[Proposal#19]: US South East Course

Proposal Name: US South East Course

Authors: Bez, cbruce, Cooper, Jim

Author’s Note: These courses have been purposefully anonymized at the sellers’ request. At such time in the process that we are able to name the courses in members-only channels or privately, we will! In the meantime, please do not attempt to uncover the names or share guesses about the potential course identities privately or publicly, as it may hinder the course purchase process and upset the seller(s).

TL;DR: As we’ve continued searching for a US course, we are having advanced conversations with two different US sites that we believe line up well with the course attribute preferences of the community. The setups for each transaction are quite different, so we wanted to share as much as we can regarding them with members to get your feedback and determine how excited members are about each opportunity.

This is PART ONE of a THREE PART Vote. There will be a vote specific to each course, where we will determine if members are sufficiently excited about the opportunity that we should continue pursuing it. Then, to gather more information about the community’s relative preferences, we will ask everyone to choose their preference between the two if they were forced to only choose one. We also aim to garner a lot of qualitative feedback from the community throughout the process.

SE Course

TL;DR: A solid (but not near top 100 level) course in the SE US that we can improve with investment, and is playable immediately. Very easily accessible for eastern US, and location gives a good combination of longer playing season while being able to maintain quality turf (eg, bent grass greens). We would take over the lease and control all operations, but be required to have some publicly available tee times (semi private).

Location: City in the Southeastern United States, close to an airport with direct flights from most US hubs and many east coast / southeast cities

High-level Description: Immediately playable course that is over 7,000 yards from the tips with solid bones and quality greens (bent grass) with room for improvement (e.g. remove a number of trees, alter a couple quirky / “tricked up” holes, re-do bunkers). Existing clubhouse with bar and restaurant, pro shop, locker room and dining rooms all in good condition. The course is public today, with $45-60 greens fees, and is profitable.

Transaction Setup: In this transaction, LinksDAO would become the long-term lease holder (think 50+ years), so while we wouldn’t own the asset for the purposes of reselling the property, we would effectively be the owners and would control all aspects of the operation of the course. And if we wanted to transfer the lease to someone else, we would most likely get compensated in some material way for it. We have the opportunity to take over the lease and the course operation with minimal cash outlay which would allow us to focus investments on future improvements. We would also be getting a significant investment from the current lease holder for clubhouse improvements.

Membership Policy: A condition of the lease is that some tee times at the course must be publicly accessible. Links would make the course effectively semi-private, giving our members advance booking periods and preferred tee times, and hosting members-only events (a la Spey Bay).

Membership Fees: This structure is still to be finalized, but annual dues will likely be somewhere in the $500-1,000 range with some form of initiation.

Other perks / benefits: A couple private / semi-private courses nearby that we could get members on through a potential reciprocity agreement. Lots of lodging options with potential for on-site lodging that would be built by the existing leaseholder who would continue to lease the adjacent land. Tons of great additional F&B / Entertainment / Tourist Attractions nearby.

Attribute summary (our high level assessment, ordered according to rank in our most recent course attribute vote):

Attribute Rating (1-4)

Course Quality 🟢🟢(🟢🟢) Solid today ($45-60 greens fee), will improve with investment, but will require work (and time and $) to be top level

Near Major Airport 🟢🟢🟢 Close to airport, though not a major hub, many direct flights from EC

Playable Year Round 🟢🟢🟢 Not truly year round, but longer playing season due to SE location

Uniqueness of Course 🟢🟢

Great Clubhouse/Bar 🟢🟢🟢🟢 Nice existing clubhouse, >8k sqft

Practice Facility 🟢🟢🟢 Existing range

All Skill Level Friendly 🟢🟢🟢 Variety of tees, not extremely penal

Close to Other Golf Options 🟢🟢🟢 Multiple courses in the area

Lodging Nearby 🟢🟢🟢🟢 Lots of lodging options, including potentially adjacent to course

Ready to Play Soon 🟢🟢🟢🟢 Open today

Famous Architect 🟢

Walkable Course 🟢🟢🟢 Walkable layout, though most use carts today

More than 18 Holes 🟢 18 holes

Other Amenities Onsite 🟢 No pool, tennis, etc but a lot of things to do nearby

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Proposal Details: Please note that a vote for either course does not guarantee an eventual transaction taking place. Once we get to the final stages with either one and once we have permission to share more details on each course, including the names, we will have another vote to move forward with an offer / agreement just as we did with Spey Bay. This proposal is to confirm that the membership is interested in, and that the team should continue to pursue, each opportunity.

Effort: Medium

Voting:

VOTE 1: SE Course - Links members will be asked to vote for or against continued pursuit of "SE Course" in a vacuum.

“Extreme yes”: I definitely want the team to pursue SE Course, and I would definitely plan to become a member at the course

“Yes”: I want the team to pursue SE Course, though I am not sure that I would join as a member

“No”: I do not want the team to pursue this course and would prefer they pursue other options

“Abstain”: Not in favor of either, but recording this vote counts toward reaching Quorum.