A group of friends getting in a round of golf in Richmond Hill say their afternoon quickly went dry when they were denied a second drink – as per the club’s policy.
Bloomington Downs Golf Course policy is that each customer is welcome to consume one drink per hour.
Deesh Jain said he and his friends only found out about the policy when they tried to buy a second beer.
“There’s a rule that she can’t serve two beers within the hour on the patio,” Jain said. “We were kind of dumbfounded by it. We didn’t actually believe it because that’s not a thing.”
But at Bloomington Downs, located on Bloomington Road and Bayview Avenue, it is in fact a rule.
Operations Manager James Turcott told CTV News Toronto that although the drinking policy isn’t common at golf courses, Bloomington Downs wanted to make safety a priority.
“Our facility is in an area where there’s no transit readily available. There are no sidewalks on the road out front, either. Everyone drives in and drives out of here,” he said.
“We’re more concerned about safety of everybody – the patrons, the public. We’re not really concerned about the revenue of one or two extra drinks somebody may want to buy.”
According to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, licensed establishments are permitted to set their own house rules surrounding alcohol consumption.
Butat the same time, the establishments are liable if their customers leave their premises intoxicated.
Statistics Canada classifies impaired driving as being among the leading criminal causes of death in Canada. It also remains one of the most frequent criminal offences in the country.
In the wake of a number of high-profile impaired driving deaths in recent years, York Regional Police have said that they are stunned that they still encounter so many cases of impaired driving and have urged the public to be more responsible.
Jain and his friends admitted they weren’t previously aware that golf courses could make these rules for themselves, but said they still aren’t keen on the policy.
“You’re creating bad service,” Jain said, adding that he and his friends have no intention on returning to Bloomington Downs.
“You’re losing revenue.”
Golfers teeing off at Bloomington Downs on Wednesday afternoon had mixed reaction to the rule, with some saying they weren’t even aware it existed.
“It’s a bizarre rule,” James Cummins told CTV News Toronto from the course. “They’re better off to just deal with the people getting out of hand.”
“The place is responsible if they drive off, right?” Stan Ouellette, another golfer, said.
“It’s a golf course, not a bar.”
With files from CTV News Toronto's Miranda Anthistle.
