What's next for Raleigh's oldest public golf course, RGA
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The Raleigh-based golf course management company McConnell Golf is set to make a big investment into the future of the Raleigh Golf Association, Raleigh's oldest public golf course.
Why it matters: McConnell — which owns 15 private courses across the Southeast, including Raleigh Country Club — will invest $3.5 million into upgrading the course's irrigation system and greens and adding a new driving range with 60 hitting bays, Christian Anastasiadis, McConnell's chief operating officer, told Axios.
Driving the news: McConnell's relationship with RGA started in 2016, when the golf course, built in 1929, leased its operations to McConnell for 10 years.
- RGA, located at 1527 Tryon Road, was struggling financially at the time, and was considering selling the land before agreeing to the deal with McConnell.
- McConnell's new investment will extend its lease with RGA for more than 10 additional years, so that it can recoup its investments into the course, Anastasiadis said.
State of play: Anastasiadis said the investment is important for ensuring the future of RGA, one of the few public courses in Raleigh that provides an affordable option to play the game and has been a starting course for new golfers for generations.
- Already, the board of RGA is considering selling part of its 27-hole course north of Tryon Road and has filed a rezoning request on behalf of the Atlanta-based developer Dominium to build housing, the Triangle Business Journal reported in January.
- The future of RGA, Anastasiadis told Axios, will be as an upgraded 18-hole course.
What they're saying: Anastasiadis said McConnell's business model is not built around public golf courses, but the company thought RGA was an important investment for its home region.
- "We've felt that too many courses have been disappearing in the city of Raleigh, and with the projected growth that the city was forecasting, there are just not enough golf courses available," he said. "The game of golf was suffering — especially at the level that is affordable."
What's next: Anastasiadis said work has begun on RGA and the goal is to finish the improvements by 2026.
- Rezoning of the northern part of the course is still working its way through the city's planning department.