I received this email today and didn't know if it was a joke or for real.
Does anyone know if this is authentic or a prank ?
Your thoughtsDear Members,
It is now 5 weeks since the club opened after over seeding and just over 3 months since the transfer of ownership.
During this brief time there have been many improvements at the club, some of which are:
Our entire fleet of maintenance equipment has been replaced with brand new Toro equipment (the best in the industry).
Wages for our staff have been increased to be among the highest in the state. We have added additional staff throughout the club and have increased our service levels considerably.
Our golf carts have been replaced with new GPS equipped super comfortable carts.
Numerous improvements have been made to our clubhouse, most noticeably in the way of much needed lighting and new large (and in some cases very large) high definition televisions.
Our food service is better. We’ve added a new very talented chef and are placing a high emphasis on service and atmosphere. We’ve even added a new signature food item, that I personally make it a point to order at the turn every time I’m at the club: The National Strip Burger. I highly recommend you try one. In fact, the first one you order will be on me.
While much has been done, there is much more to do to make Scottsdale National one of the finest golf clubs in the world. Here are some of the things we are working on:
Redesigning the golf course to make it more playable and more breathtaking. This does not mean easier nor more difficult. As part of this process we are working with golf course architects to relocate existing holes 15 through 18 so that the flow of the course is better and it is a much more enjoyable walk.
We also want our 18th hole to present a panoramic and breathtaking view during the finish of the round. Currently it finishes at the parking lot.
After we relocate holes 15 through 18, we hope to build in that mountainous area a spectacular nine hole par 3 golf course. This will include our existing hole 16 which will remain largely as is, and become part of the nine hole par 3 course.
The above changes to the course will require approval from the City of Scottsdale. Should the city not approve, we will work within whatever constraints they provide to make our golf course experience as special as possible.
As we improve our golf course we will also build a new clubhouse that will remedy the various shortfalls of our existing club house. Among the new amenities it will feature breathtaking views of our golf course (especially the starting and finishing holes) and underground parking.
We will also be building a very nice entrance to the club, which will feature a guard house and security guard.
We will be building additional restrooms/amenity stations throughout our course and any new course we build. Our goal is when nature calls a restroom is always close by.
All of these improvements will require a significant investment (in excess of $35 million dollars) and time to implement.
Hopefully we will begin work on this during late spring/early summer. The club will be shut down completely for at least six months. As our costs are on going, monthly dues will continue.
Our plans are once we re-open that our club continues its transformation into an incredibly exclusive national golf club. At this time I expect to reopen our membership but on a very select and invitational basis.
For us to be successful it is important that our members support the club. This includes hosting guests at the club and patronizing the club in all areas.
Currently our members who use the club the most support the club the least. In fact, many members who are at the club each and every day spend nothing and do not support the club at all. This will not continue.
To balance the scales here, so that members support the club in proportion to the degree in which they use it, we will be adopting the following fee structure effective December 9, 2014:
There will no longer be a golf cart usage fee. Golf carts will be provided on a complimentary basis whenever a member or guest wants to use one.
Members will be charged a service fee for every day they play the course. The service fee will be $100 and will not increase regardless of the level of play that day.
The greens fee for guests will increase to $200 and extended family members will increase to $190.
Members will be limited to the number of times they may play the course, without hosting a guest, during any golf year to 30 times. Our golf year goes from opening in Fall to Summer closing. For those of you who are family members, each spouse may play the course 30 times without a guest. To be fair we will let everyone start fresh here beginning tomorrow. So all the rounds of golf you may have played earlier in this golf year before now, will not count towards your 30 round limit for this golf year.
I understand that many of our members will not like the above policy (particularly those who play the course the most and spend the least). To be as fair as possible I will be providing a window for those members who find the new policy unacceptable.
It is within my rights to simply let members resign and receive a refund for 50% of the amount they paid to join the club (i.e. platinum members get $55,000, silver members get $12,500). But that’s not my style.
I will refund to any member who wants to resign his/her membership the full amount they paid to join the club, provided the resignation is submitted on or before January 31, 2014.
For example, members who resign and paid $110,000 to join the club will receive a refund of the entire $110,000, and members who paid $25,000 to join will receive a refund of the entire $25,000. These refunds will be paid within 30 days of resignation. Once a member resigns they will no longer be able to play the course and their dues will stop immediately.
Should you decide to take advantage of this full refund resignation opportunity please contact our club secretary, Sharon Carry for particulars.
I fully expect many members will take advantage of this resignation opportunity and leave the club. After this happens and we start inviting new members to the club, the new members will largely reside out-of-state and when they come to the club they will bring guests.
Even at its peak, I believe the club will experience only a fraction of the play that it receives now. The big difference will be that those playing the course will be paying their fair share. So tee times will continue to be unnecessary and when members wish to bring guests to the club it will always be wide open for their play.
I will be very selective with regard to who I invite to be members.
Scottsdale National will always be about providing the very best golf experience for its members. It will provide the very best facilities (both golf course, club house and other amenities) with a friendly service level second to none.
For the members who do not opt to resign and continue with the club, I promise you a golf experience as good or better than anywhere else on earth.
Best Always,
Bob Parsons, Owner & CEO
Scottsdale National Golf Club
29001 N. 122nd Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85262
Phone: (480) 443-8868
http://www.sngc.com