By KATHERINE PETERSEN
Change is afoot at Sunnyvale's 18-hole golf course. Not only has the word "Municipal" been removed from its name, leaving just "Sunnyvale Golf Course," but as of May 1 fees and reservation procedures are different as well.
Butch Johnson, chair of Sunnyvale's Parks and Recreation Commission, said the changes will reward frequent golfers but may hit the occasional duffer a bit deeper in the pocketbook.
"It was a difficult decision to make because there are so many factors to consider, such as seniors, nonresidents, residents, junior and disabled golfers," he said.
Curtis Black, Sunnyvale's superintendent of golf, said the golf course will have fees and a reservations procedure similar to the one used by the municipal golf course in 1988. He said Sunnyvale Golf Course will charge a $24 fee for weekdays and a $30 fee for weekend day play. Golfers will receive discounted rates of $17 and $18, respectively, for twilight play, which begins after 3 p.m.
Golfers used to pay different fees, depending on their status. On weedays, seniors paid $15, residents paid $19 and nonresidents paid $24.
"Year after year, we got a lot of complaints from nonresidents because even though $24 is right in with market price of other golf courses, they didn't like it when their senior friend was paying $9 less," Black said. He added that prices at nearby courses range from $20 to $25.
The golf course was attracting more seniors and fewer nonresidents, Black said.
"It's a trend we saw developing over last three years," he said. The course lost revenue because of less money coming in per round.
Sunnyvale doesn't have enough residents who play golf to support the course. It needs to attract a larger customer base, Black said.
Sunnyvale Golf Course has two monthly discount cards available for weekday play for seniors, juniors and disabled people, as well as for other residents, so they can play for lower rates.
Nonresidents no longer have to wait until Tuesday morning to make reservations for the weekend as they used to. The course begins taking weekend reservations Monday mornings in person at 6 a.m. and over the phone at 6:30 a.m.
Sunnyvale resident Leon Jacobson, director with his wife, Joanne, of tournament activities for the couples' club at Sunnyvale's Sunken Gardens Golf Course, said seniors will take a big hit from the fee increases.
"They may have priced a lot of them out with the increases. I think they may have shot themselves in the foot. The market will show that. If they get a falloff in play, they will have to regroup," Jacobson said.
Jacobson said he does not golf at Sunnyvale Golf Course because he thinks it is already overpriced.
"It's just too expensive for what you get. I used to be a member, but there are better venues around here for less money," he said.
Gilbert Short of Sunnyvale believes the new fee structure is a sound one. The guidelines for fees are untried in Sunnyvale, and the city will have to wait and see how the general public reacts, he said.
"At first, I was against it, and right now I'm straddling the fence. I hope we won't lose any senior golfers and it will pay off. That's my concern," Short said.
Short also expressed concern that the Department of Parks and Recreation's profit-making programs and activities are geared toward supporting the nonprofit activities, according to the city's plan eventually to make the department self-sufficient.
Short said he is in no way criticizing the department's nonprofit programs.
But Black believes the new plan will succeed because of an expanded customer base.
The course has received support from seniors who have already purchased 300 cards. "This wasn't a case of if it isn't broke, don't fix it. What we had wasn't working terribly well for us," he said.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, May 8, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.