Hollister
– A dramatic rise in the number of golf courses throughout the
region is hurting local clubs, but plans are in the works to turn
things around.
Hollister – A dramatic rise in the number of golf courses throughout the region is hurting local clubs, but plans are in the works to turn things around.
Scott Fuller, general manager at the San Juan Oaks Golf Club, said the number of courses throughout the United States has spiked in the past 15 years, while participation in the sport has not followed suit.
Santa Clara County is in many ways the “primary market” for local clubs, Fuller said, and he was able to name six Santa Clara clubs that either opened or expanded in the past few years.
“That’s a lot of golf holes,” he said.
The national golf industry has also been hit by a relative dearth of new players, particularly players who stick with the game.
“It’s a sport with barriers to participation, barriers that the golf industry is trying to address,” Fuller said.
County resident Mike Graves agreed golfers have many more options nowadays. Graves said golf courses in Sacramento, where he works, are in the same boat. Those clubs, he said, are being forced to offer incentives like free food and deeply discounted membership rates in order to stay competitive.
“It’s become a golfer’s market,” Graves said.
San Juan Oaks opened its doors 11 years ago, and Fuller said there was a national need for more clubs at the time.
“Fifteen years ago, if you wanted a tee-time, you had to get up at 6am and start calling the clubs,” Fuller said. “However, I think the pendulum has now swung way too far in the other direction.”
Fuller said that phenomenon has been evident at San Juan Oaks, which he said has seen a substantial decrease in the number of holes played during the past five years.
Ridgemark general manager Eric Dietz said his club is facing a similar problems. Membership is falling, and the club has never made a single dollar of net profit. As a result of its financial problems, Ridgemark closed its dining room earlier this year, a move that drew criticism from some members.
“This allows us to build the business in a direction we feel will be profitable for the golf and country club, as well as best serving our members,” Dietz said. He emphasized that the club still offers food through its snack bar and banquet service.
One of Ridgemark’s main purposes when it opened in the 1970s was to make homes in Ridgemark Estates more enticing and valuable, Dietz said. Other clubs that opened for the same reason are now being closed, Dietz said, because their owners are realizing that the costs are too high and the land is too valuable.
“We want to avoid that at all costs,” Dietz said.
Graves, who is a former county supervisor, said the loss of Ridgemark would be a major blow to San Benito, because of the tourist dollars and taxes that it brings in.
“It’s a major, major economic engine for the county,” he said.
All three of the county’s golf courses have major construction projects on the horizon. The plans for a new Bolado Park clubhouse – the old one burned down in January 2006 – are currently going through the county and state approval process. Fuller said San Juan plans to open a hotel and resort in the next few years. And Ridgemark, Dietz said, is preparing a master plan for improvements that will include 80 new lodging units.
Dietz said one thing that scares potential golf players off is the time commitment. He said Ridgemark hopes to eventually offer practice facilities and shorter courses. The new Ridgemark facility should also be more family-friendly, Dietz said. For one thing, it will offer more recreational opportunities for spouses or children who don’t want to play golf. But Dietz also hopes to see entire families on the course.
Graves said his out-of-county friends are always impressed by the county’s courses, which he believes should be attracting more players tourists than they do. And that’s exactly what Fuller and Dietz hope to achieve.
“There’s so much opportunity here it’s scary,” Dietz said.
Anthony Ha covers local government for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or [email protected].
