Leveraging Muni Golf

Community Golf Fan,

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We have conversations about golf facilities with municipalities of all sizes throughout the United States. In our experience, the municipalities who remain even somewhat naive to the health of their golf facility situation, are the ones who find themselves in the deepest hole at some point in the future. Our advice to municipal stakeholders is to understand every single facility's “long-game” sooner than later, and get out in front of inevitable short-comings.

In an ideal scenario, municipalities are taking things a step further through actively positioning their course portfolio to one day be “leveraged.” This requires instilling pride in what they already have, and cultivating increased value through offering a multitude of distinct facility experiences unique to your community.

Imagine having your golf facility attracting opportunities from the private sector to invest serious dollars into significant renovation projects. Believe it or not, there are people out there, perhaps even in your community, who have both the necessary resources to help improve your course(s), and the willingness to make a local, philanthropic impact. We’re seeing this happen more and more, and we find that by asking for help, help tends to reveal itself in a variety of impactful ways.

Step one for municipalities looking to their future is to understand where things stand as soon as possible, and investigate “outside-the-box” opportunities. Get a third party in there, and begin to figure out how your course(s) could appeal to a broader portion of your residents, both golfers, and non-golfers alike.

You might not be able to afford a complete renovation or a new clubhouse at this stage of the game, but at least your facilities will be on the road to creating leverage, inspiring local support, and attracting beneficial scenarios.

Here's what you need to know:

• Determine realistically the long-term “health” of your course(s).
• Begin to (or continue to) inspire local pride in your golf facilities and…
• Don’t be afraid to ask for assistance in the form of time, money, energy for certain projects!
• Identify possible “leverage” opportunities, and begin to create win-win scenarios with your community.
• Remember; the successful muni facilities of tomorrow are creating grand visions for their golf today.  

Please remember, we’re around to answer any questions you might have on this topic, or anything else regarding your community golf course! You can send us an email by clicking here, or feel free to give us a ring at the number below.

Until next time,

Andy Staples, ASGCA