The Scarcity of Golf Travel Across the Pond

Why the H&B Experience is Rare Beyond Supply and Demand

Daniel Jones

December 13, 2024

6 Minute Read

The cheer from inside the former Joe Robbie Stadium was unlike anything I’d heard before. The upper deck of the stadium bobbed like the waves of nearby South Beach, as 70,000 faithful lost their collective minds because…

Taylor Swift wore a new outfit.

That moment of nuclear euphoria was surreal—but so was being there in the first place. I’d somehow survived the now-infamous Ticketmaster presale chaos, while thousands of others were shut out of Shula’s place entirely.

To put it into golf travel terms, it felt like hitting The Old Course ballot two days in a row in mid-July. And that brings us to why we’re here…

Scarcity is baked into the American experience. Just ask anyone who remembers the great cronut craze of 2013.

Whether it’s the early days of Hamilton on Broadway, seeing your team in the Super Bowl, or scoring a table at the hot new restaurant in town, the experiences we crave the most are usually in short supply.

And yet, those experiences always start the same way: You first have to get into the arena.

Golf travel is no exception.

But when you travel with H&B, you’re not just one of the crowd—you’re holding the backstage pass. And as you’ll see, this brings an additional layer of scarcity to the H&B experience that appears in every aspect of your journey.

First, let’s take an Econ 101 look at golf travel.

The Scarcity Principle and the Push to Plan Ahead

Since the restart of international travel in 2021, golf travel companies have beat the drum in unison on the need to book early. We’ve covered the topic in our blogs, podcasts, and shared it with the media, yet the message still struggles to get through.

While it might seem self-serving for companies in the business of selling golf trips to say, “You need to book now,” this message isn’t about pushing urgency for urgency’s sake. It’s about our entire industry helping prospective travelers understand how things work today—and more importantly, how to avoid disappointment.

Where we’ve collectively fallen short, including at H&B, is we’ve focused almost entirely on the demand side of the story.

The Scarcity Principle is certainly at play, but there are two sides to this equation. So, let’s talk a little about supply…

Golfers on exclusive travel experience in St. Andrews

Private Clubs vs Resorts: Understanding the Tee Sheets Overseas

The first thing every golfer planning a trip to the UK and Ireland needs to understand is the vast majority of the courses you wish to play are private clubs.

This is a key difference from the U.S., where popular destinations like Bandon Dunes, Pinehurst, and Streamsong are resorts with tee sheets reserved almost entirely for guests.

There are some exceptions––Turnberry, Kingsbarns, and St. Patrick’s Links, to name a few––but by and large, the clubs overseas open their doors to visitors on a limited basis.

In some cases, very limited.

Perhaps the most notable example is Muirfield, where visitors are welcomed on Tuesday and Thursday only. Less than 100 golfers a week redeem their golden ticket to the best single day experience in golf: 36-holes paired with the famous Muirfield lunch.

Then again, the greatest exception to this rule comes from The Old Course and the truly public Home of Golf. Demand for tee times, whether through Old Course Authorized Providers or the daily Ballot, exceeds supply by many times over. And of course, it’s closed on Sundays.

These are just two notable examples, but visitor access to golf clubs across the UK and Ireland is universally limited to some degree. On top of this, major tournaments and member events further reduce the supply of visitor tee times. For instance, Open Championship venues are usually closed for several weeks leading up to the tournament.

"I enjoyed the opportunity to play the courses we did. Speaking with others we met, they couldn't believe the access we had to St Andrews, etc. I believe it was because of your connections."

Kurt Cornejo, Wichita Country Club

The H&B Standard: Why Early Planning is Essential

At H&B, the scarcity of golf travel doesn’t end with tee times—it’s just the beginning. There’s another layer to our approach that leads to a refined, elevated experience designed for those who expect nothing less.

The Courses

Playing the courses of your daydreams is one thing. Playing them in an order that allows your itinerary to seamlessly flow from one day to the next is something else entirely.

Long commutes, rushed mornings, or needless backtracking don’t belong in an H&B itinerary. If availability at a particular course is limited, we’d rather skip it than force a decision that adds unnecessary stress.

That said, less-than-ideal choices—such as early mornings or longer drives—may occasionally be unavoidable, particularly if planning begins late or specific dates restrict flexibility. In these instances, we thoughtfully assess every option with you to preserve the quality of your journey.

While our approach may further reduce the already limited availability of tee times, it’s always in pursuit of a seamless itinerary that allows you to focus on the camaraderie, the experience, and the unforgettable moments along the way.

The Accommodations

In contrast to many destinations for golf in the U.S., the accommodations overseas are not sprawling resorts with hundreds of rooms. The most sought after options are often what we would classify as “boutique” properties. There are only so many rooms to go around.

But it’s not just about availability. The most desirable rooms—think: a private balcony overlooking The Old Course—are the first to be booked. Planning late often means settling for an uninspired view or sharing a room when you’d prefer your own.

Even within the same hotel, not all rooms are created equal. What good is it to stay at a noteworthy property if you’re stuck in a cramped room, dealing with an awkward layout, or missing the views that make it special?

That’s why we carefully vet room categories to ensure they meet the level of comfort and quality our travelers expect. If our go-to options aren’t available, we won’t compromise and move forward with a lesser category just so your itinerary includes a particular hotel.

The Transportation

Driver-hosts are another area where demand often exceeds supply. These professionals are more than just chauffeurs—they’re part concierge, part tour guide, and an integral part of your journey. Their expertise ensures every detail of your trip runs smoothly, from start to finish, making them an indispensable piece of the H&B experience.

The difference between H&B’s driver-hosts and those handling point to point daily transfers is night and day. Our driver-hosts are passionate experts who know the key people, the best local spots, and the stories behind your destination. They anticipate your needs, handle unexpected changes with ease, and bring a personal touch to every moment of your trip.

And like every aspect of your H&B journey, these trusted professionals are in limited supply. But their impact on your experience is immeasurable.

"From the driver to the courses to the hotel, everything was perfect and organized for us. We just had to decide where to have the next pint."

Dan McIntyre, Greenbrier Golf & Country Club

What the Booking Calendar Tells Us About Demand

There was a time when the booking window for golf trips to Scotland and Ireland hit its stride when the preceding year’s Open Championship concluded.

Those days are long gone.

In response to the unprecedented demand, tee sheets at many of the marquee courses overseas are opening earlier than ever.

If you’ve ever tried to plan a trip only to discover that your must-play courses were already sold out, this shifting calendar explains part of the challenge. While the supply of tee times has remained relatively stable, as the timeline to secure them has moved earlier, their perceived scarcity has only grown.

Here’s when a few key courses open for tour operator bookings for golf trips in 2026:

Muirfield: Late February 2025.
Royal Portrush: Early March 2025.
Royal County Down: Early April 2025.
North Berwick: Early April 2025.

As the dates above illustrate, by the time The Open Championship inspires you to start planning your trip, you may already be too late for these courses and many others.

Exclusive golf travel tours Scotland and Ireland

How H&B Responds to the Scarcity of Golf Travel

If you’ve visited the H&B website over the past few years, there’s a good chance you saw an alert that basically said: “Sorry folks, park's closed.” (If you get this reference, well done).

That’s because for the last three golf travel seasons, H&B stopped fielding new inquiries well before the calendar turned to each year.

To essentially turn away business may seem a little odd, but it has a simple explanation…

Once the essential components of a trip—the key courses, vetted accommodations, and trusted transportation—are fully booked or down to very limited availability, we won’t push ahead with lesser-quality options just to make a sale.

Having more potential business than we know what to do with is a great problem to have—but it can also be a curse if not managed properly. There’s only so much business our team of highly skilled professionals can responsibly handle without compromising our quality of service.

While we’ve thoughtfully expanded our team in recent years, training a new Expedition Planning Manager to meet the high H&B bar takes more than a year of hands-on experience. We won’t risk long-term damage to the H&B name by sending an unprepared Planner into the field just to handle a short-term surge in inquiries.

Our deliberate approach during times of high demand ensures every journey is planned with the expertise and care our members have come to expect. We would rather close the book early and start planning for the following year than compromise the high standards that define H&B.

The irony is that, in doing so, we’re contributing to the very scarcity that’s at play. But for us, it’s a necessary trade-off to ensure we deliver the exceptional experiences our travelers deserve.

"The team at H&B made this bucket list trip for 20 guys from Rhode Island and Massachusetts the trip of a lifetime, and one none of us will ever forget. H&B's experience and relationships developed over decades made what could have been a logistical nightmare, the smoothest traveling experience I've ever been a part of."

Bill Graves, Kirkbrae Country Club

Your Wildest Dreams Won’t Wait

These days, securing tee times at the world’s most iconic courses is just as hard—perhaps even harder—than landing those coveted seats for the Eras Tour. There are also some key parallels between the two: immense demand, limited supply, and the absolute necessity of planning ahead.

To state the obvious, there’s no StubHub for tee times at The Old Course or Royal Portrush. Once they’re gone in a given year, they’re truly gone, and no amount of wishful thinking or last-minute maneuvering can change that.

And yet, the H&B experience demands an additional layer of planning for these already limited opportunities. From the seamless flow of each round to securing the finest rooms and pairing you with the best driver-hosts, our approach goes far beyond simply getting you in the door—it redefines what it means to truly be there.

In closing, the scarce and unforgettable moments across the pond are increasingly reserved for those who take action early. They won’t wait for a “better time.”

But when you cross the Swilcan Bridge or reach the peak of the 9th fairway at Royal County Down, a line from Taylor’s 10-minute long masterpiece will feel appropriate:

“It was rare. I was there.”