par 3 golf course business plan

Golf Course Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Golf Course Business Plan

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their golf courses. On this page, we will first give you some background information with regards to the importance of business planning. We will then go through a golf course business plan step-by-step so you can create your plan today.

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What Is a Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your golf course business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategy for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.

Why You Need a Business Plan

If you’re looking to start a golf course, or grow your existing golf course, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your golf course in order to improve your chances of success. Your business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

Sources of Funding for Golf Courses

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a golf course are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans and angel investors. With regards to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to confirm that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business.

Personal savings is the other most common form of funding for a golf course. Venture capitalists will usually not fund a golf course. They might consider funding a golf course with a national presence, but never an individual location. This is because most venture capitalists are looking for millions of dollars in return when they make an investment, and an individual location could never achieve such results. With that said, personal savings and bank loans are the most common funding paths for golf courses.

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How to write a business plan for a golf course.

If you want to start a golf course or expand your current one, you need a business plan. Below we detail what should be included in each section of your business plan:

Executive Summary

Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.

The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of golf course you are operating and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a golf course that you would like to grow, or are you operating golf courses in multiple markets?

Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan. For example, give a brief overview of the golf industry. Discuss the type of golf course you are operating. Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target customers. Provide a snapshot of your marketing plan. Identify the key members of your team. And offer an overview of your financial plan.  

Company Analysis

In your company analysis, you will detail the type of golf course you are operating.

For example, you might operate one of the following types of golf courses:

• Membership Only Golf Course : this type of golf course is available to patrons who purchase a membership to the golf course and tends to be more exclusive and high-end with a pro shop.
• Community Golf Course: this type of business is located in an upscale community whose residents are at a higher income level and is often on an invite-only membership option.
• Public Golf Course: this type of golf course is open to the public and accepts golfers from all walks of life. It may also include a driving range.

In addition to explaining the type of golf course you will operate, the Company Analysis section of your business plan needs to provide background on the business.

Include answers to question such as:

• When and why did you start the business?
• What milestones have you achieved to date? Milestones could include the number of members signed up, number of positive reviews, complete construction of all 18 holes, etc.
• Your legal structure. Are you incorporated as an S-Corp? An LLC? A sole proprietorship? Explain your legal structure here.

Industry Analysis

In your industry analysis, you need to provide an overview of the golf industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.

First, researching the golf industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.

Secondly, market research can improve your strategy, particularly if your research identifies market trends.

The third reason for market research is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.

The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your business plan:

• How big is the golf industry (in dollars)?
• Is the market declining or increasing?
• Who are the key competitors in the market?
• Who are the key suppliers in the market?
• What trends are affecting the industry?
• What is the industry’s growth forecast over the next 5 – 10 years?
• What is the relevant market size? That is, how big is the potential market for your golf course? You can extrapolate such a figure by assessing the size of the market in the entire country and then applying that figure to your local population.

Customer Analysis

The customer analysis section must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.

The following are examples of customer segments: families, retirees, avid golfers.

As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of golf course you operate. Clearly, prospective golfers would respond to different marketing promotions than retirees, for example.

Try to break out your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, include a discussion of the ages, genders, locations and income levels of the customers you seek to serve. Because most golf courses primarily serve customers living in their same city or town, such demographic information is easy to find on government websites.

Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can understand and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your customers.

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Competitive Analysis

Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.

Direct competitors are other golf courses.

Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t direct competitors. This includes country clubs, community centers and recreation centers. You need to mention such competition as well.

With regards to direct competition, you want to describe the other golf courses with which you compete. Most likely, your direct competitors will be golf courses located very close to your location.

For each such competitor, provide an overview of their business and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ business, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as:

• What types of golfers do they serve?
• What types of club house services and products do they provide?
• What is their pricing (premium, low, etc.)?
• What are they good at?
• What are their weaknesses?

With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.

The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:

• Will you provide better accommodations?
• Will you provide services that your competitors don’t offer?
• Will you provide better customer service?
• Will you offer better pricing?

Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.  

Marketing Plan

Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a golf course, your marketing plan should include the following:

Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of golf course company that you documented in your Company Analysis. Then, detail the specific products you will be offering. For example, in addition to a golf course, will you provide tennis, racquetball, a restaurant, etc?

Price : Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your marketing plan, you are presenting the services you offer and their prices.

Place : Place refers to the location of your golf course company. Document your location and mention how the location will impact your success. For example, is your golf course located in a new up-and-coming high-end neighborhood, etc. Discuss how your location might be the ideal location for your customers.

Promotions : The final part of your golf course marketing plan is the promotions section. Here you will document how you will drive customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:

• Advertising in local papers and magazines
• Reaching out to local websites
• Social media marketing
• Local radio advertising

Operations Plan

While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.

Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your golf course, including daily landscaping, cleaning equipment, cleaning and maintaining golf carts and holding staff meetings with employees and caddies.

Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to sell your 50th membership or tee time, or when you hope to reach $X in revenue. It could also be when you expect to expand your golf course to a new city or area of town.  

Management Team

To demonstrate your golf course’ ability to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.

Ideally you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing golf courses. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.

If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act like mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in managing golf courses or successfully running small businesses .  

Financial Plan

Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statements.

Income Statement

An income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenues and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.

In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will you sell 100 memberships or tee times per month or per quarter ? And will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.

Balance Sheets

Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your golf course, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a bank writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.

Cash Flow Statement

Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and make sure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.

In developing your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a golf course:

• Location build-out including golf course design fees, construction, etc.
• Cost of equipment and supplies
• Payroll or salaries paid to staff
• Business insurance
• Taxes and permits
• Legal expenses

Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your golf course land lease or architectural renderings of the golf course.  

Putting together a business plan for your golf course is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will really understand the golf course industry, your competition, and your customers. You will have developed a marketing plan and will really understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful golf course.  

Golf Course Business Plan FAQs

What is the easiest way to complete my golf course business plan.

Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily complete your Golf Course Business Plan.

What is the Goal of a Business Plan's Executive Summary?

The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of golf course business you are operating and the status; for example, are you a startup, do you have a golf course business that you would like to grow, or are you operating a chain of golf course businesses?

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Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

Golf Course Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Golf Course Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your Golf Course business plan.

We have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their Golf Courses.

Below is a template to help you create each section of your Golf Course business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course is a newly established, full-service golf course business in Savannah, Georgia. Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be the most reliable, cost-effective, and efficient choice for customers who live in Savannah and the surrounding communities. Savannah Oaks Golf Course will provide a comprehensive menu of golf and golf-related products and services for any individual to utilize. Their full-service approach includes a comprehensive menu of golf packages, golf attire and accessories, meals, private club memberships, and event venue rentals. The average cost for a round of golf will be $55 per player.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be able to provide golf experiences on twin 18-hole courses, dining and event venue services, golf apparel and accessories, private club memberships and golf club and cart rentals. The team of golf professionals and golf managers are highly qualified and experienced in golf pro services, golf shop management, grounds maintenance and event sales and management. The Savannah Oaks Golf Course solution removes all headaches and issues of reserving a round of golf, finding meal services, engaging a golf pro, and purchasing golf-related items. It also ensures all issues around event venues and catering plans are taken care of expeditiously, while delivering the best customer service.

Product Offering

The following are the products and services that Savannah Oaks Golf Course will provide:

• Two 18-hole championship golf courses providing play to the public
• Restaurant meal services
• Bar beverage services
• Golf lessons
• Event venue and catering services
• Golf apparel and accessories
• Private memberships within clubs
• Golf club purchase
• Golf club rental

Customer Focus

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will target all golfers in Savannah, Georgia. They will also target event venue customers and those who seek catering services. They will target the general public and tourists in the greater Savannah area. They will target those individuals who want to learn to play golf. They will target individuals seeking golf apparel and accessories for golfers.

Management Team

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be owned and operated by Stuart Halverson. He recruited Tom Martin as the Golf Professional and Mitch Simpson as the Golf Course Manager.

Stuart Halverson is a graduate of Duke University, having earned a master’s degree in Business Administration. He is the former owner of an 18-hole golf course in North Carolina, which he sold two years ago at a substantial profit. Stuart’s exceptional leadership skills combined with his love for the game of golf has led him to multiple winning relationships built around golf, each of which has brought additional profits and successes to this business maven.

Tom Martin has been recruited to provide Golf Pro services to golfers and those who want lessons in golfing. He formerly held the same position at the golf course owned by Stuart Halverson. He will be the Senior Golf Pro at Savannah Oaks Golf Course.

Mitch Simpson will be the Golf Course Manager, overseeing and directing everything related to the grounds of both 18-hole golf courses, including maintenance, re-seeding, aerating, and landscaping. Cart path oversight and course changes are also under his direction.

Success Factors

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

• Friendly, knowledgeable, and highly qualified team of Savannah Oaks Golf Course.
• Comprehensive menu of services and products that will support the game of golf, sale of golf items, golf clubs, and private memberships to golf groups.
• Dining experiences in the dining room and bar service for beverages.
• Event venue offerings that include the dining room, great room, club room and bar areas.
• Also included are select outdoor settings situated across the golf course. Golf lessons with the golf pro or other representatives
• Savannah Oaks Golf Course offers the best pricing in town. Their pricing structure is the most cost effective in comparison to the competitors within the Savannah region.

Financial Highlights

Savannah Oaks Golf Course is seeking $200,000 in debt financing to launch its twin 18-hole golf courses and adjoining facilities. The funding will be dedicated toward securing the office space and purchasing golf equipment and inventory, along with office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated toward three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, rent, and marketing costs. The breakout of the funding is below:

• Office space build-out: $20,000
• Office equipment, supplies, and materials: $10,000
• Three months of overhead expenses (payroll, rent, utilities): $150,000
• Working capital: $10,000

The following graph outlines the financial projections for Savannah Oaks Golf Course.

Company Overview

Who is savannah oaks golf course.

  Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be able to provide golf experiences on twin 18-hole courses, dining and event venue services, golf apparel and accessories, private club memberships and golf club and cart rentals. The team of golf professionals and golf managers are highly qualified and experienced in golf pro services, golf shop management, grounds maintenance and event sales and management. The Savannah Oaks Golf Course removes all headaches and issues of reserving a round of golf, finding meal services, engaging a golf pro, and purchasing golf-related items. It also ensures all issues around event venues and catering plans are taken care of expeditiously while delivering the best customer service.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course History

The Savannah Oaks Golf Course is owned and operated by Stuart Halverson. Stuart is a graduate of Duke University, having earned a master’s degree in Business Administration. While a student at Duke, Stuart improved his golf game and joined the golf team representing Duke University in tournaments around the U.S. The bond formed with his fellow golf team members has survived through the twenty years since their graduation.

Stuart is the former owner of an 18-hole golf course in North Carolina, which he sold two years ago at a substantial profit. Stuart’s exceptional leadership skills combined with his love for the game of golf has led him to multiple winning relationships built around golf, each of which has brought additional profits and successes to this business maven.

Mitch Simpson will be the Golf Course Manager, overseeing and directing everything related to the grounds of both 18-hole golf courses, including maintenance, re-seeding, aerating, and landscaping. Cart path oversight and course changes are also under his direction. Mitch also held the same position at the golf course formerly owned by Stuart Halverson.

Since incorporation, Savannah Oaks Golf Course has achieved the following milestones:

• Registered Savannah Oaks Golf Course as a C-corporation to transact business in the state of Georgia.
• Has a contract in place at one the grounds of an established golf course to set up Savannah Oaks Golf Course in taking over the twin courses, purchasing the buildings and to set up its office space and golf shop including 10,000 square feet of space.
• Stuart, Tom and Mitch have each reached out to numerous contacts to include Savannah Oaks Golf Course in recommendations and referrals.
• Began recruiting a staff for the Savannah Oaks Golf Course, along with office personnel to oversee administrative offices.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course Services

The following will be the products and services Savannah Oaks Golf Course will provide:

• Golf lessons with the golf pro or other representatives
• Savannah Oaks Golf Course offers the best pricing for a golf experience. Their pricing structure for golf, event coordination, golf lessons, and related services is the most cost effective in comparison to the competitors within the Savannah region.

Industry Analysis

The golf and golf course industry is expected to grow by 12% annually over the next five years to over $126 billion in the U.S. The growth will be driven by an increased interest in the game of golf by those who never played before the pandemic. When the pandemic hit, many individuals were considered remote workers who completed their work early and then played golf for the remainder of the day, which greatly increased the number of players on public golf courses. The sport was one of only a few sporting activities that remained open during the epidemic. Costs will likely be reduced as increased interest in the sport will increase revenue gains across the board and more young golfers, who learned to play during the pandemic, will come of age and add further to the golfer demographics. Complementary services to golf courses, such as catering services and event venues, have added to the increased profits for golf courses, along with a significant number of golf lessons, accessories and golf clubs that can be acquired at a golf course.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course is a public golf course that will target all golfers in the greater Savannah, Georgia region. They will also target event venue customers and those who seek catering services. They will target the general public and tourists in the greater Savannah area who desire meals at the dining room or beverages in the bar of the clubhouse, which is open to the public. They will target those individuals who want to learn to play golf. They will target individuals seeking golf apparel and accessories for golfers.

Customer Segmentation

The Savannah Oaks Golf Course will primarily target the following customer profiles:

• Individual golfers
• Public and private golf membership clubs or teams
• Diners seeking meals in the dining room of the clubhouse Golfers or other individuals seeking beverages in the bar of the clubhouse Individuals seeking event coordination and venue rentals, including catering Individuals seeking golf apparel, golf accessories and/or golf clubs
• Diners seeking meals in the dining room of the clubhouse
• Golfers or other individuals seeking beverages in the bar of the clubhouse
• Individuals seeking event coordination and venue rentals, including catering
• Individuals seeking golf apparel, golf accessories and/or golf clubs

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company follows:

St. Thomas Golf Club

St. Thomas Golf Club is a private membership golf course, offering one 18-hole championship golf course, driving range, and a clubhouse with amenities including a dining room, bar, ballroom, private lounges for men and women, club room, golfing lessons, golf accessories and golf clubs, and a golf pro shop.

The owners of the St. Thomas Golf Club are Randy and Heidi Stromberger who hold equal ownership and who registered the golf course as a privately-held C-corporation in Savannah, Georgia. The membership of the St. Thomas Golf Club currently has 1,589 adult members with 3,441 minors included. Events are built around golf, with tournaments each quarter, dinners, dances and other social events included. There is a sizable golf pro shop, where apparel and golf accessories are offered. The premises are not available for rent unless a golf membership is held.

To buy into a golf membership, when memberships are available, one must be nominated to join and then pay the buy-in fee of $100,000. In addition, yearly dues of $20,000 are required per couple, with children or minors adding another $4,500 to the total. Monthly charges for use of the dining room and bar must be at least $300 per month or the under-usage is charged to the member household on a monthly basis. The public is not invited to the dining room, bar, or ballroom, except by express invitation from a member who is authorized to do so. Once a year, membership nominations are collected, voted upon by the members, and offered to potential members who qualify.

Buford Pitch & Putt

Buford Pitch & Putt is a nine-hole executive course located in Buford, Georgia. It is owned and operated by Tammy Lovine and her son, Tommy, who registered the company as an LLC in the state of Georgia. The public course accepts all individuals interested in playing a 9-hole course with short fairways, which is designed to improve the “short game” of golfers. The cost per round is $30. There are no clubhouse facilities, dining room or golf pro shop. There is a golf cart beverage and snack service that travels the cart path throughout the day, offering snacks and beverages to golfers on the course.

Buford Pitch & Putt is a direct competitor to Savannah Oaks Golf Course, in that golf is offered to the public. However, it is an indirect competitor in that the majority of services and products offered by Savannah Oaks are not offered by the pitch and putt course. The motto of Buford Pitch & Putt is, “Pitch It Short to Win it Big!” One of the best aspects of Buford Pitch & Putt is the driving range with real turf for practice and a ball machine that offers 20 driving range golf balls by the bucket for $1.

Tierra Sunrise Golf Course

Tierra Sunrise Golf Course is owned and operated by Liam Nicholson, who registered the company as a C-corporation in the city of Savannah, Georgia. The single 18-hole golf course is a direct competitor, and a registered “Troon” golf course, in that the undulations of the fairways are extensive and similar to those in the UK. The course is considered “difficult, but exciting” to play, inviting experienced golfers to improve their games on the course. Individuals who are not experienced would probably not choose to play this course.

Tierra Sunrise Golf Course includes a snack bar and indoor eating area, a bar that is open in the afternoons, and a golf pro shop that offers golf lessons, golf apparel and golf accessories. The average cost for a round of golf is $150 per person, with golf cart rentals an additional charge. The owner, Liam Nicholson, is currently working with the city of Savannah to increase the size of his holdings to build another, less-difficult, course on the property and adjacent land.

Competitive Advantage

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be able to offer the following advantages over their competition:

• Event venue offerings that include the dining room, great room, club room and bar areas. Also included are select outdoor settings situated across the golf course.

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

• Highly-qualified team of skilled employees that is able to provide a comprehensive set of services and products for golfers who enjoy the game of golf and adjoining services and amenities.
• Reasonably-priced rates for the choice of two 18-hole championship courses.
• Event venues and catering services for private parties.
• No private fees for golf or amenities; public welcome.
• Experience level of golf professionals
• No quotas or monthly costs associated with golf games.
• Unbeatable pricing for value received.

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for the Savannah Oaks Golf Course is as follows:

Word of Mouth/Referrals

Savannah Oaks Golf Course has built up an extensive list of contacts over the years by providing exceptional service and expertise to golfers at the formerly-owned golf course. These golfers and families have become loyal to the owner and golf professionals now associated with the Savannah Oaks Golf Course. As such, the former golf associates will spread the word about the opening of this golf course and offer referrals to those interested in playing one of the two courses. The former customers will also recommend the dining room, bar and facilities that can be rented.

Professional Associations and Networking

Stuart Halverson, owner of Savannah Oaks Golf Course, holds extensive memberships and association ties across the U.S. He will begin networking to include associates or business personnel to both visit his new course and refer others to the new course. In addition, Stuart will offer the location and amenities to any of the association memberships he holds at no charge for services required during the first three months of business.

Print Advertising

Direct mailers will be sent to each household in Savannah, Georgia. These mailers will announce the launch and opening months of discounts and specials at the golf course and in the dining room and bar. Packages for golf plus dinner will be offered at a discount. The direct mailers will go out shortly before the launch of the golf course with an invitation to everyone to visit and check out the facilities on opening day.

Website/SEO Marketing

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will utilize their in-house website building skills to design their website. The website will be well organized, informative, and list all the services that the Savannah Oaks Golf Course is able to provide. The website will also list their contact information and list their tee time reservations with a payment portal linked to the website. The golf pro will also manage the website presence with SEO marketing tactics so that anytime someone types in the Google or Bing search engine “Savannah public golf course” or “golf course near me”, Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be listed at the top of the search results.

The pricing of Savannah Oaks Golf Course will be moderate and on par with competitors so customers feel they receive excellent value when purchasing their services.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for Savannah Oaks Golf Course. Operation Functions:

• Stuart Halverson will be the Owner and President of the business. He will oversee all staff and manage business development. Stuart has spent the past year recruiting the following staff:
• Mitch Simpson will be the Golf Course Manager, overseeing everything related to the grounds of both 18-hole golf courses, including maintenance, re-seeding, aerating, and landscaping. Cart path oversight and course changes are also under his direction.
• Tom Martin has been recruited to provide golf pro services to golfers and teach golf lessons. He will be the Senior Golf Pro at Savannah Oaks Golf Course.
• Danni Alverado will be the Staff Accountant who will provide all accounting, tax payments, and monthly financial reporting.
• Lilia Samuels will be the Senior Chef and Manager of the dining room and bar areas. She will choose the menus, oversee all food prep and manage staff of all serving areas.

Milestones:

Savannah Oaks Golf Course will have the following milestones completed in the next six months.

• 5/1/202X – Finalize contract to lease building spaces
• 5/15/202X – Finalize personnel and staff employment contracts for the Savannah Oaks Golf Course
• 6/1/202X – Finalize contracts with golf products/food/beverage distributors and wholesalers
• 6/15/202X – Begin networking at association and industry events
• 6/22/202X – Begin moving into Savannah Oaks Golf Course office
• 7/1/202X – Savannah Oaks Golf Course opens for business

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for Savannah Oaks Golf Course are the golf course fees they will charge to players who choose to golf at one of the Savannah Oaks Golf Courses. The green fees are within the moderate range, making the course play an exceptional value for the money.

The cost drivers will be the overhead costs required in order to staff the golf course management personnel and other staff members. The expenses will be the payroll cost, rent, utilities, office supplies, and marketing materials.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Savannah Oaks Golf Course is seeking $200,000 in debt financing to launch its golf course business. The funding will be dedicated toward securing the office space and purchasing office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated toward three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff, rent, and marketing costs for the print marketing and networking costs. The breakout of the funding is below:

• Marketing costs: $10,000

Key Assumptions

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the startup business loan.

• Number of Golfers Per Month: 120
• Average Fees per Month: $67,500
• Office Lease per Year: $100,000

Financial Projections

Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, golf course business plan faqs, what is a golf course business plan.

A golf course business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your golf course business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your Golf Course business plan using our Golf Course Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Golf Course Businesses? 

There are a number of different kinds of golf course businesses , some examples include: Membership Only Golf Course, Community Golf Course, and Public Golf Course.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Golf Course Business Plan?

Golf Course businesses are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding.

What are the Steps To Start a Golf Course Business?

Starting a golf course business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Golf Course Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed golf course business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your golf course business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your golf course business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Golf Course Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your golf course business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your golf course business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.

7. Acquire Necessary Golf Course Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your golf course business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation. 

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your golf course business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.

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Free Business Plan Template

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How to Write A Golf Course Business Plan?

Writing a golf course business plan is a crucial step toward the success of your business. Here are the key steps to consider when writing a business plan:

1. Executive Summary

An executive summary is the first section planned to offer an overview of the entire business plan. However, it is written after the entire business plan is ready and summarizes each section of your plan.

Here are a few key components to include in your executive summary:

Introduce your Business:

Start your executive summary by briefly introducing your business to your readers.

Market Opportunity:

Products and services:.

Highlight the products and services you offer your clients. The USPs and differentiators you offer are always a plus.

Marketing & Sales Strategies:

Financial highlights:, call to action:.

Ensure your executive summary is clear, concise, easy to understand, and jargon-free.

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2. Business Overview

The business overview section of your business plan offers detailed information about your business. The details you add will depend on how important they are to your business. Yet, business name, location, business history, and future goals are some of the foundational elements you must consider adding to this section:

Business Description:

Describe your business in this section by providing all the basic information:

Describe what kind of golf course you run and the name of it. For instance, here are some of the most common types of golf course businesses:

• Public golf course
• Indoor golf course
• Private golf club
• Resort golf club
• Executive golf course
• Championship golf course
• Describe the legal structure of your golf course business, whether it is a sole proprietorship, LLC, partnership, or others.
• Explain where your business is located and why you selected the place.

Mission Statement:

Business history:.

If you’re an established business, briefly describe your business history, like—when it was founded, how it evolved over time, etc.

Additionally, If you have received any awards or recognition for excellent work, describe them.

Future Goals

This section should provide a thorough understanding of your business, its history, and its future plans. Keep this section engaging, precise, and to the point.

3. Market Analysis

The market analysis section of your business plan should offer a thorough understanding of the industry with the target market, competitors, and growth opportunities. You should include the following components in this section.

Target market:

Start this section by describing your target market. Define your ideal customer and explain what types of services they prefer. Creating a buyer persona will help you easily define your target market to your readers.

Market size and growth potential:

Describe your market size and growth potential and whether you will target a niche or a much broader market.

Competitive Analysis:

Market trends:.

Analyze emerging trends in the industry, such as technology disruptions, changes in customer behavior or preferences, etc. Explain how your business will cope with all the trends.

Regulatory Environment:

Here are a few tips for writing the market analysis section of your golf course business plan:

• Conduct market research, industry reports, and surveys to gather data.
• Provide specific and detailed information whenever possible.
• Illustrate your points with charts and graphs.
• Write your business plan keeping your target audience in mind.

4. Products And Services

The product and services section should describe the specific services and products that will be offered to customers. To write this section should include the following:

Describe the Golf Course:

Golf equipment and cart rental:, customer support & maintenance, additional services:.

In short, this section of your golf course plan must be informative, precise, and client-focused. By providing a clear and compelling description of your offerings, you can help potential investors and readers understand the value of your business.

5. Sales And Marketing Strategies

Writing the sales and marketing strategies section means a list of strategies you will use to attract and retain your clients. Here are some key elements to include in your sales & marketing plan:

Unique Selling Proposition (USP):

Define your business’s USPs depending on the market you serve, the equipment you use, and the unique services you provide. Identifying USPs will help you plan your marketing strategies.

Pricing Strategy:

Marketing strategies:, sales strategies:, customer retention:.

Overall, this section of your golf club business plan should focus on customer acquisition and retention.

Have a specific, realistic, and data-driven approach while planning sales and marketing strategies for your golf course business, and be prepared to adapt or make strategic changes in your strategies based on feedback and results.

6. Operations Plan

The operations plan section of your business plan should outline the processes and procedures involved in your business operations, such as staffing requirements and operational processes. Here are a few components to add to your operations plan:

Staffing & Training:

Operational process:, equipment & accessories:.

Include the list of equipment and accessories required for your day-to-day business operations, such as golf clubs, balls, tees, and other golf-related accessories.

Adding these components to your operations plan will help you lay out your business operations, which will eventually help you manage your business effectively.

7. Management Team

The management team section provides an overview of your golf course business’s management team. This section should provide a detailed description of each manager’s experience and qualifications, as well as their responsibilities and roles.

Founders/CEO:

Key managers:.

Introduce your management and key members of your team, and explain their roles and responsibilities.

Organizational structure:

Compensation plan:, advisors/consultants:.

Mentioning advisors or consultants in your business plans adds credibility to your business idea.

This section should describe the key personnel for your services, highlighting how you have the perfect team to succeed.

8. Financial Plan

Your financial plan section should provide a summary of your business’s financial projections for the first few years. Here are some key elements to include in your financial plan:

Profit & loss statement:

Cash flow statement:, balance sheet:, break-even point:.

Determine and mention your business’s break-even point—the point at which your business costs and revenue will be equal.

Financing Needs:

Be realistic with your financial projections, and make sure you offer relevant information and evidence to support your estimates.

9. Appendix

The appendix section of your plan should include any additional information supporting your business plan’s main content, such as market research, legal documentation, financial statements, and other relevant information.

• Add a table of contents for the appendix section to help readers easily find specific information or sections.
• In addition to your financial statements, provide additional financial documents like tax returns, a list of assets within the business, credit history, and more. These statements must be the latest and offer financial projections for at least the first three or five years of business operations.
• Provide data derived from market research, including stats about the golf course industry, user demographics, and industry trends.
• Include any legal documents such as permits, licenses, and contracts.
• Include any additional documentation related to your business plan, such as product brochures, marketing materials, operational procedures, etc.

Use clear headings and labels for each section of the appendix so that readers can easily find the necessary information.

Remember, the appendix section of your golf course business plan should only include relevant and important information supporting your plan’s main content.

The Quickest Way to turn a Business Idea into a Business Plan

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This sample golf course business plan will provide an idea for writing a successful golf course plan, including all the essential components of your business.

After this, if you still need clarification about writing an investment-ready business plan to impress your audience, download our golf course business plan pdf .

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Frequently asked questions, why do you need a golf course business plan.

A business plan is an essential tool for anyone looking to start or run a successful golf course business. It helps to get clarity in your business, secures funding, and identifies potential challenges while starting and growing your business.

Overall, a well-written plan can help you make informed decisions, which can contribute to the long-term success of your golf course business.

How to get funding for your golf course business?

There are several ways to get funding for your golf course business, but self-funding is one of the most efficient and speedy funding options. Other options for funding are:

• Bank loan – You may apply for a loan in government or private banks.
• Small Business Administration (SBA) loan – SBA loans and schemes are available at affordable interest rates, so check the eligibility criteria before applying for it.
• Crowdfunding – The process of supporting a project or business by getting a lot of people to invest in your business, usually online.
• Angel investors – Getting funds from angel investors is one of the most sought startup options.

Apart from all these options, there are small business grants available, check for the same in your location and you can apply for it.

Where to find business plan writers for your golf course business?

There are many business plan writers available, but no one knows your business and ideas better than you, so we recommend you write your golf course business plan and outline your vision as you have in your mind.

What is the easiest way to write your golf course business plan?

A lot of research is necessary for writing a business plan, but you can write your plan most efficiently with the help of any golf course business plan example and edit it as per your need. You can also quickly finish your plan in just a few hours or less with the help of our business plan software .

About the Author

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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How To Write a Business Plan for Golf Course Business in 9 Steps: Checklist

By alex ryzhkov, resources on golf course.

• Financial Model
• Business Plan
• Value Proposition
• One-Page Business Plan
• SWOT Analysis
• Business Model
• Marketing Plan

If you're thinking of starting a golf course business, you're in good company. According to the National Golf Foundation, the golf industry is worth $84 billion in economic impact and provides over 2 million jobs. However, starting a golf course business requires careful planning and execution.

To help you get started on the right foot, we've created a checklist of 9 steps to help you write a comprehensive business plan for your golf course business. From market research to legal requirements to funding sources, our checklist covers all the essential elements you need to consider.

Whether you're planning on providing an exclusive golfing experience, offering golf packages and lessons, hosting corporate events or selling golf equipment, our business plan checklist will help you turn your vision into a thriving golf course business.

• Your business success begins with a solid business plan. Start with our 9-step checklist and take your golf course to the next level.

Conduct A Market Research

Before starting a golf course business, it is crucial to conduct thorough market research . This research will provide important insights into the golf industry, help identify the target market, understand the competition, and validate the business idea.

The following are some key areas to focus on when conducting the market research:

• Size of the golf industry: Determine the size of the golf industry, including the number of golf courses, golfers, and revenue generated by the industry. This will help understand the market potential for a new golf course business.
• Target market: Identify the demographic, psychographic, and behavioral characteristics of the target market. This will help tailor the products and services of the golf course business to the needs and preferences of the target market.
• Competitive analysis: Analyze the competition, including other golf courses and businesses that offer similar products and services. This will help identify the unique selling proposition of the golf course business and differentiate it from the competition.
• Location: Determine the ideal location for the golf course business, including factors such as accessibility, population density, and proximity to other businesses and amenities.
• Trends and opportunities: Identify the current trends and opportunities in the golf industry, such as the growing popularity of golf among young and diverse demographics, and the increasing demand for unique and experiential golf courses.
• Use a combination of primary and secondary research methods, such as surveys, focus groups, interviews, and online research, to gather data.
• Engage with the local community and industry associations to gain valuable insights and network with potential partners and customers.
• Keep track of the latest news and developments in the golf industry by subscribing to trade publications, attending industry conferences and events, and following social media and blogs of golf influencers.

Conducting a comprehensive market research will provide a strong foundation for the business plan and increase the chances of success for the golf course business.

Identify The Target Market

Knowing the target market is essential for any business, and the golf course business is no different. The target market for a golf course business includes:

• Golf enthusiasts who want to play a full round of golf or practice on the driving range.
• Corporate entities who are looking for a venue for corporate outings or team-building exercises.
• Individuals or groups who are interested in attending golf clinics, tournaments, charity events, or other special events related to golf.
• Individuals who enjoy the social aspect of golf and want to have a meal or drinks at the clubhouse.

It is important to note that the target market may vary depending on the location and the type of golf course. For instance, if the golf course is located in a vacation area, the target market may include tourists and vacationers.

Tips for Identifying the Target Market:

• Research the demographics of the area where the golf course will be located. This includes age, income, and other relevant information.
• Understand the needs and preferences of different segments of the target market. For example, corporate clients may have different needs and expectations than recreational golfers.
• Identify the factors that influence the purchasing decision of the target market. This may include price, quality, location, and amenities.

By identifying the target market, the golf course business can tailor its marketing strategy and offerings to meet the needs and preferences of its customers. This can increase customer satisfaction and loyalty, resulting in higher revenue and profitability for the business.

Analyze The Competition

Before launching a golf course business, it is essential to have a thorough understanding of the competition in your area. This will help you identify their strengths and weaknesses and provide insights into how you can differentiate your business and attract customers. Here are some important factors to consider when analyzing the competition:

• Location: Check out the location of your competitors' golf courses and examine how accessible they are for customers.
• Pricing: Analyze their pricing structure, identify what they offer at what cost, and determine how competitive your pricing will need to be.
• Quality of Services: Look at their quality of services they provide, such as the availability and expertise of their golf instructors, condition of the course, equipment, and the overall customer service experience.
• Marketing Strategies: Analyzing their marketing strategies could provide insights into the strengths and weaknesses of their brand, social media presence, advertising, and other promotions.

Tips for Analyzing the Competition:

• Visit the websites of your competitors to look for insights on how they promote golf courses.
• Speak to current members to understand what they like and dislike about your competitors.
• Check social media reviews to have a closer look at the opinions of your competitors' customers.
• Visit the golf course facilities in person as a potential customer, and observe their strengths and weaknesses and take notes.

After analyzing the competition, you should have a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. Addressing the gaps and improving overall customer experience could attract more customers and set you apart from the competition.

Determine The Legal Requirements

When starting any business, it is essential to understand the legal requirements that you need to follow. The golf course business is no exception. Every state and country has different legal requirements that need to be adhered to, so it is wise to consult with a lawyer or an expert who can guide you through the process.

Here are some essential legal requirements that you need to consider while starting your golf course business:

• Form a Legal Structure: You need to choose a legal structure for your business, such as sole proprietorship, partnership, LLC, or corporation. You should also register your business with the state or country and obtain permits and licenses as required.
• Obtain Necessary Permits and Licenses: Depending on your location, you may need to get various permits and licenses, such as land use permit, environmental permit, liquor license, and business license. Make sure that you obtain all the necessary documents before starting your operations.
• Comply with Environmental Regulations: Your golf course must comply with environmental regulations and laws, such as water and air quality regulations, waste management rules, and pesticide disposal guidelines.
• Follow OSHA Regulations: Your business must also comply with OSHA regulations regarding workplace safety, employee training, and hazardous materials handling.
• Consult a lawyer or an expert in the golf course business for legal guidance.
• Do research and study the requirements thoroughly to avoid any legal issues in the future.
• Maintain accurate records and paperwork to ensure smooth operations.

Overall, understanding and following legal requirements are crucial for the success of your golf course business. You must comply with all the federal, state, and local laws and regulations to avoid any legal issues and ensure a smooth operation.

Identify The Funding Sources

Funding is a crucial aspect of any business, and the golf course business is no exception. Whether you plan to finance the project through personal savings, loans, or investors, it is important to have a clear understanding of the funding sources available to you.

One of the first steps in identifying the funding sources is to establish a realistic budget. This will enable you to determine how much money you need to get the business up and running, as well as how much you will need for ongoing expenses. Once you have a budget in place, you can start to explore different funding options that may be available to you.

• Consider reaching out to your personal network for potential investors or loans
• Explore traditional funding sources such as banks or credit unions
• Research small business grants or loans from government organizations or non-profits
• Consider crowdfunding as an alternative funding option
• Join a local business networking group to connect with potential investors or sponsors

It is also important to understand the costs associated with each funding option . For example, loans and credit cards often carry high interest rates, while investors may expect a share of the profits or control over certain aspects of the business. It is important to carefully consider each funding option and choose the one that best fits your needs and objectives.

Once you have identified the funding sources you plan to use, it is important to create a detailed plan for how you will use the funds . This may include expenses such as land acquisition, construction costs, equipment purchases, marketing and advertising, employee salaries, and ongoing maintenance. Having a clear plan in place will not only help you stay organized but will also help you to present a compelling case to potential investors or lenders.

Remember, funding is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to starting and running a successful golf course business. But with careful planning and a strategic approach, you can secure the funding you need to turn your business ideas into reality.

Estimate The Startup And Ongoing Costs

One of the most important parts of creating a business plan for a golf course is estimating the startup and ongoing costs of the business. This will help you determine how much money you need to start your business, as well as how much money you need to keep it running. Below are some key factors to consider when estimating the costs for your golf course business:

• Land and Infrastructure Costs: The cost of the land and infrastructure needed to build a golf course can be significant. This may include land purchase, design and planning costs, construction costs, irrigation systems, and more.
• Equipment and Supply Costs: To operate a golf course, you will need a variety of equipment and supplies such as golf carts, mowing equipment, maintenance equipment, and more. You will also need to consider the cost of seeds, fertilizer, and other supplies needed to maintain the course.
• Employee Costs: Running a golf course requires a staff to manage the operation and provide services to customers. These include the cost of hiring a golf pro, golf instructors, groundskeepers, and other administrative and support staff.
• Marketing and Advertising Costs: Promoting and marketing your golf course business is also important to attract and retain customers. This may include the cost of creating a website, advertising in local print and digital media, creating brochures and marketing materials, and supporting community events.
• Insurance and Legal Costs: As with any business, legal and insurance costs are an important consideration. This may include liability and property insurance, legal fees for creating a business entity, and other legal and professional services.
• Research and compare prices from different suppliers, contractors, and professionals to determine the most cost-effective options.
• Create contingency plans and consider the potential financial impacts of seasonal changes, economic downturns, or regulatory changes on your business.
• Factor in the cost of ongoing maintenance and repair of the infrastructure, equipment, and facilities to maintain the quality and safety of your golf course.

Estimating both the startup and ongoing costs of your golf course business is a critical step in creating a successful business plan. By taking these costs into consideration, you will be better equipped to determine the feasibility of your business idea, identify potential sources of funding, and plan for the future success of your golf course.

Define The Business Goals And Objectives

Defining the business goals and objectives is a crucial step in developing a successful golf course business plan. It is important to have clear, measurable goals that can guide the business toward long-term success and profitability. The following are some key tips to consider when defining the business goals and objectives.

• Be specific and measurable. Goals should be clear and quantifiable so that progress can be tracked.
• Set realistic and achievable goals. It is important to set goals that are challenging but attainable within a reasonable timeframe.
• Align goals with the overall vision and mission of the business. Goals should support the overall direction of the business and help achieve the desired outcome.

The first step in defining the business goals and objectives is to identify the overall business vision and mission. This is the foundation on which all goals should be based. The vision and mission should be clear, concise, and focused on providing an exclusive and unique golfing experience for golfers of all levels.

Once the vision and mission have been established, the next step is to set specific, measurable goals that align with this vision. Goals should be broken down into short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. Short-term goals may include increasing revenue by a certain percentage, while medium-term goals may involve expanding the customer base or adding new services such as golf clinics or tournaments. Long-term goals may focus on becoming the leading golf course business in the region or even nationally.

It is important to ensure that all goals are aligned with the overall business strategy. This includes identifying the target market and tailoring the goals to meet the needs and preferences of this market. For example, goals may be set to attract more corporate outings or to offer specific golf packages that are popular among certain customer segments.

Once the goals have been defined, it is important to establish a plan for achieving these goals. This should include specific action steps, timelines, and measurable outcomes. It is also important to assign responsibility for each goal and ensure that everyone involved in the business is aware of the goals and their role in achieving them.

In conclusion, defining the business goals and objectives is a critical step in developing a successful golf course business plan. Goals should be specific, measurable, and aligned with the overall business strategy. By setting achievable goals and developing a plan to achieve them, the business can work towards long-term success and profitability in providing the ultimate golfing experience to customers.

Determine The Marketing Strategy

The marketing strategy is essential to the success of your golf course business. The strategy should define how you will promote your business, attract new customers, and retain existing ones. Consider the following steps when developing your marketing strategy.

• Identify your target audience: Determine the characteristics of your potential customers, including age, gender, income level, and interests. This information can help you tailor your marketing efforts.
• Define your unique selling proposition: Determine what sets your golf course business apart from the competition. Use this information to create a compelling message that resonates with potential customers.
• Develop a marketing budget: Determine how much money you are willing to spend on marketing. Allocate the budget to various marketing channels, such as social media, email marketing, and advertising.
• Choose marketing channels: Choose the marketing channels that best reach your target audience and fit your budget. Consider using a combination of channels, such as print advertising, online advertising, social media, and email marketing.
• Create a marketing plan: Develop a detailed marketing plan that outlines the specific tactics you will use to promote your golf course business. The plan should include your budget, target audience, unique selling proposition, marketing channels, and tactics.

Tips for a Successful Marketing Strategy

• Consider offering special promotions or discounts to attract new customers.
• Create engaging social media content that showcases the experience of golfing at your course.
• Partner with local businesses to offer joint promotions or special events.
• Create a referral program that rewards current customers for referring new customers.

Determining a marketing strategy for your golf course business is critical to effectively reaching potential customers. A well-executed strategy can attract new customers, retain existing ones, and ultimately drive revenue for your business.

Establish A Management Structure.

The success of any golf course business relies heavily on the management structure. It is essential to have an organized management system in place to run a business efficiently. Establishing a management structure involves creating a hierarchy of positions and roles for the staff members.

The first step in establishing a management structure is to identify key roles and their responsibilities. Here are some of the essential roles that must be determined:

• General Manager: The person in charge of overseeing the operations of the golf course business including maintenance, customer service, and finances.
• Golf Pro: The person responsible for providing golf lessons, managing golf course operations, and supervising the golf staff.
• Marketing Manager: The person responsible for promoting the golf course business through advertising, social media, and other marketing strategies.
• Administrative Staff: The individuals responsible for handling bookings, customer service, and communication within the golf course business.
• It is important to hire experienced individuals in these essential roles to ensure the success of the golf course business.
• Training programs must be established to induct new employees into their respective roles to create a proficient and efficient workforce.
• Monthly evaluation of the staff performance can help identify areas for improvement and maintain quality customer service.

The second step is to create a reporting structure, which will ensure that everyone is accountable. Clear communication channels must be established to ensure smooth internal communication. This can be achieved by setting up regular meetings and creating an open-door policy for staff members to voice their concerns.

Lastly, it is important to conduct training programs that emphasize customer service, safety, and professionalism. Providing regular training programs will ensure that the staff is up-to-date in their roles and responsibilities, which will ultimately benefit the golf course business.

Establishing a clear management structure is essential for the success of any golf course business. With clear roles, responsibilities, and established reporting structures, it is easier to maintain a proficient workforce and provide excellent customer service. Golfers are attracted to a golf course that is well-run, which is why it is essential to invest in staff training programs and create a positive work environment to retain a skilled workforce.

In starting a business, writing a business plan is an essential step to ensure its success. The nine steps listed above will help you develop a plan for your golf course business. Conducting market research, identifying the target market, analyzing the competition, determining the legal requirements, identifying funding sources, estimating costs, defining business goals and objectives, determining the marketing strategy, and establishing a management structure are all vital pieces of the puzzle.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your golf course business will provide an exclusive and unique golfing experience for golfers of all levels. The on-site pro, golf lessons, golf shop, snack bar, and restaurant will provide everything your customers need to have an unforgettable time. Hosting events, tournaments, and clinics will provide an additional source of revenue while enhancing the ultimate golfing experience for your customers.

In conclusion, developing a business plan is a critical step in creating a successful golf course business. By following the above nine steps, you will provide your customers with an exclusive and unique experience while generating a profitable and sustainable business model.

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Date: Tue 03 Jan 2017

An open letter to golf club managers about par 3 golf courses, from alan walker, pga master professional & eigca council member.

©Mark Alexander Photography

Have you considered building a Par 3 golf course? If not, then simply put, a Par 3 golf course can be highly lucrative and attract new audiences.

Having a 6, 9, 12 or 18-hole Par 3 course at your club will attract a varied cross-section of people, but importantly, will open up your club facilities to a much wider and diverse market – all of whom are potentially long-term customers. If the course is well designed and maintained, it is not uncommon for a prominently located Par 3 course to have in excess of 15,000 rounds played with green fee revenues generated of between £50,000 to, in some cases, over £100,000.

Could you have a Par 3 course at your club?

Alistair Mackenzie’s draft plan for a nine green, multiple hole, ‘approach and putt’ course at Augusta National

An interesting 9-hole Par 3 course only uses approximately five hectares of land and can easily be added onto your greenkeeping maintenance program. A stand-alone Par 3 course can be busy, especially if you include a driving range, golf coaching, an adventure golf course, café and golf retail facilities. The concept of nine shortish length Par 3 holes goes back many years and a number of golf clubs have benefitted from including this type of facility in their overall offering. Thousands of golfers will have started playing golf, or regularly play golf, at Par 3 golf courses.

You will be in great company as some of the best-known courses in the world have Par 3 courses such as Valderrama (host of the 1997 Ryder Cup matches) and Augusta National Golf Club – many champion golfers play on this course every year on the Wednesday before the start of the first ‘major’ of the season.

The benefits of a Par 3 golf course

Ingrebourne Links, Rainham, Essex - Par 3 course known as the ‘Mini Links’ built from inert infill from London’s ‘cross-rail’ project and designed in a links style

If you are still not convinced of the merits of a Par 3 course and why it would be a good investment for your club, here are my top reasons why you should give building one serious consideration:

• A much less daunting proposition - we all know that golf is a difficult game to master and is a fairly long process from taking up the game to attaining reasonable proficiency. For raw beginners, the first hurdle is to actually make contact with the ball; and the second is taking their ball-hitting skills onto the golf course and attempting to actually play golf – a daunting proposition for many. A Par 3 golf course offers a much lower level of intensity and is therefore a ‘stepping stone’ towards a full-length course. The facts are that new golfers feel more ‘comfortable’ on a par 3 course.
• Less time to play – ‘golf takes too long to play’ has been the message from golfers and non-golfers at all levels for a few years. The 9-hole Par 3 course addresses that issue head-on. A Par 3 course can be played, in most cases, in less than an hour so it is not time consuming at all and can be played before or after work, at the weekend or holiday time as it does not take a large chunk of time out of the day. Clubs with Par 3 courses are able to promote this opportunity and attract an audience who may well use the other facilities on offer at your club before or after they play.
• Attracts juniors, ladies, seniors, families and friends - Par 3 courses can be enjoyed by many individual groups of golfers - juniors play with their parents or grandparents, a husband with wife and/or children, seniors who just want a ‘few holes’, groups of friends for some fun, and so on. For many, playing golf is a social occasion offering some mild exercise as well – a Par 3 golf course is perfect for those who are not necessarily looking for competitive play or club membership.
• A great ‘stepping stone’ for new golfers - the game needs new players as participation levels are still on the decline. Par 3 courses are a great first step for those new to golf and are a part of the progression from golf tuition as a beginner, to practicing in-between sessions, and then trying out your game on a Par 3 course. A similar concept to the shallow-end of a swimming pool when you have just learned to swim, the Par 3 course eases a player into the main course.
• Par 3 courses are a sound financial proposition - in most cases, a 9-hole par 3 golf course will require a relatively small piece of land to build but the percentage return can be far greater than the main course generates. Although they require upkeep, the time and manpower needed is much less than on your main course making Par 3 courses very cost effective when you consider return over investment and daily running costs.
• They are great fun and break down the ‘golf is an exclusive game’ attitude - Par 3 courses offer the opportunity for golf clubs to tap into more markets than just those people wanting membership and are already experienced golfers. For many, Par 3 golf is their first introduction to the sport, and if you provide them with a positive experience, the long-term benefits for golf clubs are numerous.

If you have spare land or you could create an area for a few Par 3 holes, then get in touch with an EIGCA golf course architect to discuss how you can take advantages of the many benefits from building a Par 3 golf course at your club.

I have no doubt that a Par 3 course will reap rewards and be a sound investment for your club.

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Par-3 courses are trending — and for a good reason

A growing number of golfers, including those new to the game, want the experience of playing, but are looking for laid-back, quicker and more affordable alternatives — and the industry is taking notice.

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In mid-April, golf course architect Beau Welling traveled to Amelia Island, Florida, an upscale Northeast Florida resort destination, to open a new par-3 course, Little Sandy. In less than 24 hours, Welling experienced much of the reasoning behind the trendy nationwide building of such an alternative golf course.

On the eve of the opening, Welling walked to the precipice of the Little Sandy golf course and witnessed a man and his daughter putting on the wavy putting course alongside two toddlers turning cartwheels. Later, at an Omni Amelia Island Resort bar, a man divulged to Welling that he had strayed from the game because playing took too long and his game had eroded, but that he was on the rebound because of the pandemic.

The following morning, as Welling made his way along the early holes of his water-laden par-3 course, a resident emerged from the nearby condominiums wearing a big smile and introduced himself, thanking the designer for bringing the neighborhood out from under the four-year cloud of litigation of the closed Ocean Links 18-hole course to again have meaningful recreation outside their screened-in porches.

"You look at society in general, we have so many options of how to use our time and our lives," says Welling, principle of Beau Welling Design. "I grew up at a time when there were only three channels on TV. Now we don't even watch TV on a TV. We don't read a newspaper on paper. What we're seeing is a desire of the golfer to have options in how they orient to golf."

According to a National Golf Foundation report in January 2022, there are 664 par-3 courses in the United States, and 523 of those courses are publicly accessible, a higher rate (79 percent) than that of accessible full courses (75 percent). Two-thirds of the par-3 courses are standalones and not affiliated with a standard course, as in Palm Beach, Florida, where there will soon be three public par-3 courses. California has the most total par-3 courses with 74, 50 of which are open to the public. Last year, nearly one-third of the 19 new course openings were purely par-3 courses and more are on the docket around the country. Even more trendy, there was a net gain of par-3 courses in 2021 for the first time since 2000.

Welling, 52, has the diverse character to understand this dynamic. A native and resident of Greenville, South Carolina, he still carries a bit of a Southern drawl to pair with a physics degree from Brown, studies in landscape architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design, international business from the University of South Carolina and time residing in Europe.

While playing Little Sandy, he wore a pullover crested with the World Curling Federation logo, for which he is a board member after seeing the sport for the first time on television during the 1988 Winter Olympic Games. He remains fascinated by curling’s similarity to golf, in origin (Scotland) and the angles and process of the competition (physics).

Setting him apart from most other golf course architects, Welling also dabbles in land planning for many of his clients, without golf as a part of the development. Inner-city land planning in Columbia and Greenville and a consultation with The Biltmore in Asheville, North Carolina, are among the golf-less projects. For the new PGA of America headquarters project in Frisco, Texas, north of Dallas, Gil Hanse is designing one 18-hole course and Welling the other alongside a lighted 10-hole short course called The Swing.

Welling’s par-3 development experience is steep. More well-known as the golf course designer alongside World Golf Hall of Famer Tiger Woods, Welling has been on point with Woods for the reworking of one of the nation’s original par-3 courses, The Hay at Pebble Beach, first built in 1957, and The Playground in suburban Houston at Bluejack National, Woods’ first course design. At The Playground's opening ceremonies in March 2016, Woods was present but recent back surgery prohibited his full participation, so 11-year-old junior golfer Taylor Crozier promptly aced the 80-yard first shot. Followed by Woods lipping out a putt from the same distance.

Woods’ interest in par-3 courses is rooted in his golf biography. An 8-year-old Woods made his first hole in one at the par-3 Heartwell Golf Course in Long Beach, California, and recorded his first Junior World Championship win at San Diego’s Presidio Hills Golf Course, a nine-hole par-3 course.

Par-3 courses allow for a more liberal layout by architects. Greens with multiple, oversized tiers, elongated and horseshoe shapes and funnels to allow for the ball to move toward specific hole locations are acceptable here while maybe not on a regulation course, a la a putt-putt course type of experience. For example, the third hole at The Cradle in Pinehurst, North Carolina, is nicknamed Punchbowl because of its saucer-shaped green where the center hole location has seen more than 300 aces during the course’s near five-year existence.

Welling said the par-3 courses are more welcoming because it eliminates many of the full shots that distinguish between low-handicap golfers and beginners and welcomes newbies via the TopGolf route. At the same time, convention goers can have a group activity that takes approximately one hour instead of a half day on a full course and includes casual golfers or non-golfers. Devoted golfers can also invite novice family members to participate. That plays into Omni Amelia Island Resort’s purpose for building the course at a $3.5 million price tag over a 20-acre piece of property solely for resort guests and members.

“These kinds of facilities are stripping out a lot of shots people have a hard time playing and focus on the shots they have a chance of being successful with,” Welling says.

Similarly, the names of the courses are more frivolous, such as QuickSands, The Baths, Bad Little Nine, Gravel Pit, On the Rocks, Sandbox and Bootlegger. The atmosphere of laid-back attire, drink holders, piped-in music and bar access add to par-3s’ fun vibe. Developers have noticed and are even devoting more prominent real estate for these course that take up as little as 10 acres.

“Historically, short courses were often after thoughts, squeezed into useless corners for non-golfers to go try their hand," golf architect David McLay Kidd told Forbes in 2020 when QuickSands opened in Brewster, Washington. “Today short courses have become a serious addition to world-class golf resorts. The best land is sought, the best talent is brought to bear, expectations are high, and we don't plan to disappoint.”

The glitzy par-3 courses have opened a public outcry for more low-key golf and resurrected a trend from half a century ago. In the 1960s and 1970s, par-3 courses were more prominent, In Durham, North Carolina, for example, Mike Rubish, a local golf pro, developed Golf City, a driving range, par-3 and putt-putt course on a busy thoroughfare between Durham and Chapel Hill. Five miles away was Westwood Golf Course, a shaggy par-3 course with a small, cinder-block clubhouse that sold cold beer to an army of gamblers, non-golfers and Duke University students. The courses, both lighted, succumbed to a mall and a highway by the early 1980s but could claim getting clubs in the hands of many youngsters and non-golfers.

Making golf easier to access and less intimidating is the result, two factors which golf powerbrokers are finally understanding.

How to write a business plan for a golf course?

Putting together a business plan for a golf course can be daunting - especially if you're creating a business for the first time - but with this comprehensive guide, you'll have the necessary tools to do it confidently.

We will explore why writing one is so important in both starting up and growing an existing golf course, as well as what should go into making an effective plan - from its structure to content - and what tools can be used to streamline the process and avoid errors.

Without further ado, let us begin!

In this guide:

Why write a business plan for a golf course?

• What information is needed to create a business plan for a golf course?
• How do I build a financial forecast for a golf course?

The written part of a golf course business plan

• What tool should I use to write my golf course business plan?

Having a clear understanding of why you want to write a business plan for your golf course will make it simpler for you to grasp the rationale behind its structure and content. So before delving into the plan's actual details, let's take a moment to remind ourselves of the primary reasons why you'd want to create a golf course business plan.

To have a clear roadmap to grow the business

Small businesses rarely experience a constant and predictable environment. Economic cycles go up and down, while the business landscape is mutating constantly with new regulations, technologies, competitors, and consumer behaviours emerging when we least expect it.

In this dynamic context, it's essential to have a clear roadmap for your golf course. Otherwise, you are navigating in the dark which is dangerous given that - as a business owner - your capital is at risk.

That's why crafting a well-thought-out business plan is crucial to ensure the long-term success and sustainability of your venture.

To create an effective business plan, you'll need to take a step-by-step approach. First, you'll have to assess your current position (if you're already in business), and then identify where you'd like your golf course to be in the next three to five years.

Once you have a clear destination for your golf course, you'll focus on three key areas:

• Resources: you'll determine the human, equipment, and capital resources needed to reach your goals successfully.
• Speed: you'll establish the optimal pace at which your business needs to grow if it is to meet its objectives within the desired timeframe.
• Risks: you'll identify and address potential risks you might encounter along the way.

By going through this process regularly, you'll be able to make informed decisions about resource allocation, paving the way for the long-term success of your business.

To anticipate future cash flows

Regularly comparing your actual financial performance to the projections in the financial forecast of your golf course's business plan gives you the ability to monitor your business's financial health and make necessary adjustments as needed.

This practice allows you to detect potential financial issues, such as unexpected cash shortfalls before they escalate into major problems. Giving you time to find additional financing or put in place corrective measures.

Additionally, it helps you identify growth opportunities, like excess cash flow that could be allocated to launch new products and services or expand into new markets.

Staying on track with these regular comparisons enables you to make well-informed decisions about the amount of financing your business might require, or the excess cash flow you can expect to generate from your main business activities.

To secure financing

A detailed business plan becomes a crucial tool when seeking financing from banks or investors for your golf course.

Investing and lending to small businesses are very risky activities given how fragile they are. Therefore, financiers have to take extra precautions before putting their capital at risk.

At a minimum, financiers will want to ensure that you have a clear roadmap and a solid understanding of your future cash flows (like we just explained above). But they will also want to ensure that your business plan fits the risk/reward profile they seek.

This will off-course vary from bank to bank and investor to investor, but as a rule of thumb. Banks will want to see a conservative financial management style (low risk), and they will use the information in your business plan to assess your borrowing capacity — the level of debt they think your business can comfortably handle — and your ability to repay the loan. This evaluation will determine whether they'll provide credit to your golf course and the terms of the agreement.

Whereas investors will carefully analyze your business plan to gauge the potential return on their investment. Their focus lies on evidence indicating your golf course's potential for high growth, profitability, and consistent cash flow generation over time.

Now that you recognize the importance of creating a business plan for your golf course, let's explore what information is required to create a compelling plan.

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Information needed to create a business plan for a golf course

You need the right data in order to project sales, investments and costs accurately in the financial forecast of your golf course business plan.

Below, we'll cover three key pieces of information you should gather before drafting your business plan.

Carrying out market research for a golf course

Carrying out market research before writing a business plan for a golf course is essential to ensure that the financial projections are accurate and realistic.

Market research helps you gain insight into your target customer base, competitors, pricing strategies and other key factors which can have an impact on the commercial success of your business.

In particular, it is useful in forecasting revenue as it provides valuable data regarding potential customers’ spending habits and preferences.

You may find that there could be an increasing demand for a more social atmosphere on the golf course. This could manifest in more social events, such as tournaments and group golfing opportunities. Additionally, market research might reveal that there could be a growing interest in more amenities and services on the golf course, such as a pro shop, restaurant, or golf lessons.

This information can then be used to create more accurate financial projections which will help investors make informed decisions about investing in your golf course.

Developing the sales and marketing plan for a golf course

As you embark on creating your golf course business plan, it is crucial to budget sales and marketing expenses beforehand.

A well-defined sales and marketing plan should include precise projections of the actions required to acquire and retain customers. It will also outline the necessary workforce to execute these initiatives and the budget required for promotions, advertising, and other marketing efforts.

This approach ensures that the appropriate amount of resources is allocated to these activities, aligning with the sales and growth objectives outlined in your business plan.

The staffing and capital expenditure requirements of a golf course

Whether you are starting or expanding a golf course, it is important to have a clear plan for recruitment and capital expenditures (investment in equipment and real estate) in order to ensure the success of the business.

Both the recruitment and investment plans need to be coherent with the timing and level of growth planned in your forecast, and require appropriate funding.

A golf course might incur staffing costs for their groundskeepers, pro shop staff, and restaurant staff. They might also need to purchase additional equipment for the golf course such as golf carts, mowers, irrigation systems, and other maintenance equipment. Additionally, they might need to purchase supplies such as golf balls, tees, and other items used on the course.

In order to create a realistic financial forecast, you will also need to consider the other operating expenses associated with running the business on a day-to-day basis (insurance, bookkeeping, etc.). 

Once you have all the necessary information to create a business plan for your golf course, it is time to start creating your financial forecast.

What goes into your golf course's financial forecast?

The financial forecast of your golf course's business plan will enable you to assess the growth, profitability, funding requirements, and cash generation potential of your business in the coming years.

The four key outputs of a financial forecast for a golf course are:

• The profit and loss (P&L) statement ,
• The projected balance sheet ,
• The cash flow forecast ,
• And the sources and uses table .

Let's look at each of these in a bit more detail.

The projected P&L statement

The projected P&L statement for a golf course shows how much revenue and profits your business is expected to generate in the future.

Ideally, your golf course's P&L statement should show:

• Healthy growth - above inflation level
• Improving or stable profit margins
• Positive net profit

Expectations will vary based on the stage of your business. A startup will be expected to grow faster than an established golf course. And similarly, an established company should showcase a higher level of profitability than a new venture.

The forecasted balance sheet of your golf course

The projected balance sheet of your golf course will enable the reader of your business plan to assess the overall financial health of your business.

It shows three elements: assets, liabilities and equity:

• Assets: are productive resources owned by the business, such as equipment, cash, and accounts receivable (money owed by clients).
• Liabilities: are debts owed to creditors, lenders, and other entities, such as accounts payable (money owed to suppliers).
• Equity: includes the sums invested by the shareholders or business owners and the profits and losses accumulated by the business to date (which are called retained earnings). It is a proxy for the value of the owner's stake in the business.

Analysing your golf course projected balance sheet provides an understanding of your golf course's working capital structure, investment and financing policies.

In particular, the readers of your plan can compare the level of financial debt on the balance sheet to the equity value to measure the level of financial risk (equity doesn't need to be reimbursed, while financial debt must be repaid, making it riskier).

They can also use your balance sheet to assess your golf course's liquidity and solvency:

• A liquidity analysis: focuses on whether or not your business has sufficient cash and short-term assets to cover its liabilities due in the next 12 months.
• A solvency analysis: takes and longer view to assess whether or not your business has the capacity to repay its debts over the medium-term.

The cash flow forecast

As we've seen earlier in this guide, monitoring future cash flows is the key to success and the only way of ensuring that your golf course has enough cash to operate.

As you can expect showing future cash flows is the main role of the cash flow forecast in your golf course business plan.

It is best practice to organise the cash flow statement by nature in order to show the cash impact of the following areas:

• Cash flow generated from operations: the operating cash flow shows how much cash is generated or consumed by the business's commercial activities
• Cash flow from investing activities: the investing cash flow shows how much cash is being invested in capital expenditure (equipment, real estate, etc.) either to maintain the business's equipment or to expand its capabilities
• Cash flow from financing activities: the financing cash flow shows how much cash is raised or distributed to financiers

Looking at the cash flow forecast helps you to make sure that your business has enough cash to keep running, and can help you anticipate potential cash shortfalls.

Your golf course business plan will normally include both yearly and monthly cash flow forecasts so that the readers can view the impact of seasonality on your business cash position and generation.

The initial financing plan

The initial financing plan, also known as a sources and uses table, is a valuable resource to have in your business plan when starting your golf course as it reveals the origins of the money needed to establish the business (sources) and how it will be allocated (uses).

Having this table helps show what costs are involved in setting up your golf course, how risks are shared between founders, investors and lenders, and what the starting cash position will be. This cash position needs to be sufficient to sustain operations until the business reaches a break-even point.

Now that you have a clear understanding of what goes into the financial forecast of your golf course business plan, let's shift our focus to the written part of the plan.

Need inspiration for your business plan?

The Business Plan Shop has dozens of business plan templates that you can use to get a clear idea of what a complete business plan looks like.

The written part of the business plan is where you will explain what your business does and how it operates, what your target market is, whom you compete against, and what strategy you will put in place to seize the commercial opportunity you've identified.

Having this context is key for the reader to form a view on whether or not they believe that your plan is achievable and the numbers in your forecast realistic.

The written part of a golf course business plan is composed of 7 main sections:

• The executive summary
• The presentation of the company
• The products and services
• The market analysis
• The strategy
• The operations
• The financial plan

Let's go through the content of each section in more detail!

1. The executive summary

The first section of your golf course's business plan is the executive summary which provides, as its name suggests, an enticing summary of your plan which should hook the reader and make them want to know more about your business.

When writing the executive summary, it is important to provide an overview of the business, the market, the key financials, and what you are asking from the reader.

Start with a brief introduction of the business, its name, concept, location, how long it has been in operation, and what makes it unique. Mention any services or products you plan to offer and who you sell to.

Then you should follow with an overview of the addressable market for your golf course, current trends, and potential growth opportunities.

You should then include a summary of your key financial figures such as projected revenues, profits, and cash flows.

Finally, you should detail any funding requirements in the ask section.

2. The presentation of the company

As you build your golf course business plan, the second section deserves attention as it delves into the structure and ownership, location, and management team of your company.

In the structure and ownership part, you'll provide valuable insights into the legal structure of the business, the identities of the owners, and their respective investments and ownership stakes. This level of transparency is vital, particularly if you're seeking financing, as it clarifies which legal entity will receive the funds and who holds the reins of the business.

Moving to the location part, you'll offer a comprehensive view of the company's premises and articulate why this specific location is strategic for the business, emphasizing factors like catchment area, accessibility, and nearby amenities.

When describing the location of your golf course, you could emphasize the potential growth in the local economy that the golf course may bring. You could mention the potential for a boost in tourism and increased spending in the area due to the additional recreational activities. You may also want to discuss the potential for increased real estate prices, as the course could draw in more people to the area. Finally, you could point out the potential for a stronger sense of community and increased quality of life for residents if the golf course is successful.

Lastly, you should introduce your esteemed management team. Provide a thorough explanation of each member's role, background, and extensive experience.

It's equally important to highlight any past successes the management team has achieved and underscore the duration they've been working together. This information will instil trust in potential lenders or investors, showcasing the strength and expertise of your leadership team and their ability to deliver the business plan.

3. The products and services section

The products and services section of your golf course business plan should include a detailed description of what your company sells to its customers. 

For example, your golf course could offer golf lessons, a pro shop with golf equipment and apparel, and a restaurant or bar to its customers. Golf lessons could provide a way for customers to learn the fundamentals of the game or to refine their skills. The pro shop provides customers with customized equipment and apparel to help them improve their game. Finally, having a restaurant or bar allows customers to relax and enjoy refreshments after their round of golf.

The reader will want to understand what makes your golf course unique from other businesses in this competitive market.

When drafting this section, you should be precise about the categories of products or services you sell, the clients you are targeting and the channels that you are targeting them through. 

4. The market analysis

When you present your market analysis in your golf course business plan, it's crucial to include detailed information about customers' demographics and segmentation, target market, competition, barriers to entry, and any relevant regulations.

The main objective of this section is to help the reader understand the size and attractiveness of the market while demonstrating your solid understanding of the industry.

Begin with the demographics and segmentation subsection, providing an overview of the addressable market for your golf course, the key trends in the marketplace, and introducing different customer segments along with their preferences in terms of purchasing habits and budgets.

Next, focus on your target market, zooming in on the specific customer segments your golf course aims to serve and explaining how your products and services fulfil their distinct needs.

For example, your target market might include golfers who are looking to improve their game. This could include both experienced players looking to refine their technique, as well as beginners looking to learn the basics. Additionally, the golf course could target those interested in a day of leisure, offering a great setting for golfers to socialize and enjoy some fresh air.

Then proceed to the competition subsection, where you introduce your main competitors and highlight what sets you apart from them.

Finally, conclude your market analysis with an overview of the key regulations applicable to your golf course.

5. The strategy section

When writing the strategy section of a business plan for your golf course, it is essential to include information about your competitive edge, pricing strategy, sales & marketing plan, milestones, and risks and mitigants.

The competitive edge subsection should explain what sets your company apart from its competitors. This part is especially key if you are writing the business plan of a startup, as you have to make a name for yourself in the marketplace against established players.

The pricing strategy subsection should demonstrate how you intend to remain profitable while still offering competitive prices to your customers.

The sales & marketing plan should outline how you intend to reach out and acquire new customers, as well as retain existing ones with loyalty programs or special offers. 

The milestones subsection should outline what your company has achieved to date, and its main objectives for the years to come - along with dates so that everyone involved has clear expectations of when progress can be expected.

The risks and mitigants subsection should list the main risks that jeopardize the execution of your plan and explain what measures you have taken to minimize these. This is essential in order for investors or lenders to feel secure in investing in your venture.

Your golf course may face certain risks that could affect the success of the business. For example, one risk you may face is changes in weather. Unfavorable weather conditions, such as heavy rain or extreme heat, may reduce the number of people who visit the course. Additionally, your golf course might be subject to vandalism or theft of equipment, which could also have a negative impact on the business. Taking steps to reduce the risk of these events, such as proper security measures, can help protect your golf course and ensure its success.

6. The operations section

The operations of your golf course must be presented in detail in your business plan.

The first thing you should cover in this section is your staffing team, the main roles, and the overall recruitment plan to support the growth expected in your business plan. You should also outline the qualifications and experience necessary to fulfil each role, and how you intend to recruit (using job boards, referrals, or headhunters).

You should then state the operating hours of your golf course - so that the reader can check the adequacy of your staffing levels - and any plans for varying opening times during peak season. Additionally, the plan should include details on how you will handle customer queries outside of normal operating hours.

The next part of this section should focus on the key assets and IP required to operate your business. If you depend on any licenses or trademarks, physical structures (equipment or property) or lease agreements, these should all go in there.

You may have key assets such as green turf, golf carts, and golf clubs. These assets could be protected by intellectual property such as trademarks and copyrights. Additionally, the golf course may have valuable trade secrets, such as a unique golf course design, which could help distinguish it from other courses and give it a competitive edge.

Finally, you should include a list of suppliers that you plan to work with and a breakdown of their services and main commercial terms (price, payment terms, contract duration, etc.). Investors are always keen to know if there is a particular reason why you have chosen to work with a specific supplier (higher-quality products or past relationships for example).

7. The presentation of the financial plan

The financial plan section is where we will include the financial forecast we discussed earlier in this guide.

Now that you have a clear idea of what goes into a golf course business plan, let's look at some of the tools you can use to create yours efficiently.

What tool should I use to write my golf course's business plan?

In this section, we will be reviewing the two main solutions for creating a golf course business plan:

• Using specialized online business plan software,
• Outsourcing the plan to the business plan writer.

Using an online business plan software for your golf course's business plan

Using online business planning software is the most efficient and modern way to write a golf course business plan.

There are several advantages to using specialized software:

• You can easily create your financial forecast by letting the software take care of the financial calculations for you without errors
• You are guided through the writing process by detailed instructions and examples for each part of the plan
• You can access a library of dozens of complete business plan samples and templates for inspiration
• You get a professional business plan, formatted and ready to be sent to your bank or investors
• You can easily track your actual financial performance against your financial forecast
• You can create scenarios to stress test your forecast's main assumptions
• You can easily update your forecast as time goes by to maintain visibility on future cash flows
• You have a friendly support team on standby to assist you when you are stuck

If you're interested in using this type of solution, you can try The Business Plan Shop for free by signing up here .

Need a solid financial forecast?

The Business Plan Shop does the maths for you. Simply enter your revenues, costs and investments. Click save and our online tool builds a three-way forecast for you instantly.

Hiring a business plan writer to write your golf course's business plan

Outsourcing your golf course business plan to a business plan writer can also be a viable option.

Business plan writers are experienced in writing business plans and adept at creating financial forecasts without errors. Furthermore, hiring a consultant can save you time and allow you to focus on the day-to-day operations of your business.

However, hiring business plan writers is expensive as you are paying for the software used by the consultant, plus their time, and their profit margin of course.

From experience, you need to budget at least £1.5k ($2.0k) excluding tax for a complete business plan, more if you need to make changes after the initial version (which happens frequently after the initial meetings with lenders or investors).

You also need to be careful when seeking investment. Investors want their money to be used to grow the business, not spent on consulting fees. Therefore, the amount you spend on business plan writing services (and other consulting services such as legal services) needs to be negligible relative to the amount raised.

The other drawback is that you usually don't own the business plan itself: you just get the output, while the actual document is saved in the consultant's business plan software - which makes it difficult to maintain the document up to date without hiring the consultant on a retainer.

For these reasons, outsourcing the golf course business plan to a business plan writer should be considered carefully, weighing both the advantages and disadvantages of hiring outside help.

Ultimately, it may be the right decision for some businesses, while others may find it beneficial to write their business plan using online software.

Why not create your golf course's business plan using Word or Excel?

Using Microsoft Excel and Word (or their Google, Apple, or open-source equivalents) to write a golf course business plan is a terrible idea.

For starters, creating an accurate and error-free financial forecast on Excel (or any spreadsheet) is very technical and requires both a strong grasp of accounting principles and solid skills in financial modelling.

As a result, it is unlikely anyone will trust your numbers unless - like us at The Business Plan Shop - you hold a degree in finance and accounting and have significant financial modelling experience in your past.

The second reason is that it is inefficient. Building forecasts on spreadsheets was the only option in the 1990s and early 2000s, nowadays technology has advanced and software can do it much faster and much more accurately.

And with the rise of AI, software is also becoming smarter at helping us detect mistakes in our forecasts and helping us analyse the numbers to make better decisions.

Also, using software makes it easy to compare actuals vs. forecasts and maintain our forecasts up to date to maintain visibility on future cash flows - as we discussed earlier in this guide - whereas this is a pain to do with a spreadsheet.

That's for the forecast, but what about the written part of my golf course business plan?

This part is less error-prone, but here also software brings tremendous gains in productivity:

• Word processors don't include instructions and examples for each part of your business plan
• Word processors don't update your numbers automatically when they change in your forecast
• Word processors don't handle the formatting for you

Overall, while Word or Excel may be viable options for creating a golf course business plan for some entrepreneurs, it is by far not the best or most efficient solution.

• Having an up-to-date business plan is key to maintaining visibility on your future cash flows.
• A business plan has 2 parts: a financial forecast highlighting the expected growth, profitability and cash generation of the business; and a written part which provides the context needed to interpret and assess the quality of the forecast.
• Using business plan software is the modern way of writing and maintaining business plans.

We hope that this guide helped you to better understand how to write the business plan for a golf course. If you still have questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

Also on The Business Plan Shop

• How to write a 5 years business plan
• Business plan myths

Know someone who owns or wants to start a golf course? Share this article with them!

Founder & CEO at The Business Plan Shop Ltd

Guillaume Le Brouster is a seasoned entrepreneur and financier.

Guillaume has been an entrepreneur for more than a decade and has first-hand experience of starting, running, and growing a successful business.

Prior to being a business owner, Guillaume worked in investment banking and private equity, where he spent most of his time creating complex financial forecasts, writing business plans, and analysing financial statements to make financing and investment decisions.

Guillaume holds a Master's Degree in Finance from ESCP Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Business & Management from Paris Dauphine University.

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PAR 3 GOLF ASSOCIATION

Dedicated to promoting par 3 golf courses and supporting those who operate them.

Becoming a par 3 golf association member is a no brainer, increase revenue.

The par 3 golf association will promote and drive traffic to your course through large database of golfers and ongoing national promotion of par 3 golf.

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Get to know other par 3 course owners and operators by becoming a member and  exchanges tips and tricks to help improve your course.

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Our ever growing network of par 3 course owners and operators creates purchasing power for all of us to get better pricing from our partner vendors

Join the P3GA and become a founding member today!

If you want to drive more revenue, enhance the experience at your course, and build your professional network then join the P3GA today. 

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Tracking Recent Par 3 Course Development

If it seems there's been a short course movement in recent years, that's primarily because Par 3 courses have accounted for a higher proportion of the limited new course construction than they represent in overall U.S. supply. While the 700+ Par 3 courses nationwide comprise just about 4% of the nearly 16,000 courses found in the U.S., these popular short courses account for more than one-third of development over the past five years (2019 to 2023).

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What is a Par 3 Golf Course? (do pros play par 3’s?)

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When you think of a round of golf, you probably think about the typical 18-hole golf course right? Did you know there are different types of golf courses with different numbers of holes?

So, what is a Par 3 golf course? A par 3 course is a golf course that consists of only par 3 holes. In contrast, regulation golf courses most commonly feature four par 3 holes, four par 5 holes and ten par 4 holes.

Par 3 golf courses are an interesting option for golfers that want to play a quick round or for those that want to play a course without the hassle of 18 holes. Let’s dig deeper to see if this abbreviated golf course is a good option to improve your golf game. Understanding golf terms and definitions like “par” can help you make informed decisions on the course and improve your overall game.

Par 3 Golf Course Defined

To understand what a par 3 golf course is, you first need to understand what par 3 means.

All holes on a golf course are set with a specific number of swings it should take a proficient golf player to get the golf ball into the hole.

This is called par.

So for example, on a par 3 hole, it should only take the golfer three swings to get the golf ball into the hole. The par number varies and is usually par 3, par 4, or par 5. In rare instances, you’ll come across a par 6 hole on a standard golf course, but it’s not the norm. Regulation golf courses most commonly feature four par 3 holes, four par 5 holes and ten par 4 holes.

The par 3 hole is typically the shortest hole and one of the more exciting and easiest to play, which is part of what led to the creation of par 3 golf courses.

How do You Play a Par 3 Golf Course?

Regulation golf courses consist of 18 holes and playing each of the 18 holes equals one round of golf.

Par 3 golf courses are set up a bit differently.

Instead of 18 holes, these courses usually consist of nine holes. Each of the nine holes is par 3.

In comparison, the total par for a standard 18 hole golf course is 54 while a par 3 golf course has a total par of 27.

You’ll also find that the length for play is different on a par 3 golf course. On a standard course, you’ll find that a par 3 hole has  length of less than 200 yards. On a par 3 course, you’ll find that most of the holes will have a length of 150 yards or less.

There is no difference in play on a par 3 golf course.

Each player has three swing to get the ball in the hole. Typically this should be one swing to get the ball to the putting green (the area around and closest to the hole) and then two putts to get the golf ball to the hole.

Who Should Play on a Par 3 Golf Course?

On a regular 18 hole golf course you can expect to spend several hours playing. You’ll usually need to allow four or five hours to complete the round, with many golfers staying on the course for the majority of the day.

The par 3 golf course is a great choice for a new golfer.

The average completion time of a round is about two and a half hours. This allows the new golfer to get sufficient practice without sacrificing an entire day to the course.

Par 3 golf courses are also great choices for seasoned golfers who want to improve their putting abilities or what’s’ called their “short game”.

Because it takes less time to complete a round on a par 3 course, it’s easy to slip in practice time around other obligations. Really, anyone can benefit from and enjoy a par 3 golf course.

Advantages to a Par 3 Golf Course

There are several advantages to selecting a par 3 golf course for your next round of golf. As we’ve discussed, players who may have time constraints or other commitments will find the par 3 course an attractive option. But there is one other advantage that most people probably don’t consider: the golfer has less things to carry!

On your standard golf course, you’ll need several different types of golf clubs to be used at the different holes. On a par 3 golf course, you’ll only need a few clubs. You may be able to get away with simply carrying your clubs in your hand rather than hauling around a heavy golf bag.

That’s definitely a huge win!

While on a regulation golf course you’ll usually see pairs of golfers or foursomes. Par 3 golf courses allow for larger playing parties and you’re able to get creative with the way you play.

You can play in teams or as individuals – the sky’s the limit!

Do Pros Play on Par 3 Courses?

Yes! There are actually two professional golfing events each year that feature pro golfers competing at par 3 golf courses:

The Masters Par 3 Contest – Played as a part of tournament week at The Masters, this event is played in Augusta, GA at the Augusta National Par-3 Course. This is actually the most famous par 3 course in golf!

British Par 3 Championship – We can’t forget about our friends across the pond; they enjoy the game of golf, too! This event is an annual championship played by both golf pros and amateurs.

Where Can I find a Par 3 Golf Course?

You can find par 3 golf courses in a few different capacities. They can be part of a multi-course facility, which might a golf club or a golf resort. These facilities usually have both a standard 18 hole golf course as well as a par 3 golf course to give their guests plenty of playing options.

You may also find a par 3 golf course as part of a practice facility such as a local driving range. You can also find a wide variety of standalone par 3 golf courses.

In addition to the previously mentioned Augusta course, you’ll find par 3 golf courses all over the country. Some of the most popular include:

• The Links at Terranea , Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
• The Sandbox , Sand Valley Golf Resort, Nekoosa, WI
• The Cradle , Pinehurst Resort, Pinehurst, NC
• Palm Beach Par-3 , Palm Beach, FL

A quick internet search will yield plenty of results for par 3 golf courses in your area.

What is a Par 3 Golf Course: 3 Key Takeaways

If someone asks you what a par 3 golf course is, you can easily give them a brief overview:

• Par 3 golf courses are usually only nine holes
• By definition, par 3 golf courses consist of only par 3 holes
• The playing time for a par 3 golf course is significantly shorter than the playtime for a standard golf course

Overall a par 3 golf course is a great alternative to a traditional 18 hole course!

Meet Kolter, the dedicated golfer driving Honest Golfers forward. His golfing journey started at the young age of 8, guiding him through youth tours, high school, and college golf. With a remarkable stint as a two-time Team Captain at Carroll College, Helena, MT, and participation as a two-time World Long Drive regional qualifier, Kolter's expertise runs deep. Now, he shares his lifelong passion and knowledge, offering sincere advice and gear recommendations to fellow enthusiasts. Embark on a golfing adventure with him, and together, let's enhance our skills on the fairways.

Par 3 Golf Courses: Definition, Tips, & 10 Best

Par 3 golf courses offer a unique and enjoyable golfing experience, providing the perfect environment for golfers of all ability levels to practice and hone their skills.

So what is a par 3 course? A par 3 course is smaller than most golf courses as it exclusively includes par 3 holes, and each is only around 80-200 yards. This makes them great for beginners or more advanced players looking to work on their short game.

In this guide, we’ll discuss everything you need to know about par 3 golf courses, including their layout, design, benefits, and some of the best ones in the USA.

If you’re unfamiliar with par 3 golf courses, you could miss out on an excellent way to improve your game, build your confidence, and have fun.

What Is a Par 3 Golf Course?

Benefits of par 3 golf courses, 10 best par 3 golf courses in the usa, tips to keep in mind when playing par 3 courses, are par 3 courses good for beginners, what’s the longest par 3 golf hole, what is a good par 3 course score, do you need a driver for par 3, how many holes are in golf, final thoughts.

The first thing to get out of the way is: what is a par 3 course? A par 3 golf course features only par 3 holes ( par 3 meaning : each hole requires three strokes to complete).

What is a par in golf? Well, typically, courses combine par 3, 4, and 5 holes.

These par courses, however, are designed for shorter gameplay and only include par 3 holes. They are ideal for beginners and experienced golfers looking to improve their short game.

The layout and design of par 3 golf courses typically consist of shorter holes ranging from 80 to 200 yards in distance. They may incorporate obstacles such as bunkers, water hazards, and trees into the course design to challenge golfers and add variety to the game.

When playing on a par 3 golf course, golfers generally need fewer clubs than on a full-size course, and you should adopt standard golfing attire. Etiquette and rules on a par 3 golf course include maintaining a reasonable pace of play and observing proper course etiquettes, such as repairing divots and ball marks.

Many people mistake par 3 golf courses for executive golf courses , which they are not.

Playing on a par 3 golf course offers numerous benefits, including skill-building and practice. These courses provide an excellent opportunity for golfers to work on their short game, iron play, and putting. Compared to full-size courses, par 3 courses require less time to play, making them more accessible and convenient for busy schedules.

However, par 3 golf courses may not offer the same level of challenge and variety as full-size courses, which can impact the overall experience of playing golf. Nevertheless, the focused practice and skill development offered by par 3 golf courses make them a valuable asset to any golfer’s repertoire.

If you’re wondering, ‘What’s a great par 3 golf course near me?’, this list might be just what you are looking for. Here are ten of the best par 3 golf courses in the USA that our team have played on and absolutely love.

• Threetops at Treetops Resort, Gaylord, MI  – Known for its stunning elevation changes and picturesque views, Threetops is a must-play course for any golf enthusiast.
• Augusta National Par 3 Course, Augusta, GA  – As part of the famous Augusta National Golf Club, this par 3 course offers an unparalleled experience steeped in golf history.
• The Cradle at Pinehurst Resort, Pinehurst, NC  – This 789-yard course is surrounded by beautiful scenery and features challenging greens that will test your short game.
• Challenge at Manele, Lanai, HI –  Set on the cliffs of Lanai, this oceanfront course offers breathtaking views and a unique golfing experience.
• Blue Rock Golf Course, South Yarmouth, MA – With its meticulously maintained greens and challenging holes, Blue Rock Golf Course is a great choice for golfers seeking to improve their short game.
• Bandon Preserve at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, OR –  Featuring 13 holes and stunning coastal views, Bandon Preserve is an unforgettable golf experience.
• Palm Beach Par 3, Palm Beach, FL –  This beautiful oceanfront course offers a challenging and enjoyable round of golf in a scenic setting.
• Top of the Rock, Ridgedale, MO –  Featuring magnificent views of Table Rock Lake and the Ozark Mountains, Top of the Rock is a world-class par 3 course designed by Jack Nicklaus  and offers a truly unforgettable golfing experience.
• Cloud Nine at Angel Park Golf Club, Las Vegas, NV – With holes inspired by famous par 3s worldwide, Cloud Nine is a great place to practice your short game and enjoy the desert landscape. Golf courses like this can cost a lot of money to build .
• The Links at Terranea, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA –  Overlooking the Pacific Ocean, this 9-hole par 3 course offers stunning views and a challenging layout for golfers of all levels.

When evaluating the quality and suitability of the best par 3 courses , consider factors such as course condition, design variety, and overall atmosphere.

To improve your golf skills while playing on a par 3 course, focus on the following tips and techniques:

• Prioritize accuracy over distance – Perfect your swing to ensure precise shots rather than focusing solely on hitting the ball as far as possible.
• Practice a variety of shots – Use your time on the par 3 course to practice different types of shots, such as fades, draws, and punch shots.
• Focus on your short game and putting – Par 3 courses are an excellent opportunity to refine your short game, including chipping, pitching, and putting.
• Analyze and learn from each shot – After each shot, take a moment to reflect on what went well and what you can improve, and apply these lessons to your next shot.
• Enjoy the process and have fun – Remember that golf is a game, and the par 3 course offers a more relaxed environment to learn and grow as a golfer. With this said, it’s worth checking out what you should expect to score on a par 3 course .

Frequently Asked Questions

Par 3 courses are an excellent choice for beginners. The shorter holes and focused practice opportunities make them more accessible and less intimidating for those new to the game. Beginners can hone their skills in a relaxed environment, such as iron play, chipping, and putting.

You will find the longest par 3 golf hole at the Pines Course at The International Golf Club in Bolton, Massachusetts. The 8th hole on this course measures an impressive 315 yards from the back tee. This challenging hole requires a combination of power and precision to reach the green in one shot.

A good par 3 course score varies depending on factors such as the golfer's skill level, course difficulty, and playing conditions. For beginners, breaking 40 strokes for a 9-hole par 3 course or 80 strokes for an 18-hole par 3 course is a good score. More experienced golfers may aim for scores close to or below par.

Generally, a driver is not necessary for a par 3 course, as the holes are much shorter than those on a full-size course. The average par 3 distance ranges from 80-200 yards, so golfers typically use mid to short irons, wedges, and a putter. However, if a par 3 hole exceeds 200 yards, you should consider using a driver.

A standard round of golf typically consists of 18 holes. However, there are also 9-hole courses, which you can play twice for a full 18-hole experience, and par 3 courses, which feature varying holes, usually ranging from 9 to 18.

In summary, par 3 golf courses offer a unique and enjoyable golfing experience, with a focus on skill development and practice. These courses are perfect for golfers of all levels, from beginners to experienced players looking to refine their short game.

With numerous benefits and a range of top-rated courses available across the USA, par 3 golf courses are an excellent option for golfers seeking a new challenge or a convenient way to enjoy the game.

At Golfspan, we encourage you to explore par 3 golf courses and make your own informed decisions based on your needs and preferences. Whether you’re a beginner looking for a more accessible golf experience or a seasoned golfer seeking new challenges, par 3 golf courses offer something for everyone.

Sam Ledgerwood

Sam has been playing golf for over 20 years and founded Impact Golfer . As a teenager, he discovered his love for the game using his grandad’s clubs, including a wooden driver. As a golf obsessive, Sam plays whenever possible, regularly competing in matchplay with his friends and in tournaments at his local club. He's fortunate to have a close friend who is a club pro– he has tested almost every type of equipment on the market (no freebies yet).

Sam has a handicap index of 13 and likes playing at the Metro Golf Centre near his home in London. He putts with a Taylormade Spider because Rory uses it but regrets selling an old Scotty Cameron putter on eBay.

• Best score : 94
• Favorite club : TaylorMade Stealth Driver
• Favorite putter : Bought a TaylorMade Spider because Rory uses it, but spend most of my time on greens yearning for the Scotty Cameron I sold on eBay.
• Favorite food at the turn : Baguette. Sausages. Bacon. HP Sauce.
• Sam Ledgerwood https://www.golfspan.com/author/sam-ledgerwood 10 Weirdest Golf Swings Ever Seen
• Sam Ledgerwood https://www.golfspan.com/author/sam-ledgerwood 10 Best British Golfers Of All-Time
• Sam Ledgerwood https://www.golfspan.com/author/sam-ledgerwood How To Compress A Golf Ball: 5 Easy Steps
• Sam Ledgerwood https://www.golfspan.com/author/sam-ledgerwood 27 Golf Bachelor Party Ideas: Top Destinations

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New Golf Academy at Moscow’s Olympic Stadium

8.04am 16th March 2011 - Course Development - This story was updated on Sunday, May 15th, 2011

Thomson Perrett & Lobb, the golf course design practice founded by five-times Open Champion Peter Thomson with partners Ross Perrett and Tim Lobb, has announced work will commence on the new golf academy at Moscow’s Luzhniki Olympic Complex in the spring.

The golf academy will feature an innovative 9-hole par-3 golf course design, with six of the holes sharing two large splash-shaped greens, a driving range and a practice putting area plus a spacious clubhouse with indoor golf simulators.

TPL principal Tim Lobb said: “To be working on a project that will add another dimension to an already huge sporting complex, and at a venue that could also host some of the games during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, is hugely exciting.

“We’ve concentrated on creating a golf facility that will be fun for all the family, and enable the people of Moscow to experience and learn to play golf in a relaxed environment that everyone can enjoy.”

The golf academy is an important development for both Russia and its capital city. It is the closest golf facility to the city centre and further enhances the Luzhniki Complex, which played host to the Olympics in 1980, already boasts facilities for more than 40 different sports and attracts five million visits per year.

“TPL has an excellent understanding of designing golf experiences that appeal to players in new markets, and I’m confident we will create an academy that compliments existing sporting facilities on site and showcases golf to this emerging market,” added Tim.

Dimitry Aleshin, Deputy Director of Development and Commercial Affairs of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex, said: “TPL’s design will create a welcome addition to the sporting facilities at the Luzhniki Complex. As Moscow’s first city centre golf academy I’m certain it will be well received and encourage more people to take up the sport.”

For further information about the Luzhniki Olympic Complex project and other TPL projects around the world, visit the company’s website at www.tpl.eu.com

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Club + Resort Business

Oakwood CC Plans New Par-3 Course, Residences

By C&RB Staff | March 20, 2023

Block Real Estate Services LLC is preparing to build a par-3, nine-hole golf course around a new 20-residence community on 28.8 acres of mostly wooded land in Kansas City, Mo. The planned golf course may correspond with a new membership class granting participants access to it and the club’s facilities but not the regular course, says Managing Principal Ken Block.

A new golf course, surrounded by a small number of residences, is being planned just north of the newly transformed Oakwood Country Club in Kansas City, Mo., the Kansas City Business Journal reported. Block Real Estate Services LLC is preparing to build a par-3, nine-hole golf course around a new 20-residence community, Oakwood Villas, on 28.8 acres of mostly wooded land it acquired in 2021.

Managing Principal Ken Block  said the par-3 course will allow Oakwood Country Club to attract new types of members, including junior golfers interested in learning the sport and seniors no longer able to play the club’s full 18 holes, the Business Journal reported. The planned golf course probably will correspond with a new membership class granting participants access to it and the club’s facilities but not the regular course, he said.

“I think we’ll have a lot of people from various other clubs that would love to have that opportunity to get their feet wet at Oakwood and start at that kind of level,” Block said.

Meanwhile, Oakwood Villas is planned with two distinct residential products, accessible via a private gated entrance, the Business Journal reported. Sixteen of the community’s units will be for-sale villas abutting the new golf course. Block said these could be well-suited for club members who reside outside Kansas City most months of the year, as well as retirees interested in living within walking distance of the club’s amenities.

The remaining four units will be larger cottages designed for short-term rental stays, perhaps by out-of-town course visitors or wedding guests, he told the Business Journal .

Block said construction on the par-3 course is set to begin in the near future, as are the first villas and cottages, depending on pricing and demand, the Business Journal reported. Demolition of a one-story office building formerly occupied by the Spofford Treatment Center took place earlier this month.

Block, who played his first round of golf at Oakwood Country Club when he was 9, said the projects are designed to further set apart the club’s offerings within and beyond the Kansas City metro, the Business Journal reported. Since he led an investment group in acquiring the 140-year-old club almost three years ago, millions of dollars have been invested in extensive course renovations, as well as amenities like a new sports bar, fitness center and golf performance center.

“What we’re trying to do here is put all of the various different pieces in place for a true middle-of-the-country resort-style club,” Block said. “We’ve really become more of a regional-national-type destination where we continue to upgrade the quality of the course and the facilities.”

The City Council approved Oakwood Villas’ plans in late July, the Business Journal reported. During neighborhood meetings, Block shared plans to cover costs from relocating a portion of the Blue River Parkway Trails running through the private property onto Jackson County land, as well as assist nearby homeowners with property improvements through his firm’s Renew KC Neighborhoods initiative.

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Par 3 Golf Courses: Everything You Need To Know

It’s a common problem for golfers. You’re tired of the driving range and want to play some holes, but you don’t have 5 hours to spend at your local public 18-hole golf course. If only there was another option.

The answer is a par 3 golf course. Play for a score and try to make pars and birdies without losing your entire afternoon. It’s the perfect way to work on your short game while competing with friends. The next time you get the “golf bug” consider trying a par 3 golf course.

What Is A Par 3 Golf Course?

What exactly is a Par 3 golf course? Do I need to bring my entire  golf bag ? Does it truly mimic playing golf? A “ Par 3 ” course is exactly what it sounds like. 

A golf course, but instead of having par 3s, par 4s, and par 5s, it’s constructed of all par 3s. They can be 6 holes, 9 holes, or 18 holes.

Most are quite short, so ask for a  scorecard  before you play. You may be able to enjoy the round with only a few wedges and your putter. You can almost certainly leave your driver at home.

Besides the yardage, they’re exactly like playing any other track. They have tee boxes, bunkers, and well-manicured greens.

What Are The Advantages Of Playing A Par 3 Course?

What are the two biggest things that lead people to quit golf, or never truly start playing in the first place? It costs too much money and it takes too long. The Par 3 course solves both issues. Playing a Par 3 course will cost you a fraction of playing a full length one and you typically finish in 1/3 of the time (if not quicker).

An added bonus, the Par 3 course is a great way to hone your   iron & wedge   play and improve around the green. A great way to   sharpen your chipping   and putting, while still competing for a score or making small wagers with your friends.

The Par 3 golf course is also less intimidating for beginners and more family friendly. Less trouble to get in, if you’re only hitting short irons and putting, and a more casual atmosphere.

Tips To Keep In Mind When Playing On A Par 3 Course

Tip #1 - use a lightweight golf bag.

Check the scorecard before you head to the par 3 course, but most won’t require all of your clubs. In fact, par 3 golf courses are designed to be played with some wedges and your putter. With that in mind, save your back by using a   lightweight golf bag .

The   LOMA bag by Sunday Golf   is perfect. Designed to carry 5-7 clubs, it weighs less than two pounds. You have plenty of storage for your golf essentials (balls, tees, gloves, etc.) and it even has a “frosty” pocket to keep your favorite beverage cold. This stand bag will keep your clubs off the ground and help you enjoy your round.

Shop The Loma Bag

Tip #2 - Bring Your Short Game

Don’t get overconfident. You may look at the scorecard and see a bunch of holes that are less than 130 yards. This does mean the par 3 course will be easy. You’ll learn quickly that it’s hard to make a birdie or par on many of the holes. 

It’s a great way to improve your wedge game and putting, but a par 3 course can also be humbling. Did you know that on the PGA Tour par 3 scoring is much worse than par 4 and par 5 scoring? Short doesn’t mean easy. Be ready to concentrate if your goal is to shoot a good score in relation to par. 

Tip #3 - Invite Some Buddies

Playing a par 3 course is fun by yourself, but a blast with a few of your golfing buddies. Make a tee time and start a group text. Find 3 more players and establish teams. Determine some friendly wagers before you hit your first wedge shot. Maybe the losers pick up the tab in the 19th hole or pay for the next round.

The critical part is sharing some laughs with other golfers. Par 3 courses are great for players of all skill levels, so don’t worry if one of your friends is new to the game. The more the merrier.

The other option is to get your family involved with the game you love. Par 3 courses are great for kids - the shorter distances give them a chance to compete with adults. Leave your buddies at home and get your children involved in a game they can play for 50+ years.

Tip #4 - Make Plans For The Rest of the Day 

You can play a par 3 course in 90 minutes or less.   This is one of the biggest advantages of this style of golf. It leaves you more time in the 19th hole or allows you to finish off your “honey-do” list. Get in a round of golf and still have your entire afternoon for other activities. A true win-win.

Where Can I Find A Par 3 Golf Course Near Me?

Do a quick google search for “par 3 near me” around your town or city – you might be surprised that one is quite near you. Also, building a “short course” or Par 3 course has become very popular for famous golf resorts. It gives visiting players an alternative to playing 36 a day. 

Play a destination course in the morning and relax on the Par 3 course in the afternoon.

If you’re planning a golf trip with buddies, check to see if the resort has a par 3 or short course. It may end up being your favorite part of the trip !

Top 10 Par 3 Courses In The U.S.

1. the cradle at pinehurst resort.

The Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina recently opened  The Cradle . It’s a 9-hole par 3 course that shares the same Pro Shop as famed No. 2. The longest hole is 127 yards and you can get around with only a few clubs. Kids (17 & under) play free with a paying adult.

2. Bandon Preserve At Bandon Dunes

Your trip to Oregon won’t be completed without   trying this 13-hole   par 3 course with the Pacific Ocean as the backdrop on every hole. Bring a couple of wedges and your putter. The longest hole on this track is only 119 yards and it can be enjoyed by all player types.

3. The Hickory—Hamilton Farm Golf Club

This isn’t your typical par 3 golf course. Located in Gladstone, NJ  the Hickory  is probably the most difficult par 3 course in the country. Bring your entire bag for this 18-hole course as several holes exceed 200 yards in the length. The longest can stretch over 230.

4. Top of the Rock—Big Cedar Lodge

Jack Nicklaus designed this par 3 course that’s located above Table Rock Lake in the Ozarks.  Top of the Rock  was used by the Champions Tour for its Legends of Golf Tournament. You’ll get to experience lakes, creeks, waterfalls, and beautiful views during your visit to Branson.

5. Par 3 Course At Augusta National

Yes, we know it might be difficult to get a tee time at Augusta National, but we couldn’t leave their par 3 course off our list. This 9-hole course is annually used for the Masters Par 3 contest that thrills patrons every year. Who doesn’t love watching PGA tour professionals with their wives and children in the caddie bibs?

6. Li’l Wick—Wickenburg Ranch

Li’l Wick   in Wickenburg AZ was designed for golfers to have a good time. Music is played throughout the 9-hole course and there’s a “watering hole” (bar) in the middle that can ensure you always have a cold beverage. Want to try some night golf? Parts of the course have lighting to help you continue the fun after the sun goes down.

7. Threetops—Treetops Resort

Threetops   is the par-3 course located at Treetops Resort in Gaylord, MI. It has hosted the ESPN par-3 shootout 8 times and has become a template used by other resorts to build similar courses.

8. Cloud 9 Course—Angel Park

Cloud 9   is a beautiful 12-hole par 3 course in Las Vegas. It’s the perfect break from the blackjack tables. You won’t be shocked to hear that 9-holes are fully lit, so you can continue to work on your short game after dark.

9. Cliffs Course—The Olympic Club

The Olympic Club in San Francisco has 2 18-hole championship courses, but their par 3 course ( Cliffs Course ) is the most scenic. Designed by Jay Morrish and Tom Weiskopf the views of the Pacific Ocean will make you feel like you’re playing golf in a postcard.

10. The Links At Terranea

What is it about the Pacific Ocean that produces great par 3 golf courses? This 9-hole design at the Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes routes through the beautiful natural environment of the coast. It’ll be hard for you to find a better golf experience on the Los Angeles coast.

Par 3 Golf Courses: Frequently Asked Questions

Are par 3 courses good for beginners.

Yes. Par 3 golf courses are shorter and typically have less trouble. They’re also more casual and relaxed, which is perfect for the golfer just getting started in the game. 

What’s the longest par 3 golf hole?

The typical par 3 golf hole will be less than 200 yards, but some courses do have par 3s that can stretch out to over 250 yards. The 8th hole at Oakmont can play 288 yards from the back tee box. 

What is a good par 3 course score?

The majority of par 3 golf courses are 9 holes, so even par would be a 27. Any round below 30 is a great score and anything below 35 would be considered a good score. 

Are Par 3 Courses and Executive Courses the Same Thing?

Both par 3 courses and executive courses are considered “short courses,” but a par 3 course will only have par 3s and an executive course will have some par 4s and potentially even par 5s. 

Do you need a driver for par 3?

The vast majority of par 3s won’t require your driver, but it’s possible. Some par 3s are more than 230 yards in length.   If you’re playing a par 3 course, always check the scorecard to determine which clubs you should bring for your round.

Give Par 3 A Try

If you haven’t played one before, give a Par 3 golf course a try. You may decide it’s a quicker,  more economical way  to enjoy the game of golf. Find one in your hometown or look for the option when you’re planning your next golf trip. All the fun of playing golf, without having to look for your tee shots in the woods.

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ANDREW FERNANDES GOLF

• Sep 26, 2023

What Is A Par 3 Golf Course? Everything You Need to Know

I've always been fascinated by the variety of courses available, and one type that often piques my interest is the par-3 golf course. You might have heard the term par-3 before, but what exactly does it mean? Well, a par-3 golf course is a unique type of course that consists entirely of par-3 holes, having an average length of 85 to 210 yards. This allows players to enjoy a round in a shorter time than a regular course, making it an excellent option for beginners or those looking for a quick game.

What sets par-3 courses apart is the focus on short-game skills and precision, as each hole typically measures 150 yards or less. Most par-3 courses feature nine holes, but some have 18 holes as well. These courses are perfect for golfers looking to hone their skills or shake things up from the usual regulation courses.

Key Takeaways

Par-3 golf courses consist entirely of short holes, requiring precise shots and a good short game.

These courses are great for limited-time beginners or golfers, as they can be completed faster than regular courses.

Playing on a par-3 course can help improve short-game skills and course management.

Features of Par 3 Golf Course

Course design and layout.

I enjoy exploring different types of courses, and one of my favorites is the Par 3 golf course. This type of course features holes that are all Par 3, meaning each hole requires three strokes to complete. The layout of a Par 3 course typically covers a shorter distance compared to a standard course, making it ideal for a casual and fast-paced golf experience.

The course design emphasizes the importance of accuracy in your shots, as the shorter distances don't require the use of a driver. Golfers often rely on irons and wedges to play these courses and, occasionally, a putter for the green.

Scoring in Par 3 Courses

In a Par 3 golf course, players aim for a hole-in-one, also known as an "ace," which happens when the ball goes into the hole in just one stroke. However, achieving this feat is rare and quite a reason to celebrate. A more common score on Par 3 courses is a birdie, which means finishing a hole in one stroke under par, or in this case, two strokes.

Bogeys, double bogeys, and even triple bogeys, on the other hand, can occur if a golfer takes more than three strokes to complete a hole. Despite the shorter distances in Par 3 golf courses, scoring is still challenging due to the emphasis on precision and accuracy.

Hazards and Challenges

Par 3 golf courses often present unique hazards and challenges designed to test a golfer's accuracy. Sometimes, course architects strategically place bunkers, water hazards, and other obstacles in the course layout, making it essential to carefully plan shots and handle risk/reward situations.

Players must familiarize themselves with these hazards and develop clubs and shots to help them overcome these challenges. The key to performing well on a Par 3 golf course is having diverse skills tailored to manage these hazards while ensuring accurate and precise shots.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits of practicing on a par 3 course.

Playing on a par 3 golf course offers several advantages, especially for beginners. First, it's less time-consuming, allowing you to complete a round in a fraction of the time compared to a standard course. This can make it less intimidating for those new to the game or seeking a quick golf experience.

Moreover, par 3 courses are excellent for practicing your short game. Since the holes are shorter (between 85 and 210 yards), you'll have more opportunities to focus on your iron play, pitching, chipping, and putting. Additionally, these courses are more budget-friendly, perfect if you're watching your wallet.

Can I use all my clubs on a par 3 course?

Although par 3 courses feature shorter holes, you can still find usage for various clubs. Depending on your skill level, the holes' lengths may require anything from a wedge to a mid-iron. Since typical shots on a par 3 course are shorter than those on a standard golf course, you might rely more heavily on your short irons, wedges, and putters. It's essential to adapt your club selection to the specific course and its conditions.

Are there any famous par 3 courses?

Yes, there are famous par 3 golf courses, some notable examples include:

Augusta National's Par 3 Course in Augusta, Georgia, is home to the annual Masters Par 3 Contest.

The Cradle at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina features nine fun and challenging par 3 holes.

Bluebird - The Sands Par 3 Golf Course in Selah, Washington, boasts beautiful bluegrass fairways and bentgrass greens.

Each of these par 3 courses offers a unique experience that challenges golfers while still being enjoyable for players of all skill levels.

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PAR 3 POPULARITY – Raymond Hearn Golf Course Designs Gets It, Creates It!


PAR 3 POPULARITY – Raymond Hearn Golf Course Designs Gets It, Creates It!

While the bread and butter of our work at Raymond Hearn Golf Course Designs has been award-winning renovation and restoration in recent years, our combination of experience and skills fit naturally with versatility and we’ve responded with some spectacular work in response to the popular par 3 course construction trend.

In other words, our customers asked and we delivered, and in some cases they asked and we suggested a par 3 that we are delivering.

Golf has seen an increase in the number of people entering the game and this was happening even before the surge to another level that followed the Covid-19 pandemic. We also recognize the three-headed dragon that has hampered the industry to some degree – time, expense and difficulty keeping people away from the game.

  For those looking for something with some wow factor to add to their golf facilities in addition to another 18-hole course or an expanded practice facility, the par 3 works and fits seamlessly. For those especially concerned with the three-headed dragon, the par 3 course helps solve that puzzle, too.

The Inn at St Johns Par 3 Course and Two Acre Putting Course

We think a par 3 can serve in multiple ways, one being the tricycle to the bicycle or even training wheels. Get on, learn to ride, and then move forward. A par 3 course also takes less time to play and is less expensive than playing an 18-hole course. There is also the crown jewel of a hole-in-one awaiting golfers of any skill level at each of the holes. Par 3s add excitement. It’s that simple.

  In addition to helping the golfer in many ways, a par 3 course helps our expanding clients. A par 3 is less costly to construct, uses less land, less irrigation, less fertilizer, and there is less to maintain overall.

  With both the golfer and the client in mind, we feel the key to success with a par 3 course is to make them special in design, friendly to the golfer, attractive and alluring. Along with that they have to be interesting enough that the better golfers want to use them to hone their short games which allows a facility to get all the golfers A to Z engaged in the experience.

  We’ve found that when a par 3 is added to an established facility with 18 or 36 holes, there is a higher chance of it being successful. They are adding something else for their current customers and potential new audience.

  The proof of course, is in the pudding and we are working to back up our par 3 philosophy for our clients.

  For instance, we are creating a new par 3 course for BOYNE Golf and The Highlands at Harbor Springs (Michigan). It is replacing a current par 3 course with something new and incredible on the same land, and next to it we are creating a new and exciting nine-hole putting course. Construction on that will start in the next year, perhaps in the fall of 2022 or in the spring of 2023.

  At the Inn at St. Johns for the Pulte Family Foundation in Plymouth, Mich., we are planning a unique seven-hole par 3 course and a Himalayas-style putting course in addition to a new championship 18-hole course. This is part of a large project, which includes a new wedding event center and much more, with groundbreaking on May 1st this year.

  We are also set to work on a 9-hole par 3 at the classic Maple Lane Golf Club in Sterling Heights, Mich., which dates to the late 1920s in serving golfers. It is in addition to the brand new 18-hole course   on the existing golf site for the Moceri family. The plan is to start that project May 1 of 2023.

  Meanwhile in Maine at the highly regarded Sugarloaf Resort for BOYNE Golf we are doing an incredible nine-hole par 3 course and Himalaya putting course, too.

  There are more we are talking with clients about, too.

  We are having fun doing this and while not trying to reproduce a replica of a great green from the golden age of course design, we are adding some fun and strong flavors of some par 3 gems on those classic designs. At St. Johns and at The Highlands golfers will find perhaps a classic Radan or Postage Stamp green adding to the fun.

   It’s exciting. We continue to do our award-winning restoration and renovation of classic courses, including some that date to the pre-1900s, and we are adding new and exciting par 3s and more for our clients to help them move forward and attract new golfers in the years ahead.

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"Raymond Hearn is part artist and part engineer."

Golf Writer , Delta Airlines Magazine

Raymond Hearn Golf Course Designs 119 West 37th St. Holland, MI 49423

616-399-7686

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 The only one 5-star golf resort in the Moscow region

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The best golf clubs in moscow: luxury, exclusivity, and entertainment.

By Walter Raymond

February 24, 2015

• The Best Golf Clubs in…

In Russia, the western concept of building architecturally beautiful golf courses filled with modern and luxurious amenities has found fertile ground. What was considered a frivolous pastime during the time of the Soviets has become the latest trend for the stylish set. These days, there are countless options around Moscow to practice golf, polo, ski, yachting, and other sports alongside 5-star hotels, luxurious country houses, and magnificent villas.

The game of golf is a sport that requires passion and expertise. It is also part of a culture that considers this pastime a synonym of social prestige and exclusivity. In recent years, the new Russian elite has turned to golf as a vehicle of integration in the era of globalization. Golf courses are also meeting and socializing spaces where Muscovite tycoons can relax and also seal business deals.

Golf Courses in Russia

The Moscow Country Club, Pestovo Golf & Yacht Club, Tseleevo Golf & Polo Club, and Zavidovo Golf Club, PGA National Russia are some of the most exclusive and elegant golf courses in Russia. Some of them have made it to the list of Top 15 golf clubs in the world, a source of great prestige for the country.

Moscow Country Club Moscow Country Club

The first 18-hole golf course built in Russia, Moscow Country Club, hosts the exclusive PGA European Tour. Located just eight miles from the city center, this luxurious facility was created by architect Robert Trent Jones Jr . The design takes advantage of a typical Russian birch and spruce forest to provide a natural environment of extraordinary beauty.

Pestovo Golf & Yacht Club Pestovo Golf & Yacht Club

The Pestovo Golf & Yacht Club is 18 miles from the heart of Moscow, close to historical monuments from the 17th and 18th centuries. Designed by famed architects Paul and Dave Thomas , this 18-hole course is part of a complex that includes a yacht club, an equestrian center, and a health and wellness facility. Pestovo Golf & Yacht Club is Russia’s version of a classic country club with multiple attractions.

Tseleevo Golf & Polo Club Tseleevo Golf & Polo Club

This park is among the best in Eastern Europe and was awarded the 2014 World Golf Award as the best golf course in Russia. Located 25 miles from Moscow, it is part of a vast complex featuring an 18-hole golf course, designed by Jack Nicklaus , a polo club and a mountain ski club with four tracks. The design combines classic Scottish, Alpine, and English features in a dreamy landscape.

Zavidovo Golf Club, PGA National Russia Zavidovo Golf Club, PGA National Russia

Less than 60 miles from Moscow, this golf course with a definite Scottish design is the only one in Russia recognized as a PGA (Professional Golfers’ Association) from Britain and Ireland. Located in an ecologically pristine area on the banks of the Volga River, the Zavidovo Golf Club embodies the spirit and appearance of the legendary Scottish golf courses. Its many springs and streams, hills, forests, swamps and lakes justify its reputation as a very demanding circuit. Last year, it entered the exclusive club of the 15 best golf courses in the world.   ■

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