U.S. Women’s Open in 2015 Will be a Boon to Lancaster

What an incredible coup for Lancaster Country Club (LCC) to pull off securing the venue for the 2015 U.S. Women’s Open!  Just to get the staid United States Golf Association’s attention takes some doing.  So earlier this year when it was announced that not only did LCC get their attention, they actually impressed them beyond all other suitors, I was stunned.  I can’t begin to imagine what it took LCC to pull this off; but one thing I do know, it will provide a huge financial windfall to Lancaster.

I’ve had the privilege many years ago to play the course, and let me tell you, it is as visually stunning as it is challenging.  The history of the course will surely be discussed over the next couple of years.  The Old Course was originally designed by the famous architect William Flynn, and opened for play in 1920.  A course revision to bring it very near to the original Flynn layout was completed in 2007, under the guidance of Ron Forse.  The club features three nine-hole courses, a six-hole course, a practice range, and a separate short game complex.  The course is known for its rolling topography and is intersected by the Conestoga River, which comes into play on seven holes.  Their highly contoured greens, canting fairways and a mixture of elevation changes, are all hallmarks of this classic design.

Some interesting historical notes:  LCC was the site of the 1948 Pennsylvania Amateur, when Lancaster member Billy Haverstick defeated a then little-known, 19-year-old kid from Western Pennsylvania, Arnold Palmer, 3 and 2, en route to winning the title at Haverstick’s home club.  Also, the 2003 U.S. Open champion, Jim Furyk, grew up playing golf for nearby at Manheim Township High School, which used LCC as its home course.  For a complete history and extensive tour of the course, click here.

Enough of the history stuff and my infatuation with the course – what does it mean to the community?  I don’t think we can even begin to get our arms around the impact of what this will mean to Lancaster.  But if history is a good barometer, all we have to do is look to our neighbors to the north, Saucon Valley Country Club in the Lehigh Valley where this past year’s Women’s Open was held, to provide some insight.

Meredith Reeves, of MSG Promotions Inc., oversaw the U.S. Women’s Open at Saucon Valley, and stated that the economic impact of the tournament was “between $10 (million) and $12 million for the local economy and probably closer to $18 (million) to $20 million” once everything is tallied.¹  That’s a nice hunk of change!

Everything from retail receipts to restaurant reservations to hotel room nights increased during the Open.  Tina Kisela, the general manager of the Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley which is located just two miles from the golf course, indicated that there was a ‘nice bump’ in sales during the tournament which compared favorably with numbers recorded the previous year.¹

The mayor of Bethlehem, John Callahan, said that the “folks at the Sands (Casino Resort Bethlehem) saw a major uptick during the tournament.”  He added that businesses large and small benefited from the tournament’s presence and that “it was just a great shot in the arm for the entire region.”¹

Now I’m not naive enough to think that just by securing the Open it will automatically produce big dollars for our area.  It’s going to take a lot of work by Lancaster Country Club, its members, local businesses and the general population, but I’m convinced that everyone is up to the task.  When the world turns its attention to the best women golfers in the world in 2015, lets show them what Lancaster is all about.

——————–

¹  Rhodin, Tony. “U.S. Women’s Open at Saucon Valley Country Club appears to have been an economic engine for a week in region.” Lehighvaleylive.com. Express-Times, 15 July 2009. Web. 13 Aug. 2009. http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/business/index.ssf?/base/business-0/1247630748322790.xml&coll=3.

Related articles of interest:

• Lancaster CC to host 2015 US Women’s Open (http://www.golf.com/golf/tours_news/article/0,28136,1878012,00.html)
• Lancaster hits big leagues (http://www.pennlive.com/golf/patriotnews/index.ssf?/base/sports/12501213094120.xml&coll=1)
• Women’s open to be big boost for Lancaster, Pa. (http://www.allbusiness.com/sports-recreation/sports-regulation-policy-sports/11863698-1.html