How Private Capital Is Dynamizing Golf in the City

Shortly after 1 p.m. Thursday, at about the same time that Tiger Woods teed off in the U.S. Open just 33 miles away at the ultra-exclusive Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, 148 middle-aged men at a private function took refuge in a different sort of course. Gathering for a pre-round meal of burgers and beer as groundskeepers in tractors touched up a ninth hole sand trap, the men readied themselves for golf as game, not work, at Bay Ridge, Brooklyn’s municipal Dyker Beach Golf Course.Sequestered from the city’s traffic and noise, the newly renovated course seems somewhat an anomaly. But 10 of New York City’s 13 public courses are undergoing renovations costing $50 million – and all the funds are coming from private companies that have contracts with the Parks Department to operate the courses.The biggest player is the privately owned American Golf Corporation, which is putting $26 million in capital investment into six courses that it operates for the city. With the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, and by extension taxpayers, chipping in no money at all, the much-improved state of the municipal golf courses appears to be a successful example of public-private partnership.In 1983, when the city’s courses had both fallen into disrepair and were losing money, the Parks Department decided to contract out control of its courses to private companies. The city filed requests for proposals for all its courses and, after laying down millions of dollars, American Golf took almost complete control over six courses spread throughout all the boroughs except Manhattan.American Golf signed 20-year contracts for the courses, and in 2003, bolstered by good history, won the contracts again and immediately undertook the multimillion-dollar project to improve the course play and upgrade the clubhouses. The course renovations, which in most of the courses are almost fully completed, and the clubhouse upgrades, which are set for completion in 2007, will not only economically benefit American Golf, but also greatly enhance the overall experience for city golfers, city officials and players say.“When City Parks was running the courses in 1982, things were not so great for New York City golf. The courses were not being used, quality was suffering, they were losing money, and it was basically not something that we viewed favorably,” the director of concessions and revenues at the Parks Department, Ronald Lieberman, said.However, since American Golf took over, the state of municipal golf in New York City has changed drastically, he said. Course conditions are better with no taxpayer contribution, the number of players is up, and the city is generating revenue. In 2005 alone, the city garnered $6.2 million in rent from the 13 courses.For American Golf, the venture has been the same as any other business enterprise. Banking on the hope that millions in renovations would pay for themselves and yield some profits, the company hasn’t been disappointed. Though the company’s senior vice president and general counsel, Mark Friedman, declined to offer exact figures, he said, “We’re very happy to be in New York. It’s profitable for us and beneficial for the city.”The city hopes the renovations will help golfers as well as the city’s bottom line. One golfer who has been playing at Dyker Beach for almost 40 years, Joe DeNapoli of Bay Ridge, said he hopes that nicer courses will have a chain effect on players’ behavior. “There’s a lot the golfer could do in maintaining a course,” Mr. DeNapoli said. “When you make a divot, you should put the grass back, when you make a ball mark on the green, you should put the ball back.”Dyker Beach’s superintendent, Anthony Hooks, who works for American Golf, says that the renovations have already improved player care. “If you’re driving a ’72 Dodge, how much are you going to want to clean it? But if you’re driving a Lexus, you’re going to want to maintain it,” Mr. Hooks said.In its course improvements, American Golf focused on protecting the green from the effects of too much play. The courses feature expanded tee boxes, which generally have the most divots since players start there, enhanced irrigation systems to allow full coverage and protect the most trodden on areas, and a better underground drainage system.Despite the upgrades, the courses may still suffer from too much play – a perhaps ironical shift from the underuse of 1982. “The biggest beef is slow play. They don’t have enough guys going around to speed up play,” Mr. DeNapoli said.Mr. Hooks recognized the potential problem, but dismissed it as somewhat inevitable. With nearly 3 million residents in Brooklyn and only two courses, there is bound to a high demand, he said.Dyker Beach hosts 80,000 golfers a year, and he said the upgraded course may make slow play more pleasant. “Aesthetically, guys are looking across at well manicured fairways and white sand bunkers. Even if you are playing slow, you’re not playing a slow bad course.”

How Private Capital Is Dynamizing Golf in the City

How Private Capital Is Dynamizing Golf in the City

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