Vital Signs, march 28, 2014

     As should be readily apparent, hard times in general and the Great Recession in particular have been a godsend to the nation’s golf management companies. The National Golf Foundation reports that the number of U.S. golf facilities operated by third parties has increased by 53 percent over the past 12 years – from 1,472 in 2001 to more than 2,245 in 2013. Half of the increase, according to the NGF, has occurred since 2008, the year that the economy took a 1929-style nosedive and dragged the golf business down with it. “Third-party management may not be the right solution for all facilities,” the NGF writes, “but the right company can help struggling golf courses in many ways.” And despite the enviable growth that private-sector managers have recorded of late, it’s likely that we ain’t seen nothin’ yet, as these days only 15 percent of the nation’s golf facilities are operated by private groups. There’s a lot more market share waiting to be claimed.

     Larry Hirsh, a Pennsylvania-based golf consultant, believes that entrance fees at U.S. private clubs “are beginning to recover after a long period of decline or stagnation.” If Hirsh is right, this is news that the nation’s private clubs have been dying to hear. Unfortunately, it’s hard to find other observers who agree with him. Hirsh bases his claim, he says, on evidence gathered at clubs in Florida, Philadelphia, metropolitan New York, California, and the Carolinas. Clearly, these are some of America’s prime golf markets, and clubs in many other places -- the South, the Southwest, the Midwest -- may not be as near to recovery. Still, Hirsh’s observation shouldn’t be dismissed. He may be the canary in the coal mine.

     Here’s a score: 72-17. It’s the current ratio of men to women in Great Britain’s golf clubs, according to a recent study. The Hillier Hopkins LLP Golf Survey Report has also determined that in 2013 a distinct majority of British clubs -- 58 percent -- either lost members or finished the year where they started. Nonetheless, Hillier Hopkins thinks British clubs have reasons to be optimistic. “Overall, 2012 was a year of consolidation for most clubs, and 2013 has seen some improvements,” the study concludes. “It does feel that the decline in membership that has been evident in recent years has at least halted and is now in many cases on the rebound.” If the industry is indeed on the rebound, however, it’s fair to wonder exactly how big a bounce British clubs can expect in the near future. For the answer to that question, consider another score: 59-19. It’s the ratio of British club members over the age of 50 to those under the age of 35.

     For the first time since it opened, in 2007, Chambers Bay Golf Course has turned a profit. The municipal layout in suburban Tacoma, Washington made $382,000 in 2013, according to an accounting by its owner, Pierce County. The Robert Trent Jones, Jr.-designed layout rang up just a shade under 39,000 rounds last year, a 12 percent increase over the number posted in 2012. Chambers Bay will host the U.S. Open in 2015, and county officials credit the intensifying buzz surrounding the event for both the increase in play and a 40 percent boost in merchandise sales. Even better, the property’s brightening financial picture has attracted a developer who’s promised to build a clubhouse, a hotel, a conference center, and a second Jones-designed track.

     The municipal golf operations in Baton Rouge, Louisiana have lost $2.8 million over the past three years, and nobody is suggesting that a turnaround is on the immediate horizon. The losses have led some city officials to question whether it makes economic sense to continue operating seven golf properties, only one of which turned a profit in 2013. “There does come a point where we have got to be prudent with taxpayer money,” a city official noted to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. In search of a solution, the city plans to hire a consultant who’ll identify the problems and master-plan a profitable future.

     President Obama played 46 rounds of golf in 2013. We should all be so lucky.