The World Golf Awards, which is held annually, is in its ninth year and celebrates excellence in golf tourism.
Scotland has been named the world’s best golf destination in a prestigious award being held in the Middle Eastern City of Abu Dhabi.
The World Golf Awards, which is held annually, is in its ninth year and celebrates excellence in golf tourism with the winner selected by tour operators, golfing media, and fans from around the world.
Beyond winning the world’s best golf destination award, Scotland was also named Europe’s best location to play golf in.
This is the first time the home of golf has picked up both of these awards in the sport’s prestigious prize-giving event.
Scotland, which has more than 550 golf courses, hosted the 150th Open at St. Andrews in Fife in July of this year.
The country also hosted The Genesis Scottish Open, The Senior Open Presented by Rolex, Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open, AIG Women’s Open, and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Tiger Woods of The United States poses for a photo with Jack Nicklaus on the 18th bridge during the Celebration of Champions Challenge during a practice round prior to The 150th Open at St. Andrews Old Course on July 11, 2022, in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
In a statement, VisitScotland’s chief executive said: “These awards are a fitting end to an extra special year for golf in Scotland and fantastic recognition for all the people who work so hard to grow and enhance our reputation as the Home of Golf.
“I’d like to extend our congratulations to everyone, as well as the wider tourism and events industries and suppliers.
“Every year, we welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors eager to play our great golf courses and relax in our accommodation after a day’s golf, enjoying local produce and visiting nearby attractions.”
Dermot Synnott, director of global partnerships for the World Golf Awards added: “Scottish golf tourism is thriving, and Scotland is a bucket list destination for most golfers around the World.
“It offers a vast range of parkland and links options across all its regions, so the traveling golfer really is spoilt for choice.”
The course, which hosts the annual Augusta National Women’s Amateur tournament, was completed in June 2005.
AUGUSTA, Georgia — A judge last month ruled to allow an almost $8 million charitable deduction claimed by Champions Retreat, following the Evans golf course’s win in a 2020 federal tax case. Evans is a suburb of Augusta.
The case has been in litigation since 2013, when the Internal Revenue Service rejected a $10.4 million conservation-easement deduction. U.S. Tax Court Judge Cary Douglas Pugh recently decided to allow more than $7.8 million of the $10.4 million deduction claimed by Champions Retreat Golf Founders LLC on its 2010 tax return.
Champions Retreat acquired more than 463 acres of land in April 2002 to develop a neighborhood, Founders Village, and a 27-hole golf course.
The Evans course, which hosts the annual Augusta National Women’s Amateur tournament, was completed in June 2005 and boasts three 9-hole courses, a pro shop, a restaurant, a locker room and a driving range. The three courses were designed by golf legends Gary Player, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus.
Carolina Melgrati, of Italy, tosses her club after missing a putt during day two of the second round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur at Champions Retreat on Friday, April 1, 2022. (Photo by Katie Goodale/USA TODAY NETWORK)
The easement, subsequent sale
Then-owners of the Champions Retreat Golf Club granted a 349-acre easement to the North American Land Trust on Dec. 16, 2010, after the recession.
Conservation easements enable property owners to take charitable tax deductions on properties gifted to land trusts.
The easement area included 25 holes of the golf course, most of the two remaining holes and the driving range. Owners claimed a $10.4 million charitable deduction for the 2010 taxable year for the grant of the easement to the land trust, basing the deduction off its appraiser’s evaluation.
In October 2014, the golf club and some of its cabins were sold to Tower Three Partners and its affiliate, San Diego-based Heritage Golf Group for $6.64 million.
Hsin-Yu Li, of Chinese Taipei, putts during the second round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur at Champions Retreat on Thursday, March 31, 2022. Rain delayed tee times until 3 p.m. (Photo by Katie Goodale/USA TODAY NETWORK)
Deduction denied in 2018
In September 2018, Champions Retreat argued the easement satisfied conservation purposes by protecting the natural habitat of wildlife and the ecosystem and preserved open space, according to court documents. It noted specifically the southern fox squirrel and the denseflower knotweed, all of which Champions Retreat stated were rare, endangered or threatened.
However, Judge Pugh found there were not enough of the endangered knotweed plants in the area and the squirrels are still hunted legally in the state.
Pugh added that since the easement area is in a private section of the complex, only accessible to members and their guests through a gate manned 24 hours a day, it is unavailable for the public to enjoy.
The court concluded Champions Retreat did not support an “identified conservation project,” and sided with the IRS, denying the deduction for the 2010 tax year.
Champions Retreat appealed the decision and when brought back to court on May 13, 2020, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the 2018 ruling against the club, stating Champions Retreat was entitled to a deduction. Later, in October 2022, the court determined the amount of the deduction.
Players get ready to tee off during the first round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur at Champions Retreat on Wednesday, March 30, 2022. (Photo by Katie Goodale/USA TODAY NETWORK)
Valuing the easement
Claud Clark III was recognized by the court as an appraiser for Champions Retreat and assessed the fair market value of the easement at almost $11 million. He stated the highest and best use of the 27-hole course was an 18-hole golf course and residential subdivision.
However, IRS appraiser David G. Pope said the highest and best use of the 27-hole course was to remain a golf course. Pope assessed the easement at $20,000.
The two appraisals varied so widely because of the difference in usage, with Clark factoring in the price of lots if used for residential housing and Pope limiting the usage to a golf course.
In litigation, it ends up being a dueling experts situation, said Gregg D. Polsky, a University of Georgia professor in taxation law.
“The claim of the taxpayer’s expert was that part of the course could have been developed into residential property and sold for large dollars, and after the easement it couldn’t,” Polsky said. ”The government expert came in and said no, actually the highest and best use is the golf course, so effectively the deduction is zero.”
The IRS has been cracking down on syndicated conservation easement deals, which usually entail investors buying cheap, vacant land and then hiring an appraiser to claim that it has large developmental value, according to Polsky.
The promoters tell investors they will buy the property, grant the easement and then claim charitable deductions that are larger than their initial investment.
“Syndicated conservation easement deals are very sketchy, and they’ve been attacked, mostly successfully, by the IRS,” Polsky said. ”In this case, there was separation between the time the property was acquired and developed and the time that the easement was granted. Those are more legitimate, but both types of contexts rely on sort of aggressive valuations; basically, trying to get your appraiser to sort of provide a super high ’highest and best use’ valuation.”
‘An advocate as much as an expert’
Clark is named in a bipartisan investigative report by the U.S. Senate Finance Committee centered around syndicated conservation easements. The report specifically cites Clark’s involvement in a transaction that took place in Alabama.
Clark was the appraiser in that transaction and “played a prominent role in the world of syndicated conservation easements,” according to the report, which is critical of Clark’s work.
In 2019, the Alabama Real Estate Appraisers Board challenged a Black Bear Enterprises appraisal conducted by Clark for not conforming to the proper standards of an appraisal. Rather than defend himself before the board, Clark surrendered his appraisal license in Alabama, according to the report.
In the Champions’ case, the court stated Clark was “serving as an advocate as much as an expert,” according to court documents.
The Augusta Chronicle tried to reach Clark for comment via phone numbers on court documents and his business’s phone number listed online, but all lines were disconnected. The Chronicle also reached out to Clark via Facebook but did not receive an immediate response.
Despite his criticism of Clark, Judge Pugh ultimately sided with the appraiser, finding the property could be used for residential housing.
“The tax court generally agreed with the [Champions Retreats’] expert and reduced the deduction by roughly 20%, bringing it to around $8 million,” Polsky said.
Pugh found the fair market value of the easement in 2010, taking the lots into account, to be $7,834,091.
Champions Retreat referred The Augusta Chronicle to the former Champions Retreat owners E.G. Meybohm and Robert Pollard. Meybohm’s representative, Mike Polatty, was not aware on Thursday that the case had concluded and did not wish to speak on the record.
Vivian D. Hoard, an Atlanta-based attorney with the Fox Rothschild law firm, which represented the former course owners, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A letter from the Cousins said there are “no concrete plans for changes to the course.”
SAUGATUCK, Michigan — In response to questions from locals, the new owners of Saugatuck’s Clearbrook Golf Course have written a letter to the community.
“Our family recently purchased the Clearbrook Golf Course from our friends and longtime owners, Jim and Candy Jeltema,” the new owners — Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and his wife Julie — wrote. “They have managed the course for many years, making Clearbrook a place of connection and fun for our entire community.”
The course is 35 miles from Grand Rapids and 10 minutes from the small tourist town of Holland and, according to its website, has served as a qualifying site for the Michigan Open and has hosted other regional events like the West Michigan PGA Championship.
The sale didn’t include the Grill Room Restaurant, which remains under the ownership of Jim and Candy.
“West Michigan is a special community, and we have enjoyed living in Saugatuck/Douglas since we built our home here in 2018,” Kirk and Julie Cousins wrote. “As Jim reflected on his future, he wanted to keep the golf course in the community. As we discussed the history of the golf club with Jim, we agreed it is a community treasure and should remain a golf course for the next generation.
“Our family would prefer it not become a housing development or summer rental community. We want to invest in this great community, and we see this purchase as an opportunity to do just that, maintaining the life of a golf course that has been in place since 1926.”
Clearbrook Golf Course has been sold to Kirk Cousins and his wife, Julie. (Photo courtesy Clearbrook Golf Course)
The couple said there are “no concrete plans for changes to the course.”
“We have talked and dreamed about how the course might improve and we will continue to have these conversations in the days ahead,” they wrote. “We want the course to be a great experience for golfers, so we will begin by making small aesthetic changes, such as burying power lines that run overhead through the course and adding some perimeter landscaping.”
For the time being, Jim Jeltema will continue to operate the golf course.
“Jim and Candy will also continue to own and operate The Grill Room, as our family (acquired) the golf course land and golf business, not the clubhouse or the restaurant.
“We hope our community will continue to use and enjoy the golf course, while continuing to support Jim and Candy at the restaurant, as they have for so many years.”
Learn more at clearbrookgolfclub.com.
Contact Holland Sentinel editor Cassandra Lybrink at clybrink@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @CassLybrink.
There are 12 Trump Golf-owned properties in the U.S., two in Scotland, one in Ireland and one in the United Arab Emirates.
Before Donald Trump was elected President of the United States, he was well known in the golf community as the namesake of the courses and grounds that share his name.
There are 12 Trump Golf-owned properties in the United States, two in Scotland, one in Ireland and one in the United Arab Emirates. The Trump Organization manages Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point in New York, though for a short period of time it lost control until winning a legal battle. It also has three golf properties opening soon: two in Indonesia and one in Dubai.
Seven of the current Trump Golf-owned/managed properties are open to the public for tee times and nine of the clubs are private.
Here’s a look at the 16 current Trump Golf properties around the world.
Improvements are bringing some golfers back to the course who had stopped coming.
PINCKNEY, Michigan — New owners are working to spiff up an 18-hole golf course in the small town of Pinckney that had gotten a little rough around the edges.
New owners took over Timber Trace Golf Club, which sits about an hour west of Detroit and about a half-hour from Ann Arbor, in March. Since then, they have invested in improving grounds maintenance, removing damaged trees, clearing overgrown areas of the course and other upgrades.
Renovations to the clubhouse, which features a pro shop, tavern and small restaurant, include a new bar and furnishings, windows, paint and other fixtures.
The course plays as short as 5,100 yards from the forward tees and can stretch to 7,020 from the back tees.
Locals take over
Club director Clif McLellan is one of seven owner-stakeholders in the course, which is located on about 150 acres near the intersection of Hinchey Road and M-36.
“I live here, and it’s a great course,” McLellan said of why he wanted to update the club. “It needed someone who was here and could take care of it and make it a nice place to play.”
McClellan spent most of his career as a toxicologist. Now retired from the science world, he jokes that taking over the club sounded like a great idea after a few beers. The idea stuck.
He said other stakeholders in the course include people who live in the area.
“For me, I wanted to include as many people from around here as possible. I needed their support,” he said.
From left, Susan Bostian, Tom May, Les Ulrich and Clif McLellan gather Wednesday, May 18, 2022 in the newly renovated clubhouse at Timber Trace Golf Club in Pinckney. (Photo by Jennifer Eberbach/Livingston Daily)
Grounds improvements
He said the grounds maintenance staff has completed a lot of clearing, repairing, mowing and fertilizing on the course.
“We’ve improved regular maintenance,” he said.
They removed about 30 trees, including some that had fallen. They cut tall grasses back, including around a pond, which had been obscured.
He said improvements are bringing some golfers back to the course who had stopped coming.
He said about five golf outings were booked last year at the course. Twenty are booked now.
“I think next year we’ll see a good increase,” he said.
Part-owner Joey Pena runs marketing and social media for the club.
“We are currently in the process of revitalizing the course,” he wrote Livingston Daily in an email. “The public feedback has been positive and inspiring. Locals are excited to have their course back.”
McLellan said they also plan to expand the food menu at the newly renovated bar and restaurant, which currently serves hot dogs, hamburgers, brisket and brats.
“We’ll add some sandwiches, maybe fried fish. We might do pizza or chicken wings,” he said.
Merchandise in the pro shop is still arriving. The course will have a new logo and will sell shirts, pants and shorts, as well as other items.
“We’re waiting on some stuff. Some of its taking a long time to get here,” McLellan said, adding that supply chain issues caused some delays.
A weekly youth camp for children 6-15 starts in June.
“We’re going to put in a par-3 course within the course for the kids, so they don’t have to play from 400 yards. They can play from 150 yards,” McLellan said, also noting that signs will be installed to mark the par-3 course.
He said the par-3 course also will be an option for some elderly golfers and beginners.
McClellan said they also plan to host weddings and other events.
“We’ve had some inquiries to have weddings and parties out here. I’d also like to have music out here,” he said.
Jennifer Eberbach is a reporter for the Livingston Daily, which is part of the USA Today Network. Contact her at jtimar@livingstondaily.com.
The listing includes the 18-hole golf course, clubhouse and more.
NEW BERN, North Carolina — The River Bend Country Club went on the market for $1.3 million in September, but is still open for business.
The listing includes the 18-hole golf course, clubhouse and pro-shop, bar-and-grill, restaurant, tennis courts and swimming pool.
“The golf course has a convenient location to hundreds of homes around it and easy access for tourists from the historical city of New Bern. It is a very ‘player friendly’ course which allows golfers to have fun and also allows many rounds to be played from a business revenue standpoint,” said Brett Miller, owner of Miller Management Associates Inc.
Though it has only been on the market for two weeks, Miller said River Bend Country Club has generated substantial interest from both in and out of state.
The golf course was built in 1977 and purchased and taken over by new owners Jim Hoffman and Frank Fragale in 1999. Under their management, the entire property saw over $1.6 million in repairs.
Recent reviews of the course have rated its conditions to be unfavorable, citing the greens as their main complaint.
“It used to be a fun course with good greens. Now it is a rough course with awful greens,” read one review from May 15.
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The course was originally built in 1997. Larry Goodwin became owner in 2017, however the country club filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on March 3, 2020. Chapter 11 bankruptcy allows a company to reorganize their debts while still staying in business.
Bankruptcy is not uncommon in the world of golf course ownership, as financing is the biggest obstacle, Miller said.
“Most courses are purchased with private equity, not bank loans. Some courses are making a profit when purchased and then others become profitable when their facilities are updated and they have proper management,” Miller said.
In 2008, the sport of golf took a hard hit when people could no longer afford memberships and disposable incomes dwindled.
New Bern saw this trend first-hand when the Carolina Pines Golf & Country Club closed in 2016 due to a lack of golfers and disinterest in club membership. The 109-acre property was valued at $1.67 million when it was closed.
The popularity of tee-times may be on the rise, however, as the National Golf Foundation reported that three million people took their first swing in 2020, a record number. As of 2020, there were 16,100 golf courses in the U.S.
The golf course market is feeling the effects of increased popularity.
“Golf course sales, much like residential and other commercial properties, have skyrocketed in the last year. People see golf facilities as a ‘pandemic proof’ investment—they did not have to close down,” Miller said. “Over 57 million more rounds of golf were played in America last year over 2019 and current trends show 2021 as a record year as well.”
Miller’s company, based out of Fletcher, NC, has already sold eight courses with two pending this year including The Pines in Elizabeth City.
The Pines Golf Club sold for $1.2 million and like River Bend’s property includes an 18-hole course, clubhouse, events center, pool, pro-shop and dining.
The average days on the market for a course used to be six months to two years, but now it is less than 90 days to one year, Miller said.
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He said that the dynamics of the golf course business model are changing with the times. Now, more diverse activities are being offered at successful courses, other than just golf.
In addition to the golf course, the property has a restaurant, tennis courts and swimming pool.
“Golf facilities are now being known as multi-recreational facilities,” Miller said.
Having events that the “whole family” can enjoy like fitness classes, disc golf, live music and festivals help modern courses thrive.
Miller, who has operated Miller Management since 1996, said that he sees potential in the River Bend Country Club.
“We have seen many courses with the same model and in similar size regions be the focal point of the community and prosper,” Miller said.
Growth and Development Reporter Julia Masters can be reached at jmasters@gannett.com or 828-318-3108.
PACIFICA, Calif. – Golfers around the world dream of playing Cypress Point, the ultra-exclusive Alister MacKenzie masterpiece on the Monterey Peninsula that weaves through sand dunes and forests before finishing alongside the crashing waves of the …
PACIFICA, Calif. – Golfers around the world dream of playing Cypress Point, the ultra-exclusive Alister MacKenzie masterpiece on the Monterey Peninsula that weaves through sand dunes and forests before finishing alongside the crashing waves of the Pacific. For decades it has been counted among a handful of the world’s greatest courses – and if given the opportunity, many a golfer would happily sacrifice a month’s pay to tee it up at Cypress Point.
Or visitors can play another MacKenzie coastal gem 100 miles north on Highway 1 for $54. That “other” MacKenzie is Sharp Park, a San Francisco-owned muni located in Pacifica, a beach town about 10 minutes south. Sharp opened in 1932, just four years after Cypress Point and one year before MacKenzie’s Augusta National. And while Sharp Park is still a fantastic course to play, it’s time to restore one of his municipal greats.
Sharp Park’s history is as interesting as the course itself. The land was donated to the city of San Francisco by the Sharp family in 1917 with the stipulation that it be utilized as a “public park or playground.” John McLaren, creator of Golden Gate Park, envisioned using the property to supplement the existing layouts at Lincoln Park and Harding Park, which were packed with avid golfers. McLaren hand-picked Dr. MacKenzie to design Sharp Park and gave him free rein to indulge every architectural impulse the seaside site had to offer.
MacKenzie considered seaside links land to be “easily the most suitable for the game,” and regarded St. Andrews – where he served as consulting architect early in his career – as the ideal golf course. He authored “The Spirit of St. Andrews” and famously charted the Old Course’s unique double greens and fairway bumps, hollows and hidden bunkers. His detailed map, first published in 1924, remains in print to this day.
In 1914 he assisted mentor H.S. Colt in designing St. Andrews’ Eden Course alongside the Eden Estuary northwest of the Old Course. But ironically, MacKenzie himself designed very few seaside links – only five of his more than 50 courses worldwide. In addition to assisting on the Eden Course, MacKenzie remodeled links at Seaton Carew on England’s northeastern coast (1925) and Old Tom Morris’ Lahinch (Ireland, 1927). Only Cypress Point and Sharp Park were his own original seaside links creations.
Sharp Park (Courtesy of R. Brad Knipstein Photography)
MacKenzie was intent on recreating a Scottish links at Sharp Park. In 1930 he announced Sharp would be “as sporty as the Old Course at St. Andrews and as picturesque a golf course as any in the world.” He laid out the course and entrusted colleagues Chandler Egan, Robert Hunter Jr. and Jack Fleming to carry out the work.
The good doctor and team took full advantage of the coastline and dunescape on the west half of the property by laying out holes in varying directions to highlight natural features. Consider the stretch of holes two through eight:
No. 2 – Drivable par 4 playing west toward the Pacific with headlands in the distance.
No. 3 – Long par 4 playing north on the beach.
No. 4 – Short par 3 playing northeast with green set among dunes and mountain backdrop.
No. 5 – Short par 4 playing north along the edge of a lagoon (a version of MacKenzie’s famed Lido hole).
No. 6 – Medium par 3 playing west into the prevailing wind out to the beach.
No. 7 – Long par 4 playing south on the beach.
No. 8 – Long par 4 dogleg right playing south in the dunes with headlands in the background.
Away from the shore, the team needed to get more creative as the flat artichoke fields that occupied the site were not as compelling for golf as the coastline. Laguna Salada – the dominant water feature adjacent to the shoreline – was converted from a brackish marsh to a freshwater lake. MacKenzie designed holes around the lake. Dramatic greens, flamboyant bunkering and rumpled fairways provided character for the easily walkable layout. The original 10th hole was a mirror image of the 5th – another design that produced a version of MacKenzie’s Lido hole. As the course took shape, local writers hailed it as “a second St. Andrews.”
A poster showing the original layout of Sharp Park
Over the decades the story of Sharp Park has taken some twists and turns, but the ethos of the property, and the enjoyment of those who play it, has never waned.
In 1941 major storms damaged the beach holes. Rather than rebuild them, the city created four new inland holes. In subsequent decades, the sequencing of the course changed, certain holes were shortened and greens shrunk into ovals. Cart paths or trees now sit where clusters of bunkers once dotted the landscape. Thankfully there was never a major redesign or renovation that altered the original landforms of the greens or bunkers.
In 2011 a federal lawsuit filed to protect habitat for the San Francisco garter snake and California red-legged frog threatened to close the course for good. Local golfers, led by Richard Harris and Bo Links, assembled a team of lawyers, environmental experts, philanthropists and volunteers and won an eight-year legal battle to keep Sharp Park an 18-hole course, open to all at a modest greens fee.
Thanks to the community, when you walk out to the first tee today you can still feel the sea air. You can still hear the laughter and camaraderie of locals aged 5 to 95. And you can still see the subtle contours and hillocks crafted by MacKenzie.
No. 18 at Sharp Park (Courtesy of R. Brad Knipstein Photography)
Now that the course has been saved, those of us who love Sharp Park and understand its history believe it is time to restore MacKenzie’s municipal masterpiece.
Due to litigation, environmental regulations and politics, a large-scale restoration hasn’t occurred, but we have plans to do preservation maintenance work so a future generation can enjoy this historic legacy. I have been working with course designer Tom Doak, the Alister MacKenzie Foundation and San Francisco Public Golf Alliance, along with city officials, to figure out what can be done, when and how. In the meantime we are doing what we can to showcase MacKenzie’s artistry. Last year our team used a 1931 irrigation map and historic aerial photos to flag out the original dimensions of several greens. The grounds crew has mowed out the edges of two of them so golfers can see the undulation and size of MacKenzie’s original putting surfaces.
In May thousands will descend upon San Francisco to watch the world’s best tee it up at the PGA Championship. Local leaders will proudly tout TPC Harding Park as the city’s crown jewel. No doubt they will highlight investments made to the municipal course in the early 2000’s, largely at the urging of former USGA president Sandy Tatum.
All the while, just 6.5 miles away sits Alister MacKenzie’s greatest municipal course, a linksy layout on the Pacific with infinitely more character just begging to be restored. Hopefully the city will take the approach it did 90 years ago at Sharp Park (and 20 years ago at Harding Park) and invest in golf. The community and the game deserve such.
