golf courses indicate they have been able to win chargeback disputes by providing the record of the customer checking the “I agree to the terms” box as concrete evidence to their payment processor.

By setting clear policies, implementing them digitally, and enforcing them consistently, golf courses can drastically reduce no-shows, recoup lost revenue, and ensure committed golfers have the best possible chance to get a preferred tee time.

This three-step process is fully achievable with the right technology partner. Easy Tee Golf’s leading tee sheet software allows you to implement these essential policies directly into your online booking flow, automatically enforcing cancellation deadlines and securely capturing the customer’s agreement to the terms. By leveraging the power of Easy Tee Golf, you are fully enabled for success in winning the battle against no-shows and securing your course’s revenue. Contact Easy Tee Golf today to start solving your no-show problem!

A Note on Booking Bots: Another modern challenge golf courses face is tee-time bots, which quickly scoop up desirable times for resale. While technology-based solutions like CAPTCHAs, IP address blocking, and bot detection services can be helpful in the short term, the people who program these bots are highly motivated and quickly find ways around new technology measures, leading to a never-ending game of cat and mouse. Courses have found that the simple financial requirements of prepayment or requiring a card-on-file act as a highly effective, persistent deterrent. Bots are programmed to exploit free or risk-free booking systems; requiring financial commitment makes the bot’s task financially unfeasible, forcing them to move on to easier targets.