Undercover Tour Pro: The Pros And Cons Of Private Jets

Private jets are truly a luxury anyone would love. It’s essentially a time machine where you bypass long security lines, available flight times, crowded seating with the ability taking off to where ever and when ever you wish. Of course, you can have nearly unlimited carry-on luggage too.

I’ve had the opportunity to enjoy it a couple of times. Problem is it spoils you immediately, to where commercial travel is more burden than benefit.

Thus, securing a private jet would be the first thing I’d spring for after cashing a winning lottery ticket.

Of course, pro golfers definitely utilize the perk. GoldDigest.com’s popular Undercover Tour Pro dishes on the pros (and a few cons) of the private jet life.

At tournaments, each of us is in “go mode.” The course is the stage where we compete, and off the course gets to be a kind of stage, too. Around the clubhouse and the hotel, out to dinner, all the sponsors and deal-makers hover in the little schedule of functions. You might interact with another player, but often in forced situations. Like, you’re both wired for sound and people are filming you.

You and that player, however, sinking back into fine-leather chairs up in the clouds and enjoying a beverage, you couldn’t be any farther above it all. There’s the chance to really get to know the person behind the brand. And it might be someone whom you’d otherwise never seek out.

Immediately after the handshake—as in, before I even put my putter back in the bag—I take out my phone and call my guy who handles flights for a lot of the players. How soon could he get me home? Our deal is, schedule a flight more than 10 hours in advance, and you set the terms. Less than that, you take what’s available. At roughly $5,000 per hour, it makes sense to share as much as you can. To get out that afternoon, my only option was to share with a golfer who is, shall we say, known as a presence on the European Ryder Cup team.

I know it can be a chess game for the operators: constantly updating who’s letting his caddie or entourage hop on, being sensitive to which players might not be on friendly terms, and laying that all against the Sunday tee times to get everyone home or to the next tournament cost-efficiently. And on top of that, the players who are endorsed by the jet company have priority. I fly with NetJets and Wheels Up, but the logo of one is stitched onto every golf shirt I own. It’s useful for me to have active accounts at both to increase my ride-sharing flexibility.

Some players let their manager handle their travel details, but I like to know exactly what’s going on. If it’s a Friday and there’s a good chance I’m missing the cut, I’ll beckon my manager to the rope and give him instructions to make flight arrangements. I don’t want to put him in the position of making that guess. And if I birdie in, it’s no big deal because I don’t get penalized for cancellations.