Information on Traverse City, Michigan and the surrounding Northwest Michigan area

05/06/2007

Weathering the storm

How Michigan golf courses survive in a poor economy

By Al Parker
Special to the Record-Eagle

TRAVERSE CITY — When it comes to the economy, Michigan is on a major losing streak that has had a direct impact on the northern Michigan golf scene.

The state has endured six straight years of job losses and the next two years will see even more — the longest stretch of employment loss in the state since the Great Depression, according to University of Michigan economists. Since mid-2000 to the end of 2006, the state lost 336,000 jobs and it will lose another 33,000 jobs in the next two years, they say.

David Graham, executive director of the Golf Association of Michigan, admits the poor economy is a challenge to golf courses throughout the state.

Although Michigan's No. 1 in the nation in the number of public golf courses, Graham said, the golf industry needs to develop creative approaches to keep golfers on the links.

And golfers are likely to encounter some of those creative approaches when they venture out to their favorite area course. Value pricing, creative marketing and other innovations are being used by northern Michigan golf courses to keep their clubhouses humming.

For example, the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau has developed a "create your own golf package” plan. For 2007, the bureau has expanded the program — adding four new championship courses to its menu of choices — without increasing either its complexity or its cost.

Golfers will be able to choose among 19 different courses and accommodations at 20 different hotels, motels and resorts for as little as $52 per person. They can choose among such courses as The Legend, The Wolverine, King's Challenge, Hawk's Eye, High Pointe, Cedar River and Sundance Golf Club, as well as traditional favorites like Pinecroft, The Crown and Elmbrook. That's a substantial improvement over last year, when the bureau first introduced the system.

But according to Jack Schripsema, the bureau's vice president for sales, the biggest improvement should be the increased ease with which golfers can reserve tee times. By calling a toll-free number (1-888-499-4503) golfers can connect with one of the bureau's concierges, who'll help them create a package customized to their individual tastes, budget requirements and playing ability.

"Our goal this year was to simplify the process so it would be easier for golfers to understand and use, and that's what we've done,” he said. "All it takes is a single call, and we do all the rest. We've put together what is truly a full-service golf concierge service.”

Schripsema thinks the added golf and lodging components and the better pricing will increase Traverse City's popularity with the golfing public. Besides, he added, the area offers a wide range of other amenities that other golf destinations lack: excellent cuisine, scenic wineries, great shopping and nearby casino gaming.

At Elmbrook Golf Course, which opened its first nine holes in 1966 and went to 18 holes in 1969, clubhouse manager Roger Putman feels his user-friendly course is value oriented. Located south of Traverse City, just off Hammond Road, Elmbrook is easily accessible to golfers who want to play nine holes and not take half a day doing it.

"But the success of any golf course relies on the quality of its staff,” noted Putman. "And we've got a great staff here at Elmbrook.”

Bay Meadows is another user-friendly course. Owner Steve White believes his course has a lot to offer.

"The golf business has struggled,” White said. "But a place like (Bay Meadows) survives because we have a course that's a little easier for families, seniors and juniors to play. And families, given the economy, are sensitive to price. If you can make it affordable, they'll keep up with it.”

Chuck Olson, general manager and the PGA pro at King's Challenge Golf Club outside Cedar, believes that attracting repeat business is as important as bringing in first-time golfers.

"I read somewhere where it's seven times more expensive to get a new customer than to retain an old one,” he said.

Although the course has faced some problems, it will forge ahead in 2007 despite a foreclosure on the $4.4 million property and an impending change of ownership.

And it will continue to market its Steak and Play package — 18 holes of golf with a cart on its Arnold Palmer course, plus a steak dinner for $45 during weekdays.

Set between lakes and inlets of deep clear water, the glacier-carved landscape around Traverse City has long been appreciated for the quality of its golf courses. Since the 1985 opening of The Bear, the Jack Nicklaus signature course at the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa, the area has added more than 20 courses, including designs by Palmer, Gary Player, Jerry Matthews and two of the industry's leading young architects — Tom Doak and Mike DeVries — both of whom make their homes in Traverse City.

As recently as 2001, Golf Digest ranked Traverse City No. 12 on its list of the world's 50 greatest golf destinations, and GOLF Magazine placed it among the six top golf destinations in the U.S. Surprisingly, Traverse City didn't make a serious effort at packaging golf until 2006 — but the experiment was so successful that several new courses joined this year, giving the program added diversity in both price and location.

That makes golf in Traverse City and the surrounding areas some of the best in the country, according to Graham.

"Success in this market will require good value for the price and effective marketing campaigns to get the word out there to golfers around the state and beyond,” said Graham. "Chicago will become an increasingly important source for golfers in this market.”

Across the nation, rounds played decreased 21 percent in January 2007 vs. January 2006, according to the National Golf Foundation. The January 2006 numbers were up 30 percent over the same month of 2005. Large percentage changes are not uncommon in the winter because they are based on a small volume of rounds. The reporting is based on data from operators at more than 1,800 golf facilities.

In areas where a significant amount of golf is played in January, only the Central/South Florida region held its own, increasing 0.4 percent over last year. The Gulf Coast region was down 23 percent, the Southeast down 11 percent and the Southwest down 4 percent.

But for the full year 2006, rounds played were up 0.8 percent over 2005.

Graham admits that the state's golf market has been flat. But he said he's more optimistic this year than he was last year.

Putman acknowledges the state's dire economic situation, but like many in the golf industry he's optimistic.

"We're not putting up the flag of surrender,” he said. "We're in it for the long haul.”