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Opinion/Editorial
Golf Courses That Are Beating the Odds through Creativity and Innovation
By J. J. Keegan, Managing Principal and Author - Golf Convergence
The golf industry continues in an economic malaise, such a malaise that it seems many in the industry have adopted the attitude of Eeyore from Winnie-the-Pooh. Many cite uncontrollable factors—the economy, weather’s harsh 2011, and the fact that supply continues to exceed demand in many markets.Even the superficial observer can see that rounds havedecreased 3.8% in 2011, evidence that the woes of golf courses are beyond their influence.
With course closings a frequent headline and with the plethora of discounting that has failed to stimulate rounds, it would be easy to succumb to the industry’s negative “group mentality.” Following the herd, whether in stock market trends, fashions, or business practices,hasrarely proven to be the right strategy.
Fortunately, there are somededicated business professionals that achieved success in the golf industry during 2011withinnovative thinking.
As this new year begins, celebrating those facilities that increased revenue, increased operational efficiency, and enhanced customer service in 2011 canshine the light on the factthat profits are achievable with a focused vision, discipline, and consistency ofexecution.
Private Club - Revenue: 82 New Memberships, New Clubhouse Opened, Spectacular Course Enhanced. Course: Colorado Golf Club, Parker, CO – Home to the 2013 Solheim Cup, Coore/Crenshaw Architects
Membersof Colorado Golf Club acquired the club in the spring of 2011 through an innovative fund-raising program designed totransition the club from developer-owned to member-owned facility.
Thirty members participated in a $7.5 million loan program in return for modest club benefits. Additional members purchased second memberships for resale at the attractive rate of $50,000.
To stimulate greater member involvement, the club created a strategic plan that included conducting member surveys, creating new membership categories, and communicating frequently via member meetings, fireside chats, and written correspondence designed to encourage members to fully utilize the club.
The Club invitedBill Coore to visit the facility in September, 2011, to confirm his firm’s original vision for the course when it was built in 2006. His goal was to ensure that the course remain a challenge for the accomplished player and a fair test for the less skilled. Upon completing his review, Coore wrote, “Please express my appreciation to the members and staff for their support, patience, and persistence in getting CGC on sound footing and moving forward with what I believe willbe an extraordinary success story.”
All of these efforts resulted in revenues that increasedby 20% under the guidance of Marshal Brereton, General Manager.
Private Club Raises More Than $10,000 for First Tee – Oakland, CA Chapter (Youth Development Charity) by Opening Course to Public on Four Mondays. Course: Sequoyah Country Club, Oakland CA.
Founded in 1913, Sequoyah Country Club is located high in the Oakland hills and offers spectacular views of San Francisco Bay. It is one of the best golf and social clubs in the Bay Area. The course’s tree-lined fairways, picturesque views, and challenging greens made Sequoyah a PGA tour stop in the 1930s and 1940s, attracting legends such as Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and Jimmy Demaret. Sequoyah hosted the PGA Tour Oakland Open for many years.
For the first time in nearly a century, Oakland’s Sequoyah Country Club opened its historic course to the general golfing public on four Mondays to raise funds for a nationally known youth golf and life-skills development organization calledThe First Tee of Oakland. Over $13,000 was raised to fund the 2011after-school session of youth development programs for at-risk students in the Oakland metropolitan area.
Sequoyah Country Club General Manager, Tom Schunn, partnered with www.GolfNow.com to post available tee times and reservations in order to reach the most golfing donors. Golfers were charged for green fees and carts $75 per player, with an additional $20 requested for a donation to First Tee.
Daily Fee Golf Course– Revenue Up 10%due toIntroduction of Unique Programs and Activities. Course: 1757 Golf Club, Ashburn, VA, Managed by Billy Casper Golf Management
1757 Golf Club’s par-70, 6,600-yard layout is routed through gently rolling terrain that features dramatic views of Broad Run and the majestic Virginia landscape. One of the most unique features of the facility is the practice area, which includes 56 hitting stations on state-of-the-art SportTurf with 12 covered bays for all-season practice. The lighted range features premium Callaway balls, simulated fairways, and several target greens. An expansive short-game teaching area includes tees, mini-fairways, bunkers, and greens for short-game practice and instruction
To leverage thesefacilities, innovative programs were introduced: music on the range, range mat bar service, cigar and scotch tasting at the Golf Academy, high-end instruction clinics (featuring Carl Rabito and Gary Koch), Hawaiian Luau themes, Casino nights, and Kids Play Free.
Daily Fee Golf Course - Charity: $75,000 Raised for Local Charities through Six Theme Events. Course: Sand Creek Station, Newton, Kansas, Managed by Kemper Sports
Opened in 2006, Sand Creek Station is located on the South side of Newton, Kansas, population 19,000. This 7,400-yard Jeffrey Brauer Design provides a combination of Scottish Links Style and traditional layout. Some of itsfeatured holes replicate famous courses, including the National Golf Links, North Berwick, and the “Road Hole” at St. Andrews.
Sand Creek Station hosts six themed tournaments throughout the year. These tournaments provide a fun experience for all golfers, with decorations, after parties, great food, accompanying music, and various prizes. The main initiativefor these events was to raise money for local non-profit groups.According to Chris Tuohey, Regional Manager, Sand Creek raised more than $75,000 for local charities and alsodropped off 1,000 pounds of non-perishable food to three local charities: Harvey County Homeless Shelter, The Salvation Army, and Our Sister of Guadalupe Church, all accomplished with golfer donations.
Because if its contribution to the local community, Sand Creek Station was asked to facilitate several customer service training classes forCity of Newton employees and for several members from the Chamber of Commerce. More than 300 individuals attended four training classes including the Mayor of Newton, the City Manager and Officials, Presidents of local banks, and other community leaders.
Daily Fee Golf Course: Revenue – Single-DayRecord Revenue Led toProfits ”Sniffed”for the First Time in Course’s History. Course: Four Mile Ranch, Canon City, CO – named 2009 Golf Magazine Best New Course
The Canon City course, located in a town of 18,000, at the gateway to the Rocky Mountains, is 45 miles from Pueblo and Colorado Springs and 100 miles from Denver. With over $10 million invested and having opened in 2008, Four Mile Ranch went through receivership in 2009 and emerged in 2010 under the guidance of a local management company.The philosophy in 2010 was to discount,with the hope of attracting golfers from near and far. That philosophy of discounting resulted in a $200,000 loss in 2010.
The key to the course’s 2011 reversal was protecting the integrity of the rack rate. Additionally, Superintendent John Feeney launchednumerous email campaigns that emphasized the superlative experience of playingthe unique Jim Engh-designed course.
One of the marketing campaigns demonstrated how great creativity can boost revenue. On October 1, 2011, the coursesponsored an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for the most holes-in-one and the lowest “ringer” score on one day. The Par 72, 7,033 yard golf course was set up with pin positions set in the bowl of each green, making the course conducive to low scoring. The event was marketed via e-mail to 12,000 golfers along the Front Range in Colorado. The 144-player field filled quickly at full rack rate.
The reaction of the participants was uniformly, “I had so much fun.” Parenthetically, one hole-in-one was recorded andthe ringer score was 52. More importantly, it was one of the highest revenuedays for the golf course in itsfour-year history.This course, by maintaining itsrack rate and avoiding discounting, will turn a small profit in 2011.
A Daily Fee Golf Course: Created Significant Incremental Golf Revenue at Off-Season Course: Cog Hills Golf and Country Club, Lemont, IL
Chicago, November, and golf are three things that usuallydon’t combine to generate meaningful revenue at a golf course. Cog Hills sponsored three events that led to surprising incremental revenue: The Turkey Shoot on November 12 -13, the Cold Turkey Open on November 25, and the Frosty 3-Club Open on December 11.
For each event, the Club generated special interest through a novel approach to creating entertainment. For example, in the Cold Turkey Open, extra-large cups (6” diameter) were used in a two-person Shamble format.
According to General Manager Nick Mokelke, the feedback was positive as “team after team told us that the 6” cup was as easy as they expected but they found putts longer than five feet very ’missable.‘ There was a learning curve with pace and break to temper what became a more aggressive putting style.
International Daily Fee Course: Leveraging Technology to Increase Operational Efficiency and Enhance Customer Service; Carr Golf Services, Dublin, Ireland.
Carr Golf Services is a management company based in Dublin, Ireland, which manages a total of 7 golf facilities. Prior to 2011, online booking at these facilities was almost non-existent. In 2011, Carr Golf partnered with Golfnow.com to embrace online booking, resulting in 10% of all visitor roundsbeing booked online. This increased operational efficiency and enhanced customer service.
While introducingonline booking, Carr Golf Service concurrently implemented dynamic pricing across all his facilities on a single booking platform and created Websites for each course. In 2012, Carr Golf Service will add golf leagues, lessons, and membership sales to itsonline portfolio.
What Are The Lesson from Which You Can Benefit
Many in the golf industry look to others, such as trade associations, to provide the leadership and education needed to solve the challenges for each golf course. Such belief is falsely placed. Others in the golf industry focus on the uncontrollable factors as being the sole source of their woes.
The success stories evidenced in 2011 demonstrate golf course operators can thrive. The vision and creativity of successful golf courses have many common traits. They understand their local market and their customers, have integrated technology adeptly, and comprehend how their financial performance compares to industry benchmarks by participating in PGA PerformanceTrak.. In addition, they continue to invest in their facilities and are cognizant that a golf course represents an “assembly line” of key customer touch points. Most importantly, they appreciate that success in the business of golf is predicated on their dedicated and consistent effort and rarely anything else.
