The Week That Was, march 9, 2014

     Will Donald Trump experience development déjà vu all over again in Ireland? Greg Norman’s golf course at the former Doonbeg resort doesn’t quite measure up to Trump’s standards, so Martin Hawtree, the designer who won government approval to build Trump’s layout on protected dunes in Scotland, has been hired to “enhance the existing course or completely redesign a new links,” according to the Irish Examiner. A new, world-class layout is Trump’s preference, but building the new holes where he wants them -- on the same snail habitat that was off-limits to Norman -- will pit him against Irish environmentalists. “Greg Norman did an incredible job, considering he wasn’t allowed to work in the dunes,” Trump told the newspaper. “I have a lot of time and I have a lot of money, and the best thing for Ireland is that you allow that great site to have one of the great courses of the world.” Trump believes he can twist enough politicians’ arms to win permission for his plans, but Norman isn’t so confident. “Maybe times change, but I doubt it,” he said. “I think those snails have a bigger voice than us. And they have multiplied since then.” For now, Trump has many friends in Ireland. How long before he begins making enemies?

     The rich are getting richer, and the really rich are getting fabulously wealthy. Around the world, there are now more than 167,000 people worth at least $30 million, according to Knight Frank’s “Wealth Report 2014.” The number of these ultra-high net-worth individuals has climbed by 59 percent since 2003, with growth more than doubling in the Middle East, Latin America, Australasia, and Africa. And it’s predicted that their numbers will increase by 28 percent during the next decade, reaching 215,000 by 2023. All told, the world’s 167,669 UHNWIs control assets worth $20.1 trillion, which is 25 percent more than the value of the U.S. economy.

     All those young people who are so desired by the golf industry -- who are they, exactly? Millennials (people aged 18 to 33) are devoted to technology, burdened by debt, distrustful of social institutions, and relatively unattached to religion, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center. They are America’s most racially diverse generation. Politically, they describe themselves as independents, but they tend to support an activist government and vote Democratic. Socially, they support the liberal agenda, including gay rights and the legalization of marijuana. Obviously, Millennials don’t have much in common with today’s typical golfers. Are they a lost generation? And if they are, what are the implications for golf’s future?

     Just weeks after elected officials in Dallas, Texas publicly accused them of stealing water, the owners of Prestonwood Country Club have gotten out of the golf business. Henry S. Miller Companies has sold Prestonwood, a two-location, 36-hole facility, to ClubCorp for an undisclosed price. “The time has come to sell,” said Greg Miller, whose family has owned Prestonwood for 36 years. “It’s not really our core business.” Golf is undoubtedly ClubCorp’s business, though. The company owns and/or operates 10 other golf properties in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and more than 100 overall. ClubCorp plans to upgrade Prestonwood’s golf courses and clubhouses, and it’ll most likely pay about $46,000 a year for water.

     Not everyone was as impressed by the turnout at this year’s Golf Industry Show as its sponsors were. “While attendance was supposedly up,” Steve Garske of Par Aide writes on his blog, “it sure seemed down to us, though not by a lot.” He continues: “It is not hard to see that the scope of the show is considerably less than in days gone by. More than one person remarked how they could easily see from one end of the hall to the other.” Garske spells out why he thinks people have “less and less interest in trade shows” these days, and he suggests that the GIS be held not annually but once every 18 months. With less frequency, he writes, “It might become a more special event, to not be missed.” The show’s sponsors haven’t yet responded to the suggestion.

     Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation has parted with Grande Pines Golf Club, a 28-year-old, 170-acre property in Orlando, Florida. MVW, a time-share operator, reportedly accepted $24 million for Grande Pines, whose original Joe Lee-designed course was later redesigned by Nick Faldo and Steve Smyers. “It was something where we thought we’d get a better return if we sold it,” one of MVW’s vice presidents told the Orlando Sentinel. MVW, a publicly traded company that was once affiliated with Marriott Corporation, has owned Grande Pines since 1997. The new owner, an LLC led by Angelo Gordon & Company and Ridgewood Real Estate Partners, is expected to replace the golf course with houses and stores, but not for a year or more.

     You can add Tony Jacklin’s name to the list of people who think golf needs to enter a dead-ball era. “I am frustrated that golf’s governing bodies have not done more to limit the distance of the golf ball,” the four-time Ryder Cup captain told Golf Retailing. “The fact that golf balls fly so far does not make golf a better game.” Not that anyone is listening.

     Jack Nicklaus has convinced himself that his hands are objets d’art. And anyone gullible enough to agree with him can now purchase limited-edition “original handprints” that commemorate the major championships won by Nicklaus during his monumental career. The price: $3,490 to $3,890 for the autographed units, $740 without the signature. The prints have been done in gold and other colors. They’re remarkably similar to the handprints kindergartners make, except that they’re printed on acid-free paper and have nicer handwriting.