Why Signs on Golf Courses Don't Work

Picture this: you’ve just hit the purest 8-iron of your life off the tee box. Your buddies gasp as everyone realizes that the ball is tracking straight at the pin. It touches down 2 feet from the hole. You and your friends erupt. There’s beer, expletives, and awkward high fives flying wildly in the air. What happens next? Do you notice the sign on the tee box, pause the celebration, and stop to fill your divot? Or are you already racing to the hole to show all of Instagram how great of a weekend golfer you really are?

Now imagine this exact scenario happening a hundred times a day, repeated all over your property. That’s a lot of divots going unrepaired. And this is just one of the reasons why signs appealing to good golfer etiquette just don’t work on the golf course.

Signs are everywhere these days and we are so used to them that they just tend to fade away into the background of our everyday lives. So when we get out on the golf course to have some fun with our friends and get some sun, the last thing we want is another sign telling us what to do. Most of us just tune it out.

This becomes a frustrating exercise for the superintendent and golf professional, because the toll that poor golfer etiquette has on the player experience adds up fast. In our travels we’ve seen signs at tees, signs at greens, signs in the parking lot, and even signs in the restroom. Do any of them led to decreased ball marks and more frequently raked bunkers on the golf course?

Here are some reasons signs don’t work:

·      Signs only work for rule-followers. Some people just don’t like being told what to do, and they’ll ignore them intentionally.

·      We’ve become so accustomed to signs that we literally don’t see them—they blur into the background.

·      Golf is a sport that demands concentration. Players focused on a match are usually dialed in to their game and not much else.

·      Alcohol and etiquette don’t mix. When the beer starts flowing, there will be a measurable decline in player etiquette. It’s inevitable.

·      Phones, conversations with friends, food and drink—these are all distractions and barriers to taking a moment to do the right thing.

·      Don’t assume everyone understands what your sign is telling them to do! There’s a whole new group of golfers that joined the game post-2020, and not all of them understand the rules of the game, let alone the etiquette behind it.

·      Signs are passive—and at times, passive-aggressive. They’re unnecessary clutter and can leave a bad impression with players if the tone of your message is too blunt.

Fortunately for you, Course Cares has found a way to improve etiquette on the golf course and reduce the clutter. Your members don’t need another sign—they need a little direction, communication, and education. We believe in winning the hearts and minds of your members in the clubhouse—long before they set foot on the golf course. We do this with our Member Communications service.

A sign cannot possibly convey the information a 90 second video can. And let’s be honest—your members want site-specific information from YOU and your team and not some golf association figurehead reading off a script of best practices. It really takes a team effort to tackle some of these issues, and we’ve become experts in the field at delivering this message.

Our video communications feature your people and address the issues that you face the most. But most importantly, we’ve learned that HOW you say it is more important than WHAT you say. We’ve got a proven approach that appeals to the goodness of human nature on the golf course, and we’ve pressure-tested these methods on how to best distribute this information to your members in a way that drives results.

Signs are clutter, they simply don’t work, and they can leave a bad impression with your members and guests. Reach out to Course Cares for your free estimate on a Member Communications package for 2026. Your golf course—and your members—will be glad you did!