(By Jen Aronoff, jaronoff@charlotteobserver.com) Paradise Valley golf course and the Lost Duffer miniature golf course are designed for novices.
And the reasonable prices and family-friendly atmosphere both offer is helping keep business steady during the recession. It’s flat, compared to the same time last year, managers say. If not for a cool, rainy fall and winter, they note, sales would likely have been up. Because the golf business depends so heavily on the weather, general manager Butch Clinkscales says, it’s difficult to tell how much of any shift in business has been due to the economy. However, Clinkscales says his customers now include more regular, full-course golfers. Sandwiched between an apartment complex and a shopping center along busy North Tryon Street in University City, the courses are unlikely to host the PGA Championship. But in the current economy, people are looking for an affordable escape, said Del Ratcliffe, president of Ratcliffe Golf Services, which owns and operates the courses, along with four other public courses in Mecklenburg. It helps, Ratcliffe said, to be on the lower end of the price spectrum: Eighteen holes at Paradise Valley, a compact par 3, cost $8 on weekdays, $12 on weekends. A round of mini-golf is $4.50, up from $4 in 2008 to help finance course improvements. Although Paradise Valley isn’t exactly the kind of place where golfers can pull out the driver, it does provide the chance to have fun without spending half a day or half the contents of a wallet, he said. “They don’t want to give up the sport,” he said. “They still want their fix, and this allows them to do that.” The miniature golf course, with a $30 family package, has also been drawing well, he said. Clinkscales attributes some of the resilience to improvements undertaken before the downturn, including the beginning of junior golf programs that introduced the facility to more people. Not that work has stopped: The last month has brought a refurbished outdoor patio and new video games. The goal is to bring in first-time customers who leave satisfied, and for regulars to not always come back to the same thing. “I try to stress quality and value,” Clinkscales said. “You can come out here anytime and enjoy yourself and (have) it not cost a ton.”Similar Posts:
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