The Week That Was, may 21, 2017

     You know the wool is about to be pulled over your eyes when the National Golf Foundation begins its latest report on the state of U.S. golf operations with a question that we all once knew the answer to: “What is golf participation?”
     Yes, the Jupiter, Florida-based trade group is continuing its re-education crusade, desperately trying to convince us that the old ways of measuring golf’s popularity – notably, by counting the number of people who play the game we think of as golf – no longer tell the whole story. “Engagement with golf is evolving,” the NGF argues in its 2017 report on golf participation, “and so too must the method of measuring it.” To this counterfeit end, the NGF now touts “off-course participation,” an idea that offers optimism but is too silly and too reckless to take seriously.
     Here’s the bottom line: Last year, the number of U.S. golfers fell to 23.8 million, a number that Golf Digest says is the lowest reported by the NGF in the Tiger Woods era.
     Another worrisome fact: Our nation’s 8.8 million “avid” golfers – 37 percent of the total population – were, according to the NGF, responsible for almost two-thirds of the rounds played in 2016. The NGF’s report doesn’t provide a demographic profile of this group, but if they’re aging men, as other studies have indicated, the future of the golf business is imperiled.
     Making lemonade out of lemons isn’t easy, and the NGF understands that it’s engaged in a deception. In the final paragraph of its more than 1,700-word report, it acknowledges that our industry’s survival depends on “converting more beginners into committed participants” and “getting more of those who express interest to actually give golf a try.”
     Sadly, these are problems that have loomed for years, and no solutions are in sight.

     Just weeks ago, in a post on the number of golf courses in Vietnam (now 58), I wondered what would happen when the socialist republic reached its national goal for golf: 96 courses by 2020. As it turns out, we may soon have an answer. A Vietnamese news service says that the Ministry of Planning & Investment has proposed to lift the legislation that regulates national golf course development through 2020, the one that has “helped restrain the rampant development of golf courses and increase their operational efficiency.” Golf development is going like gangbusters in Vietnam, the internet is full of stories about how the nation is emerging as a destination for international golf travelers, and now the MPI has reportedly invited other ministries to comment on Decision No. 1946/QD-TTg. Are government officials seeing the future clearly, or is their vision obscured by the dollar signs in their eyes? It’s hard to imagine a scenario in which the ties that bind are removed completely, but it’s entirely possible that they’ll be loosened to allow for more golf development.

     It’s no sure thing, but an Edinburgh-based investment group wants to turn the world’s oldest golf course into a true destination links. Blue Thistle, Ltd. has proposed to take over the operations of Musselburgh Links, a nine-hole layout where golf has been played since 1672, and perhaps a century before. If it can secure a management contract, Blue Thistle says it’ll revitalize the ancient track, restoring the design and features that existed in the mid 1890s. “Essentially, we wish to make Musselburgh great again,” one of the group’s principals said in a comment published by Golf Digest. The makeover will be overseen by architects Tom Mackenzie and Martin Ebert, who’ve been revitalizing classic British layouts for decades. So far, though, Blue Thistle’s pitch has met with resistance. The treasurer of Musselburgh Links Ladies Golf Club said, “I feel this plan could cause more problems than it’s worth,” and a councilmember has argued that Musselburgh is already “an international golf attraction” and “does not require millions of pounds of investment to make it great.”

     The original version of the preceding post first appeared in the March 2017 issue of the World Edition of the Golf Course Report.

     Pipeline Overflow – In an attempt to ensure its survival, a 125-year-old club in West Sussex, England is preparing to relocate. The members of Bognor Regis Golf Club, “a special retreat” in “an established scenic location,” have voted to sell their property to a home builder in exchange for a nearby new home. No timelines have been established, but the move won’t take place until the new club opens. Students of architectural history will feel the sting, as Bognor Regis features a James Braid-designed golf course that opened in 1923. . . . The city of North Adelaide, in South Australia, is looking to shrink the 36-hole complex at North Adelaide Golf Course. Graham Marsh, a “signature” architect with an office in suburban Brisbane, is reportedly negotiating for the contract, which would require him to eliminate nine holes while ensuring that the surviving holes maintain “a very high standard.” . . . It appears that the leader of the Tula people in Nigeria understands the value of golf development. Daily Trust Nigeria reports that Alhaji Abubakar Kokia Atare Buba, the Dubai-educated, 34-year-old Emir of Tula Chiefdom, has donated a parcel of land that will someday be a golf course. The newspaper didn’t identify a location, but the course will be built somewhere in Gombe State.

     Brown Golf Management is marching its way west. So far this year, the Bluffton, South Carolina-based owner/operator has added two properties to its fast-growing portfolio, one in Georgia (Apple Mountain Resort & Golf Club in Clarkesville) and one in Missouri (Holiday Hills Resort & Golf Club in Branson). John Brown, the company’s chief operating officer, has described these venues as “beautiful, high-quality facilities that perfectly complement our offerings in other areas of the country.” Regarding those other offerings, Brown Golf now owns and/or manages 21 golf properties in six U.S. states, all of them tailored to serve middle-income golfers. “We love the game of golf,” Brown recently said, “and our ultimate goal is to make golf as accessible and enjoyable as possible.”