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The costs of "free" golf

• HackWilson1930 1,437 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 8:48 AM

  WGT is here to make money so we all realize that it is not free, with the minor exceptions of lower tier players using starter equipment and free balls. But to advance to legend and compete there is a need for better equipment and balls. This is WGT's "gotcha".

  If you play 5 to 7 days a week you might use six balls. In a years time with 2 weeks vacation, if you don't need a daily fix, you use 300 balls or 100 sleeves. A medium quality Nike ball might cost 450 credits per sleeve or 45,000 credits over a year.

  The equipment had a cost, as well. A decent driver is about 2500 credits while a 3 wood might cost 1300. Irons are about 3000 while wedges run 500 to 900 credits each and you might carry 3. Most higher tiered players have about 2000 in a quality putter but some still use a starter putter. So a good bag of clubs might value at 10,000 to 11,000 credits. Play 2 years with the WGT and you have "spent" around 100,000 credits.That's $1000 real world dollars.

  It is possible to get "free" credits or win some from other players or the WGT, but someone is paying for those credits. In every 50 person RTG tournament, 35 players lose credits. I am fortunate to have a lot of "free" time that is not to valuable to me, so I work at getting credits with no out-of-pocket cost. I am sure survey vendors and advertisers pay a discounted rate for those credits that I earn through surveys, getting my SI subscription, buying Wolfermann English muffings ( highly reccommended), or ignoring ads running in the background as I find out about Discovery Channel shows.  But my time does represent money, and if I were not retired, it would be more valuable.

  And now that I am addicted, the WGT comes out as the big winner. That's how I  see the WGT money machine. How do you see it?

   

• ApexPC 3,164 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 12:40 PM

  No one is forced to spend money, but most do. Some players are content to just use the free clubs/ball.

  It took me a year to reach the Legend tier., and I have been at the Legend tier for 1.25 years now.

  I don't buy clubs as often, and I don't lose balls as often as i did before reaching the Legend tier, so I do not spend as many credits as I used to.

  I do not spend my money. I earn free credits (advertisers money) and spend those credits.

  I now earn free credits faster than I spend them.

  The way my business was set up 35 to 40% of what my customers spent was my income.

• alosso 21,032 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 1:26 PM

  @Wilson:

  You mix up two items:

  There's the free golf which is available here, low level of each game component at no cost but a PC and an internet connection,
  and there is the costly golf (in measures of time or bucks) which allows for other quality.

  Of course the free variant is the door to the other, but such is life in a capitalist environment. And if you only see the money machine, you are perhaps not aware (enough) of your situation and your opportunities:

  You are the one who decides in this business, you are the client who spends his riches to receive fulfilment of his desires. At least I do: My leisure & fun is in good relation to my spendings - it's a win-win deal for me, including my presence here.

• Boomerboy44 1,514 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 2:05 PM

  What ever happened to enjoying an enterprise your interested in? Why does it always have to be about money and it's relationship to some ones time. IMO WGT is one of the best games on the internet. If you choose to play and want to get better and compete at  a higher level you are going to have to pony up or else watch a godzillion ads or take a bunch of surveys.....you certainly have the right to complain about the game. I think it is more fun to SU and enjoy the game for what it is.

• HackWilson1930 1,437 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 8:00 PM

  I am in no way complaining about the WGT or the game. I enjoy it very much and am here every day. In fact it has been 640 days since I found the WGT and started playing and I dread the day that ends that streak. I work hard at getting credits; in fact it seems like fun to me. I admire the results that the team at WGT has put together to create this game environment.The company needs profit to move forward and I hope that a goodly percentage of that profit is going to game development and improvements. My only point is that an above average player who wants to compete at the legend level must be prepared to contribute to the success of the company  to the tune of about $500 per year either in direct cash contributions or working with the advertising that surrounds the game.  The complainers are the ones that don't see the value and effort that has been put into the WGT, and feel that there should be a free lunch. That went away when nickel beer went to a dime.

• MainzMan 9,586 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 10:23 PM

  To play as well as you can you certainly need to buy gear, no question there.  Whether you have to use your own money or can earn credits for free depends on how much you value your time, where you live and how much disposable income you have.

  I know of some who would rather dip into their pockets than do surveys, watch videos and so on.  These are the ones who perhaps own their own business and to them time is money, more per hour than they could ever make doing surveys.  For them it's cheaper to use their own money.

  Earning free credits is also way easier in the US and, to a degree, the UK.  I know guys who make 1,000 credits on a decent day, I'm lucky to make 100 and that's only if a survey works.  I get the 7 views (which are a joke really) and usually 3 or 4 other videos per day, about 10 credits.  It therefore takes me 3 weeks to earn enough for a sleeve of my usual balls.  That's why I buy credits now and then and am lucky enough to win prizes in CC tourneys.

  And of course, someone with a big bank balance is going to think nothing of using real money to get the best gear. 

  If you get good enough then the game becomes free anyway, there are thousands of credits up for grabs in RG's every day if your game is up to it.

  I do find some of the recent pricing borderline offensive though.  A sleeve of balls for 750 credits?  A set of Rapture irons didn't cost much more than 2 sleeves of those.  Pretty crazy in my opinion.

  Where was I going with this anyway?  No idea.

  I do think WGT is good value for money considering the many, many hours of play an outlay of $100 or so will buy you.  If you can earn a few free credits to keep you in balls then so much the better.  You just have to set yourself a limit of how much and how often you're prepared to use real money to buy credits.  It's all too easy to get carried away.

• courteneyfish 15,796 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 10:52 PM

  It depends how imortant your time is. If you'd rather spend money because you have disposable income then fair enough. Personally I do surveys and watch videos to pay for my time here. (I do most of it at work but don't tell my boss). I once put $30 into the game but I've given a lot more than that in prizes at my country club. I've also updated my clubs lots of times and currently have around $60 in credits so it can be done. It's easier if you live in the USA, Canada or in or near the UK of course.

• alosso 21,032 Posts

  Sat, Jun 28 2014 11:43 PM

  HackWilson1930:

  My only point is that an above average player who wants to compete at the legend level must be prepared to contribute to the success of the company  to the tune of about $500 per year either in direct cash contributions or working with the advertising that surrounds the game.

  As you said, there is no free lunch. In comparison, even those playing "free" street basketball have to buy a ball and shoes.

  And, I don't feel to contribute to the company. I rather contribute to my fun and leisure by paying them some. My personal guess is 150 $ per in average from my start here without the ambition to compete. Those who contend get their credits from the fish, I suppose.

  500, that's 42 per month, still less expensive than Saturday night in town or smoking or playing real golf - and we can do it every day!

  Happy Sunday!

• alanti 10,564 Posts

  Sun, Jun 29 2014 2:12 AM

  Not much to add as all posters are correct.

  For players outside of the main "centres" are very limited in actually earning free credits. That said as MM pointed out, time is money and I am in the postion that I do not have as much time to play the game, let alone trying to scratch some free credits.

  But for me it comes down to value for money, or at least percieved value - I personally think a game or two with friends versus the cost of playing is worth every cent. I don't drink often, I don't smoke but for less than a cup of coffee, I can play a bunch of rounds.

  However I can quite happily take the starters kit, and hack my way around. Sure I will not compete in my tier but it can be just as much fun. Like I said, it is about percieved value - that is your call.

• andwhy67 2,816 Posts

  Sun, Jun 29 2014 2:30 AM

  I spent 2 years living in France and received very few offers, videos were non existant, apart from the carousel, and install the odd app on my iPad/iPhone etc for maybe 75 credits.

  I returned to the UK 3 weeks ago and couldn't believe what I saw, I'm now getting surveys and offers galore, I don't think I will spend another penny on here, even though I have and have never really minded!