Free holds vs friction that kills demand
Online Tee-Time Prepay with Square: When to Turn It On
Pay-at-shop is friendlier; Square prepay kills soft holds. A practical guide for golf courses choosing online payment on the public booker.
Two honest defaults
Pay at the shop is the friendliest booker: golfers hold a time, show up, and settle at check-in. It maximizes completed bookings and keeps the public page simple.
Square prepay is the commitment default: golfers pay online when they book. Soft holds disappear. No-show rates drop. Refunds and disputes live inside Square’s payment record.
When pay-at-shop is enough
Municipal courses, soft shoulder seasons, and clubs rebuilding online demand often want zero booking friction. Staff can still require a card at the counter on arrival, and a waitlist can reclaim cancels.
If your no-show rate is tolerable and walk-up fill is strong, do not add payment friction just because enterprise suites default to deposits.
When Square prepay pays for itself
Turn it on when prime times routinely ghost, when tournament weekends need real commitment, or when management wants online revenue recognized before the round. Staff flip the public booker to Pay online on the tee sheet - same /book page, different money moment.
Keep refund tools in the staff workflow so a weather cancel does not strand a Square payment with no in-product path. Webhooks for refunds keep the club’s payment rows aligned with Square.
Square is the rail - the club owns the rules
Booking rules (member-only mornings, intervals, party size) stay on the course template. Square does not decide who may book at 7:12 a.m.; it settles the charge when you opt into prepay or when the counter takes card.
That separation is the point of a modern golf stack: club software for inventory and members, Square for card money you already trust.