PALM SPRINGS (Calif.) — The COVID-19 pandemic, as counterintuitive and surprising as it may sound, came at the perfect time for The Lights of Indio Golf Course in spring 2020.
“We were lucky because COVID arrived at the right time, and we had been working so hard to get it out there,” Dave Ruvolo (head professional) said. Ruvolo has been the head professional at the 18-hole, par-3, lighted city golf course for 18 years. “We are the only place in the valley with (lights). Many people visit town, but they don’t know what to do. We worked hard to make it known, and the timing was perfect.”
The pandemic partially caused a spike in golf at The Lights, as well as other golf courses across the country and the desert. Golf was allowed to continue playing despite the fact that other recreational and sports were affected by the coronavirus. Golf attracted more people and was played more often than in a decade.
Golf course operators are expecting better results than the one-year increases as the surge enters its third year.
Ben Rodny (director of sales and marketing at the 36-hole Indian Wells Golf Resort) said that there is no drop in golfers because the demand is high. “The demand is high for individual players and groups as well as tournaments.”
For facilities that saw player numbers and rounds of golf decline for most of 2010, more players are good for their revenues. It also means that there is more competition for tee times at private and public facilities, as well as higher green fees at courses that can afford higher prices.
The National Golf Foundation has confirmed that the Coachella Valley is still one of the most popular markets for golfers by tracking rounds played in the country. Rounds played in California have dropped 4.6 percent from September 2021 to September 2021. However, rounds in the country have fallen 2.5 percent. Meanwhile, rounds in Coachella Valley have increased 12.4 percent over the first nine months.
The NGF reminds everyone that even small declines in the state or the country are in comparison with 2021, when some rounds of golf increased by as much as 20% in certain areas of the country.
The Coachella Valley’s popularity as a destination for golf is one reason why golf continues to thrive in the desert, whereas it has declined in other parts of the country.
Stephen Clarke, from Birmingham, England, said that his wife and he have played in all of the United States’ areas. He was also playing in the desert at Marriott’s Desert Springs Resort, Palm Desert. We had miles that we wanted to fly, so we decided to go and play there where the sun shines every day.
Many desert facilities have seen more golfers in the past 12 months because of their golfing tourism.
Ryan Szydlowski is the director of golf at Desert Willow Golf Resort, a 36-hole city-owned course in Palm Desert. We had our most rounds ever played and it is public information, so it was 100,000 rounds. That is as much as we could bear.”
Szydlowski explained that Desert Willow’s popularity is due to a wide range of golfers visiting the Mountain View and Firecliff courses. This includes residential players, hotel guests, and group outings. The numbers for Desert Willow are the same as those of the 2022-23 seasons.
“All our forecasting tools track well. Szydlowski stated that outings are going well and that weddings and other events are also moving well. “Our loyalty program sold out in record-breaking time. This year, I believe we’ll have a better year than last year.
Rodny stated that the same holds true at Indian Wells Golf Resort.
Rodny stated, “That is absolutely what we expect.” We are trying to be reasonable, as we don’t want to make anyone feel cheated. Our goal is to get golfers on the course, celebrate events, and provide the best possible experience for everyone.
Golf courses can charge more for their products if they have more players. The green fees went up last year, and will rise again at certain facilities in the next few months. Rodny at Indian Wells Golf Resort said that green fees will rise to $219 weekdays from January through April, as opposed to $199 and $219 last weekend, when there were more than 400 golfers on weekends.
Four-year-old Xander dockery looks after hitting his drive at The Lights At Indio in Indio (Calif.), Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022. (Photo by Andy Abeyta/The Desert Sun).
Rodny stated, “We are trying to treat everybody who comes in here as best as we can.” The ride won’t last forever. The wave rises and the wave crashes. We will rely on the golfers who love IWGR so much that they come back to play when the wave crashes. They will return if we give them this experience now.
Szydlowski stated that Desert Willow will increase its green fees for all categories of players, but may not be seeking more players.
Szydlowski stated that although our rates are possible to go higher, we won’t raise them too much because we want to retain our guests over the long-term. It isn’t going to stay this way forever, but we know it. We know that outings will eventually end, but we still want our loyal members and Palm Desert residents to fill those gaps.
Szydlowski said that while we don’t see a significant decrease in rounds played we may see a shift of who is playing.
Desert Willow Golf Resort and Indian Wells Golf Resort continue to promote golf as a sport. Rodny will oversee the IWGR’s Shots in the Night entertainment at the driving range and on the putting greens, as well the installation of an Ice Skating Rink. Desert Willow will soon have new patio furniture and a new range of golf carts. Both are designed to enhance the golfer’s experience.
Szydlowski stated that all the little things that have needed upgrading over time, are being taken advantage of now. “When we talk about the valley, I feel that hotel partners are still seeing the same trends.”
Not only resort courses feel the pressure from more golfers. Director of golf Joe Johnson at the 36-hole Mountain Vista Golf Club in Sun City Palm Desert says that the new season has already started.
Johnson stated, “Right now I am seeing that every one of my Canadians are back.” Johnson said, “I don’t know if there will be a trickle in after the first of this year like there always has. They are all there now, I believe. Everybody is there. It was magic.
Johnson stated that Mountain Vista had hosted 240 players per day on its Santa Rosa course, while the San Gorgonio course was closed to overseeding. Johnson stated that the course will use shotgun starts to accommodate more people now that both courses are open. Shotgun starts allow golfers to start on different holes at once, instead of just on the first.
“We will be running Monday and Friday shotguns at one of our courses starting in the first week of December. Johnson stated that there will always be one course available for tee times for those who don’t want to play at 8 o’clock. They can then play twilight at 12 noon if they wish. We can basically put out 132-136 players in a shotgun. This is more than a full-field, it’s actually two foursomes per round. We do this, and then we play another 124 players at 1:20 at the twilight rate.
Mountain Vista will have almost 500 players per day on its two courses on Mondays and Fridays.
The trends might be similar, but The Lights is a lower-end resort course in the desert where golfers are more likely not to wear t-shirts or tennis shoes.
Ruvolo stated that the price point for me is $25 to $30. This means they won’t spend $80 on a shirt. Ruvolo said that they will spend $19.99 or $29.99 but not more. I deal in closeouts.”
Ruvolo already sees evidence of an increase in The Lights play this fall.
“A lot of people who come to play are like snowbirds or RVers, so they aren’t yet down here.” Ruvolo explained that when the weather is bad up north, people come down to Canada immediately. “So this year, I think the weather got colder up (in Canada), so they came here in October.”
However, there have been price adjustments at The Lights. COVID-19 was the end of the staff who used to handle buckets of golf balls at the facility’s lighted driving range.
“It cost $5, $8, and $10 to buy a bucket. Ruvolo stated that the buckets were too heavy for us and we settled for $15 per hour with all the balls on the range. “The buckets were always going to increase in price, so it was going up to $12. It was not far away from $15. People love it.
Ruvolo and other desert golfers see the golf upswing continuing for now, a result of the pandemic.
“COVID hit, and COVID just ignited.” Ruvolo stated that he went triple and double on everything. “I have been here 18 years and have seen faces that I had never seen before. It’s almost like “Who are you?” It’s simply that people like to play under the lights and it is becoming more popular.”
