As a result of “the economic downturn, bad weather and the long-term decline of the sport of golf,” the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports, city-owned courses in Minnesota “are hitting a rough patch.”
Citing 2011 figures provided by the state auditor – the most recent data available, believe it or not – the newspaper says that only six of the state’s 40 city-owned tracks managed to turn a profit. Collectively, the courses lost $4.7 million in 2011, 20 percent more than they lost in 2009.
“It’s a labor of love, not a labor of making money,” notes Tom Ryan, the director of the Minnesota Golf Association.
Despite all the red ink, however, at least some of the state’s city-owned golf properties have reason to be optimistic. Because the recession has claimed so many privately owned properties, the municipals expect to benefit from decreased competition.