Company founder and CEO says facilities are using FAIRWAYiQ’s technology to offset labor costs, add revenue and improve the player experience
By Scott Kramer, Contributing Equipment Editor
D
ave Vanslette is the founder and CEO of FAIRWAYiQ. The former part-owner of a digital advertising agency sat down with PGA Magazine recently to answer some questions about his latest venture.
How and why did you start the company?
Dave Vanslette: I’m an avid golfer. In 2015, I was speaking to friends on the golf committee at my club. They educated me on the pace-of-play issue and the problems surrounding it in the industry.
I dug into the science and math of it, working with Dr. Lou Riccio, who had written a book on slow play. He later joined FAIRWAYiQ as our Chief Analytics Officer. I was attracted to the science behind solving pace of play.
I also noticed that golf didn’t attract a lot of investment capital, and the industry was about a decade behind other industries when it came to technology. Our company is an overnight success that actually took nine years. The coronavirus was a huge accelerator for the golf industry and we’ve benefited from that. We’re on track to triple the company size before the end of 2024.
What can FAIRWAYiQ do for golf operations?
Vanslette: FAIRWAYiQ uses AI, data and analytics to optimize golf operations. Traditionally, golf courses have staff drive around the course looking for issues like slow play and golf cars driving where they shouldn’t be. There are a few problems with this approach.
First, some people only follow rules when they know they’re being monitored and staff can’t be everywhere at once. Second, managing a course without data can deliver a poor player experience. For example, pace of play is a traffic problem. Once one player slows down, others are backed up behind him or her. Asking all of the groups to speed up when they can’t do anything about those ahead of them creates a bad experience.
FAIRWAYiQ identifies the problematic groups so staff can speak to them specifically and let others know they’re dealing with the issue.
How does the technology get set up at facilities?
Vanslette: FAIRWAYiQ installs either a screen or a hidden GPS unit in golf cars. Walkers and caddies carry a mobile device. The screens, including mobile devices, provide a player experience and support the golf operation by tracking pace and keeping golf cars on path. The screen includes all of the standard functionality expected on golf car screens: hole flyover, distances, food & beverage and two-way messaging, plus unique features like Smart Play Through and Player Check-in.
Smart Play Through lets players see traffic ahead. Sometimes playing through a slow group can cause more flow issues, which are avoidable when the player knows what’s ahead. Other groups may be time constrained, so this allows them to jump ahead a few holes instead of waiting.
Player Check-in helps public facilities know their customer for marketing purposes. It’s typical for multiple guests to show up on the tee sheet in a foursome. Player Check-in allows the driver to sign the golf car release on the screen, while gathering the player’s contact information for future marketing opportunities. Since players don’t always take the golf cars assigned to them, Player Check-in also keeps track of which players have specific golf cars.
We also enable on-course advertising, so courses can offer advertising to local brands. The course retains control over the categories and ad content. Full-screen ads are triggered by location on-property – these can work for hole sponsors during events, while rotating banner ads change on a time basis. Both ad types provide attribution with UPC codes that are scanned, allowing the course to quantify the value created for the brand.
How exactly are most courses using FAIRWAYiQ? What have you learned from all of the analytics that have been gathered?
Vanslette: Courses are using our technology to offset labor costs, add revenue and provide better player experiences. Good labor is hard to find and it’s expensive. FAIRWAYiQ alerts staff to issues they need to handle in real-time without the need to drive around looking for issues. This saves an average of one-third on outside staff labor costs.
Many of our courses can increase green fees by offering a higher quality experience and reducing wait times on the course. Our research shows that people will pay more for a predictable round time, and for tech-enabled experiences like golf car screens. Advertising also generates an additional $10,000 to $25,000 in revenue per year. Nationally, rounds are up again in 2024, forcing golf courses to offer better experiences in hyper competitive markets. Technology can help the staff deliver better experiences.
We’re experts in pace-of-play analytics, and the rules of thumb don’t always apply. Our data proves that while some players are typically slow, there are no general categories. So, it’s not just high handicappers or beginners who are playing slow. Course setup and tee time intervals influence pace, as well. During COVID when many states mandated 15 minutes between groups, there were no pace-of-play issues and players were easily done in under four hours.
Our data allows course operators to select the right interval that balances revenue and experience. It’s very difficult to determine without data.
What real impact do you see it making on pace of play, course condition via geo-fencing golf cars, etc.?
Vanslette: Many courses want to maintain conditions by limiting golf car traffic, especially in wet conditions. Golf car companies stop the car and force players to back up to get out of an area. This solution is expensive and doesn’t work well with today’s GPS. The satellites that are used to provide a GPS location only deliver up to two meters of accuracy. This is done so that GPS cannot be weaponized by enemies. Thus, using GPS to stop the golf car with this level of accuracy doesn’t work well.
We’ve all experienced the golf car starting to slow down while it’s still on the cart path — this is due to inaccurate GPS. Instead, we use beeping and messaging to alert the player that they’re in a restricted area. The golf car screen cannot be used until the player exits the area. It’s not nearly as disruptive as slowing and stopping the golf car, especially during bad weather days where accuracy is diminished due to satellite connectivity. This approach is also much more cost effective.
What differentiates FAIRWAYiQ from your competitors?
Vanslette: First, we provide service and support within the customer’s time zone. We value quality service and don’t outsource or offshore our service like other competitors. We promise response times of two hours, even on weekends.
Secondly, we remove friction from the check-in process. Self service check-in can help keep costs down. Plus, players are used to self service from other industries, particularly in the hospitality space.
Third, our pricing is much more affordable than similar solutions, while delivering improved value.