When you take golf lessons, you will be making a big investment in your golf game.
Golf instructors are highly trained individuals who are ready to assist you in becoming a better player.
Many golfers will create a long-lasting relationship with the golf professionals who assist with their golf game.
These professionals end up taking a great interest in your improvement and the way that you manage the golf game.
If you are happy with your progress as a golfer or feel as though you need to tip your golf instructor, we have all of the information you need.
Let’s take a look at these five reasons you should tip your golf instructor.
Do You Tip Golf Instructors (5 Reasons You Should)
1. You Are Happy With Your Progress
The number one reason to tip a golf instructor is if you are happy with the progress that you are making.
Think about it from a very simple level, if you are happy with service at a restaurant, you give your server a tip, and if you are happy with a haircut, you give your hairstylist a tip.
The same can be said for the golf instructors and the service that they provide.
These golf instructors are going to help you understand the game, make it more enjoyable, and increase your desire to play more golf.
Golf is one of the most frustrating sports, and when you have no idea how to fix your flaws as a golfer, the golf instructors can help.
When a golf instructor explains what is necessary for your game to be able to start shooting lower and better scores, it is invaluable information.
The more time you spend, you will collect this information and become a more well-rounded player.
Golf instructors, paired with a student who has a great work ethic, can help turn high handicappers into scratch golfers.
It is hard to do this on your own without the interest and attention of a golf professional.
We highly recommend showing your golf instructor that you appreciate their advice and the attention that they are paying to your game.
Chances are, when this golf professional sees you out on the golf course, they will throw you an extra piece of advice to help improve your overall progress.
Golf professionals get into this business because they like seeing people improve and get better.
2. The Pro Takes An Interest In Your Game
Sometimes a particular golf professional will take a unique interest in your game.
Plenty of golfers will stop in for a lesson here and there to fix a slice or get out of a bunker.
However, other golfers will decide it is necessary to do a complete overhaul to improve their golf game and scoring.
When this happens, the pro may notice what you are doing and take a unique interest in your game.
Sometimes when this happens, you won’t even have to schedule a golf lesson because the pro who sees you working on your golf will come over and offer a few pieces of advice.
When this happens, and the advice helps you improve, it makes sense to tip the golf instructor.
This is information they’re giving you on their time, and they are taking a unique interest in your journey to becoming a better player.
Becoming a great golfer is a time-consuming project, and it takes a major commitment.
As a golfer, you should be aware of those who are supporting you on this journey and take care of them financially when you can.
An assistant golf professional or teaching professional is not going to help you with your game in the hopes of getting a tip.
They do this because it is what they love, and they want to see golfers get better.
It makes sense for you to take care of them for the time and effort they are giving to you.
3. Assistant Golf Pro Salaries
There are several different types of teaching professionals in the world of golf.
Some golf courses with large membership bases or budgets will have a director of instruction or head teaching professional.
Chances are these golf instructors are highly regarded, have tremendous accolades, and are priced high when it comes to the lesson fee.
Other golf courses will just have assistant golf professionals or teaching professionals who will teach the majority of the golf lessons.
These instructors are typically more moderately priced, and they may have much lower overall salaries.
The majority of young assistant golf professionals will not be all that financially successful.
The $20 tip you give them could help them buy dinner for their family that night.
Of course, these people work hard, and they are adequately paid, but keep in mind the pay level of the teaching professional who is helping you.
For a director of instruction, the salary could be well over $100,000 or even $200,000 a year.
If you don’t feel the need to tip these instructors, that could be understandable.
However, when you take a $40 lesson with an assistant pro, giving them a few extra dollars can make a big difference for them.
4. Service Type Business
Golf instructors provide a service.
The service is to help you become a better player.
In most service-type businesses, a job well done will receive a tip.
If you feel as though the golf lesson that you just took really helped your golf game, then do not hesitate to tip.
Sometimes golf lessons are charged directly to a member’s account, but you can always tip with cash on the range after your golf lesson.
If your golf club is a non-tipping club, you may have to be careful how you tip, but there is usually a way to ensure that you can do something for the professional.
Remember that a gift certificate to a restaurant or even a box of golf balls can be an excellent way to say thank you for the progress that you are making.
5. Fees Paid By Golf Instructors
Golf professionals often have to pay a fee back to the club for the ability to teach at the course.
Some golf courses allow teaching professionals to collect their entire lesson fee, while others will take a certain amount of that fee.
The fees may be a few dollars for each lesson, or they could be a straight percentage that golfers pay.
Even though this is fairly standard and accepted by many young golf professionals, these fees can add up over time.
To help slightly offset these fees, you can tip your golf instructor.
Of course, this is not required, but the next time you think about how much you just paid your golf instructor, don’t forget to include the deduction they are probably taking.
Do You Have To Tip A Golf Instructor?
Now that we have given you some reasons it is nice to tip golf instructors, many golfers want a definitive answer as to whether or not this is completely necessary.
The good news is that you do not need to tip your golf instructor.
The tipping is completely voluntary and something you can make the ultimate decision on.
Truly, golf professionals are not accustomed to being tipped in a way that they will expect it.
You can simply offer it, and it will be a nice surprise for them, but they are not expecting or requiring a tip from you.
Tipping does not need to be a lot of money.
You could simply round a $45 lesson up to $50.
This is acceptable and will be appreciated by the golf instructor.
Can Golf Instructors Accept A Tip?
Some golf courses do have a strict no-tipping policy.
This is done to try and create an environment and culture around the club that ensures that all customers are treated with the same service.
For instance, at a tipping club, the person who throws twenty-dollar bills around all day may get better service than the person who does not tip.
Many golf clubs want to discourage this behavior so that they can create some consistency in their service.
The no-tipping clubs may tell their employees that if they start accepting tips, their job could be in jeopardy.
If you find a golf teaching professional who is very adamant about not taking the tip, trust them and don’t tip.
Chances are they are afraid that if this is discovered, their job could be on the line.
Tipping at a golf club typically refers more to the golf cart employees than the teaching professionals, but it is still something that all golfers need to consider and be aware of.
Alternatives To A Tip For A Golf Lesson
If you find that tipping does not feel natural or it is discouraged at your golf club, there are other great ways that you can help your teaching professional feel appreciated.
1. Referrals
Golf teaching professionals need to build up their business.
The more students they have, the more money they make.
If you have a great experience with a teaching professional, the best thing you can do is to tell all of your friends.
Most golfers have at least five or six friends that they play with at their local club, and the referral you give will then reach their circle of friends.
Just like the real estate business, the golf lesson business is all about referrals, word of mouth.
If you are playing the round of your life and the three other people in your group ask how your game has improved so much, you can tell them it was the teaching professional that you are working with.
This will likely help the golf instructor quite a bit more than simply giving them a few extra dollars at the end of your round of golf.
Referrals will not cost you anything, but they are a great way to show a teaching professional that they are appreciated and well liked.
2. Golf Invitations
Some golf teaching professionals really like to play golf.
As a way to say thank you, it is nice to invite them for a round of golf.
Chances are that teaching professional plays a lot of golf at the golf course where the lesson is taught.
However, if you are playing away somewhere or at a friend’s club, it is nice to invite a teaching professional to come along for the round.
You will not want to ask them too much about your golf game that day, and instead, let them enjoy the fact that they are getting a day away from their home course.
Try to make this a special thank you for the work that they have put into helping you become a better golfer.
Over time, you will get to know more about your golf instructor and the way that you can really help them for the time they have helped you.
3. Social Events
Although this is not quite a tip, many assistant golf professionals have had to move to your area to become an instructor at your course.
This means that they may not have many friends or family in the area.
If there is a new instructor at your course who has just recently come to the area, you may want to invite them the next time you have a BBQ at your house.
For a young professional who cares about their students and members, this is a nice invitation and something that they are likely to gladly take you up on.
Again, the opportunity to have a great dinner and socialize with other golfers is almost certain to be more appealing than a $5 tip at the end of a golf lesson.
How Much To Tip A Golf Instructor
Now that we have gone through some of the etiquette involved with tipping a golf instructor, it’s time to consider how much you should tip the instructor.
Most of the time, a golfer will round up the fee of a lesson or simply give a cash amount at the end of the lesson.
For instance, if your lesson was $40, it is appropriate to give $50, and the same can be said for an $80 lesson and paying $100.
Try to determine the price of a lesson and the value that it had for you.
Some assistant professionals are new to the world of golf and have lower lesson fees, yet their information was incredibly helpful.
If you have the financial means and you encounter this kind of scenario, it makes sense to increase your tip a bit.
The instructor who is quite good will likely have higher lesson fee costs before too long, and you will be helping them in this journey by taking care of them right from the start.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now know how much to tip your golf instructor and whether or not it is a good idea.
When you tip, you can make a difference in the day of a golf professional.
Whether you tip or not, make sure you are communicative about how much you appreciate their help and what you will do to encourage their business to grow.
People like knowing they are appreciated, whether they get a tip or not.
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