When King's Walk first turned a profit in 2006, a lingering question was whether that performance could be repeated.
Uncertainty loomed because 2006 was a very dry and warm golfing season weather conditions conducive to playing. The 2006 revenue was about $100,000 more than had been generated in any of its first four years.
But 2007, with average summer weather, exceeded 2006's revenues and turned a profit. After running deficits the first four years, the Arnold Palmer signature course on the southern edge of Grand Forks has seemingly turned the corner with two consecutive years of a profit of about $40,000.
"We had lots of rain in May and June, and the year still basically stayed the same," said Steve Mullally, superintendent of parks. "We were asked to cash-flow this place, and we've started to do exactly that.
"What is nice is that the course is settling in, and we can now predict what it can do."
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Although King's Walk has met its expectations of not being a monetary drain, it hasn't reached its pre-construction hype of becoming a destination course. Eighty percent of the rounds are played by locals, Mullally said.
"The only destination golf we've seen is from Canada," he said. "It's settling in to what it is a Grand Forks course which is fine. People are happy about the fact it's built for them and not built for somebody on the outside."
Mullally said this year's profit is a logical target for future years. "If it makes all kinds of money, then people say we should lower the rates," he said.
Lincoln Park, downsized to a 9-hole course because of the dike project, made $19,000 this year. As the city's only municipal course for decades, it was a consistent moneymaker.
"Lincoln never made a lot of money because the rates were low, and we were always paying off the expenses we had from all the flooding," Mullally said. "It's now a good niche for what I call the 'tennis shoe crowd,' the seniors and kids."
