Nashville Knucklehead

That's right, no beer

Bob Krumm is a wise man. Why, you ask? Because it seems that he actually reads what the Knucklehead has to say. He was unaware that the state park golf courses don't sell beer, and asked if the Bear Trace courses did. The answer, Bob, is no. In fact, four of the five Bear Trace courses are in state parks. The only one that isn't in a park, Ross Creek Landing, is the one that is staying private. (I haven't played that one, so I don't know if it is dry or not.) I will say this, golf bags are very roomy, and many golfers stop at the convenience store on the way to playing the Bear Trace courses. If the courses made a buck or two on the empty beer cans and bottles they find in the trash bins located around their "alcohol-free" courses, they would make a lot of money.

I remember when the Bear Trace was announced, we all kind of shrugged and said, "Don't we already have a bunch of state park golf courses?" Now we have four more. I think the total of state-run courses is 12, spread over hundreds of miles. Only a major player in the world of professional golf course management would consider taking on that kind of challenge. What makes the state think they can do it?

As Krumm said, "there's a larger point to be made about the concept of the government running enterprises that should be private, or as in the case of golf courses, are actually in competition with private companies. Since government entities necessarily bow to political whims that limit them (like not selling beer on a golf course), they are already at a competitive disadvantage." That is exactly what's happening here. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if the courses quit referring to the condition of their "greens" and started calling them "putting surfaces" in order to avoid the perception of having a color bias.

posted by Nashville Knucklehead @ 5:31 PM