The development arm of the Manila Jockey Club is thinking about building a resort community on the western coast of Mindoro Island.
The to-be-named community will take shape on 185 coastal acres outside Mamburao, the capital of Occidental Mindoro Province. MJC is said to be “in preliminary talks” to acquire the property, which we believe was once the home of the Mamburao Beach Resort. The club has been linked to the purchase of the site since 2010, if not before.
Presuming the sale takes place, MJC has announced that it’ll build houses, a hotel, a marina, and an 18-hole golf course.
The purchase will be made through MJC Investments, which is led by Alfonso R. Reyno, Jr. and his son, Alfonso Victorio G. Reyno III. The Reynos, who also control the jockey club, are searching for financial partners to assist in the development in Mamburao.
MJC has operated horse-racing facilities in and around Manila since 1867, and today it runs what it describes as a “world-class” facility in Cavite Province. It’s also engaged in real estate development, in particular with a planned mixed-use project (including a casino, a hotel, and a shopping area) at the San Lazaro Tourism & Business Park in suburban Manila.
Various news reports say that MJC also plans to build resorts in other parts of the Philippines -- in Palawan and Cagayan provinces and on Siargao Island in Surigao del Norte Province -- but no details are available on those ventures.
The original version of this story appeared in the August 2012 issue of the World Edition of the Golf Course Report.
talking points Golf’s Next War
The world’s golfers may not all agree, but Gil Hanse apparently believes that brown really is the new green.
Before he heads off to Rio de Janeiro, Hanse made an appearance at KPMG’s recent golf conference in Italy. While there, he participated in a discussion about sustainability in golf construction and was asked a question about our industry’s most important priorities.
“It’s all about water,” Hanse answered. “It may force the hand of green golf -- and I mean the color of our courses. We’ve heard that, in the future, wars will be about water rather than oil. Ultimately, that will be the war that the golf industry will have to fight -- the availability of water and constant restrictions. It will eventually tip our hand. Until then, we have to make the delivery of water more efficient.”
Hanse, who noted that his course in Brazil would be “somewhat off-color,” acknowledged that it “will be difficult to change the minds of golfers.”
I’m wondering how this battle for hearts and minds is going to be waged, because the U.S. Golf Association and other power brokers in our business have been talking about changing the prevailing golf mentality for a couple of years, and they don’t seem to be making much progress. It may be time to enlist an army of Madison Avenue ad men on sustainability’s behalf.
scotland Blowing with the Wind
Donald Trump continues to rage against the off-shore wind farm that’s been proposed within sight of his new golf course in Aberdeenshire, and he says he’s going to file a lawsuit against the people who want to build it. But regarding his threat to pull the plug on the course’s planned hotel if the wind farm is built: He’s changed his mind about that.
In what the Scotsman describes as “a dramatic u-turn” -- and in a likely sign that negotiations with prospective hoteliers are proceeding to his satisfaction -- Trump has announced that the hotel is back on the table.
“I’m ready to build a hotel,” Trump said during a visit to Scotland. “It will be the best hotel in Scotland and one of the best hotels in Europe. Everybody wants to be near our course.”
united states Red or Blue, Golf Is Good
I often criticize the Powers that Be in our business, so this week I want to blow them a kiss.
A coalition called We Are Golf -- a group supported by the PGA of America, the National Golf Course Owners Association of America, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, and the Club Managers Association of America -- is trying to persuade our elected officials to stop using golf for political purposes.
“We Are Golf is asking all elected officials, Democrats and Republicans, for a political cease-fire when it comes to golf,” a spokesman for the group recently said. “Even when meant to be humorous, this line of politicking reinforces misperceptions of the game that don’t square with the facts and in turn can lead to unfair legislation and regulation.
“Both sides of the aisle do it. And when they do, the nearly 2 million Americans whose jobs are tied to golf want We Are Golf to ask them to please reconsider.”
As regular readers of this blog know, I wholeheartedly endorse this effort. Cheap jokes told about our golf-playing elected officials -- be they Barack Obama or George Bush, Joe Biden or John Boehner -- diminish our game and discourage growth. Our political leaders don’t play too much golf. They don’t play enough.
wild card click Let us prey.
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