The sale of Philmont was not unexpected. Member owned clubs may become a thing of the past except for the top tier clubs. Philmont has suffered from changing demographics, continuing assessments, maintaining 2 courses, failure to sell excess acreage on the South Course. Founded in 1906 by the elite of the Philadelphia Jewish community, the founders must be spinning in their graves. The club was kept alive during the Depression by the likes of the Gimbel Bros and others. From the Press Release:
"Member-owned clubs often struggle to manage the long-term process of extracting value from their excess real estate," said Nanula. "It takes capital, it takes development expertise, and it is difficult to make these decisions among 300-plus voting members. We can do it all more quickly for the members with our own capital and a streamlined decision-making process."
Added Jordan Kendall, a Philmont Board member who, along with Meyer, led the club's recapitalization with Concert Golf: "This partnership with Concert Golf preserves Philmont for the long term, and ends the era of funding capital projects with member assessments. We have a rich history and top-notch North Course here at Philmont, and now our club is debt-free and our future is brighter than ever."
Interestingly, the discussions started when 90-year old Philmont member David Fields, a former investment banker, called Concert Golf after reading an article about other successful club recapitalizations. "I read an article about other high-end private clubs getting a capital infusion from Concert Golf, and so I reached out to them," Fields said. "From there, the process was very straightforward."
Concert Golf Chairman Peter Nanula announced that his team would immediately undertake more than $4 million in new capital projects at Philmont CC, including extensive bunker renovations and tree removal; new swimming pool upgrades; outdoor dining; new HVAC and utilities infrastructure; and dramatically renovated mens and women's locker room facilities.
"Philmont CC is a great club with a top-rated golf course and a dedicated membership, but it had too much real estate and not enough capital," Nanula said. "All of these capital and real estate issues are now solved. No more debt - we paid off all the debt last week. No more member assessments - we will pay for and complete the Board's list of improvements much faster, at no cost to the members. And we will spend over $1 million getting the real estate entitled and sold to free up extra capital for reinvestment back into the club facilities."