The Pellucid Perspective - September 2011 - (Page 13)

NEWS BRIEFS Disney Golf exits golf operations business, leases its 5 courses to Palmer/Century Golf After 40 years, Walt Disney World has gotten out of the golf operations business. The Orlando area entertainment and hospitality landmark signed a 20-year lease with Arnold Palmer Golf Management last month for the five Disney courses in the Orlando area. Further strengthening the link between the iconic Disney and Palmer brands, Palmer himself and his design team will redesign and brand Disney’s Palm Course, and make other strategic and design alterations to the other Disney courses as needed. “I think they (Disney) felt it was an opportunity to create some new magic,” said Jim Hinckley, CEO of Palmer Golf Management and its ownership entity, Dallas-based Century Golf Partners. “They obviously felt that our culture was a good fit with theirs. From our perspective, it’s an excellent opportunity to add the Disney experience and courses to the benefits enjoyed by our Palmer Advantage club members around the country.” The deal was an obvious boon to the Arnold Palmer Design group which is also overseen by Century. With new U.S. course work diminished to a trickle, and increasingly fierce competition for design projects worldwide, many of the longtime key associates at Palmer Design have moved on to start their own shops, so the work will be welcome. The five Disney courses, 4 18-hole facilities and one 9-hole layout, are the Palm, Magnolia, Lake Buena Vista, Oak Trail and Osprey Ridge courses. At some point in the future, the Osprey Ridge course will become part of the planned new Four Seasons hotel property nearby. There had been some talk a while back of Disney building a sixth course, but those plans have apparently been shelved in favor of other Disney projects. Steve Harker, the well-respected long time director of golf operations for Disney, will be leaving the company on Sept. 24. He said he is hopeful that something can be worked out with Palmer Golf Management to utilize his familiarity with the Disney properties in a similar capacity to his previous position, or in other opportunities within Palmer/Century Golf. Buyer offers $170 million for Doral Golf Resort property A hedge fund led by Paulson & Co. and Winthrop Realty Trust has agreed to sell the famed Doral Golf Resort to an unnamed buyer for $170 million. Doral, which was put into Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in February after the Paulson fund took control of Doral and four other luxury resort properties from a Morgan Stanley real estate fund in January, could conceivably draw a higher purchase bid if the bankruptcy court determines the property must go up for auction. The current bid does not include Doral’s White course, named for designer Greg Norman, which previous reports had indicated might be closed for additional real estate development, but does include the resort’s other four championship courses, including the famed Blue Monster. In addition to Doral, the Paulson fund had taken control of La Quinta Resort, Grand Wailea Resort Hotel & Spa in Maui, the Arizona Biltmore and the Claremont Hotel in Berkeley, Calif. The five properties were purchased at the height of the market in 2007 by Morgan Stanley for $4 billion. Shortly after the bankruptcy reorganization was announced in February of this year, the Government of Singapore Investment Corp., which has an ownership interest in the hotels, reportedly offered to buy the five properties for $1.5 billion, but Paulson felt the properties were worth more. WHERE DO OVER 250 INDUSTRY-LEADING COMPANIES GET UNBIASED, FACT-BASED INFORMATION & INSIGHT? l Annual State-of-the-Industry review l Golf Local Market Analyzer software and ad hoc reports l Weather Impact Analysis l Facility Performance Scorecard & Customer Franchise Analysis l Voice-of-the-Local Golfer surveys and Customer Satisfaction tracking l Sharper Edge outsourced marketing services l Outside The Ropes industry issues & solutions newsletter Visit our website and register for more information and free sample reports at www.pellucidcorp.com. Or, contact Jim Koppenhaver to discuss your unique needs at jimk@pellucidcorp.com or 847.808.7651 www.PellucidcorP.com The Pellucid PersPecTive 13 http://www.pellucidcorp.com http://www.pellucidcorp.com http://WWW.PELLUCIDCORP.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Pellucid Perspective - September 2011

The Pellucid Perspective - September 2011
Contents
The China syndrome
Shift happens: The impact of Hispanic growth on local golf markets
Promoting rounds at rate card — a novel concept?
Promoting rounds at rate card — a novel concept?
There’s golf in them thar’ (sand) hills
August weather impact, July utilization
Seattle, WA Core Business Statistical Area (CBSA)
Seattle, WA Core Business Statistical Area (CBSA)
The long and the short of it

The Pellucid Perspective - September 2011