The clubhouse renovation for the 300-member private club outside of Dayton, Ohio includes an addition to provide space for another 130 people for special events, for total capacity of between 250 and 350. Reopening is scheduled for April 10, the new banquet area is set to open at the beginning of May, and a grand opening to celebrate the renovation and the club’s 20th anniversary is planned for June.
In the absence of any evidence showing that long putters create a competitive advantage, there is “no overriding reason to go down the road [to prohibiting the equipment],” said Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem. The United States Golf Association says it plans to take action on the proposed ban this spring.
King County transferred ownership of Enumclaw Golf Course to the Seattle-area town in 2004. After the course lost $40,000 in each of the past two years, the Enumclaw City Council sought new outside management and is now reviewing proposals, including one from a physical therapist who suggests a non-profit setup.
The city-owned course east of Dallas, which has not had a major renovation since it opened in 1964, will close March 4 for improvements that will replace all turf on greens and tee boxes. Improvements to the pro shop and snack bar are also planned. The course is scheduled to reopen in mid-September.
Several courses on the Hawaiian island have opened their clubhouses to operators of popular local restaurants. With success at one location, the owner of Fatboy’s, a popular local eatery, is eyeing the busy Ted Makalena Golf Course for another possible restaurant.
Forty-two new members joined the Venice, Fla. club, a WCI Communities property, in 2012. The club, which offers reciprocal golf and dining privileges at several area clubs as well as through WCI’s strategic partnership with ClubCorp properties throughout the U.S., now has 315 golf members, edging closer to its cap of 400.
The company that also owns Cog Hill G&CC in the Chicago area has formed a joint venture with Affiniti Golf to operate the Newnan, Ga. club and open its course to public play for the first time since 2006. In other management-company news, KemperSports has been selected to manage Rockford (Ill.) CC, and Troon will manage Blue Hill CC in Canton, Mass.
The White House tried to keep the outing private, but a tweet from a golf journalist who belongs to the club triggered media complaints over having no access to the President through the weekend. Woods’ former coach, Butch Harmon, rode along and gave Obama tips during his round.
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