How It Began…
Here is your opportunity to meet Nick! In 2004, after spending 6 years, apprenticing at public and private facilities, I was recruited to a newly built facility in Wrightstown, WI, called Royal St. Patrick’s Golf Links. I would like to tell you I was handed the keys, but there was no building. There was no paperwork, no plan, there was basically nothing, except a small temporary building, a beautiful finished golf course and dial up internet. It was here where I was entrusted to “protect the asset”, and if I could keep it from losing hundreds of thousands of dollars, that wouldn’t be a bad goal either.
We plugged away… enjoying being the new kid on the block, going against competitors that had course and buildings that were beginning to show their age. I reverse engineered the whole traditional golf theory, opting to not go after members, but building the business through outings, events and eventually leagues. As a real estate development, we survived the Great Recession, though we probably shouldn’t have. We continued to forge a brand that was based on doing the “opposite” of whatever anyone else was doing. We had a course with a different style, we had a different model, we had a different pricing mentality, we had different employees, we marketed different. Are you sensing a theme?
Called Home…
In 2012 I was called to the home office by the owner. “Nick”, he said, “I want you to buy the course”. I sat there speechless. I thought, wow Harry, you’re crazy. I have no money, I’m too conservative, I’m worried about failing, there’s NO WAY…9 months later I owned my own course.
People ask, why did I do it? Mostly because so many people told me I couldn’t. Other than that…I just don’t know. I had, and have awesome co-workers, I did it for them. I worked so hard to create the brand, I didn’t want the course to fall into the hands of these rich play babies with too much money, who love the idea of a toy, proceed to bleed it dry and then leave it in financial ruin. Maybe, I did it because I love golf. Who Knows?
Where It Originates…
So why this blog? I always loved to write. In 2007, I began writing things for our customers. My thoughts on swing theory, and just boiler plate golf crap. It was well received. I was putting out content, before putting out content was cool. As time went on, business and my life experiences changed. I was learning how to be a boss, how to operate, how to survive… and let’s face it, my ideas on how to do that were out there…so I shared them. People loved that too.
With ownership came a new dimension to my learning. I took people on the ride. Every golfer sits at the bar and talks about what he “would do if he owned the course”, so I began to give them a glimpse into the hell on earth it can be. People went bonkers! It was honest, it was raw. People got to see behind the curtain, and it made them begin to question the value proposition other courses offered. Month after month, I would crank out my thoughts in a piece I call “Tales From The Tall Grass”. 16,000+ get my newsletter each month, here they enjoy a little escapism. They finish, hit delete, and my articles simply vanish.
Until Now…
The creation of Golf Course Owner Guy, is merely a written manifestation to share our facility and our journey beyond the 16,000 who closely follow us and support us. It’s a reality check for those who might want to own a course. It’s the “how to guide” for those who do own a course. It’s entertainment for all those who only dream of owning one. It’s random, it’s light, it’s relevant, it’s honest and actually it comes quite easy. That’s the benefits of being wired a little different These are not absolute truths, but one man’s mental gymnastics as he tries to survive as a seasonal small business in northern Wisconsin.
I invite you to join our email list, follow our blog, consume our social media, and hopefully PLAY GOLF and have DINNER at our awesome facility.
Thank You To My Incredible Team and My Awesome Patrons, These Stories Are Written By You, and For You!