Dear Molly: I like to sip wine when I play golf, but the drink carts almost always carry just beer and liquor. Or maybe they have icky wine I don’t want. Is it OK for me to bring my own?
The short answer to your question is: NO! Please review ‘Birdie Juice’ for a thorough explanation of these rules, which are not part of the Rules of Golf but instead are to be found in Colorado Revised Statutes.
There’s also your coach’s answer: No studies exist that indicate alcohol will improve your swing, stroke or score. When it comes to competition, the best place to enjoy your wine would be the 19th hole.
But then there’s that round of social golf, which is all about fun with friends, family or even your weekly league. If you’re longing for an oaky Chardonnay while your pals are ordering Bloody Marys, what can you do?
First, understand the economics of the golf course food and beverage operation. Have you noticed, 75-80 percent of golfers at the typical course are male? And, have you seen the beer/wine/spirits surveys that show women prefer wine but men prefer liquor and beer? Finally, have you noticed the size of those roaming drink carts at your course?
Pole Creek, the wonderful 27-hole layout in Tabernash, stocks cans of Oregon Bubbles on its drink carts. But, not too many. I find Oregon Bubbles – and some other chilled, canned whites I’ve hunted down through online reviews – to be refreshing and a good value on course, pretty much half a bottle of wine for $10-$14. But F&B manager Brenna Kirk says, “It’s not popular. It’s just in case somebody wants a mimosa.”
Kirk says the course has never stocked bottled wines on drink carts because there is nowhere to store them safely. The hard booze items have a designated place, and cans of hard seltzers and beers go in the cooler. Her most popular alcoholic beverage? Surprise! The Transfusion, a refreshing, summery recipe of vodka, grape juice and ginger ale, has won over the Pole Creek peeps.
Kirk recommends that lovers of still wines come into Bistro 28 and get a cup of wine, poured out of a bottle, before they tee off and/or make the turn, and take along a side cup of ice. I recommend bringing an insulated cup or drinking fast enough that you don’t have to water down your wine. But to each, their own.
Neither I nor Gemini could find statistics about what percentage of golfers would like to have a spot of wine on the golf course. So I would suggest recruiting some of your like-minded friends and asking the food and beverage manager of your favorite course to put four of the higher rated canned wines on the drink cart, mark them up double or more as they do beers, and see how they roll.
Then make sure you talk them up, and put your money where your tastes lie.
Do you have a question about golf etiquette, golf relationships or the culture of golf in Colorado? Email it to Molly McMulligan, the CGA’s on-the-course advisor on how to have more fun on the golf course. Her creator, researcher and writer is golf journalist and CGA member Susan Fornoff.
MORE FROM MOLLY
I Changed Tees. Can I Still Post?