Los Angeles golfers will no longer have to rise at the crack of dawn to jockey for prime tee times.
Santa Monica-based American Golf Corp., which manages courses owned by Los Angeles County, the City of Long Beach and Pasadena’s Brookside Golf Club among others, has revamped its Web site to allow golfers to book tee times online 24 hours a day.
The feature has already been offered in a soft launch, but will now be marketed to the broader public.
“We had a fairly obsolete Web site,” said American Golf’s Director of Operations Services Reilly Bayer. “We have already seen an increase in cash collected on the site.”
The Web site, which can collect a user’s personal information, keeps track of individual golfing habits and sells golf products through its online store. Eventually, American Golf expects revenue to increase as Web traffic grows. They expect rounds played to increase as golfers have better access to available tee times and more people to make golf-related purchases online. The Web site will also allow customers to register for tournaments and access information on event services offered by courses.
“Most golfers are doing more golf-related items on the computer,” said David Sams, director of golf operations for Brookside. The course holds an annual amateur championship and switched to an online registration system last year from its traditional system by mail. “It worked very well although a small percentage of golfers over the age of 50 had trouble with it.”
Seat Treat
The Los Angeles Dodgers chose a more low-tech means of helping their season ticket holders upgrade seats this off-season: paper and tape.
The Dodgers instituted a “Select-a-Seat” program during this off-season. Ticket holders were invited to Dodger Stadium where every available seat had a sheet of paper taped to it showing the price of the seat. Some of the premium seats were also marked with balloons.
“It’s a very easy and user-friendly method,” said Jose Vargas, a college administrator from Downey. Vargas shares four tickets with his two brothers and their children. They all convened at the stadium last week to pick their seats for the upcoming season. “Being able to test out the seats at the stadium was much better than just looking at a diagram.”
Full-season ticket holders received invitations in the mail and were brought to the stadium in small groups based on their seniority. Ticket holders were allowed to peruse the available inventory and upgrade seats to more desirable locations. Complimentary Dodger dogs and other snacks were provided to participants.
In all, more than 2,000 season ticket holders participated in the program, accounting for $3.5 million in ticket sales during the two-week program.
“We’ve wanted to do this for the last three years,” said Marty Greenspun, Dodgers chief operating officer. The Dodgers’ cross-town rival, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, have had the program in place for seven years. Steve Shiffman, the Angels’ former vice president of ticket sales, got that ball rolling. He brought it with him to Chavez Ravine when he moved to the Dodgers in the same capacity in 2005.
Hoops Honcho
The Los Angeles Sparks have gone Hollywood with their choice for a top executive.
Nancy Spears, the former director of worldwide acquisitions for Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, will be the team’s president. She was the choice of owners Katherine Goodman and Carla Christofferson, who lead an investment group that acquired the team in December for $10 million from the Los Angeles Lakers.
“Nancy’s background with film and branding was perfect to lead our business team. We think she will build a better brand and create more exposure,” said Christofferson.
Before Warner Bros., Spears worked at Mattel Inc., where she gained experience marketing to children. She has worked with brands such as Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, Hot Wheels and Nickelodeon-branded toys. The WNBA’s major fan base is women, many of whom bring their children to the games. In turn, many children have started to view the female basketball players as role models just like their professional male counterparts.
“The WNBA has changed the feelings of both girls and boys who now look to females as role models,” said Spears.
The new management group inherits a team without its top player, Lisa Leslie. The three-time league MVP is taking the year off to have a baby. Leslie led the team to championships in 2001 and 2002.
“It’s going to be difficult without Lisa, but (general manager) Penny Toler has put together a really good squad. We expect to make the playoffs again this year,” said Spears.
Staff reporter David Nusbaum can be reached at (323) 549-5225, ext. 236, or at [email protected].
