Industry News
Century-old Queensland Golf Club Collapses into Administration
A 116-year-old Queensland golf
course which, at its financial height,
turned over $20 million a year has
collapsed, with the business now up
for sale.
The Ipswich Golf Club was founded
in 1897 by a group of local residents
and was the first golf club in the
area.
On April 19, 2013 the club went into
administration, with Peter Lucas
from PA Lucas and Co appointed as
the administrator.
The firm is now calling for
expressions of interest for the
club, with an advertisement placed
this month in Australian Financial
Review. Assets of the business
include club freehold ownership of
golf course land and buildings, 58
electronic gaming machines, large
clubhouse facilities including bistro,
catering and function rooms, 400
golf members and full onsite green
keeping staff and equipment.
The long-established golf club has
gone through a number of changes
in its history and in 2007 was
considered a “community centre,
open every day and evening”.
In the 1980s the club made the
majority of its turnover through its
drink sales at the bar but throughout
the mid-1980s and early 1990s it
struggled to make a profit.
In 1992 the club made an operating
loss of $19,295 due to “costs
associated with the drought” and “a
significant capital debt”, according
to the club’s website. Later that
year the club introduced gaming
machines and 1993, the club made
an operating profit for the first time
in seven years.
By 2007 the golf club generated a
turnover of $20 million.
In a description of the club’s
history on its website, Ipswich
Golf Club says most of the $20
million in turnover was returned to
the customers through the poker
machines, but it was also making a
cash turnover of $5 million per year.
Australian Golf Industry Association
figures released in May indicate
the amount of golf being played
by Australians this financial year is
rising, up by 5.8% in the first ten
months of the financial year.
Despite these figures, the latest
IBISWorld report into sports and
recreation facilities operation in
Australia found golf’s popularity has
declined substantially since 2002.
The report found interest in
the sport was at its lowest in a
decade and the lack of interest
was attributed to no significant
international tournaments being
played in Australia.
The Board of Golf Management Australia (GMA) invites
you to attend the 2013 GMA National Conference. They
have secured an excellent venue in Sydney for this
year’s festivities.
The Conference will be held from Monday 2nd to
Thursday 5th September, 2013 and the host venue will
be the Four Seasons Hotel, 199 George Street, Sydney.
Please mark your calendars now to ensure you don’t
miss what will be another outstanding Conference!
Should you require further information, please contact
GMA’s Executive Officer, David Allen [email protected]
Golf Industry Central Winter 2013
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