Local golf course operator inks two new deals, hits record growth

With two new deals signed this fall, Green Golf Partners has taken another step toward its goal of operating 50 golf courses and tripling its revenue in the next five years.

The Danville-based company now operates 16 golf courses in the Midwest and Southeast United States.

This month, Green Golf Partners signed a deal to manage Crane Creek Golf Course, an 18-hole course in Mason County, outside Kilbourne, Illinois, in the west central part of the state.

In September, Green Golf Partners signed a deal to operate Meshingomesia Golf & Social Club, a 113-year old club in Marion.

Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed.

Dating back to 1902, Meshingomesia is one of Indiana’s oldest courses. It is home to one of Indiana’s best known golfing families, headed by Jim Gallagher Sr.

Meshingomesia has produced several professional golfers, including three who have played and won on PGA tours.

Green Golf Partners CEO Matt McIntee called Meshingomesia “one of the most historic golf courses in Indiana,” and said his company—through enhanced marketing and operations—will make the course more of a statewide draw than it already is. The course, he said, draws golfers from Muncie, Fort Wayne, Anderson and the northern suburbs of Indianapolis.

“Our goal is to refine an already excellent golf and social club experience for members who travel to Meshingomesia from throughout central Indiana,” McIntee said.

At Crane Creek, Green Golf Partners officials are evaluating the course and will make several upgrades before the 2016 season is in full swing next spring. Golf Illinois magazine gave Crane Creek 4-1/2 stars on a five-point scale. GolfAdvisor.com gave the course a four-star rating.

Green Golf Partners has more than 700 employees and annual revenue just north of $20 million, according to company officials, with revenue and profits growing this year at a double-digit clip.

“Projections for fiscal year ending 2015 have Green Golf Partners leased facilities showing a bottom line improvement of 36 percent over 2014 actuals,” McIntee said. “This trend is also happening with GGP managed courses which are projected to trend at an improvement over 2014, some as high as a 65 percent increase to the bottom line.”

Exceptional late fall weather and cost containment measures implemented by the company have lead to “a record breaking year across the portfolio,” McIntee added.

With El Nino expected to blow in warmer and dryer weather into much of the country this winter, Green Golf Partners is anticipating a strong start in 2016.

Green Golf partners was founded in April 2011 by McIntee and three central Indiana entrepreneurs: former Meridian Hills Country Club Superintendent Tom Rodems, his son Tony Rodems and former Crooked Stick Golf Club and Bear Slide Golf Club staffer Mike Shaw.