Golf Industry Central Winter 2013 | Page 27

Course Updates have been quite specific and I hear about it and think- well I think I would know. But when it gets back to staff it is quite upsetting. If we could stop them we would, but as soon as you put any business on the market this is what happens. We are just trying to minimise it and keep the process of selling it separate to the process of running it. I have said to the staff, if you see me down there with someone- don’t assume anything! It could be an insurance underwriter that has nothing to do with the sale. We are having a mid-year function with the staff soon just to keep trying to communicate with them. “The other thing is with a golf course, you really shouldn’t make decisions for the short term- ie; stop spending money on the course maintenance. Commonly, when you sell a business you stop spending money to try and make the profits and loss look pretty and with many businesses you can get away with that for awhile. But with a golf course, decisions you make now can have a long term impact and you can see the physical damage. If we don’t find a buyer wiling to pay a price we are happy to sell at, we are open to the idea that we won’t sell which means we will have to make some more decisions. So we are very much running the business as usual. That is the first thing we tell any interested party as well, which is a positive thing and they see that. We hope that also gives the staff some comfort, despite the fact in the industry there is a lot of cost-cutting going on across the board, but that is nothing to do with the sale. “Scott Balloch who is our superintendent has been with the course longer than we have owned it and we consider it is as much his baby as our baby and we are very lucky to have someone with his commitment- it is extraordinary. We know if we make tough business decisions he will support them.” Well, Andrew, it sounds l