Marriott
The Marriott Rewards hotel loyalty program recently made it possible to earn points by playing golf — and to redeem points for free rounds of golf — at its properties, but is it a truly a smart way to take discount golf vacations? Let’s take a closer look.
The earning points part seems fine. Members of the new Marriott Golf Links program, (who must first be members of the main Marriott Rewards program) earn 10 points for every dollar they spend on golf and golf retail purchases at “participating” Marriott golf clubs and courses worldwide. So far, only about 35 of the company’s 60 or so golf properties are participating (including Doral in Miami, Starr Pass in Tucson, Camelback in Scottsdale, Kauai Lagoons in Hawaii, and White Witch in Jamaica) but more are planned for 2009. (Here is the full list of courses, terms and conditions.)
It’s the redeeming points part that we’re not convinced is necessarily the best way to take discount golf vacations, at least not when cashing the points in for free golf. Here’s why.
Marriott’s program divides its golf courses into “select” and “choice” categories (which makes me wonder if it’s going to stick with the meat theme and unveil “prime” courses at some point) and, no surprise here, it “costs” more points to play at the better courses. But here’s the real kicker: the point minimums are doubled if you want to play during “peak season” versus “value season.”
For example, it takes 40,000 points to play at one of Marriott’s “choice” golf properties (which all of the aforementioned courses are) during peak season. At an average green fee of about $180 (I checked 12 courses), that makes the value of an individual “point” worth less than half a cent. Even the points earned in frequent flier programs, which are notoriously slanted in the airlines’ favor, are worth between one and two cents.
So, if you’re going to use your Marriott Rewards points to take discount golf vacations, you might be better off using them for things other than golf. For 35,000 points, for example, you can get a free night’s stay at one of the company’s highest rated hotels, often worth $250-$350.
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I am a Marriott Vacation Club owner X 2 and a rewards points individual. I still wonder when I redeem points if I am getting a “good” exchange or not. I have not used the golf side of the Marriott rewards program but am glad you have quantitfied it for me. I have used points usually just for the hotels themselves. Thanks Rick Phelps ps I like your honest newsletters!