If you go back to the late 1980s, Omaha had a high demand for golf that was not being met. Municipal courses like Benson, Applewood, The Knolls, Dodge and Elmwood were very difficult to get on and most of the country clubs were very expensive and full. I was busy with young kids and wanted to play at least a few times a month. For a few years we had a regular time at Miracle Hill on Sunday mornings. It was hard to get that regular time and we never felt like a valued customer. We lost the time when we got booted for not showing up one weekend.
Around 1989, I made a big decision to join The Pines, a good course in Valley with a stock membership around $1500 to get in and dues of under $100 a month. Even as a member it was difficult to get times. I remember a line at the pro shop to get times for the following week at 6:30 in the morning. Those in line got priority over those trying to call for a time. I left the Pines in 1998, partly because of all the other choices for golf. I then rejoined in 2009 for no initiation fee. By 2009, The Pines and all courses were struggling for members.
Nationally, there was a golf course building boom in the 80s and 90s, that was being funded by developers who could use the new course to sell homes in a development. The economy was good for most of the 90s and people had more time and money to play golf.
I believe the course building and development in the Omaha area is unprecedented and we likely won’t see anything like this again. The 10 years of new courses gave many a chance to play, no matter your ability or price range.
My recent research shows the following courses added in our market:
Tiburon opened the first 18 holes in 1989, third nine in 1994
Champions Run-990
Shoreline-1990
Indian Creek-1992
Tara Hills expanded to 18 holes in 1993
Pacific Springs-1996
Quarry Oaks-1996
Shadow Ridge-1997
Tregaron-1997
Bent Tree- 2000
Eagle Hills-2000
Stone Creek- 2000
River Wilds-2000
Players Club, first 18 in 2000
Iron Horse- 2001
This was followed by Arbor Links in Nebraska City in 2002. During those 11 years the golf community around Omaha saw expansion of 15 new 18 hole courses. The economy was good in the 90s and the tech bubble in the stock market made golf and country clubs more affordable. There was obviously a strong market for homes to be sold on a golf course. Homes on courses at Players Club, Tiburon, Shadow Ridge, Stone Creek, Tregaron, Tara Hills, Pacific Springs and Iron Horse went up and sold quickly. Most of these courses and clubs did quite well, but had to tighten up their operations and work harder to keep members over the next 20 years, especially after the economic slump of the late 2000s. We have seen a few courses close, but the only 18 holes courses I remember closing were Skyline(Amatura), Fontenelle Hills and Highland-Ironwood.
After the tech bubble of 2000 and the 9-11 disaster, the situation changed. Then we had the recession of 2008-9. Golf like any business is a product of supply and demand, and the supply got ahead of the demand. Initiation fees at local clubs came way down and many were fighting for new members, just to get that recurring revenue. I think you could get into Champions or Shadow around this time for almost nothing. I was a member at the Pines again from 2009-2018 and they were doing anything to get new members, more outings and public play. That all changed quickly with Covid.
Besides Covid, I am not sure what caused the recent golf boom. During Covid many who were “working from home” had time to play more. With a lot of youth sports canceled for a year or more, young parents had time to play golf. Most of the local clubs now have a waiting list and are hard to get into. Pines now doesn’t have any public play and has turned away many outings and has a new-member waiting list. Lost Rail recently opened appealing to the higher income level and had no problem selling out.
Although tee times are tight on weekends, as a retired golfer, I have no problems finding a game during the week at reasonable prices and a good variety in the Omaha area. You just have to plan a week or more ahead. Some even longer- Landmand opened two years ago and sells all their tee times for the year on December 31at $150 each. Renovated Quarry Oaks is opening in the spring of 25 and rates are scheduled for $150 with reservations starting March 1. Will the Omaha market support that high green fee? Guest fees at the private clubs have gone way up, some of those increases to make the course more available to members. Arbor Links is now all private and over $200 for guests. Some of the nicer clubs are cutting back on outings to give their members more access. I have seen this with my work with the Nebraska Senior Golf Association being challenged to find a dozen private nice clubs to host one of their events.
I am not sure what the next few years will bring. The only local course in the planning stage I know of is the announcement in 2023 that Denny Circo was going to bring back Skyline as a luxury country club with a clubhouse, pool etc. Golf and the economy will run in cycles. Let’s try to make sure we have decent courses available for all income levels and our youth to perpetuate the future of the sport. Some of these courses have not kept up with renovations. Basic things like bunkers and sprinkler systems usually need major investments within 20 years. Some courses have done major renovations, like OCC, Quarry and Champions. With the supply a little ahead of demand, courses are in better shape and the local golf establishments seem to treat the clients as more like valuable customers than we saw years ago.
