Out of the rough
Golf is thriving more than ever in the Lehigh Valley during pandemic
As more and more businesses nationwide are threatened each month by billions of tiny, 0.125-micron coronavirus particles that just won’t go away, there is at least one industry that’s surging like never before during these strange and largely depressing times: Golf.
Though endangered like everything else by state-mandated shutdowns in March and April, the business and popularity of golf has not only bounced back since courses have been allowed to reopen, but has reached new heights. In many cases, this has helped courses in the Lehigh Valley and across the country more than make up for revenue lost during the closures.
According to the National Golf Foundation, approximately 27 million more rounds of golf were played in this country this summer compared with last summer. That has put the nation on pace for a 6% increase for all of 2020 compared with 2019.
That’s carried over to the fall, especially in the Lehigh Valley, where many courses are reporting record revenues.
As almost anyone who’s tried to book a tee time recently will tell you, it’s catch as catch can. If you’re not extremely flexible with your times, you’re going to be disappointed more often than not.
OK, so all your favorite courses are booked? What’s a person to do?
If you’re thinking an acceptable alternative may be a relatively quick trip to the driving range to at least sharpen up for the next time you’re fortunate enough to find an opening, you might want to think again, because it’s just as tough find an open spot there too.
“We made more money on the driving range in the first seven days of this month than we made all of last October,” Allentown Municipal Golf Course general manager Jeff Wambold said.
Last October, by the way, was part of
the course’s biggest overall money-making year ever.
Until this year.
“We were $30,000 ahead in September versus our best year ever last year,” Wambold said. That was just in September. “I would say by November we will be ahead of our revenue projection for a normal year without COVID,” Wambold said. “So I’m extremely happy about that.”
This, despite being shut down for 44 days after the pandemic first struck and despite still operating under safety regulations that are more stringent than other courses’, including just one person per cart unless riders live in the same household, limiting revenue.
“It’s unbelievable,” Wambold said. “There’s been such a boost to golf. So many more people are playing golf this year. Fortunately for golf and maybe unfortunately for other businesses, It’s one of the only things people can do safely that they feel that they’re safe doing. ... Looking ahead through next week, I’d probably say we don’t even have 10 tee times open in the morning.”
In Bethlehem, the newly renovated municipal course also has seen a significant uptick, with sold out tee times more the norm, according to the club’s manager.
Bookings also are up at Green Pond Country Club, which in addition to being closed during the early stages of the pandemic was under reconstruction that kept certain holes out of play.
Now that the full course is back, the phones never stop ringing.
“I think this took everybody by surprise,” head pro John Kulhamer said. “I don’t know if it took a pandemic to bring the game back, but there are a lot of people who have turned to golf because they don’t have anything else to do.”
The great weather this summer and fall has factored into that as well, according to Kulhamer and Southmoore Golf Course head pro Jim Muschlitz, who wasn’t as surprised as some others by the surging demand for tee times.
As is the case with Allentown, Muschlitz said Southmoore, which is in Bath, “probably will” make more money than ever this year. And in Southmoore’s case, that’s even more astounding because the course was closed longer than most others.
“We closed down when [the state] recommended we close down,” Muschlitz said. “Other courses closed down when they had to close down.”
But Muschlitz is not surprised by what’s happening within his industry.
“The reason whywe’re so busy, I think, is people can’t really go on vacations like they did, the school schedules for children are different ... so when they’re home at the end of the day at 3 o’clock, they’re coming out to take lessons or they’re playing more in the evenings. We have a special [twilight] rate for juniors. So you can get nine holes in.
He said he gave more lessons to juniors this summer, and noted there are more new golfers.
Southmoore has been inundated with requests from groups of nomadic golfers that have kept the course packed to capacity.
“What I’ve seen is a lot of groups with 20-30 players,” Muschlitz said. “It’s not really an outing. They just call in and they say, ‘Can I get a tee time for Oct. 29? I have 24 players.’ And they’re coming from Jersey, they’re coming from Pennsylvania.”
Less than a mile away from Southmoore, Whitetail Golf Club is experiencing the same spike in business, which makes it impossible to accommodate everyone.
“It’s a good problem to have,” head pro Brad Paukovits said. “We take tee times seven days out and we’re just encouraging people to book further in advance.”
Members of private clubs are especially affected. No longer can many get the times they have been accustomed to for years. That, in turn, could threaten membership rolls.
Up in the mountains, it’s the same. Business is booming at Mountain Valley Golf Course in Schuylkill County’s Ryan Township.
“Our golf has increased probably 30%,” Director of Operations John Rizzo said. “And all our golf tournaments have seen an increase in their registration of golfers. If a golf tournament last year had 100, well, they’re looking at 120, 130, even up to 144, which is a great increase for the tournaments that they’re running and also for the charity that they’re trying to raise money for.”
Where Mountain Valley continues to be hit hard, however, is its restaurant/bar, which was popular for Friday night deck parties that attracted many people who had no interest in golf. The parties remain suspended until further notice. And while there is some outdoor dining, indoor dining is limited because of the state’s coronavirus restrictions.
Unlike many other courses, Mountain Valley can better deal with the sudden and unexpected increase in demand because it features two 18-hole courses and 144 carts.
The big question is what will happen to the industry in the post-COVID-19 universe.
“I don’t think it will continue at this pace,” Rizzo said. “I don’t see a dramatic drop, but I do see a drop coming once things get back to normal a little bit, where people have different things to do, being able to go to sporting events, holding gatherings, things of that nature.”
Any amount of new golfers gained during this pandemic can only help the industry in the long run, Paukovits and others noted.
While nobody knows if golf’s popularity will be the same at this time next year, the present is too bright to start peeking around corners.
Morning Call reporter Nick Fierro can be reached at 610-7782243 or nfierro@mcall.com.