MISSING THE OBVIOUS

During the recent U.S. Open, intrigued by the fact that the host “club” was owned and run by New York State, I looked up Bethpage on the Web. As reported on this page, I discovered that the five Bethpage courses entertained 300,000 greenfee payers during 2008, at an average of about $60 per round. Converting (roughly) to euros, this equated to an income of approximately 15 million euros. Closer to home, last year Sta. Clara G.C. and Sta. Maria G.C. substantially reduced their high season green fees. Both experienced an immediate increase in both numbers and income, despite the effects of the dreaded recession.

Gone are the days when golf was an elitist sport, available only to the wealthy.  TV exposure and and a general improvement in the standard of living in many european countries led to a boom period for golf generally and for the Costa del Sol in particular. Even so, only the wealthy could entertain playing on the showpiece courses at more than 150 euros for a game. Golf tourism is now a numbers game, with 80% of golfers unable or unwilling to shell out 400 euros or more for a week’s golf during the winter.

Tags: Costa del Sol, Santa Clara Golf, Santa Maria Golf, US Open