The Week That Was, may 31, 2015

     Slowly but surely, Mike Keiser is making progress on his long-delayed “municipal” golf course in Bandon, Oregon, and last week he took a major step forward. After negotiating for more than five years, the state’s parks and recreation department has agreed to privatize the 280 acres that Keiser wants to transform into a 27-hole, Gil Hanse-designed golf complex. In exchange, Keiser has agreed to give the state, among other things, 219 acres of coastal lands, $2.5 million for future land acquisition, and $300,000 to combat the spread of gorse. “This has been a long time coming, and I think it would be a wonderful thing for the local area,” the town of Bandon’s mayor told the Associated Press. The land Keiser wants is in the Bandon State Natural Area, roughly 14 miles south of his Bandon Dunes resort. Before he can make the swap, however, he needs to cross one last hurdle, and it’s a big one: He needs the federal government to approve the transaction, a request that the news service says is “certain to trigger a deep review of the potential environmental impacts.”

     Now that détente with the United States appears to be just around the corner, Cuba’s economic prospects have brightened considerably. In recent months, a parade of high-ranking government officials and high-powered CEOs from France, Italy, Russia, China, Spain, Japan, Great Britain, and other nations have visited Havana, eager to swing deals that will prevent U.S. corporations from claiming a significant stake in the nation’s future. “If the embargo is lifted,” the head of a French company told the Associated Press, “the U.S. market, so much closer to Cuba, will be an important competitor for us.” Good times are beginning to roll in Cuba, and Corporate America -- the golf industry included -- remains where it’s been for more than a half-century: On the outside, looking in. British and Chinese groups have secured the only golf contracts announced by the Castro regime so far, but four to six others will be awarded in the near future, and right now it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which a U.S. company gets one. Cuba may ultimately be a small player in the global golf market, but that’s no reason to ignore development opportunities in our back yard. If the embargo isn’t lifted pretty darned soon, Asian and European groups are going to control Cuba’s golf business. How does that benefit us?

     As expected, a Greg Norman “signature” golf course will be the centerpiece of the forthcoming Adirondack Club in northern New York. According to Bloomberg, the Florida-based celebrity architect will put a fresh, modern, and more saleable face on the Donald Ross-designed layout that’s to be incorporated into the 6,300-acre community. The faded 18-hole track, currently part of Tupper Lake Golf Club, has been around since 1932. “The diamond is there,” Norman told the news service. “It just needs to be polished off.” As previously noted, “the Living Brand” recently agreed to become an investor in Adirondack Club, and he’s apparently taking a liking to Tupper Lake and its environs. “I never knew the beauty and the magnitude of the area,” Norman said. “There’s all this stuff up there that you’re kind of oblivious to.” Bloomberg reports that Norman intends to “preserve most of the design elements from Ross,” with the “polishing off” to be complete in 2018.

     Once again, Donald Trump has registered his intent to build a cemetery at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey. Pending approval from elected officials, the nearly 10-acre boneyard will emerge along the 13th hole of the club’s Old Course, and its 548 graves will be reserved for club members and military veterans. Some years ago, Trump expressed a desire to make the club his final resting place, but he’s changed his mind. He now wants to be buried in Florida.