Marv Hansen, the owner of Scherwood Golf in Schererville, did something this summer he hadn't done in 31 years.
He dropped his weekend play rate during prime time from $48 (with a cart) to $39.
Scherwood has always been a bustling course with a loyal clientele. Hansen bought it in 1979 and over the years, has invested in it wisely, groomed it nicely and taken care of his working-class golf base with a fair price.
It has returned the favor by paying him and his family back well.
He has been able to hold his prices steady or raise them modestly.
Then the triple whammy -- an awful, rain-soaked May and June, a sagging economy, and a glut of golf courses in the area -- turned the landscape into a golfers' paradise for daily players, who get bargain prices, and a nightmare for owners just trying to get through the season and see what next year brings.
"I've never seen it like this," Hansen said. "I think it's going to be tough going forward for mom-and-pop courses."
The golf course carnage in Northwest Indiana over the last eight years is substantial. At least six courses in the area have been shuttered since 2002, three more have declared bankruptcy and one private owner is seeking alternative funding sources to pay off a $3.3 million loan.
The cutthroat competition, pitting golf course owners against one another and private owners against courses run by municipalities, started in the early '90s when the National Golf Foundation predicted a boom in the number of players. The trend brought golf course developments like White Hawk in Crown Point and The Course at Aberdeen. The Brassie, an upscale course in Chesterton, was also built.
From the municipal side, Lost Marsh was built in Hammond, Creekside in Valparaiso and just last year, Centennial Park, a new 9-hole course in Munster, sprouted up.
But the boom never happened -- at least not in measureable terms -- for owners here and across the country.
"It's going to be hard to correct the mistakes the golf industry made a number of years ago," Duane Bocherding, general manager at the Brassie said. "I can't think off the top of my head of one regional golf course that is doing well."
At The Brassie, they used to have a management company, a head pro, a golf professional and a superintendent running the course.
Now, Bocherding wears all those hats, along with some part-time help. On a recent Saturday, with nice weather, it had the poorest turnout in his six years there.
Bocherding offers this hypothetical about the future of Brassie.
"If they plowed Brassie under next year and turned it into an airfield, I'm still convinced they need a golf course on this side of (Interstate) 94," he said. "I'm not sure why it's not better."
Bocherding says there are seven options for golfers in a 30-mile radius of where his course stands: Sand Creek, The Brassie, Robinhurst, Creekside, Forest Park, Valparaiso Country Club and The Course at Aberdeen.
Should a city get involved?
In Crown Point, Paul Switzer, the owner of White Hawk Country Club, which had a bank note for $3.3 million that wasn't renewed, appears to be fishing for some help from the city to pay off the loan.
Switzer has said he is searching for sources of alternative funding to keep the course afloat in its present capacity. He plans to meet with Crown Point officials to see what they can do.
It isn't clear whether the city can legally find money from tax increment financing or revenue bonds. But city officials are seriously trying to find revenue sources for White Hawk because they risk losing a substantial portion of the $600,000 in property tax revenue the course and adjoining residential community provide the city.
Switzer couldn't be reached for comment.
The idea of White Hawk getting a handout from the city infuriates Chuck Hegan, the owner of three courses in Crown Point -- Pheasant Valley, Summertree Golf Club and Oak Knoll.
"That upsets me greatly," Hegan said.
Bob Farag, the owner of Griffith Golf, which was ruined after the flood of 2008, said it's a crazy idea.
"The town would be nuts to do that," he said. "What do they provide to the city? They pay a low amount of property tax."
Hegan is riled up because in 2008, the flood forced him to close Summertree for a year. He had to spend $500,000 of his own money to repair it.
"I live in Crown Point," he said. "I didn't go and ask the city for money. I went out and borrowed it. They can't justify doing that."
Hegan said the solution is simple for White Hawk if it can't pay its bills. The bank should appoint a receiver and find someone to run the course while it searches for a buyer. It will be a valuable buy for someone -- at the right price.
Currently, the course is listed for sale with an asking price of around $8 million, according to multiple sources.
"I feel sorry for the guy," Hegan said. "But they just spent way too much money out there."
Several years ago, White Hawk charged $67 for a round of golf on the weekend. For the next few weeks, golfers can play for $49.
Hegan also noted the homeowners could band together and come up with the cash if they're concerned about property values.
Hegan is familiar with running courses out of bankruptcy. Last fall, he bought Pheasant Valley for $987,000 at auction after a bankruptcy. Hegan said the start-up cost of such a course from scratch would be $5 million.
He plans to spend $2 million fixing it up. Already, he has repaired the greens, put in an upgraded drainage system and bought new maintenance equipment. He also plans to repave the parking lot. Hegan said the course is on pace to break even this year and make money next year.
Private courses can't compete
The other simmering issue for private owners is the built-in advantage for municipal-owned courses. They pay no real estate taxes and can afford to operate at a loss.
For example, Creekside in Valparaiso has never been self-sustaining since it was opened in 2000.
Municipal courses can also afford to be lavish.
At Lost Marsh in Hammond, the city spent $13 million, all from casino tax revenue, to build a clubhouse that opened in 2009. It spent $40 million to clean up a brownfield and turn it into a golf course.
Seven years ago, when the course opened, Mayor Tom McDermott suggested it would do 30,000 rounds a year when it was in full swing. Last year, it did 21,876.
Donnie Plohg, the pro at Lost Marsh, said the course is ahead of pace from 2009 by a thousand rounds because it has benefitted from its location, right on the Indiana-Illinois border. No course in Northwest Indiana charges more for weekend play for nonresidents -- $67 -- than Lost Marsh.
Marsh beats Illinois prices at similar courses by 30 or 40 percent.
Hegan said the extravagant clubhouse, with a restaurant and banquet facility, kills the little guys.
"They put $13 million into a clubhouse and it's a government property," he said. "That hurts private operators."
Plohg understands and sympathizes with the point.
"I agree with what they're saying," he said. "I just run the course. If the economy comes back, I think everyone is singing a different tune."
At Scherwood, Hansen is being squeezed by Wicker Park, 4 miles to the northwest, which re-opened this year after a two-year layoff because of the flood, and by Turkey Creek, 4 miles to the east. Both are municipal courses that charge $25 and $38 for weekend play with a cart.
The good news for consumers is there are bargains galore. Rick Roberts, owner of Rio's Golf in Valparaiso, paid $39 to play at Palmira a few weeks ago with a cart.
With its bent grass fairways and slick greens, playing Palmira for under $40 is a great deal.
Roberts believes in Porter County, that there will be a casualty.
"It's crazy out there," he said. "I see one of them being gone."