The decline is a function of the high cost of playing, difficulty of courses, and the game’s incompatibility with contemporary lifestyles. Restore Property Values of Failed Golf Courses In a typical year, approximately 200 courses fail.
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The number of golfers and rounds played began to decline in the 2000s. And across the U.S., courses began to close - 10% of them since 2006. The National Golf Foundation says that reflects the market correcting itself.
Golfer numbers are down. Golf equipment sales have been tanking. The number of golf courses closing annually is supposed to dwarf the number of new courses opening for years to come.
WASHINGTON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Developers in cities across the U.S. are rushing to cash in on the closure of thousands of golf clubs amid heated public debates about what should be done with such large green spaces, analysts and local campaigners say.
Often situated on valuable urban land, the golf course owners see selling or redeveloping the land as an exit strategy for unprofitable businesses. “You could call it a golf course gold rush: as courses fail, it’s a big-money opportunity for developers,” said Steve Seroka, a member of the Las Vegas city council.
Golf courses, especially member-owned clubs often close simply because the membership or club leadership resist change . There are certain fundamentals few clubs can survive without. Formerly an afterthought, practice facilities are now considered essential by busy potential members with limited time and new golfers.
If the property can’t be developed or there is considerable time between closure and development, the property can become an eyesore. As shown in the picture above, even when the property is maintained (not for golf) it’s no longer pretty. The community that all golf courses and clubs become loses its focal point.
About 205 U.S. golf courses closed last year, reducing the total to about 14,800, according to the National Golf Foundation (NGF).
In Denver, the potential closure of the 155-acre Park Hill Golf Course prompted anger among some who supported the area as open space and did not want to see it developed.
Las Vegas has an “overabundance” of golf courses, Seroka said, several of which have either closed or are in financial troubles. The city is in a valley surrounded by mountains, and as development has spread out, “it’s getting hard to find large-acreage parcels,” Seroka said.