| Course | MGT 240 Operations Management |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 7 |
| Paper type | Revenue management analysis |
| Length | About 1,079 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MGT 240 Module 7
One Price for Saturday at Seven and Tuesday at Two: Revenue Management for a Public Golf Course
Student Name
Business Administration Program, Aspen University
MGT 240: Operations Management
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
One Price for Saturday at Seven and Tuesday at Two: Revenue Management for a Public Golf Course
Pinnacle Wash Golf Course, a composite public course in Scottsdale, Arizona, operates from October through May with tee times every eight minutes between 6:30 in the morning and 3:00 in the afternoon, or 64 tee times and up to 256 golfers a day. Every round costs $95, including a cart. Weekend mornings sell out within hours of opening for booking, while weekday afternoons are often more than half empty. The general manager wants to know whether different prices for different times would raise revenue without alienating regular golfers. This paper applies revenue management to the course's tee sheet.
Does Revenue Management Fit
Kimes (1989) described yield management as a tool for capacity-constrained service firms and identified conditions under which it works: relatively fixed capacity, the ability to segment markets, perishable inventory, product sold in advance, fluctuating demand, low marginal sales costs and high costs of adding capacity. Pinnacle Wash meets every one. It cannot add tee times without slowing play, an unsold tee time disappears, rounds are booked days ahead, demand varies by day and hour, an extra golfer costs little to serve and building more holes is out of the question.
Lessons From the Airlines
Smith et al. (1992) described how American Airlines developed revenue management in the 1980s through three activities: overbooking flights to offset no-shows, allocating seats among fare classes so that discount fares did not displace higher-paying passengers, and managing traffic across connecting flights. They estimated the practices produced quantifiable benefits of about $1.4 billion over three years. The scale differs, but the logic applies: sell the limited, perishable resource at prices that match what each segment will pay.
Demand by Time
Season booking data show three distinct periods. Weekend mornings, with capacity of about 330 rounds a week, are fully booked. Weekday mornings, with about 825 rounds, are about 75% used. Afternoons on all days, with about 630 rounds, are about 45% used.
Proposed Rates and Expected Revenue
The expected use figures assume weekend morning golfers are willing to pay more, given a waiting list on most Saturdays, and that a lower afternoon rate draws retirees, visitors and after-work golfers. Weekly revenue rises about 11%, and about 130 more rounds a week add roughly $1,600 in food and beverage sales.
| Period | Weekly capacity | Now: rate and use | Proposed rate | Expected use | Revenue now | Revenue proposed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekend mornings | 330 | $95, 100% | $130 | 95% | $31,350 | $40,755 |
| Weekday mornings | 825 | $95, 75% | $100 | 74% | $58,781 | $61,050 |
| Afternoons, all days | 630 | $95, 45% | $65 | 70% | $26,933 | $28,665 |
| Total | 1,785 | $117,064 | $130,470 |
Tee Time Intervals
Kimes and Schruben (2002) used simulation to study tee time intervals and showed that the spacing between groups affects both the number of rounds a course can sell and the pace of play. Shorter intervals add tee times but can slow rounds and frustrate golfers. Pinnacle Wash will keep eight-minute intervals on weekend mornings, when pace matters most to its highest-paying golfers, and test seven-minute intervals on weekday mornings while monitoring round times.
Fairness
Kimes and Wirtz (2003) surveyed customers in several countries about rate fences in restaurants and found that time-of-day pricing and coupons were generally seen as fair, while some other fences were less accepted. Golfers are used to twilight rates, so time-based pricing should be accepted. The course will present the change as lower afternoon prices and a premium for the most popular times, not a general increase, and will hold the weekday morning rate near the old price.
No-Shows
About 6% of weekend bookings are no-shows, which revenue management makes costlier. Weekend bookings will require a card, with a $25 charge per player for cancellations within 24 hours. Following the airline practice of overbooking is not suitable, because golfers who arrive to find no tee time would be lost for good.
Booking Windows and Late Release
Price is one lever; when tee times become available is another. Today, every tee time opens for booking seven days ahead. Under the new plan, weekend morning times will open eight days ahead for resident card holders and seven days ahead for everyone else, rewarding locals without discounting the most valuable times. Afternoon times that remain unsold 48 hours before play will be offered through the course's email list at the twilight rate with a free range bucket, and times still unsold the morning of play will be released to walk-up golfers. Smith and colleagues' account of discount allocation at American Airlines rests on the same idea: protect capacity for higher-paying customers while demand is still uncertain, then release it to lower-priced segments as the date approaches and the risk of empty seats rises.
Risks
The revenue estimate depends on assumptions about how golfers respond. If weekend morning use falls to 85% at $130 rather than 95%, weekend revenue would still rise, to about $36,500, but by less. If the twilight rate draws fewer new golfers than expected and simply shifts weekday morning players to the afternoon, total revenue could fall. The course will test the rates during the season's opening six weeks and compare bookings with the same weeks last year before committing to the full season. Pace of play is a further risk, since a fuller afternoon tee sheet means more groups on the course late in the day.
Regular Golfers
About 300 local regulars play weekly. A resident card at $40 a season will offer $15 off weekday rounds, keeping their loyalty without discounting the weekend.
Systems and Staff
The course's booking software already supports different rates by time and card deposits, so the change requires setup rather than purchase. Pro shop staff will be trained to explain the rates in one sentence, framed around the cheaper afternoon option, and to offer an afternoon time when a golfer asks for a full Saturday. A short notice in the clubhouse and on the website will explain the reasons before the season opens.
Measuring Results
The course will track revenue per available tee time by period, utilization, waiting list length on weekends, round times and complaints, comparing the first season with the last three.
Conclusion
Pinnacle Wash meets every condition for revenue management, and its single rate leaves money on full weekend mornings and empty tee times on afternoons. Three time-based rates, supported by research on fair fences, raise expected revenue about 11% while giving value-minded golfers a reason to play when the course is quiet.
References
Kimes, S. E. (1989). Yield management: A tool for capacity-constrained service firms. Journal of Operations Management, 8(4), 348-363. https://doi.org/10.1016/0272-6963(89)90035-1
Kimes, S. E., & Schruben, L. W. (2002). Golf course revenue management: A study of tee time intervals. Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management, 1(2), 111-120. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.rpm.5170014
Kimes, S. E., & Wirtz, J. (2003). Has revenue management become acceptable? Findings from an international study on the perceived fairness of rate fences. Journal of Service Research, 6(2), 125-135. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670503257038
Smith, B. C., Leimkuhler, J. F., & Darrow, R. M. (1992). Yield management at American Airlines. Interfaces, 22(1), 8-31. https://doi.org/10.1287/inte.22.1.8
Reading the MGT 240 Module 7 assignment instructions
Aspen's MGT 240 includes managing capacity in services, and a revenue management paper usually asks students to apply pricing and capacity tools to a business whose capacity cannot be stored. Check your classroom's Module 7 instructions for specifics; the example applies them to one golf course. Explain revenue management and the conditions under which it works. Show that the business meets those conditions. Describe demand by time period with utilization. Propose prices and fences that separate customers who value different times. Calculate expected revenue before and after, stating assumptions about how demand responds. Address fairness and customer reaction. Include rules for no-shows and how results will be measured.
Inside the MGT 240 Module 7 example
The paper opens with Pinnacle Wash Golf Course, which offers 64 tee times a day at eight-minute intervals and sells every round for $95. Kimes's Journal of Operations Management article lists conditions for yield management, such as fixed capacity, perishable inventory and variable demand. Smith, Leimkuhler and Darrow's Interfaces article describes overbooking, discount allocation and traffic management at American Airlines. A table divides the week into weekend mornings, weekday mornings and afternoons, with rates of $130, $100 and $65 and expected utilization of 95%, 74% and 70%. Weekly revenue rises from about $117,000 to about $130,000. Kimes and Schruben's study in the Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management shows interval choice affects rounds and pace. Kimes and Wirtz's Journal of Service Research article found time-based pricing widely accepted as fair. A card deposit for weekend bookings addresses no-shows.
Where the marks sit in the MGT 240 Module 7 rubric
Revenue management papers are graded on whether the business meets the conditions, whether prices and fences follow from demand data and whether revenue estimates rest on stated assumptions. This example tests the course against Kimes's conditions before proposing anything. Demand is described by time period, and each proposed rate is tied to utilization. The table shows revenue calculations openly, so assumptions about demand response can be questioned. Smith, Leimkuhler and Darrow's airline case shows the discipline's origins, and Kimes and Schruben's study adds the tee interval decision. Kimes and Wirtz's fairness research supports the choice of fences. Rules for no-shows and measures complete the plan.
MGT 240 Module 7 help: mistakes that cost marks
Revenue management papers often propose raising prices at busy times without showing demand data or how customers will respond. Describe utilization by period first and state your assumptions about demand response. Another weakness is ignoring fairness; customers react badly to some price differences, so use fences research shows they accept. Check that the business meets the conditions for revenue management. Calculate revenue for each segment and in total, before and after. Consider capacity decisions, such as intervals or overbooking, alongside price. Address no-shows. Finally, plan to measure revenue per available unit, such as per available tee time, not only total revenue.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
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MGT 240 Module 7 questions, answered
What does MGT 240 Module 7 usually ask for?
Aspen's MGT 240 covers revenue management at this stage, so applying pricing and capacity tools to a service business with fixed capacity is typical. Check your classroom prompt.
What is revenue management?
A set of practices for selling fixed, perishable capacity to the right customers at the right time and price, first developed by airlines.
When does revenue management work best?
Kimes identified conditions including fixed capacity, perishable inventory, advance sales, segmentable customers and demand that varies over time.
Where can I find a free MGT 240 Module 7 sample paper?
The complete analysis above applies revenue management to a public golf course's tee times, with three rates by time and an 11% revenue gain.
Do customers see variable pricing as fair?
Kimes and Wirtz found many customers consider time-of-day pricing fair, while some other fences are seen as less acceptable.