NY Post: "NYC golf courses devastated by continued coronavirus shutdown"

While most Americans and the world are safely returning to golf—97% of U.S. courses according to National Golf Foundation surveys—the situation in New York is less rosy for golfers. In the New York city area, Mark Cannizzaro reports on the 13 courses in the five burroughs remaining closed.

“It’s devastating,’’ Rich McDonough, the director of golf at Marine Park in Brooklyn, told The Post on Friday. “You’re talking about multi-million-dollars-a-year businesses that have absolutely no ability to operate, and there’s no reason whatsoever why they’re not open.’’

Mike Giordano, who operates Marine Park as the concessionaire, said he “thought initially it was going to end in a couple weeks, then it became a month now we’re into our third month.’’
“This could be a death blow to us,’’ Giordano told The Post. “Nobody has unlimited funds. You exhaust your funds as the clock keeps ticking.’’

Giordano said he’s spending $100,000 per month to maintain the golf course with no revenue coming in and — most appallingly — no communication from City Hall.

Upstate, Sal Maiorana, James Johnson and Brodie Inguaggiato, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle look at how recreational pursuits were faring and focused on the troubles of golf courses dealing with mass food and beverage cancellations, and tee-time spacing.

Clearly, the food and beverage end of the golf business is suffering, but so, too, is the actual playing of the game.

Edmister said Blue Heron Hills had a flurry of early play in March thanks to unusually cooperative weather, and when the one-week, state-mandated shutdown of golf facilities was lifted in early April, the golfers were back out playing, but certainly not at the numbers you’d typically see.

The continued guidelines imposed by the state on social distancing, the prohibition of cart use, which has only recently been lifted — along with the fact that some people simply aren’t comfortable leaving their homes yet — have cut deeply into the bottom line. 

“The PGA of America is recommending 10- to 15-minute intervals for tee times,” Edmister said. “That hurts you at the end of the day when you might have 80 tee times and now you’re down to 40.”

In contrast, reader Gary sent me this note today, which mirrors what I’ve been seeing on social media and in conversations with golfers who have been out playing.

I live in Nassau County, Long Island and play at the public county course (Eisenhower Park. The county guidelines have tee times split 16 minutes apart. Golf is so much more enjoyable this way as the pace of play has been reduces by about 30-40 minutes. While I understand that the economics of this reduces revenue, the enjoyability factor is much greater.