The golf season is under way in Fairfield and Westchester counties after a historic winter ”“ economically and meteorologically ”“ that solidly whacked the courses.
As always with the “fore” set, enthusiasm and confidence have returned with the crocuses.
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“I think based on the attendance at the golf show a couple weeks ago, people are getting really excited about being able to go out and play,” said John Zanzarella, manager Westchester County”™s annual golf show at the Westchester County Center in White Plains.
Zanzarella said that this year many people felt like their regular first game was thrown off by the damage caused by the weather and if anything it created a renewed appreciation for the links this year.
“It was the best attended golf show we”™ve ever had,” said Zanzarella. “Golfers will play golf; it”™s just a matter of where and how many times.” Zanzarella credited the uptick in attendance at the golf show to increased demographics of women and younger men.
According to the Metropolitan Golf Association, fewer than 16,000 rounds were played in 2009 in Fairfield and Westchester. Zanzarella said the decline from a high in 2001 of about 20,000 rounds will be turning around this year.
“Ages 18 to 35 were a bigger part of our crowd than we had ever had before,” said Zanzarella. “We”™ve also had a lot more women; that grows each year.”
“Last year was the year of the deal,” said Sherry Bruck, president of the Executive Women”™s Golf Association.
The Executive Women”™s Golf Association puts packages together for members at clubs throughout Westchester and Fairfield and deals with club package pricing constantly.
“Last year they were cutting prices to keep their revenues up, but these clubs are recovering and they”™re tired of cutting deals,” said Bruck.
Bruck said her business is doing well, breaking the 200-member mark, after having sat stagnant at 164 for two years. She attributes some of the influx to women who aren”™t at a club any longer but still want to play golf.
“We”™re having a lot more interest from the clubs in terms of partnership opportunities,” said Bruck. She said clubs seem to be exploring more ways of staying afloat now rather than simply waiting for membership applications to roll in.
Though Fairfield didn”™t lose any clubs, its clubs did have to take note of their financial states.
“Fairfield County is a different beast than the rest of the state,” said Joe Parrillo, director of membership services at the Connecticut State Golf Association. “The clubs in Fairfield are still relatively healthy.”
Parrillo said that in other parts of the state, membership loss is a major issue.
Hussien Ali, general manager of Mount Kisco Country Club in Mount Kisco, N.Y., for 22 years said having a rational and conservative business practice in place at a country club is essential.
“You don”™t spend money unless you need to,” said Ali.
Ali said overestimating the true worth of a club can be easy if a manager comes under the impression that the facility is an elite club and therefore cannot fail; a sentiment finding parallels in the country”™s recent banking collapse. Ali said Mount Kisco offers different categories of membership and that some of its members downgraded but not many left. He said the ability to retain members is often out of the hands of the club entirely, relying more upon the varied fates of the members”™ own industries.
“What we do have here is a varied membership considering fields of business,” said Ali. “You cannot put all your eggs in one basket because you never know.”
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Ali said by not being made up of individuals from one industry, like bankers, his club was able to avoid any major loss from a domino effect.
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Ali said there has also been a trend in increased membership interest from younger individuals and families. They often join as limited members, looking at the club as an investment for the future and planning to become full members later.
“You can”™t have control over everything,” said Ali. “What you must do is have a good staff, talk to them and share the problems with everyone. From busboy to the general manager, if your staff is on board and knows what”™s going on they will keep you going. Without the staff it would be a different story.”
Parrillo said one of the largest issues for clubs across the board is that very shift in priorities of members with families who are not relying on clubs for their social scene any longer.
“Rounds per year are up across the country; Connecticut is no exception,” said Parrillo. “But priorities are different. If you”™re not looking for the social aspect, you can pay $200 to play at any course and be way ahead of the game.”
Parrillo said that though some courses are struggling, the fact that banks are more strict with lending freezes prospects for clubs to be bought or redeveloped and is preserving the weaker clubs existence.
Parrillo said smart clubs will begin to offer more family services, try not to increase prices and increase the pace of play.
“It”™s time versus expenses,” said Parrillo. “It”™s a numbers game.”
On the New York side of the border the state of affairs is a bit different and a lot changed over the winter.
Hampshire Country Club in Mamaroneck closed its doors indefinitely in February.
The club”™s board of governors released a statement saying, “While this is a very difficult and unpleasant decision, the economic realities of the situation require this step.”
The town of Mamaroneck is currently considering buying the course, which would be added it to the list of six public courses already in the county.
Westchester offseason has also seen Ridgeway Country Club in White Plains put on the market. Also ownership has shifted at the Canyon Club in Armonk, renamed The Brynwood Golf & Country Club, and at Hollow Brook Golf Club in Cortlandt Manor.
Donald Trump also bought his second Hudson Valley country club: Branton Woods Golf Club in Hopewell Junction, which he renamed Trump National Golf Club, Hudson Valley. Trump who now owns 11 country clubs throughout the country also owns Trump National Golf Club, Westchester in Briarcliff.
“There were a lot of changes from the close of business last year to the opening this year,” said Zanzarella. “There are some people who are buying clubs because, No. 1, they”™re a good deal right now, and, No. 2, they”™re optimistic about the future. There are other clubs that are struggling to stay afloat and making adjustments to do that because they”™re losing members.”
Zanzarella and Parrillo both said providing a good golf course and a good experience are the keys to retaining and gaining members.
“That means that the daily-fee courses or the public courses will pick up rounds of golf through this year,” said Zanzarella. “If a guy was paying say $15,000 or $20,000 to be a member at a club, now he can go and pay 20 percent of that and play as many times as he wants at a public course. People who have dropped out of clubs are going to play somewhere.”
