Clubhouse Notes

Plenty Of New Adventures On The Horizon In New Year

THE START OF A new year is a great ti me to refl ect on the accomplishments of the past and to look forward to the opportuniti es that the future off ers. 2022 was a year of change for me and there were plenty of enjoyable moments. Last spring, I joined the Club + Resort Business staff as an Associate Editor. I’ve enjoyed connecti ng with club leaders and learning about the challenges they face. Last fall, I took a trip to Omaha, Neb., where I met with offi cials at Champions Run and Field Club of Omaha, toured their faciliti es and learned about the programs they off ered. Last month, I found a great winter practi ce site when I visited BigShots Golf at Firestone, a new golf and entertainment venue in Akron, Ohio.

While the new job has been rewarding, it was not my favorite part of 2022. The highlight? My three sons (ages 22, 20 and 16) and I played more golf together this past year than in any previous year. When my children were younger, we played plenty of basketball, baseball and football together. As they grew older and started hanging out with their friends, those spirited games became less common and I missed that bonding ti me. None of my sons were parti cularly drawn to golf as they grew up and I’ve always let them pursue their own interests.

I suppose it’s possible my new job put golf on their radars because all three decided they wanted to tee it up more this past year. The reason for their change of heart is irrelevant. What matt ers is that I enjoyed spending ti me with them on the fairways and greens and watching them go through the same roller coaster of emoti ons I’ve experienced in almost four decades of playing. I off ered an occasional ti p, but mostly let them fi gure things out through trial and error. It was certainly easy to buy Christmas presents for them. They each received golf balls, tees and a clubface cleaner. Santa brought them a cornhole-style chipping game that can be played indoors and outdoors. My oldest son gave me a new chipping mat that we are using in conjuncti on with the chipping game, and my aunt also “chipped in” with a putti ng practi ce mat. All of these items are now set up in my basement. If we make good use of these products in the winter, our short games should be second-to-none come spring.

I think these rounds with my sons prompted me to focus on eff orts to draw young people and other newcomers to golf. Last year, as part of our Club + Resort Talks podcast, I interviewed Jarred Gomez from Kemper Sports about a program designed to att ract young people to golf. I also wrote about innovati ve short course designs off ered at Belmont Golf Course in Belmont, Va., and Mountain Top Golf Course in Hollister, Mo. An upcoming story will discuss Field Club of Omaha’s eff ort to boost membership by off ering complimentary golf lessons to golf members. The club also off ered the program in an eff ort to bring more women and youth to the game.

There is a wide range of golf trends that will be interesti ng to follow in 2023. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people either discovered golf or re-discovered the game. Can the heightened interest in golf that occurred during the pandemic conti nue in the ensuing years? Many clubs have a loyal group of people who have played and will conti nue playing golf on a regular basis. The trick is whether the interest levels of new and casual golfers can be sustained or enhanced during the next few years.

On the environmental front, eff orts to reduce the amount of water and ferti lizers used on golf courses are issues that many club leaders will conti nue to tackle. On the C+RB website, we highlighted stories on these topics and I anti cipate following these issues this year.

I expect 2023 to be fun and busy. I will att end three industry conferences, visit more clubs, interview club leaders, record more Club + Resort Talks podcasts with my colleague, Rob Thomas, write more stories about club industry issues, and showcase more products through unboxing videos. Of course, my sons and I will hit the links again and share some more bonding ti me.

I’m interested in hearing from club leaders. Do you have any new year’s resoluti ons that you’d like to share? What projects and goals are you hoping to accomplish in 2023? Drop me a line at pkeren@wtwhmedia.com. I look forward to hearing from you and wish you a happy, healthy and producti ve 2023.

Phil Keren • Associate Editor

pkeren@wtwhmedia.com