Golf clubs hitting back
$1.3m project ready to go as Paradise Palms closure has a green lining
A CAIRNS golf club has noticed such an upswing in business since Paradise Palms closed that it is about to tee off on a million-dollar project.
The once-prestigious course, built by Daikyo during the Japanese tourism boom years in the 1990s, has been shut since April last year.
Cairns Golf Club general manager Matt Bolton said it was heartbreaking as a golfer to say goodbye – but running a course was a numbers game.
“Not too many business people will be coming down to build a $40m-$50m golf course any time soon,” he said.
“But as an administrator, I think I’m very well qualified to understand how difficult it is to make a golf course commercially viable.”
Mr Bolton said the Cairns, Half Moon Bay and Gordonvale golf clubs had each benefited by an increase in local visitation since Paradise Palms’ exit.
The rise in business is about to translate into a major upgrade at the Cairns Golf Club.
“Six years ago, Cairns Golf Club was in a world of financial distress,” Mr Bolton said.
“That’s no secret but we’ve come a long way.
“Even before Paradise Palms closed, we were already well and truly on the right track.
“But now we’ve got the confidence to the point that we’re actually going out to tender on the first stage of a major $1.3m irrigation project.”
COVID-19 has also contributed to a major increase in locals joining golf clubs or coming for social games.
“Golf worldwide has seen a massive spike because of the nature of the game being socially distanced,” Mr Bolton said.
Half Moon Bay Golf Club manager Greg Ferry said he had seen a similar rise in local player numbers – although the reduction in bigger-spending tourists to the northern beaches had taken a toll.
Mr Ferry said things might have been difficult if Paradise Palms had remained open.
“It was a beautiful course and we’re probably never going to have that sort of course here again, unfortunately,” he said. “But we got busier as soon as it closed.
“It was going nicely until COVID hit. It would have been a very tough year, I think, if Paradise Palms had still been open while COVID was on.”
The redevelopment plan, including a residential subdivision, caravan park, village hub, walking tracks and a water park, is due to go before Cairns Regional Council next month.