[RJ_Daley]

A post recently observed that even big GCA firms don't have much work in progress.  Obviously for the smaller boutique one-man golf course archies and designers, it must be really tough and trying times.  How many architects do we know that have side jobs or professions?  What are some of the likely moonlighting jobs or enterprises that help keep body and soul together in these tough times where not much is being built in the golf course world?

A few that come to mind are those with various licenses in the financial services area, like financial consultant series 6 or 7 FCs, or insurance agents, or CPA types.  (Didn't Pete Dye continue to work for a while as and insurance guy?)  Another obvious are the land surveyors or civil engineers.  With all the stim money out there, one might think that there may be extra work in the road construction, or infrastructure arena for engineers or land planners, etc. Also, real estate agents or brokers would seem to fit.

One guy I met seems to have a knack for developing home site subdivisions and planned a very attractive area of home site lots around his own home, and I think may have been the general contractor in building some very good looking shacks.

I don't really intend to be negative, yet I can't help but think that the immediate future doesn't look great for many of the talented archtects we have seen follow their dream and have a fledgling start in the business with one or two projects, where their obvious talent can't readily be expanded with more work to reward that which they have done so far.  I just hope that they are able to hang on with a secondary or moonlight sort of career or self employed work project until more opportunities come along.  Talent and a hard to obtain OTJ learning curve are a terrible thing to go to waste for lack of work, when nothing is available for you to ply your talent. 

[Philippe Binette]

I don't know if it's harder for a one or two guy firm compare to a big firm right now.

If you have a two man team that save a bit of money over the last few years.. you can go a few months without a whole lot going and as soon as you find something and not necessarily a huge contract, the entire firm is back at work.

If you have a president, 7 associates, 2 accounting staff and then some and you have no job, you end up with a big payroll and no cash coming in, that's a problem.

[Mike Nuzzo]

There are lots of smaller projects - like Swanson's.
Baxter has been doing a few.
Jeff Blume is having one of his busiest years on renovation work.

It is a traders stock market - every bit helps.

I haven't sent my updated resume to Lockheed or the Johnson Space Center - they do keep sending me theirs.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Times have changed. Mention Starbucks to the middle class a year ago and it meant an expensive necessity. Now, its a job opportunity! (Mention Starbucks to a gca and they likely think "Tour Pro Design Fees".)

I haven't resorted to a second job, but it has crossed my mind, just as it crossed my mind in a few other recessions.  If it happens, I am okay with it.  Part of me wants to quit golf entirely and try some new career anyway, but I should be okay with the work I have for a year, and then I hope it picks up.

In truth, golf has always been a feast or famine business.  And, 25-100% of the work most gca's have has always been remodeling, which does go on, albeit at a reduced pace.  But, in Jeff Blume's example, a city bought a bankrupt country club and there has to be a lot of that going on right now so there is always opportunity.

[Mike_Young]

Do you think the PGA Tour would mind if some of us came over and played for a few years....not saying we would have to be good at it but maybe we could get the basic endorsement contracts which are about 300,000.  It would only be fair... considering how the opposite has been happening for a while now....

Or..put my wife to work   or ask her to get two jobs...so that it won't bother my time for golf

Or.....TV preaching....it's the quickest road to wealth

[Adrian_Stiff]

I think it will be almost impossible for a living to be made out of golf course architecture over perhaps the next 10 years unless you have a lot of remodelling jobs. I just cant see the new courses happening except in a few corners of the world. There is a fair bit of drawing board stuff done that will probably be the first off when it happens since those projects already have the permits. Who knows when the economic gloom will lift but when it does I do not see Golf course projects coming first out of the blocks. Sad but there may be a big gap where there are very few new golf courses, I would not want to be a young architect starting at the moment, so to answer the initial question...go get a second job.

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