I've been in the Myrtle Beach area for the last week, and everywhere I go, both on the Strand's golf courses and off, I hear essentially the same thing: "What do the Chinese plan to do with the golf courses they've bought?" And "How many more will they buy?"
In just the last two years, according to a recent article in the Myrtle Beach Sun News, China-based companies have purchased 13 of the area's golf courses as well as the sprawling former site of Waccamaw Pottery and an undeveloped section of the Grande Dunes Resort area. In addition, they have bought 100 single-family homes, signaling what very well could be the key to their interest in Grand Strand commercial and golf properties (more on that below).
$11 million for 3 golf courses
The spate of sales started with one Chinese family purchasing Black Bear Golf Club in Longs, SC, a year ago for $1.5 million, certainly not an outrageous outlay for more than 150 acres of property but probably an above market price for one of the Myrtle Beach area's lesser tracks. Shortly after, a local Realtor originally from China contacted The Classic Group, owners of Founders Club in Pawleys Island, Indian Wells Golf Club in Garden City, SC, and Burning Ridge Golf Club in Conway. In September, a sale for the three was consummated for $11 million, what local observers considered much higher than market price for the golf course package.
The Founders Club in Pawleys Island, originally named Sea Gull Golf Club, was purchased recently by a Chinese company, one of 13 courses in the Myrtle Beach area sold to Chinese in the last year.
Chinese interests followed with purchases of nine additional courses for $35 million over succeeding months, including a whopping $10 million for International World Tour Links in Myrtle Beach, the three courses at Sea Trail Plantation for $8.5 million and TPC Myrtle Beach in Murrells Inlet for $7.3 million. At those prices, we can't imagine there was too much negotiation.
Golf, cart, breakfast, lunch, two beers...$40
Myrtle Beach tourism suffered greatly during the recession, and no sector more so than the local golf industry. With nearly 120 golf courses operating in the mid 2000s, the 90-mile stretch of coastline from Georgetown in the south to mid Brunswick County, NC, in the north had more than a sustainable number of layouts. When the recession drove away most tourist play, some local operators panicked and dropped prices and added freebies to their offerings in an effort to keep names on their tee sheets; even today, The Legends Resort in Myrtle Beach, home to three good golf courses, offers players breakfast, lunch, two draft beers, green fees and a cart for less than $40. That has driven other local golf courses to compete on price (and throw-ins) with the inevitable loss of operating revenue, which almost always results in fewer services and poorer maintenance.
