Golf Inc - February 2008 - (Page 19)

Summit Golf and Resort was reclaimed from the surrounding jungle by a local businessman. Revival in Panama DEVELOPMENT SUCCESS Resurrection of long-abandoned daily fee course fueled by building boom in Central American nation. public course and the first new course in decades. Since then several private courses have opened in the country, but Summit’s popularity has continued to grow, in large part due to its proximity to Panama City, which is in the midst of a building frenzy. “Investors coming in to buy real estate come and play golf,” said Adrienne Chial, Summit’s general manager and chief operating officer. “Our advantage is we are 20 minutes from the city.” Without a hotel or a residential component, Summit, which is owned by Panama businessman Ramesh Mirpuri, averages more than 2000 rounds a month. February 2008 www.GolfIncMagazine.com 19 arved out of the jungle outside Panama City, the Summit golf course thrived for 50 years as a favorite haunt of the international personnel working on the Panama Canal. But it was shut down in 1984, left to face the onslaught of dense foliage that soon consumed the course. When Florida-based designer Jeffrey Myers was hired to revive the layout in 1997, it was a golf course in name alone, he said. “You could see where some of the holes had been, but not a lot of them.” The Summit Golf and Resort officially reopened in 2000 as Panama City’s only C Memberships, which are used to supplement the daily traffic, have grown from 50 to 350 in the last six years, including special deals catering to expatriates, retirees and businesses. “What we try to do is make membership programs based on the type of people who come to Panama,” said Chial, who worked on the Canal as a civilian logistician for the U.S. Army before taking over day-to-day management of Summit two years ago. Panama is not the easiest place to run a golf course. The rainy season lasts eight months, from mid-May to mid-December, dumping an average of 70 to 80 inch- http://www.GolfIncMagazine.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Golf Inc - February 2008

Golf Inc - February 2008 Contents Our Commitment to the Environment Industry Executives Tout Golf’s Economic Clout New Openings Fall Again in 2007 DeLozier Leaves Pulte to Join Consulting Firm Doak to Design Costa Rica Resort Course 18 Holes, 18 Designers for Unique Club India Course Charts Expansion Plans A Severe Slump in the U.S. Housing Market is Expected to Cut Golf Course Development Panama Course Rescued from Jungle How a Golf Course Helped a Devastated Kansas Community Recover from Tragic Tornado Devastation Can a $68 Million Muni Be a Good Investment? Brent Wadsworth’s Passion for the Game European Management Companies Find Increasingly Fertile Ground as More and More Course Owners Look for Professional Operators The Final Word: Keeping in Touch

Golf Inc - February 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.