For the second time in a year, Blackstone Group has lightened its golf portfolio. For a price reported to be $602 million, the giant New York City-based investment company has sold the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa, a 396-acre property in Phoenix, Arizona. The resort features, among other things, a 950-room hotel, meeting space, what’s been described as “the largest ballroom in the state,” and a pair of 18-hole golf courses, one designed by Arnold Palmer (with assistance from Ed Seay) and the other by Nick Faldo (with assistance from Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley). The new owner of Desert Ridge is a collection of investment funds managed by two familiar groups, Trinity Real Estate Investments and Elliott Management Corporation. The parties are well-known to each other, as late last year Blackstone sold Grande Lakes Orlando Resort, a 409-acre spread in Florida, to Trinity and Elliott. Blackstone has been selling golf properties in recent years, but as best I can determine it still owns Turtle Bay Resort, a 1,300-acre vacation spot on O’ahu that features two 18-hole courses. In addition, just last month one of the company’s investment vehicles agreed to make an investment in Concert Golf Properties.
Surplus Transactions – Promising to be “passive investors,” a group led by Ken Jamison has purchased Crow Creek Golf Club, a 19-year-old venue in Calabash, North Carolina. The club, which features a Rick Robbins-designed golf course, was sold by the family of Jimmy McLamb, a well-known figure in the area’s golf business. Last year, Jamison sold Larkhaven Golf Club, a late-1950s venue in Charlotte, North Carolina, to a home builder. . . . Hickory Ridge Golf Club and its 18-hole course, Geoffrey Cornish/Bill Robinson-designed golf course, may not be turned into a solar farm after all. The town manager in Amherst, Massachusetts has reportedly offered $520,000 for 50-year-old club, a price that a city official believes makes the purchase a “a once in a lifetime opportunity.” . . . John Date has accepted $3.12 million for Newaukum Valley Golf Course, an 18-hole track in greater Olympia, Washington that he co-designed in the late 1970s. The new owners, Joseph Enbody and Trevor Westlund, are likely to sell nine of Date’s holes to a home builder.
Duly Noted – Vietnam has added to its golf population. The socialist republic counted 70,000 golfers in 2018, up from 10,000 in 2009, and the Vietnam Professional Golf Association estimates that the number will increase to 100,000 next year. . . While acknowledging that demand for houses in golf communities has weakened, the president of Sotheby’s International Realty told the New York Times that the business is bouncing back. His hot markets include Miami, Palm Beach, Spain, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Greece, South Africa, and Mallorca. . . . Regatta Bay Golf & Yacht Club, the centerpiece of a gated community in Destin, Florida, may soon resume operating as a private club. The club, which has been a semiprivate facility in recent years, believes the market for private clubs is improving. “We’ve seen the market change again, to where most clubs are going back to taking initiation fees,” a club official told the Destin Log. It’s way too early to call this a trend, but some private clubs are evidently seeing the light at the end of a long, dark economic tunnel.
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 – a weekly compendium of stories collected from newspapers, magazines, and other sources – 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, September 22, 2019
Sunday, September 15, 2019
The Week That Was, september 15, 2019
Last week, in connection with a story that I’m writing for Golf, Inc., I had the pleasure of talking with Robert Trent Jones, Jr. He’s a terrific and fun interview, but not an easy one. Because he’s well-educated, well-read, well-traveled, and well-connected, he often takes a philosophical or historical detour before and after he answers questions.
I’m not going to tell you what my forthcoming story is about. What I’m going to do is list some of the subjects that came up during our 70-minute conversation. Here goes:
Monet’s garden. The blues. The assassination of South Korea’s president in 1979. Disorder and chaos. Simplicity versus complexity in golf design. Friedrich Nietsche. Best-of lists. CEOs who are passionate golfers. Snow angels. Why it’s difficult to create “interesting” golf courses. Golf-related clickbait. Greg Norman. The future of Donald Trump’s golf properties. Flatland architecture versus three-dimensional architecture. The way Bryson DeChambeau resembles Richard Wagner. What it means to be a pioneer. Oral histories. The Asian golf mentality. The beginning of the naturalist school of golf architecture. Golf magazines that are perceived as being controlled by advertisers. The California Coastal Commission. What it’s like to work in countries where people don’t know anything about golf. George Walker Bush. Rock music. Harmony in golf architecture. Things that make a golf course seem beautiful.
I’m already looking for an excuse to call him again.
Some of the most powerful people in golf want you to believe that reports of erosion in play and participation are largely a media fabrication. So let’s hear what the president of Sierra Golf Management has to say on the subject. “Golf is a declining sport,” Jeff Christensen recently told the Sonora Union Democrat, “and we’re seeing the mortality of a lot of golf courses that might not weather the change in golf. That person who was 45 and playing golf is 70-plus now, and the game’s gotten too time-consuming.”
With those words ringing in our ears, let’s document some recent closings.
– Phoenix Lake Golf Course, a nine-hole, Bert Stamp-designed layout in Sonora, California, will shut its doors next month. “I’m getting older, and it’s time to move on,” one of the owners told the Sonora Union Democrat. The 50-year-old venue, which is said to be debt free, is for sale.
– Royce Brook Golf Course, a 36-hole facility outside New Brunswick, New Jersey, needs a financial jolt, and it aims to get one by selling one of its Steve Smyers-designed 18s to a home builder. Billy Casper Golf, which bought Royce Brook in 2007, says the transaction, if completed, will “insure long-term operation.”
– Glenn Dale Golf Club and its 18-hole, George Cobb-designed golf course have gone dark, following what the Washington Post describes as “years of financial woes.” Glenn Dale opened in 1956, as Prospect Hill Country Club, and its 125 acres are now owed by a home builder.
– Swan Lakes Golf Course, a nine-hole, executive-length track in Layton, Utah, closed earlier this month, after being sold to a local development group. Swan Lakes’ owners say the course was designed by “the Arnold Palmer group,” but the group doesn’t list it on its website.
– High Lands Golf Club, a 62-year-old venue in the outer suburbs of Columbus, Ohio, turned out its lights last month. An entity tied to Kassel Property Management bought the former member-owned club and its 18-hole, “Scottish-style” course in 2014, promising to “preserve the atmosphere that attracted people to the club for decades.”
– The Ponds at Battle Creek, which is said to be one of the top nine-hole tracks in Minnesota, will be shuttered at the end of the 2020 golf season. The Garrett Gill-designed course in suburban St. Paul, reportedly the worst performer in Ramsey County’s golf portfolio, has lost money in eight of the past 10 years.
– Cypress Creek Golf Course may not officially be among the dearly departed, but the 18-hole track in Laurinburg, North Carolina hasn’t operated since this time last year, when Hurricane Florence blew through the area. The Laurinburg Exchange reports that the venue “remains padlocked and visibly neglected.”
– Old Orchard Golf Course, an 18-hole, executive-length layout in Elkhart, Indiana that’s filled “a niche for beginners and women players” since 1966, will close next month. WSBT-TV reports that Coleman Davis has sold his under-performing, 53-year-old property to a developer.
– Sedgewood Country Club, a 187-acre spread in suburban Columbia, South Carolina, has been sold to a pick-your-own farm operation. The club, which features an 18-hole, Russell Breeden-designed golf course, opened in 1965 and reportedly “fell on hard times” in recent decades.
Duly Noted – Earlier this year, FLC Group, one of Vietnam’s top golf developers, declared that it aims to develop “about 100 courses” across the nation. Seeing as how the socialist republic has a cap on development – it’s currently set at a total of 96 courses for all developers – FLC’s goal begs a question: Does it know something the rest of us don’t? . . . Through the first half of this year, according to the National Golf Foundation, the number of rounds played in the United States fell by 1 percent from the number posted in 2018. In typical fashion, the NGF blames the decline on “increased precipitation” in various regions of the country. . . . Marsh Benson, the inventor of the SubAir moisture-control system that’s widely used on high-end golf venues all over the world, has won the 2020 Don A. Rossi Award for his contributions to the golf industry. The Golf Course Builders Association of America will formally present the honor to Benson in January, at the Golf Industry Show.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
I’m not going to tell you what my forthcoming story is about. What I’m going to do is list some of the subjects that came up during our 70-minute conversation. Here goes:
Monet’s garden. The blues. The assassination of South Korea’s president in 1979. Disorder and chaos. Simplicity versus complexity in golf design. Friedrich Nietsche. Best-of lists. CEOs who are passionate golfers. Snow angels. Why it’s difficult to create “interesting” golf courses. Golf-related clickbait. Greg Norman. The future of Donald Trump’s golf properties. Flatland architecture versus three-dimensional architecture. The way Bryson DeChambeau resembles Richard Wagner. What it means to be a pioneer. Oral histories. The Asian golf mentality. The beginning of the naturalist school of golf architecture. Golf magazines that are perceived as being controlled by advertisers. The California Coastal Commission. What it’s like to work in countries where people don’t know anything about golf. George Walker Bush. Rock music. Harmony in golf architecture. Things that make a golf course seem beautiful.
I’m already looking for an excuse to call him again.
Some of the most powerful people in golf want you to believe that reports of erosion in play and participation are largely a media fabrication. So let’s hear what the president of Sierra Golf Management has to say on the subject. “Golf is a declining sport,” Jeff Christensen recently told the Sonora Union Democrat, “and we’re seeing the mortality of a lot of golf courses that might not weather the change in golf. That person who was 45 and playing golf is 70-plus now, and the game’s gotten too time-consuming.”
With those words ringing in our ears, let’s document some recent closings.
– Phoenix Lake Golf Course, a nine-hole, Bert Stamp-designed layout in Sonora, California, will shut its doors next month. “I’m getting older, and it’s time to move on,” one of the owners told the Sonora Union Democrat. The 50-year-old venue, which is said to be debt free, is for sale.
– Royce Brook Golf Course, a 36-hole facility outside New Brunswick, New Jersey, needs a financial jolt, and it aims to get one by selling one of its Steve Smyers-designed 18s to a home builder. Billy Casper Golf, which bought Royce Brook in 2007, says the transaction, if completed, will “insure long-term operation.”
– Glenn Dale Golf Club and its 18-hole, George Cobb-designed golf course have gone dark, following what the Washington Post describes as “years of financial woes.” Glenn Dale opened in 1956, as Prospect Hill Country Club, and its 125 acres are now owed by a home builder.
– Swan Lakes Golf Course, a nine-hole, executive-length track in Layton, Utah, closed earlier this month, after being sold to a local development group. Swan Lakes’ owners say the course was designed by “the Arnold Palmer group,” but the group doesn’t list it on its website.
– High Lands Golf Club, a 62-year-old venue in the outer suburbs of Columbus, Ohio, turned out its lights last month. An entity tied to Kassel Property Management bought the former member-owned club and its 18-hole, “Scottish-style” course in 2014, promising to “preserve the atmosphere that attracted people to the club for decades.”
– The Ponds at Battle Creek, which is said to be one of the top nine-hole tracks in Minnesota, will be shuttered at the end of the 2020 golf season. The Garrett Gill-designed course in suburban St. Paul, reportedly the worst performer in Ramsey County’s golf portfolio, has lost money in eight of the past 10 years.
– Cypress Creek Golf Course may not officially be among the dearly departed, but the 18-hole track in Laurinburg, North Carolina hasn’t operated since this time last year, when Hurricane Florence blew through the area. The Laurinburg Exchange reports that the venue “remains padlocked and visibly neglected.”
– Old Orchard Golf Course, an 18-hole, executive-length layout in Elkhart, Indiana that’s filled “a niche for beginners and women players” since 1966, will close next month. WSBT-TV reports that Coleman Davis has sold his under-performing, 53-year-old property to a developer.
– Sedgewood Country Club, a 187-acre spread in suburban Columbia, South Carolina, has been sold to a pick-your-own farm operation. The club, which features an 18-hole, Russell Breeden-designed golf course, opened in 1965 and reportedly “fell on hard times” in recent decades.
Duly Noted – Earlier this year, FLC Group, one of Vietnam’s top golf developers, declared that it aims to develop “about 100 courses” across the nation. Seeing as how the socialist republic has a cap on development – it’s currently set at a total of 96 courses for all developers – FLC’s goal begs a question: Does it know something the rest of us don’t? . . . Through the first half of this year, according to the National Golf Foundation, the number of rounds played in the United States fell by 1 percent from the number posted in 2018. In typical fashion, the NGF blames the decline on “increased precipitation” in various regions of the country. . . . Marsh Benson, the inventor of the SubAir moisture-control system that’s widely used on high-end golf venues all over the world, has won the 2020 Don A. Rossi Award for his contributions to the golf industry. The Golf Course Builders Association of America will formally present the honor to Benson in January, at the Golf Industry Show.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
Sunday, September 1, 2019
The Week That Was, september 1, 2019
Maybe it’s just me, but it seems that whenever a new course in Nebraska is announced, a golf writer’s immediate reaction is to start drawing comparisons to Sand Hills, Dismal River, and Prairie Club, the destination-worthy courses in the state’s Sand Hills. It happened again last week, when word came that Tad King and Rob Collins, the golf industry’s latest design darlings, have agreed to build their first original 18-hole course in Homer, a small town (estimated population: 528) located just south of Sioux City, Iowa. The course, dubbed Landmand Golf Club, is expected to open in 2021.
For the record, Homer isn’t part of the Sand Hills. According to Google, it’s 293 miles from Mullen and 236 from Valentine. While Collins has described Landmand’s setting as “absolutely amazing,” eastern Nebraska may not be as magical as the Sand Hills. Only those familiar with both can say.
King and Collins, for those who aren’t familiar, became a sensation in 2015, when they unveiled Sweetens Cove, a much-admired re-do of an unremarkable layout in metropolitan Chattanooga, Tennessee. (Despite having just nine holes, Sweetens Cove checks in at #50 on Golfweek’s ranking of America’s top modern courses.) Later this year, they expect to debut their second re-do, this one of the 18-hole, George Cobb-designed track at the Sea Palms resort in Georgia, and, if the stars and lenders someday align, they’ll create new courses in Utah and New York.
In Homer, King and Collins are working for Will Andersen, a member of a family of corn farmers who own a nine-hole course in nearly Dakota City, Nebraska. Collins recently told Tony Dear that the 580-acre site he and King have been given is “bold” and “wild at times,” with “100-foot dunes everywhere you look,” and that they’ve been directed to design “a great course that’s accessible to all.” What he didn’t say, notably, is that the finished product would rank with the state’s best courses.
The anticipation for Landmand is testimony to the promise that King and Collins have shown. But the weight of great expectations is a heavy burden for even the most experienced designers to carry.
Pipeline Overflow – Brian Curley has been hired to redesign and revitalize Plantation Country Club, a more than century-old venue in Boise, Idaho. The club’s course, originally a Chandler Egan creation, is being impacted by road construction and the desire of its new owner to build housing and some stores. . . . The developers behind the long-overdue Park Junction resort, a venue that’s been master-planned to include, among other things, condos and other housing, a hotel, and an 18-hole golf course, are reportedly “close to finally breaking ground on the project.” The resort, which will occupy 420 acres in Ashford, Washington, just outside Mount Rainier National Park, was first proposed in 1994 and secured a now-expired approval in 2001. . . . The fate of Pontoosuc Lake Country Club, a financially troubled, nearly century-old venue in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, has been decided. Jeff Moxon plans to reopen nine of the club’s 18 holes and operate as Black Rose Golf Club.
Pipeline Overflow Overflow – Just five years after it announced plans to relocate, Royal Norwich Golf Club is ready to move into its new digs in suburban Norwich, England. The new Royal Norwich, on property that was formerly the home of Weston Park Golf Club, aims to be “the region’s most prestigious and talked about golf facility.” It features a Ross McMurray-designed 18-hole layout as well as a now-obligatory “short” course. . . . Ron Garl’s second course in Nigeria, an 18-hole track at Castle Rock Golf Club in Yenagoa, is scheduled to debut next year. The 18-hole track, the centerpiece of what’s been called “an American-influenced golf residential community,” follows the Lakeland, Florida-based designer’s first course, at Elizade Smokin Hills Golf Resort in Ilara-Mokin. It opened in 2012. . . . It’s also the second time around for Rod Whitman, as his 10-hole “short” course at the Cabot resort in Nova Scotia is scheduled to be unveiled in the spring of 2020. The Cape Breton Post reports that the two existing 18-hole tracks at the Mike Keiser-owned property ring up about 40,000 rounds annually, which means that they’re playing to what’s said to be “near capacity.” No word yet on when Cabot’s next venue will take shape.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
For the record, Homer isn’t part of the Sand Hills. According to Google, it’s 293 miles from Mullen and 236 from Valentine. While Collins has described Landmand’s setting as “absolutely amazing,” eastern Nebraska may not be as magical as the Sand Hills. Only those familiar with both can say.
King and Collins, for those who aren’t familiar, became a sensation in 2015, when they unveiled Sweetens Cove, a much-admired re-do of an unremarkable layout in metropolitan Chattanooga, Tennessee. (Despite having just nine holes, Sweetens Cove checks in at #50 on Golfweek’s ranking of America’s top modern courses.) Later this year, they expect to debut their second re-do, this one of the 18-hole, George Cobb-designed track at the Sea Palms resort in Georgia, and, if the stars and lenders someday align, they’ll create new courses in Utah and New York.
In Homer, King and Collins are working for Will Andersen, a member of a family of corn farmers who own a nine-hole course in nearly Dakota City, Nebraska. Collins recently told Tony Dear that the 580-acre site he and King have been given is “bold” and “wild at times,” with “100-foot dunes everywhere you look,” and that they’ve been directed to design “a great course that’s accessible to all.” What he didn’t say, notably, is that the finished product would rank with the state’s best courses.
The anticipation for Landmand is testimony to the promise that King and Collins have shown. But the weight of great expectations is a heavy burden for even the most experienced designers to carry.
Pipeline Overflow – Brian Curley has been hired to redesign and revitalize Plantation Country Club, a more than century-old venue in Boise, Idaho. The club’s course, originally a Chandler Egan creation, is being impacted by road construction and the desire of its new owner to build housing and some stores. . . . The developers behind the long-overdue Park Junction resort, a venue that’s been master-planned to include, among other things, condos and other housing, a hotel, and an 18-hole golf course, are reportedly “close to finally breaking ground on the project.” The resort, which will occupy 420 acres in Ashford, Washington, just outside Mount Rainier National Park, was first proposed in 1994 and secured a now-expired approval in 2001. . . . The fate of Pontoosuc Lake Country Club, a financially troubled, nearly century-old venue in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, has been decided. Jeff Moxon plans to reopen nine of the club’s 18 holes and operate as Black Rose Golf Club.
Pipeline Overflow Overflow – Just five years after it announced plans to relocate, Royal Norwich Golf Club is ready to move into its new digs in suburban Norwich, England. The new Royal Norwich, on property that was formerly the home of Weston Park Golf Club, aims to be “the region’s most prestigious and talked about golf facility.” It features a Ross McMurray-designed 18-hole layout as well as a now-obligatory “short” course. . . . Ron Garl’s second course in Nigeria, an 18-hole track at Castle Rock Golf Club in Yenagoa, is scheduled to debut next year. The 18-hole track, the centerpiece of what’s been called “an American-influenced golf residential community,” follows the Lakeland, Florida-based designer’s first course, at Elizade Smokin Hills Golf Resort in Ilara-Mokin. It opened in 2012. . . . It’s also the second time around for Rod Whitman, as his 10-hole “short” course at the Cabot resort in Nova Scotia is scheduled to be unveiled in the spring of 2020. The Cape Breton Post reports that the two existing 18-hole tracks at the Mike Keiser-owned property ring up about 40,000 rounds annually, which means that they’re playing to what’s said to be “near capacity.” No word yet on when Cabot’s next venue will take shape.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
Sunday, August 25, 2019
The Week That Was, august 25, 2019
Concert Golf Partners is once again flush with cash.
The Newport Beach, California-based owner/operator has secured a $100 million financial commitment that secures its place at the top of the club-acquisition food chain. Peter Nanula, Concert’s chairman, figures that the money will enable his firm to add eight to 10 private clubs to its portfolio and make capital improvements to both new and existing properties.
“For a lot of clubs, it all comes down to capital,” Nanula notes. “Because we have capital, we can solve problems and take on risks that clubs can’t.”
The new funding ensures that Concert, which owns 20 clubs, will be able to compete for properties with ClubCorp, its much larger and most significant rival. Both companies are among a very small group of owner/operators that have money for acquisitions, and both are on the prowl for the same type of property: Mid- to upper-tier “lifestyle” clubs in metropolitan areas that have lost members or become burdened with debt and now find themselves in need of money that will allow them to make the facility improvements they need to remain competitive in their markets. Generally speaking, Concert and ClubCorp target member-owned clubs that generate revenues of $5 million to $10 million annually.
Although the companies are always seeking to increase their holdings, 2019 has been a quiet year for them. Concert has acquired just one property, Plantation Golf & Country Club in Venice, Florida, while ClubCorp, as best I can determine, hasn’t made a purchase since late 2018, when it bought Ridge Club, a venue in Sandwich, Massachusetts that’s changed hands at least five times since 2003.
In fact, the companies’ portfolios are so similar that ClubCorp tried to buy 16 of Concert’s clubs in the spring of 2018. The prospective sale collapsed in the late stages of the negotiations, due to what Nanula described at the time as disagreements related to price, terms, and “softer issues” concerning “commitments we have made to our members.”
Concert has twice previously amassed investment funds that provided it with a total of $150 million, money that it used to acquire seven golf properties in Florida and 13 in Indiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and seven other states. The money in the first two funds came from 60 to 80 high-net-worth individuals and families. The third fund has commitments from some of those same individuals and families as well as from a pair of New York City-based entities, Fireside Investments and Blackstone Tactical Opportunities.
Nanula says that Fireside and Blackstone have expertise in hospitality, and he believes that their counsel will be valuable to Concert in the future. “As we grow,” he explains, “it’ll be useful to have professional investors with experience in hospitality.”
Concert’s next acquisitions aren’t right around the corner. Nanula reports that he has “a number of possibilities in the pipeline,” but no purchases are imminent. He hopes to acquire one or two clubs before the end of the year, but he acknowledges that it’ll take “a few years” to spend the $100 million he now has to spend.
“We’re going to keep doing what we’ve been doing,” he says. “All 20 of our clubs are successful and thriving, and each one has exceeded the business plan we set for them. We have a model that works.”
Concert was scheduled to finalize the transaction for the third fund last week.
Duly Noted – The owners of Congaree Golf Club, who’ve convinced the golf media that they “aren’t interested in attention,” are bidding to host the Presidents Cup competition in 2025. The event, one of the biggest and brightest in golf, features the world’s greatest golfers, gets international media coverage, and attracts thousands of fans from all over the planet. . . . While promoting his “re-imagining” of the defunct Desert Inn Golf Course in Las Vegas, Tom Fazio seized an opportunity to articulate a bit of his design philosophy. “There are no rules in course design, and there are endless possibilities,” he told the Las Vegas Review Journal. “That flexibility is what makes it fun.” . . . Thailand has downgraded its tourism expectations for 2019, and Golfasian reports that hotels in the nation’s top golf destinations – among them Pattaya and Hua Hin – are offering “great deals with price rollbacks to levels of what they were 3-4 years ago.” This news ought to serve as a warning to developers in Vietnam and other emerging golf nations: Just when you start thinking that the sky’s the limit, along comes an economic downturn.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
The Newport Beach, California-based owner/operator has secured a $100 million financial commitment that secures its place at the top of the club-acquisition food chain. Peter Nanula, Concert’s chairman, figures that the money will enable his firm to add eight to 10 private clubs to its portfolio and make capital improvements to both new and existing properties.
“For a lot of clubs, it all comes down to capital,” Nanula notes. “Because we have capital, we can solve problems and take on risks that clubs can’t.”
The new funding ensures that Concert, which owns 20 clubs, will be able to compete for properties with ClubCorp, its much larger and most significant rival. Both companies are among a very small group of owner/operators that have money for acquisitions, and both are on the prowl for the same type of property: Mid- to upper-tier “lifestyle” clubs in metropolitan areas that have lost members or become burdened with debt and now find themselves in need of money that will allow them to make the facility improvements they need to remain competitive in their markets. Generally speaking, Concert and ClubCorp target member-owned clubs that generate revenues of $5 million to $10 million annually.
Although the companies are always seeking to increase their holdings, 2019 has been a quiet year for them. Concert has acquired just one property, Plantation Golf & Country Club in Venice, Florida, while ClubCorp, as best I can determine, hasn’t made a purchase since late 2018, when it bought Ridge Club, a venue in Sandwich, Massachusetts that’s changed hands at least five times since 2003.
In fact, the companies’ portfolios are so similar that ClubCorp tried to buy 16 of Concert’s clubs in the spring of 2018. The prospective sale collapsed in the late stages of the negotiations, due to what Nanula described at the time as disagreements related to price, terms, and “softer issues” concerning “commitments we have made to our members.”
Concert has twice previously amassed investment funds that provided it with a total of $150 million, money that it used to acquire seven golf properties in Florida and 13 in Indiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and seven other states. The money in the first two funds came from 60 to 80 high-net-worth individuals and families. The third fund has commitments from some of those same individuals and families as well as from a pair of New York City-based entities, Fireside Investments and Blackstone Tactical Opportunities.
Nanula says that Fireside and Blackstone have expertise in hospitality, and he believes that their counsel will be valuable to Concert in the future. “As we grow,” he explains, “it’ll be useful to have professional investors with experience in hospitality.”
Concert’s next acquisitions aren’t right around the corner. Nanula reports that he has “a number of possibilities in the pipeline,” but no purchases are imminent. He hopes to acquire one or two clubs before the end of the year, but he acknowledges that it’ll take “a few years” to spend the $100 million he now has to spend.
“We’re going to keep doing what we’ve been doing,” he says. “All 20 of our clubs are successful and thriving, and each one has exceeded the business plan we set for them. We have a model that works.”
Concert was scheduled to finalize the transaction for the third fund last week.
Duly Noted – The owners of Congaree Golf Club, who’ve convinced the golf media that they “aren’t interested in attention,” are bidding to host the Presidents Cup competition in 2025. The event, one of the biggest and brightest in golf, features the world’s greatest golfers, gets international media coverage, and attracts thousands of fans from all over the planet. . . . While promoting his “re-imagining” of the defunct Desert Inn Golf Course in Las Vegas, Tom Fazio seized an opportunity to articulate a bit of his design philosophy. “There are no rules in course design, and there are endless possibilities,” he told the Las Vegas Review Journal. “That flexibility is what makes it fun.” . . . Thailand has downgraded its tourism expectations for 2019, and Golfasian reports that hotels in the nation’s top golf destinations – among them Pattaya and Hua Hin – are offering “great deals with price rollbacks to levels of what they were 3-4 years ago.” This news ought to serve as a warning to developers in Vietnam and other emerging golf nations: Just when you start thinking that the sky’s the limit, along comes an economic downturn.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
Sunday, August 18, 2019
The Week That Was, august 18, 2019
South Korea is to David Dale and Kevin Ramsey, the principals of Golfplan, what China once was to Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley. Golfplan, a Santa Rosa, California-based design firm originally founded by Ron Fream, says it’s responsible for more than two dozen golf venues in the Land of the Morning Calm, and today it has three others in the pipeline. Set to open this fall is the firm’s second 18-hole track at Keun Wi O’Phel Golf Club, outside Daegu, the nation’s fourth-largest city, while two other venues – Sehyeon Golf Club in suburban Seoul and Solseado Golf Club, near Haenam – are under construction. All of these courses will offer public play, and Dale, who’s responsible for both courses at Keun Wi O’Phel, says in a press release that his firm is producing “attractive, strategic designs” that “will be embraced by South Korea’s ever-more sophisticated public golfer.” Clearly, there’s a market for public golf in the nation, as Golfplan reports that the first course at Keun Wi O’Phel rang up 120,000 rounds last year.
Pipeline Overflow – Believe it or not, the development team behind the ridiculously overdue Arm End golf project in Tasmania is reportedly “confident” that “work will begin at the site within three months,” with a course debut expected in 2022. When we last heard from Greg Ramsay and his partners, in 2013, they were working with course designers from three continents: Mike Nuzzo from of Texas, Line Mortensen from Scotland, and the team of Neil Crafter and Paul Mogford from Australia. . . . Construction will soon begin on Rees Jones’s re-do of St. George’s Golf Course, a long-abandoned layout that his father designed on Bermuda. The forthcoming 18-hole course, an executive-length track, is expected to open in late 2020 and promises to be “environmentally friendly, socially responsible, and economically sustainable.” . . . This fall, Caspar Grauballe, a Danish designer who apprenticed with Martin Hawtree’s firm, expects to break ground on an 18-hole course in Poznan, Poland. Grauballe told Golf Course Architecture that the track, Black Water Links, “will take inspiration from classical links and heathland courses, but with a modern twist.”
Pipeline Overflow Overflow – Royal Creek Golf Club, the centerpiece of a resort in northeastern Thailand, will officially open in late 2019 or early 2020, according to Golfasian. The travel company says that the course is the first international-standard layout in Udon Thani Province and advises that “anyone living, visiting, or wanting to travel to Udon Thani must have Royal Creek on their playlist.” Caution: Golfasian notes that “extra balls are a must.” . . . Two down, eight to go: Brian Curley has unveiled his second 18-hole track, the Ocean Dunes layout, at FLC Đồng Hới Golf Links, a 7,500-acre resort community in Vietnam’s Quảng Bình Province. FLC Group, the property’s developer and one of Curley’s most precious clients, could build as many as 10 courses at Đồng Hới. . . . Nicklaus Design has wrapped up construction of the Gimme, a family-friendly short course for Concession Golf Club, a high-end venue in Bradenton, Florida. The nine-hole, par-3 layout, which will be accompanied by a putting course and numerous references to Jack Nicklaus’s famous “concession” in the 1969 Ryder Cup competition, is scheduled to open in November.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
Pipeline Overflow – Believe it or not, the development team behind the ridiculously overdue Arm End golf project in Tasmania is reportedly “confident” that “work will begin at the site within three months,” with a course debut expected in 2022. When we last heard from Greg Ramsay and his partners, in 2013, they were working with course designers from three continents: Mike Nuzzo from of Texas, Line Mortensen from Scotland, and the team of Neil Crafter and Paul Mogford from Australia. . . . Construction will soon begin on Rees Jones’s re-do of St. George’s Golf Course, a long-abandoned layout that his father designed on Bermuda. The forthcoming 18-hole course, an executive-length track, is expected to open in late 2020 and promises to be “environmentally friendly, socially responsible, and economically sustainable.” . . . This fall, Caspar Grauballe, a Danish designer who apprenticed with Martin Hawtree’s firm, expects to break ground on an 18-hole course in Poznan, Poland. Grauballe told Golf Course Architecture that the track, Black Water Links, “will take inspiration from classical links and heathland courses, but with a modern twist.”
Pipeline Overflow Overflow – Royal Creek Golf Club, the centerpiece of a resort in northeastern Thailand, will officially open in late 2019 or early 2020, according to Golfasian. The travel company says that the course is the first international-standard layout in Udon Thani Province and advises that “anyone living, visiting, or wanting to travel to Udon Thani must have Royal Creek on their playlist.” Caution: Golfasian notes that “extra balls are a must.” . . . Two down, eight to go: Brian Curley has unveiled his second 18-hole track, the Ocean Dunes layout, at FLC Đồng Hới Golf Links, a 7,500-acre resort community in Vietnam’s Quảng Bình Province. FLC Group, the property’s developer and one of Curley’s most precious clients, could build as many as 10 courses at Đồng Hới. . . . Nicklaus Design has wrapped up construction of the Gimme, a family-friendly short course for Concession Golf Club, a high-end venue in Bradenton, Florida. The nine-hole, par-3 layout, which will be accompanied by a putting course and numerous references to Jack Nicklaus’s famous “concession” in the 1969 Ryder Cup competition, is scheduled to open in November.
In compliance with recently issued 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’s what I have to say on the subject: I don’t collect any data, and I don’t put any cookies into your computer. That being said, here’s some language that Google, the company that maintains this slice of cyberspace, would probably approve of: “We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences. By using the site, you consent to these cookies.”
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