The Week That Was, january 27, 2019

     European Tour Properties has worked its way through Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, and now it’s landed in China, as it’s added Genzon Golf Club to its stable of branded communities. Genzon, a 24-year-old facility in Shenzhen (it opened as CITIC Green Golf Club), features a pair of 18-hole, Neil Haworth-designed golf courses, the second of which arrived in 2008. The club has previously hosted European Tour events, and Planet Golf ranks its A course at the #10 track in the People’s Republic. (Golf Digest ranks it at #20.) In a press release, a club official expected the tour to help it create “a comfortable golf social space” so its members can build “a healthy body and pleasant mind to live life to its maximum.”

     Acknowledging that they’re making “a leap of faith,” a quartet of investors in Ooltewah, Tennessee have acquired Champions Club and its Jay Morrish-designed golf course. The group is led by Jim Brunjak, who’s acknowledged that Champions’ 18-hole track, once “one of the nicest courses in Chattanooga,” is “far from that right now.” Though they know that golf properties “usually lose money and are bad investments,” the new owners believe that there’s “still a place for a country club community with the synergy of a pool, tennis course, a golf course, and a dining facility in a close-knit community like Ooltewah.” Henry Luken, the owner of at least a half-dozen golf properties in the area, reportedly accepted $2.1 million for his 20-year-old club.

     Surplus Transactions – Elected officials in Collier County, Florida have voted to spend $28 million for Golden Gate County Club, a 55-year-old venue in Naples that features an 18-hole, Dick Wilson-designed golf course. The club’s current owners, Robert and Mario Vocisano, were hoping to build a subdivision on their 167-acre property. . . . Although it has designs on national expansion, GreatLIFE Golf & Fitness’ next acquisition will be located right in its wheelhouse. For an undisclosed price, Tom Walsh’s company has agreed to buy Fox Ridge Golf Course, a century-old, nine-hole track in Newton, Kansas. The sellers were Mike Riffel and Sid and Bob Nattier, who accepted GreatLIFE’s offer due to “the low profitability of the operation.” . . . One of the 11 golf properties recently sold by American Golf Corporation was Trophy Club of Apalachee, a 25-year-old venue in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. The parties involved haven’t disclosed any details about the transaction, but the buyer is said to be “a Class-A PGA member and longtime golf-industry executive.” Regarding the price, AGC was asking for $2.4 million.

     Surplus Surplus Transactions – The heirs of Robin Roberts, the Hall of Fame pitcher, have accepted $18.5 million for Limekiln Golf Club, an 85-year-old venue in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The end is near, however, as Matrix Development Group and a partner intend to turn Limekiln’s 209 acres, now the home of a 27-hole golf complex, into a community for active adults. . . . Southern Oaks Golf Club, an 18-hole track in Burleson, Texas that’s said to have “a private club feel,” has changed hands. For an undisclosed price, AngMar Retail Group has sold the 20-year-old club and its Mark Brooks-designed course to an entity that appears to be led by Shipman Companies. . . . Camp Rainbow Gold, a group that provides camps, retreats, and a variety of “emotionally empowering experiences” to children who’ve been diagnosed with cancer, has agreed to pay $1.3 million for Soldier Mountain Ranch & Resort, a 150-acre spread in Fairfield, Idaho. Soldier Mountain, which was once owned by Die Hard and Pulp Fiction star Bruce Willis, is home to a nine-hole golf course whose future is uncertain.

     Duly Noted – In an article for Golf Course Industry magazine, Henry DeLozier of Global Golf Advisors asks a question that a lot of people in our business would like to have answered: Will millennials save golf? Unfortunately, he never answers it. He does, however, note that our nation’s 6.4 million millennial golfers play golf primarily “to hang out with friends” and typically pay between $25 and $50 for a round, although 12 percent of them (768,000) are currently members of private clubs. . . . When golf clubs tied to residential real estate go under, home values plummet. As it turns out, though, residents of communities with mandatory club memberships may also be paying a price, as the dues they’re obligated to pay to keep their clubs afloat are making their houses less salable. Because buyers are fewer and farther between, according to a real-estate economist, homes in communities that are obligated to support clubs are typically priced “way below what they should be selling for.” . . . Come this April – on the 20th, if the new owners truly appreciate the spirit of legalization – a golf course in southeastern Ontario is expected to debut as “Canada’s, and perhaps North America’s, first cannabis-themed golf course.” What’s now known as Lombard Glen Golf & Country Club will operate as Rolling Greens Golf Club, and golfers will be encouraged to enjoy the high life.

     Are you wondering how much of a week’s golf news I cover in this blog? The answer, unfortunately, is just a fraction of what passes my way. The golf business, particularly the development side of the golf business, has unquestionably perked up of late, and there’s no way for me to address all of it. So if your business requires a more comprehensive news digest, contact me via e-mail at golfcoursereport@aol.com. I’ll send you a sample issue of either U.S. or International Construction Clips, depending on your needs.