After years of searching, the city of Augusta, Georgia appears to have identified an operator for its financially distressed 18-hole golf course.
The city is negotiating a five-year contract with Orlando, Florida-based Cypress Golf Management, which believes it can turn a profit at Augusta Municipal Golf Course – known locally as “the Patch” – by late 2016 or early 2017. Doing so may be a challenge, as Cypress has promised that greens fees will remain in the mid $20s, cart included.
“The mission is to provide affordable golf,” a councilmember told the Augusta Chronicle.
Cypress is led by Bill Stine, one of the founders of International Golf Maintenance Company and Meadowbrook Golf. The company currently manages one property in Georgia (Durham Lakes Country Club in Fairburn) and six in Florida, among them Hernando Oaks Golf Club in Brooksville, Remington Golf Club in Kissimmee and Twisted Oaks Country Club in Beverly Hills.