Alchemy Resorts has acquired the time-worn Aetna Springs resort, a 672-acre spread in Pope Valley, California that boasts one of America’s top-rated nine-hole golf courses. Alchemy believes the resort, despite its remote location, can become pure gold, as it’s pledged to transform the historic property into “a world-class luxury resort that showcases Napa’s food and wine combined with leading wellness programs.” Aetna Springs’ course, a 125-year-old layout that was redesigned a decade ago by Tom Doak and Jim Urbina, has been described as “fun and formidable, without being brutish.” Alchemy hasn’t specifically stated that the course will be reopened, but it’s hard to imagine Aetna Springs being restored to “its
original grandeur” without it.
Surplus Transactions – Davis Sezna is the new owner of CrossWinds Golf Course, a property in Greenville, South Carolina that Ron Whitten once called “a really fun par-3 course with enough variety to hold everyone’s interest.” The track is notable because each of its 18 holes was designed by a different architect. Sezna, a former CEO of Cliffs Communities and Heritage Golf Group, aims to play up the course’s entertainment value and might take the concept national. . . . Watermark Properties has agreed to buy Macatawa Legends Golf Club, which bills itself as the “premier destination for golf in West Michigan.” If the transaction is completed, Macatawa Legends will become Watermark’s seventh golf property. The 13-year-old club in Holland features an 18-hole, Ray Hearn-designed course, and the prospective owners expect to take it to “its greatest potential.” . . . One of the oldest golf venues in Indiana has changed hands. In August, Tommy and Jeanna Riddle paid an undisclosed price for Meshingomesia Golf & Social Club, a facility that’s operated in Marion since 1906. Bill Diddle redesigned the club’s original nine in 1927 and added a second nine in the mid or late 1950s.
Surplus Surplus Transactions – The lease on the golf course at Carnegie Abbey Club, in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, has been turned over to a group of members who are said to be “committed to restoring the club to the high standards it has historically been known for.” At a foreclosure auction, the members reportedly offered $6.7 million for the property, which features an 18-hole layout that was co-designed by a trio of British architects: Donald Steel, Tom MacKenzie, and Martin Ebert. . . . Confessing that he’s been “looking for ways to get away from the automobile repair business,” John Tenneson has purchased Clarks Grove Golf Course, a nine-hole track outside Albert Lea, Minnesota. Tenneson told the Albert Lea Tribune that the 37-year-old course was on the brink of foreclosure. . . . For $850,000, an investment group linked to Ron Perkins has acquired Springfield Golf Club, a 62-year-old venue in Springfield, Oregon. The club features an 18-hole, Sid Milligan-designed golf course whose future is uncertain, as the Eugene Register-Guard ominously notes that it’s “unclear what the buyers’ plan for the property is.”
Duly Noted – The fallout from Keith Foster’s guilty plea continues. Last week, the Middleburg, Virginia-based architect, who’s admitted to smuggling some 100 prohibited items into the United States, lost his contract with Olympia Fields Country Club, in greater Chicago, and Golden Valley Country Club, in suburban Minneapolis, is reportedly “likely moving on” as well. The status of Foster’s contracts with Omaha Country Club and Brook Hollow Golf Club are uncertain. . . . Phú Quốc Island, which has rapidly become one of Vietnam’s most popular vacation destinations, welcomed 1.96 million visitors last year, a 35 percent increase over the number from 2016, and this year it expects to receive an estimated 2.5 million. Given this traffic, it’s time to wonder when Vinpearl, which operates the only golf property on the island, will add its long-planned a 14-course golf complex. . . . GreatLIFE Golf & Fitness, which operates roughly two dozen golf courses in Kansas and South Dakota, aims to begin doing business in Arizona, California, Missouri, Texas, Utah, and, eventually, other states as well. “I think we will be a national concept,” the company’s CEO, Tom Walsh, Sr., said in a press release. Walsh believes that GreatLIFE will generate $250 million in annual revenues within five years.
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Sunday, December 30, 2018
Sunday, December 23, 2018
The Week That Was, december 23, 2018
Keith Foster, a course architect who in recent years has dedicated himself to reviving faded, Golden Age courses, faces jail time because he smuggled illegal goods into the United States. He’s pleaded guilty to breaking a federal law that prohibits the trafficking of items made from endangered species, a crime that could put him in prison for up to five years.
A neo-classicist whose work is much respected by his peers, Foster typically takes on only two or three projects a year due to, as I once described it in a story for Golf Inc, “a commitment to his craft that borders on obsession.” Over the years, he’s built a first-class reputation by completing so-called sympathetic restorations of a dozen or more courses, including those at Philadelphia Cricket Club in Philadelphia, Baltimore Country Club in Baltimore, Moraine Country Club in Dayton, Ohio, and the Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.
Foster recently won a commission to revitalize the Blue course at Congressional Country Club, but the contract has been withdrawn. Citing “rumors,” the Fried Egg reports that he’s also lost assignments from Omaha Country Club in Nebraska and Brook Hollow Golf Club in Dallas, Texas.
Foster usually spent his winters traveling around the world, searching for unique items that he could sell in his antiques store in Middleburg, Virginia. The U.S. Department of Justice charges that he illegally imported more than 100 prohibited items, including mounted birds of prey and products made from ivory, coral, sea turtles and crocodiles. He sold some of the items to an undercover agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The sentencing is scheduled to take place in March 2019. A press release from the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia notes that “actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties,” but the golf industry may very well give Foster what amounts to a life term.
With fewer course-design contracts coming its way, Gary Player Group is lending its name to what it hopes will be a new revenue stream. The group has established Black Knight Management, a division whose operations will apparently be overseen by staffers from two existing companies, Crown Colony Management and Links Management. Employing this curious system, Black Knight promises to “break the traditional model” with “a member-centric approach” that will “make each contracted organization flourish to its full potential.” A press release doesn’t disclose any clients.
A 600-acre estate in the southwestern corner of France is expected to become “a world-class golf destination” and a link in the fast-growing chain of European Tour Properties. Sparben Golf Resort, outside Biarritz, has been master-planned to include, among other things, several hundred houses, a resort-style hotel with a spa and a conference center, a wellness center, a “short” golf course, and a pair of 18-hole layouts, one designed by Colin Montgomerie and the other by Jean Van de Velde. Only one problem: The venture, which is for now being overseen by a local planning authority, hasn’t yet found a developer. If it’s built, Sparben will become the tour’s third property in France, joining Le Golf National in Paris and Terre Blanche Hotel Spa Golf Resort in Provence. A press release doesn’t mention it, but architects from European Golf Design will probably be involved in creating the golf courses. And while we’re on the subject, Van de Velde’s golf course will be his first. He expects it to “find its place among the world’s most elite golf courses.”
Pipeline Overflow – A circuit-court judge in Nassau County, Florida has ordered the owners of the Omni resort, on Amelia Island, to rebuild and reopen the property’s Ocean Links track, which was closed and partially razed just weeks ago. The resort, part of a chain of Omni-owned properties, claims that the 18-hole Ocean Links layout was “by far the poorest quality course in Omni’s entire golf portfolio of 21 courses.” The company plans to appeal the ruling. . . . Ogilvy Clayton Cocking & Mead has completed its overhaul of Yangtze Dunes, one of the two 18-hole layouts at Lanhai International Country Club in Shanghai, China. A press release declares that the Melbourne, Australia-based design firm has created “the first proper links track on the Asian mainland,” one that will deliver “a golfing experience that would compete with the world’s best.” . . . Pyongyang Golf Club, the 30-year-old venue where Kim Jong-il once famously needed only 34 strokes to complete 18 holes, may soon get a new nine. NK News says that the club, outside North Korea’s capital city, is also adding lodging as part of an effort “to improve tourist amenities nationwide.” No word on whether recording and listening devices are part of the master plan.
Duly Noted – Forrest Fezler, a former professional golfer who formed a course-design firm with the late Mike Strantz, died last week, reportedly of brain cancer. As a designer, he said that his goal was “to make you feel heroic by creating visuals that will seem intimidating but in reality are quite easy to accomplish.” He was 69. . . . As a reward for having “resurrected the timeless design of golf course architecture,” Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw will receive the 2019 Don A. Rossi award, the top honor that can be bestowed by the Golf Course Builders Association of America. Since 1991, when the award was first presented, the GCBAA has honored nearly a dozen other architects, among them Jack Nicklaus, Pete Dye, Rees Jones, and Geoff Cornish. . . . A Chinese news service reports that more than 120,000 golfers from 30 nations have visited Antalya, Turkey so far this year, contributing €125 million (roughly $142.3 million) to the nation’s economy. Most of the travelers to Antalya come from Scandinavia, Germany and Britain, and the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies expects a 10 to 15 percent increase in their numbers next year.
Happy Holidays, Everyone!
A neo-classicist whose work is much respected by his peers, Foster typically takes on only two or three projects a year due to, as I once described it in a story for Golf Inc, “a commitment to his craft that borders on obsession.” Over the years, he’s built a first-class reputation by completing so-called sympathetic restorations of a dozen or more courses, including those at Philadelphia Cricket Club in Philadelphia, Baltimore Country Club in Baltimore, Moraine Country Club in Dayton, Ohio, and the Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.
Foster recently won a commission to revitalize the Blue course at Congressional Country Club, but the contract has been withdrawn. Citing “rumors,” the Fried Egg reports that he’s also lost assignments from Omaha Country Club in Nebraska and Brook Hollow Golf Club in Dallas, Texas.
Foster usually spent his winters traveling around the world, searching for unique items that he could sell in his antiques store in Middleburg, Virginia. The U.S. Department of Justice charges that he illegally imported more than 100 prohibited items, including mounted birds of prey and products made from ivory, coral, sea turtles and crocodiles. He sold some of the items to an undercover agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The sentencing is scheduled to take place in March 2019. A press release from the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia notes that “actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties,” but the golf industry may very well give Foster what amounts to a life term.
With fewer course-design contracts coming its way, Gary Player Group is lending its name to what it hopes will be a new revenue stream. The group has established Black Knight Management, a division whose operations will apparently be overseen by staffers from two existing companies, Crown Colony Management and Links Management. Employing this curious system, Black Knight promises to “break the traditional model” with “a member-centric approach” that will “make each contracted organization flourish to its full potential.” A press release doesn’t disclose any clients.
A 600-acre estate in the southwestern corner of France is expected to become “a world-class golf destination” and a link in the fast-growing chain of European Tour Properties. Sparben Golf Resort, outside Biarritz, has been master-planned to include, among other things, several hundred houses, a resort-style hotel with a spa and a conference center, a wellness center, a “short” golf course, and a pair of 18-hole layouts, one designed by Colin Montgomerie and the other by Jean Van de Velde. Only one problem: The venture, which is for now being overseen by a local planning authority, hasn’t yet found a developer. If it’s built, Sparben will become the tour’s third property in France, joining Le Golf National in Paris and Terre Blanche Hotel Spa Golf Resort in Provence. A press release doesn’t mention it, but architects from European Golf Design will probably be involved in creating the golf courses. And while we’re on the subject, Van de Velde’s golf course will be his first. He expects it to “find its place among the world’s most elite golf courses.”
Pipeline Overflow – A circuit-court judge in Nassau County, Florida has ordered the owners of the Omni resort, on Amelia Island, to rebuild and reopen the property’s Ocean Links track, which was closed and partially razed just weeks ago. The resort, part of a chain of Omni-owned properties, claims that the 18-hole Ocean Links layout was “by far the poorest quality course in Omni’s entire golf portfolio of 21 courses.” The company plans to appeal the ruling. . . . Ogilvy Clayton Cocking & Mead has completed its overhaul of Yangtze Dunes, one of the two 18-hole layouts at Lanhai International Country Club in Shanghai, China. A press release declares that the Melbourne, Australia-based design firm has created “the first proper links track on the Asian mainland,” one that will deliver “a golfing experience that would compete with the world’s best.” . . . Pyongyang Golf Club, the 30-year-old venue where Kim Jong-il once famously needed only 34 strokes to complete 18 holes, may soon get a new nine. NK News says that the club, outside North Korea’s capital city, is also adding lodging as part of an effort “to improve tourist amenities nationwide.” No word on whether recording and listening devices are part of the master plan.
Duly Noted – Forrest Fezler, a former professional golfer who formed a course-design firm with the late Mike Strantz, died last week, reportedly of brain cancer. As a designer, he said that his goal was “to make you feel heroic by creating visuals that will seem intimidating but in reality are quite easy to accomplish.” He was 69. . . . As a reward for having “resurrected the timeless design of golf course architecture,” Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw will receive the 2019 Don A. Rossi award, the top honor that can be bestowed by the Golf Course Builders Association of America. Since 1991, when the award was first presented, the GCBAA has honored nearly a dozen other architects, among them Jack Nicklaus, Pete Dye, Rees Jones, and Geoff Cornish. . . . A Chinese news service reports that more than 120,000 golfers from 30 nations have visited Antalya, Turkey so far this year, contributing €125 million (roughly $142.3 million) to the nation’s economy. Most of the travelers to Antalya come from Scandinavia, Germany and Britain, and the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies expects a 10 to 15 percent increase in their numbers next year.
Happy Holidays, Everyone!
Sunday, December 16, 2018
The Week That Was, december 16, 2018
Gary Kern, who described his architectural practice as “contemporary design in the classic style,” died in late November. Over the course of a career that began in the late 1960s, after he was encouraged to enter the profession by Bill Diddel, he was responsible for nearly four dozen new courses, renovations, and additions to existing facilities, the vast majority of them in Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri.
Kern was by no means a household name, and, unlike the better-known architects of his era, he was content to produce what he described as “an affordable product within a realistic budget” – courses that were, in the words of a golf pro familiar with Kern’s work, well-suited to “small-town pocketbooks.” In keeping with that approach, his courses were playable to average players.
“I feel strongly that golf should be fun,” he wrote, “and the player should enjoy his golf experience without frustration.”
Kern inspired his son, Ron, to become a course architect as well. Today, Ron operates out of an office in suburban Indianapolis, Indiana, not far from where his father grew up. The way Ron sees it, his father’s commitment to affordability made his courses economically sustainable.
“In all of the financial turmoil of the past decade, none of my dad’s courses have closed because of financial hardship,” Ron Kern recently told the Farmington Press. “Instead, they have continued to provide the golfing public, of all means, with wonderful golf courses to test their golfing abilities and enjoy the greatest game.”
Gary Kern relocated to the St. Louis area in 1983 and spent his final years there. In recent years – in “retirement mode,” as he called it – he spent his time “noodling around on the clarinet” and “worshipping and studying in Bible classes.” He was 80.
Nicklaus Design reports that it’s slated to break ground on three new courses in Vietnam, all of which appear to have been commissioned by BRG Group.
A track designed by Jack Nicklaus II is expected to begin construction “soon” at BRG Ruby Tree Golf Resort, outside Hải Phòng, while layouts in Hà Nam Province, in the northern part of the nation, and in Huế, along the Central Coast, are scheduled to start “in the near future.”
Nicklaus Design and BRG signed a partnership agreement two years ago, as part of BRG’s self-described mission to “to refresh the Vietnamese golf industry and bring new vitality to the game countrywide.” So far, the arrangement has enabled Nicklaus II to design a third 18-hole layout at BRG Kings Island Golf Resort, in the Sơn Tây District of Hà Nội, and to redesign the course that became BRG Legend Hill Golf Resort, in the Sóc Sơn District of metropolitan Hà Nội.
A press release isn’t specific about what’s going to happen at Ruby Tree (originally Đồ Sơn Seaside Golf Resort), which is currently home to an 18-hole, Phil Ryan-designed golf course. It may be that a second course is forthcoming, but it’s also possible that Nicklaus will simply redesign Ryan’s track. (Golfasian characterizes the layout as “a sensible course for golfers in the area” but “hardly anything to write home about.”)
The press release also doesn’t mention the status of the proposed Nicklaus-designed second course at BRG Đà Nẵng Golf Resort. If and when it opens, the course will complement BRG Đà Nẵng’s existing, Greg Norman-designed layout, which is considered to be one of Vietnam’s best.
Some information in the previous post first appeared in the November 2016 and December 2016 issues of the World Edition of the Golf Course Report.
Pipeline Overflow – Before he gets too deep into his responsibilities as Vietnam’s tourism ambassador, Greg “the Living Brand” Norman will begin working on designs for four new courses in the socialist republic. The tracks will take shape at Novaland-developed “tourism complexes” in the southern part of the nation, outside Hồ Chí Minh City. . . . The new owners of Astbury Hall, the estate formerly owned by former Judas Priest guitarist Ken “KK” Downing, aim to turn the 320-acre property in Shropshire, England into a “world-class” vacation destination. The plans largely follow the script created by Downing, who intended to add a new, nine-hole golf course to complement the 18-hole track that he designed. . . . The Southwest Florida division of Lennar Corporation, the big U.S. home builder, has set out to build a golf community in Punta Gorda. The community, called Heritage Landing, will include houses, a swimming pool, a tennis center, a fitness center, and an 18-hole Gordy Lewis-designed golf course. While I’m at it, I should remind you that Lewis is also creating the course that Lennar intends to build at Babcock Ranch, near Fort Myers.
Duly Noted – As part of its effort to build relationships and enrich lives, ClubCorp has purchased a controlling interest in BigShots, a start-up that hopes to establish a chain of Topgolf-inspired entertainment venues with what’s been described as a “golf party atmosphere.” The Dallas Morning News says that ClubCorp will begin using BigShots’ games and simulators at its properties next year. . . . The European Tour’s real-estate arm has added a second Bulgarian club to its network of ostensible “world-class” golf venues. The newcomer is Pirin Golf & Country Club, a 10-year-old property that features an 18-hole, Ian Woosnam “signature” layout. Coincidentally, Woosnam also designed the course at Lighthouse Golf & Spa Resort, which became part of the tour’s collection in 2016, and he worked with European Golf Design on both projects. . . . Only a tiny slice of international visitors to Vietnam – 0.5 percent of them – enter the country to play golf, according to data provided by the nation’s tourism agency. If my math is correct, that slice will translate to roughly 75,000 golfers this year, which doesn’t seem to be nearly enough to justify the construction of 96 courses, let alone the 100-plus that some government officials believe are necessary to satisfy demand.
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 over the past year or two, 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.
Kern was by no means a household name, and, unlike the better-known architects of his era, he was content to produce what he described as “an affordable product within a realistic budget” – courses that were, in the words of a golf pro familiar with Kern’s work, well-suited to “small-town pocketbooks.” In keeping with that approach, his courses were playable to average players.
“I feel strongly that golf should be fun,” he wrote, “and the player should enjoy his golf experience without frustration.”
Kern inspired his son, Ron, to become a course architect as well. Today, Ron operates out of an office in suburban Indianapolis, Indiana, not far from where his father grew up. The way Ron sees it, his father’s commitment to affordability made his courses economically sustainable.
“In all of the financial turmoil of the past decade, none of my dad’s courses have closed because of financial hardship,” Ron Kern recently told the Farmington Press. “Instead, they have continued to provide the golfing public, of all means, with wonderful golf courses to test their golfing abilities and enjoy the greatest game.”
Gary Kern relocated to the St. Louis area in 1983 and spent his final years there. In recent years – in “retirement mode,” as he called it – he spent his time “noodling around on the clarinet” and “worshipping and studying in Bible classes.” He was 80.
Nicklaus Design reports that it’s slated to break ground on three new courses in Vietnam, all of which appear to have been commissioned by BRG Group.
A track designed by Jack Nicklaus II is expected to begin construction “soon” at BRG Ruby Tree Golf Resort, outside Hải Phòng, while layouts in Hà Nam Province, in the northern part of the nation, and in Huế, along the Central Coast, are scheduled to start “in the near future.”
Nicklaus Design and BRG signed a partnership agreement two years ago, as part of BRG’s self-described mission to “to refresh the Vietnamese golf industry and bring new vitality to the game countrywide.” So far, the arrangement has enabled Nicklaus II to design a third 18-hole layout at BRG Kings Island Golf Resort, in the Sơn Tây District of Hà Nội, and to redesign the course that became BRG Legend Hill Golf Resort, in the Sóc Sơn District of metropolitan Hà Nội.
A press release isn’t specific about what’s going to happen at Ruby Tree (originally Đồ Sơn Seaside Golf Resort), which is currently home to an 18-hole, Phil Ryan-designed golf course. It may be that a second course is forthcoming, but it’s also possible that Nicklaus will simply redesign Ryan’s track. (Golfasian characterizes the layout as “a sensible course for golfers in the area” but “hardly anything to write home about.”)
The press release also doesn’t mention the status of the proposed Nicklaus-designed second course at BRG Đà Nẵng Golf Resort. If and when it opens, the course will complement BRG Đà Nẵng’s existing, Greg Norman-designed layout, which is considered to be one of Vietnam’s best.
Some information in the previous post first appeared in the November 2016 and December 2016 issues of the World Edition of the Golf Course Report.
Pipeline Overflow – Before he gets too deep into his responsibilities as Vietnam’s tourism ambassador, Greg “the Living Brand” Norman will begin working on designs for four new courses in the socialist republic. The tracks will take shape at Novaland-developed “tourism complexes” in the southern part of the nation, outside Hồ Chí Minh City. . . . The new owners of Astbury Hall, the estate formerly owned by former Judas Priest guitarist Ken “KK” Downing, aim to turn the 320-acre property in Shropshire, England into a “world-class” vacation destination. The plans largely follow the script created by Downing, who intended to add a new, nine-hole golf course to complement the 18-hole track that he designed. . . . The Southwest Florida division of Lennar Corporation, the big U.S. home builder, has set out to build a golf community in Punta Gorda. The community, called Heritage Landing, will include houses, a swimming pool, a tennis center, a fitness center, and an 18-hole Gordy Lewis-designed golf course. While I’m at it, I should remind you that Lewis is also creating the course that Lennar intends to build at Babcock Ranch, near Fort Myers.
Duly Noted – As part of its effort to build relationships and enrich lives, ClubCorp has purchased a controlling interest in BigShots, a start-up that hopes to establish a chain of Topgolf-inspired entertainment venues with what’s been described as a “golf party atmosphere.” The Dallas Morning News says that ClubCorp will begin using BigShots’ games and simulators at its properties next year. . . . The European Tour’s real-estate arm has added a second Bulgarian club to its network of ostensible “world-class” golf venues. The newcomer is Pirin Golf & Country Club, a 10-year-old property that features an 18-hole, Ian Woosnam “signature” layout. Coincidentally, Woosnam also designed the course at Lighthouse Golf & Spa Resort, which became part of the tour’s collection in 2016, and he worked with European Golf Design on both projects. . . . Only a tiny slice of international visitors to Vietnam – 0.5 percent of them – enter the country to play golf, according to data provided by the nation’s tourism agency. If my math is correct, that slice will translate to roughly 75,000 golfers this year, which doesn’t seem to be nearly enough to justify the construction of 96 courses, let alone the 100-plus that some government officials believe are necessary to satisfy demand.
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 over the past year or two, 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.
Sunday, December 9, 2018
The Week That Was, december 9, 2018
Zach Peed is about to add a second Coore & Crenshaw-designed golf course to his Dormie Network, a stable of “pristine private destination courses” that might someday extend from coast to coast. For an undisclosed price, Peed has agreed to buy Hidden Creek Golf Club, a Roger Hansen-owned venue outside Atlantic City, New Jersey that’s been in business since 2002. In a press release, Peed called Hidden Creek “an absolutely exceptional club and a perfect fit” the Dormie Network, which caters to “the needs of executives and corporate entities for retreats and other events.” Hidden Creek will be the network’s sixth property, and the first in the Northeast. The remainder of the group features well-regarded clubs in the mid-Atlantic (North Carolina and Virginia), the Midwest (Indiana and Nebraska), and the South (Texas), so it wouldn’t come as a surprise if Peed next acquired a property in the West or Northwest. If all goes as expected with Hansen, the Hidden Creek transaction will close next month.
Surplus Transactions – It appears that HNA Group, one of the heavyweights in China’s golf industry, left something to be desired at the golf club it bought in Monterey, California in 2013. A group of local investors has purchased the club, changed its name from Nicklaus Club Monterey to the Club at Pasadera, and vowed to “restore and rejuvenate everything at the club to its former greatness.” . . . For $170 million, the Park Hyatt Aviara Resort has changed hands. Xenia Hotels & Resorts’ purchase, from a lender that’s controlled the 222-acre property for more than a year, includes a hotel, meeting space, a spa, and an 18-hole, Arnold Palmer-designed golf course that serves as the centerpiece of Aviara Golf Club. . . . Uniontown Country Club, a venue in Uniontown, Pennsylvania that dates back to the early 1920s, has been sold to the owners of a nearby golf venue. Phoenix LLC, the owner of Duck Hollow Golf Club, has set out to “carry on the tradition” at Uniontown and make it a place where members can “spend their personal and family time together.”
Surplus Surplus Transactions – Toll Golf, the operations arm of the giant homebuilding company, has accepted $18.5 million for Snowmass Club, a venue outside Aspen, Colorado that’s operated since the early 1980s. Originally a Chaffin/Light property, Snowmass features an 18-hole, Arnold Palmer-designed golf course that was redesigned by Jim Engh in 2004. . . . In press statement littered with corporate-speak (“strategic capital,” “demand generators,” “value-add opportunity”), a pair of investment firms announced their acquisition of Grande Lakes Orlando Resort. The 409-acre “institutional-quality asset” features two hotels, meeting space, places to eat and drink, and a variety of recreational amenities, including an 18-hole, Greg Norman-designed golf course. . . . The city of Sullivan has purchased Sullivan Country Club, a 68-year-old venue that calls itself “the hidden jewel” and “the premier golf bargain in all of south-central Missouri.” The city paid $790,000 for the 118-acre property and its 18-hole golf course.
Here’s this month’s accounting of recent course closings:
– Black Mountain Golf & Country Club, a property outside Las Vegas, Nevada that marketed itself as “a sure bet to make your day unforgettable.” The club had operated since the late 1950s, sometimes with as many as 27 holes.
– Oakhurst Country Club, a 59-year-old venue in Grove City, Ohio with an 18-hole, Jack Kidwell-designed course. In the 1960s, according to the listing agent who recently brokered a potential sale of the property, Oakhurst was “one of the nicest courses in the city and very exclusive.”
– Hickory Ridge Golf Club, a 150-acre spread in Amherst, Massachusetts that might be replaced by a solar farm. “It’s no secret that the golf industry has been contracting,” the course’s owner told the Springfield Republican.
– Stonehenge Golf Club, a 30-year-old venue outside Fort Wayne, Indiana that’s reportedly “no longer a viable business.” The club and its Ron Garl-designed course had been for sale for a year before its owner pulled the plug.
– Refuge Golf Club, an 18-hole, Earl Stone-designed track that’s located in a state park in Gulf Shores, Alabama. In a press statement, the state acknowledged that the course “has been losing money for several years.”
– Glen Lakes Municipal Golf Course, a nine-hole track in suburban Phoenix, Arizona that dates from the mid 1960s. The decision was supposedly “very, very painful” for the city of Glendale, but keeping the Milton Coggins-designed layout open would have required an expenditure of $3.9 million on long overdue repairs and upgrades.
– Willow Springs Golf Course, a “no longer profitable” 18-hole track that’s operated in Haslet, Texas since 1966. Willow Springs’ owner is said to be negotiating to sell his property to a residential developer.
Duly Noted, PGA of America Special Edition – By now, everyone knows that Gil Hanse and Beau Welling have been selected to create the new courses at the PGA of America’s forthcoming golf complex in Frisco, Texas. Less known are the identities of the other finalists for the commission: Tom Doak, D. A. Weibring, and Chet Williams. . . . Hanse and Welling will likely be doing some significant terrain re-imagining before they get to work on their courses at the PGA’s complex. Citing a conversation with Chet Williams, the Dallas Morning News reports that “the property does not have significant elevation change and is not dramatic.” Here’s Williams’ opinion: “It was not the kind of property that you go, ‘Wow!’ It doesn't just blow your socks off.” . . . Texans prize their Longhorns, so it’s no surprise that the people involved with the relocation are spreading the bull. To wit: The move will be “transcendent” for the PGA, and “the beginning of a bold, new journey” that will “transform the sport.” Really? If you believe such public-relations fluff, you’ll certainly agree that the development itself – a color-by-numbers master plan featuring a hotel, a conference center, office space, the golf courses, and the PGA’s headquarters – will be “unique.”
Duly Noted –A Vietnamese news service reports on an under-appreciated factor that’s slowing golf and resort development in the socialist republic: A lack of qualified labor. . . . For the third time in the past five years, the American Society of Golf Course Architects is giving its top award to a writer. The 2019 winner is Joe Passov, who’s being honored as one of “a small group of true golf writers” who are “producing thoughtful pieces that help the golfing public understand what golf course architects do.” The ASGCA presented its Donald Ross Award to Bradley S. Klein in 2015 and to Michael Bamberger in 2016. . . . Greg Norman and a partner have acquired a minority interest in Edison Interactive, a company that feeds advertising into taxis and other forms of transportation, including golf cars that are equipped with the Living Brand’s Shark Experience. The LB claims to be “encouraged by the growth and opportunity in the digital out-of-home space.”
In compliance with European laws regarding data collection, I’ve been asked to provide a statement about my use of the data that’s collected about those of you who read the World Golf Report. So here it is: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. All I do is write what’s on my mind and then post my thoughts. I don’t know your names or addresses or ages or the type of music you listen to, and I have no interest in learning any of that information. That being said, the World Golf Report occupies a slice of cyberspace owned by Google, one of the world’s foremost data collectors, and I’d bet dollars to donuts that Google collects information about you. For what it’s worth, I’ve downloaded an official-looking statement that’s supposed to appear at the bottom of the blog, but I can’t figure out how to load it. If any of you can tell me how, please do.
Surplus Transactions – It appears that HNA Group, one of the heavyweights in China’s golf industry, left something to be desired at the golf club it bought in Monterey, California in 2013. A group of local investors has purchased the club, changed its name from Nicklaus Club Monterey to the Club at Pasadera, and vowed to “restore and rejuvenate everything at the club to its former greatness.” . . . For $170 million, the Park Hyatt Aviara Resort has changed hands. Xenia Hotels & Resorts’ purchase, from a lender that’s controlled the 222-acre property for more than a year, includes a hotel, meeting space, a spa, and an 18-hole, Arnold Palmer-designed golf course that serves as the centerpiece of Aviara Golf Club. . . . Uniontown Country Club, a venue in Uniontown, Pennsylvania that dates back to the early 1920s, has been sold to the owners of a nearby golf venue. Phoenix LLC, the owner of Duck Hollow Golf Club, has set out to “carry on the tradition” at Uniontown and make it a place where members can “spend their personal and family time together.”
Surplus Surplus Transactions – Toll Golf, the operations arm of the giant homebuilding company, has accepted $18.5 million for Snowmass Club, a venue outside Aspen, Colorado that’s operated since the early 1980s. Originally a Chaffin/Light property, Snowmass features an 18-hole, Arnold Palmer-designed golf course that was redesigned by Jim Engh in 2004. . . . In press statement littered with corporate-speak (“strategic capital,” “demand generators,” “value-add opportunity”), a pair of investment firms announced their acquisition of Grande Lakes Orlando Resort. The 409-acre “institutional-quality asset” features two hotels, meeting space, places to eat and drink, and a variety of recreational amenities, including an 18-hole, Greg Norman-designed golf course. . . . The city of Sullivan has purchased Sullivan Country Club, a 68-year-old venue that calls itself “the hidden jewel” and “the premier golf bargain in all of south-central Missouri.” The city paid $790,000 for the 118-acre property and its 18-hole golf course.
Here’s this month’s accounting of recent course closings:
– Black Mountain Golf & Country Club, a property outside Las Vegas, Nevada that marketed itself as “a sure bet to make your day unforgettable.” The club had operated since the late 1950s, sometimes with as many as 27 holes.
– Oakhurst Country Club, a 59-year-old venue in Grove City, Ohio with an 18-hole, Jack Kidwell-designed course. In the 1960s, according to the listing agent who recently brokered a potential sale of the property, Oakhurst was “one of the nicest courses in the city and very exclusive.”
– Hickory Ridge Golf Club, a 150-acre spread in Amherst, Massachusetts that might be replaced by a solar farm. “It’s no secret that the golf industry has been contracting,” the course’s owner told the Springfield Republican.
– Stonehenge Golf Club, a 30-year-old venue outside Fort Wayne, Indiana that’s reportedly “no longer a viable business.” The club and its Ron Garl-designed course had been for sale for a year before its owner pulled the plug.
– Refuge Golf Club, an 18-hole, Earl Stone-designed track that’s located in a state park in Gulf Shores, Alabama. In a press statement, the state acknowledged that the course “has been losing money for several years.”
– Glen Lakes Municipal Golf Course, a nine-hole track in suburban Phoenix, Arizona that dates from the mid 1960s. The decision was supposedly “very, very painful” for the city of Glendale, but keeping the Milton Coggins-designed layout open would have required an expenditure of $3.9 million on long overdue repairs and upgrades.
– Willow Springs Golf Course, a “no longer profitable” 18-hole track that’s operated in Haslet, Texas since 1966. Willow Springs’ owner is said to be negotiating to sell his property to a residential developer.
Duly Noted, PGA of America Special Edition – By now, everyone knows that Gil Hanse and Beau Welling have been selected to create the new courses at the PGA of America’s forthcoming golf complex in Frisco, Texas. Less known are the identities of the other finalists for the commission: Tom Doak, D. A. Weibring, and Chet Williams. . . . Hanse and Welling will likely be doing some significant terrain re-imagining before they get to work on their courses at the PGA’s complex. Citing a conversation with Chet Williams, the Dallas Morning News reports that “the property does not have significant elevation change and is not dramatic.” Here’s Williams’ opinion: “It was not the kind of property that you go, ‘Wow!’ It doesn't just blow your socks off.” . . . Texans prize their Longhorns, so it’s no surprise that the people involved with the relocation are spreading the bull. To wit: The move will be “transcendent” for the PGA, and “the beginning of a bold, new journey” that will “transform the sport.” Really? If you believe such public-relations fluff, you’ll certainly agree that the development itself – a color-by-numbers master plan featuring a hotel, a conference center, office space, the golf courses, and the PGA’s headquarters – will be “unique.”
Duly Noted –A Vietnamese news service reports on an under-appreciated factor that’s slowing golf and resort development in the socialist republic: A lack of qualified labor. . . . For the third time in the past five years, the American Society of Golf Course Architects is giving its top award to a writer. The 2019 winner is Joe Passov, who’s being honored as one of “a small group of true golf writers” who are “producing thoughtful pieces that help the golfing public understand what golf course architects do.” The ASGCA presented its Donald Ross Award to Bradley S. Klein in 2015 and to Michael Bamberger in 2016. . . . Greg Norman and a partner have acquired a minority interest in Edison Interactive, a company that feeds advertising into taxis and other forms of transportation, including golf cars that are equipped with the Living Brand’s Shark Experience. The LB claims to be “encouraged by the growth and opportunity in the digital out-of-home space.”
In compliance with European laws regarding data collection, I’ve been asked to provide a statement about my use of the data that’s collected about those of you who read the World Golf Report. So here it is: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. All I do is write what’s on my mind and then post my thoughts. I don’t know your names or addresses or ages or the type of music you listen to, and I have no interest in learning any of that information. That being said, the World Golf Report occupies a slice of cyberspace owned by Google, one of the world’s foremost data collectors, and I’d bet dollars to donuts that Google collects information about you. For what it’s worth, I’ve downloaded an official-looking statement that’s supposed to appear at the bottom of the blog, but I can’t figure out how to load it. If any of you can tell me how, please do.
Sunday, December 2, 2018
The Week That Was, december 2, 2018
In a bid to host the Houston Open, perhaps as soon as the 2020 golf season, the city of Houston has hired Tom Doak to overhaul Memorial Park Golf Course. The commission will enable Doak, who’s working with professional golfer Brooks Koepka and a prominent local design team, to produce what Golf News Net calls “his first PGA Tour-hosting course.” Memorial Park is a 7,300-yard track that was created by John Bredemus in 1935, and it was once considered to be a tournament-worthy track, as it hosted the Houston Open for 13 consecutive years beginning in 1951. It’s said to host 60,000 rounds a year, but it reportedly needs a thorough overhaul.
Pipeline Overflow – Come the spring of 2020, a community in suburban Madison, Wisconsin that hopes to become “a fun, family neighborhood” is expected to feature a 13-hole, par-3 golf course. Co-designing the course are Jerry Kelly, a player on the Champions Tour, and Lohmann Quitno Golf Course Architects, who’ve set out to create a track that’s “challenging but still cool for everybody to play.” . . . The first “signature” layout in Pakistan, an 18-hole track designed by Sir Nick Faldo, is under construction and scheduled to open in 2020. Faldo says that Rumanza Golf Course, the centerpiece of a community in Multan, will be “a memorable test of golf” and “serve as a source of inspiration for a new generation of golfers in Pakistan.” . . . Elsewhere in Pakistan – in Islamabad, specifically – Peter Harradine expects to soon break ground on a “unique” 18-hole golf course. The track will be among the attractions at Islamabad Capital Smart City, and a press release says it’ll take shape on “one of the most beautiful and challenging sites” that Harradine, a third-generation architect, “has ever worked on.”
ClubCorp has become the latest in a series of owners of Ridge Club, a 30-year-old “lifestyle” property in Sandwich, Massachusetts that’s been called “one of the finest clubs in the Cape Cod region.” The Ridge, part of a gated community, features an 18-hole, Robert von Hagge-designed golf course. Despite its reputation – ClubCorp thinks it’s purchased “a truly unique club located in one of the most beautiful and historical parts of the country” – the Ridge has burned through owners in recent years. In 2003, it was sold to an individual for $2.5 million. In 2007, it was sold to an entity linked to Carlyle Group for $5.9 million. In 2011, it was sold for $3 million at a foreclosure auction, to the bank that held the mortgage on the property. It was sold again in 2012, this this time to a group of members (including Bobby Orr, the hockey legend) for $3 million. And now comes ClubCorp, which didn’t mention any of the previous sales in a press release. Nonetheless, the self-described “world leader in private clubs” claims to be “very excited” about the acquisition.
Surplus Transactions – Mark Moore didn’t hang on to Sapona Ridge Country Club for very long. Moore, who bought the 50-year-old facility in Lexington, North Carolina just weeks ago, has sold it to a homeowners’ group, reportedly for $1.6 million. He turned a profit of roughly $400,000 on the deal, and he including a right of first refusal on a future sale, because he believes that “it’s going to fail again.” . . . An investment group led by Dan Coleman has paid an undisclosed price for River Valley Ranch Golf Course, a 20-year-old venue in Carbondale, Colorado. The club features an 18-hole, Jay Morrish-designed course that’s been called “the jewel of the Rockies,” and a lawyer involved in the sale told the Aspen Times that the top item on the new owners’ agenda is “to figure out if we can get the golf course open for next season.” . . . Crossings at Montevideo, a 95-year-old venue in Montevideo, Minnesota that’s reportedly been “struggling with money,” may soon have a new owner. Jim Hagen has made an acceptable offer for the former Montevideo Country Club, and the transaction could close by the end of the year.
Duly Noted – Topgolf has entered into exclusive negotiations to build one of its golf-inspired entertainment centers alongside a nine-hole municipal golf course in El Segundo, California. If all goes as planned, the existing track will be renovated and outfitted with lights for nighttime play. . . . Pending an all-but-certain approval by city officials, WFAA-TV reports that the PGA of America will indeed be relocating its headquarters to Frisco, Texas. The group’s new digs will be part of a master-planned community that includes an 18-hole, Gil Hanse-designed golf course (one capable of hosting the PGA Championship), a less-challenging, Beau Welling-designed course, a nine-hole “short” course, a resort-style hotel with meeting space, and a PGA-branded golf academy. . . . Golf Digest’s best new courses for 2018: The Black Course at Streamsong, in Florida, on the public side, and Congaree, in South Carolina, on the private side. The runners-up are the Mammoth Dunes track at Sand Valley, in Wisconsin, and Trinity Forest Golf Club in Texas.
Pipeline Overflow – Come the spring of 2020, a community in suburban Madison, Wisconsin that hopes to become “a fun, family neighborhood” is expected to feature a 13-hole, par-3 golf course. Co-designing the course are Jerry Kelly, a player on the Champions Tour, and Lohmann Quitno Golf Course Architects, who’ve set out to create a track that’s “challenging but still cool for everybody to play.” . . . The first “signature” layout in Pakistan, an 18-hole track designed by Sir Nick Faldo, is under construction and scheduled to open in 2020. Faldo says that Rumanza Golf Course, the centerpiece of a community in Multan, will be “a memorable test of golf” and “serve as a source of inspiration for a new generation of golfers in Pakistan.” . . . Elsewhere in Pakistan – in Islamabad, specifically – Peter Harradine expects to soon break ground on a “unique” 18-hole golf course. The track will be among the attractions at Islamabad Capital Smart City, and a press release says it’ll take shape on “one of the most beautiful and challenging sites” that Harradine, a third-generation architect, “has ever worked on.”
ClubCorp has become the latest in a series of owners of Ridge Club, a 30-year-old “lifestyle” property in Sandwich, Massachusetts that’s been called “one of the finest clubs in the Cape Cod region.” The Ridge, part of a gated community, features an 18-hole, Robert von Hagge-designed golf course. Despite its reputation – ClubCorp thinks it’s purchased “a truly unique club located in one of the most beautiful and historical parts of the country” – the Ridge has burned through owners in recent years. In 2003, it was sold to an individual for $2.5 million. In 2007, it was sold to an entity linked to Carlyle Group for $5.9 million. In 2011, it was sold for $3 million at a foreclosure auction, to the bank that held the mortgage on the property. It was sold again in 2012, this this time to a group of members (including Bobby Orr, the hockey legend) for $3 million. And now comes ClubCorp, which didn’t mention any of the previous sales in a press release. Nonetheless, the self-described “world leader in private clubs” claims to be “very excited” about the acquisition.
Surplus Transactions – Mark Moore didn’t hang on to Sapona Ridge Country Club for very long. Moore, who bought the 50-year-old facility in Lexington, North Carolina just weeks ago, has sold it to a homeowners’ group, reportedly for $1.6 million. He turned a profit of roughly $400,000 on the deal, and he including a right of first refusal on a future sale, because he believes that “it’s going to fail again.” . . . An investment group led by Dan Coleman has paid an undisclosed price for River Valley Ranch Golf Course, a 20-year-old venue in Carbondale, Colorado. The club features an 18-hole, Jay Morrish-designed course that’s been called “the jewel of the Rockies,” and a lawyer involved in the sale told the Aspen Times that the top item on the new owners’ agenda is “to figure out if we can get the golf course open for next season.” . . . Crossings at Montevideo, a 95-year-old venue in Montevideo, Minnesota that’s reportedly been “struggling with money,” may soon have a new owner. Jim Hagen has made an acceptable offer for the former Montevideo Country Club, and the transaction could close by the end of the year.
Duly Noted – Topgolf has entered into exclusive negotiations to build one of its golf-inspired entertainment centers alongside a nine-hole municipal golf course in El Segundo, California. If all goes as planned, the existing track will be renovated and outfitted with lights for nighttime play. . . . Pending an all-but-certain approval by city officials, WFAA-TV reports that the PGA of America will indeed be relocating its headquarters to Frisco, Texas. The group’s new digs will be part of a master-planned community that includes an 18-hole, Gil Hanse-designed golf course (one capable of hosting the PGA Championship), a less-challenging, Beau Welling-designed course, a nine-hole “short” course, a resort-style hotel with meeting space, and a PGA-branded golf academy. . . . Golf Digest’s best new courses for 2018: The Black Course at Streamsong, in Florida, on the public side, and Congaree, in South Carolina, on the private side. The runners-up are the Mammoth Dunes track at Sand Valley, in Wisconsin, and Trinity Forest Golf Club in Texas.
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