Mr. Kaufmann writes in the June 8, 2015 edition of Golfweek (click here),
“Municipal golf has become a huge problem for the U.S. golf industry, sucking business away from resorts and privately operated courses with cheap, subsidized green fees, all while too often draining public coffers with six- and seven-figure annual losses. In the case of Chambers Bay, the course embodies everything that is wrong with municipal golf, and it’s not even cheap.”
Mr. Kaufmann is an excellent and very accomplished writer whose travel pieces are always an enjoyable read. Mr. Kaufmann told our PR firm in 2010 when offered a complimentary copy of the “Business of Golf – What Are You Thinking?” that he had little interest in this aspect of the industry: the business of golf.
The flip side of the coin is presented by the very learned Mr. Brad Klein who states (click here),
“Warning: Doing a golf course right is more than most municipalities can handle – and most of them should not try. But when you have a site like this, the skill set of the design team (in a publicly bidded selection process), the willingness of the USGA to hold national championships, and the stunning waterside setting, go for it. Most municipalities shouldn’t dare to tackle such a project. Pierce County did, and it paid off.”
Who do you think is right? Comment below.
