A sad day indeed, but the signs were there from nearly the beginning.
There are some of us locally who really enjoy the course and applaud the attempt of doing something entirely different. I've played the course three times with a variety of players, attended the Nelson last year for a few hours (followed Koepka for maybe nine holes), and officiated one qualifier. But for the high price to play, it is a course I'd like to play semi-regularly, which I can't say about other highly-ranked parkland courses in Texas.
I doubt that a more favorable date would have made a difference on net proceeds to the charity. My impression is that the universal real estate principle Location, Location, Location is at work here. And for all the perceived shortcomings of the Four Seasons TPC course, a great many positives had to be responsible for the tournament's leading contributions to charity despite less than stellar fields.
With the exception of the sartorial judgment of the Salesmanship Club of Dallas, it is a group of committed people who know what they are doing. I have it from good sources that the club was not enthusiastic about taking the tournament to a new course south of downtown, and I am sure that leaving after only three years was not something that it wanted to do. As Jim Hoak notes, it is about the money that goes to charity and I take my hat off to the SCoD for being decisive about making an unpopular move.
Last week I received a call from a member at one of the top clubs in Dallas who had just finished playing TF. He asked me to tell him why he liked the club so much. As a member of a course that is the antithesis of TF, I noted that perhaps he liked the change of pace and that variety may be a large part of it. He agreed, and though he is a mid-teens player, he said it was more than that- the freedom it invited to hit a variety of shots, more than a few that he had little chance to execute successfully, probably had more to do with his high opinion.
Something he said gave me pause to think that something big was happening- he repeated a rumor that "the bank" (actually an individual who has been a major mover for a few years in Dallas) had "forgiven" the debt. I don't know if this is true, but if so, it sure would go a long ways in securing the future of the club.
Personally, I would like to see TF become more friendly (as in moderating its fees) with the locals and offering the course regularly for USGA and Texas Golf Association qualifiers and tournaments. All the clubs in the Metroplex benefit from the many competitions offered and it would be good for everyone to spread the events around.