A lone golfer on the tee at Castle Oaks Golf Course in Ione has the first hole to himself. Photo by: Jerry Budrick

As Gold Rush Ranch and Golf Resort in Sutter Creek continues to slowly wend its way through the approval process, reports of diminished economic viability in the golf course business have begun to appear.

The National Golf Foundation has reported that fewer than 90 new courses opened nationwide last year, the lowest in 20 years.

"The economic situation, particularly the continued decline in the housing market, has and will continue to suppress golf course development activity in the U.S.," predicted NGF president and chief executive officer Joe Beditz.

The foundation also reported that nearly 100 golf courses closed last year. This trend of more closures than openings has now reached its third straight year.

As Gold Rush partners were making their case in Sutter Creek last year, a competing golf community project in nearby Jackson faded from contention. Faced with continued public opposition after a difficult five-year process, New Faze Development officially asked the Jackson City Council to pull the plug on its 540-home Jackson Hills subdivision plan last March. Proponents of the subdivision have termed the Sacramento firm's withdrawal a delay, but the company has experienced economic troubles on the real estate front, filing for bankruptcy on three projects in November.

Tales of doom and gloom in the world of golf have not affected the enthusiasm of Troy Claveran, who has been the public voice for Gold Rush Ranch and Golf Resort for more than eight years.

"Counting my dad, my uncle, my two brothers and myself, we have over 150 years of experience in professional golf," Claveran said, adding that those years have taught him and his family a few things about golf course operation.

Asked to explain the declining numbers, Claveran replied, "Poor management, definitely, poor management, not using the tee effectively." Effective tee use, he explained, involves spreading players out to fill all the hours of all the days. "There's no reason for golf courses to go down. It's just the way they're being managed."

"The reason we've gone from almost 13 percent of the population playing golf to almost as low as 8 percent in some areas is course owners became corporate minded," Claveran enumerated. "It shouldn't be how much money can it make. It should be how much can it do for its community and still retain a reasonable profit margin."

Claveran hopes to appeal to everyone in the community - seniors and kids, men's groups and ladies' groups, nine-hole players and 18-hole players, hosting charity and corporate events and offering varied incentives.

Troy's brother, Ray Claveran, provided some hard numbers. Ray has worked in management and as a golf professional at numerous courses, where he has been immersed in practical, day-to-day operations for much of his life.

"It takes millions to build a golf course," Ray said, "starting with finding the land, which has to be buildable and permitted." Costs mount quickly for design, infrastructure, turf cultivation and the like.

"The maintenance budget will be about $1 million a year," Ray figured, "with between 14 and 21 employees, depending on the time of year. There has to be a superintendent and an assistant, the grounds crew and at least one mechanic to care for the carts."

The brothers agree that golfers will drive up to an hour-and-a-half for a fine golf experience, which is part of their reason for confidence, though also for their concern.

"There are a lot of good courses in this area," Ray said. "It's very competitive. And, there's not a lot of population."

The nearest competition for Gold Rush would be Castle Oaks in Ione, which has had a long run as Amador County's only year-round golf course. The county's other course, Mace Meadow, in Pioneer, is situated at an elevation of 3,500 feet, where weather is much more of a factor.

"We just had our best January ever," said Jon Bellotti, who operates Caddy's Restaurant in the clubhouse at Castle Oaks. Bellotti quickly clarified his statement by saying that he meant the golf course, not the restaurant, which is suffering from the economic slump. A restauranteur of many years experience in Sutter Creek, he noted that "the restaurant is the No. 1 business to go out of people's budgets."

"No rain helped," he added, "and the course is in great shape, with the pond filling up and trees being planted. We're hoping for a great year."

Bellotti attributes much of the drop-off in golf numbers to the escalation in prices that he has seen. "Years ago," he said, "a set of clubs was $125. Now they're $700 or $800. Balls were 50 cents and now they're $3 or $4."

"Resort courses still have an opportunity to be successful," Ray assured. "The golf course here in Sutter Creek will bring recognition to the county. Some places have a golf course only as an amenity. For Gold Rush, it's the nucleus of the whole project."

Also in local golf news, Trinitas Golf Course, near the western edge of Calaveras County, has been drawing large crowds to public hearings at the county's planning commission meetings.

At a recent gathering, supporters claimed the project would be an economic boon to the county, providing jobs, attracting tourists, increasing the county tax base, improving property values, and providing a stimulus to get piped water into an underserved area.

Opponents claimed the project is illegal, built without a permit, badly located, in violation of the county general plan, an excessive drain on the west county groundwater supply, and bound to create traffic hazards, noise pollution and infrastructure problems that county taxpayers will have to fix.