Inside Furman is published quarterly by the Furman University Department of Marketing and Public Relations. For story ideas, e-mail John Roberts, editor.
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Furman golf course logs record rounds
In golf the lowest score wins, but it’s some rising numbers that have
golf course director Willie Miller smiling.
Traffic — or rounds played on the course — has jumped about 35
percent during the past three years. There were 27,918 rounds played during
fiscal year 2004-05, compared with 32,850 last year. With the fiscal year
coming to a close next month, the course is on pace to log a record 36,000
rounds in 2007.
While memberships and rounds played have been edging up over the past few
years, Miller, who has directed the course since 1979, said that implementing
the recommendations of a 2004 audit by the National Golf Foundation (NGF)
helped to jump-start sales.
“Basically, they said that we needed a marketing budget, we needed a
grill of some sort, and we needed to improve the greens,” says Miller.
Since that time, the university has been crossing items off the NGF checklist
and making other improvements. The Betty Ellison Pavilion, located near the
18th hole, was completed in 2004. Bunkers have been replaced, fairways improved
and tee boxes added. The most dramatic makeover, however, was completed last
month with the opening of the 600-square-foot Traditions Grill, a small restaurant
that serves hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and salads.
Photos of Furman golf legends Betsy King, Dottie Pepper, Brad Faxon and others
adorn the walls of the grill, which is adjacent to the pro shop.
Kevin Dehlinger was hired as a golf professional and director of marketing
in 2005. Dehlinger redesigned the course Web site and developed a marketing
campaign that included print, radio and television advertisements.
“This year we have a $30,000 marketing budget,” says Dehlinger.
“Last year it was $15,000; the year before that it was zero. We are
definitely seeing a return on our marketing investment.”
Miller and Dehlinger said there are currently no plans to construct new greens,
which would cost approximately $1 million. “We’re doing well,
and there is a lot more interest in the golf course,” says Miller. “We’ll
just keep hustling and hope for the best.”
Traditionally, the course attracts players who want the experience of playing
on a challenging layout but don’t want to pay for country club amenities
such as swimming pools, restaurants and tennis courts. While an annual individual
membership at the Furman course is $1,800, a country club membership can cost
up to $4,000 per year.
Dehlinger, the general manager of a private course in Danville, Virginia before
coming to Furman, says the course is “transitioning from an everyday
public course to a premier semi-private course” that will make it more
attractive to a growing local population and to corporations seeking to book
events.
“The private clubs are very expensive. The low and mid-end private courses
are struggling,” says Dehlinger. “We are picking up some of that
because we are working to promote a private atmosphere at a public course.
We’re in the niche that is experiencing the growth.”
With the Woodlands at Furman retirement community and mid- to upper-end subdivisions
planned for the area, Miller says tee times will be in more demand in the
future.