Hempfield golf course fails to make cut after season under new ownership

A golf course practically in their front yard was among the draws for Louise and Donald Perruquet when they bought their house 18 years ago in the Cherry Creek subdivision of Hempfield.

But years of being able to walk to the first tee near their home will end Saturday when the Scenic Links of Westmoreland closes after only one season of operation under owner Mark Allison.

Allison, who bought the property in January for $1.35 million, said he has not put the course up for sale and has few plans for its 100 acres other than to keep the grass mowed.

“Going into this, I expected to have some issues in the first year or two,” Allison said about operating the course just outside Youngwood. “What I didn't expect was the severity of the losses. From a financial perspective, the decision was very easy.”

Allison recently informed residents and customers in letters and emails that significant losses were forcing him to close the course that opened in the mid-1990s as the Cherry Creek Golf Course. A restaurant — Birdies Grill and Sports Pub — and a pavilion on the property will remain open and could be expanded, he said. What lies ahead for the golf course is less certain.

“I'll be mindful about how that impacts my employees, how it impacts the restaurant, and even the neighborhood,” Allison said.

The course's financial losses amounted to “hundreds of thousands of dollars,” he added.

The course and subdivision were developed by Millstein Industries of Youngwood. The company built the course and operated it until it was sold.

“It was a wonderful project,” said attorney David Millstein, a family member of the company. “We never made any money with the golf course. We lost every year. We tried everything we knew to do to make it profitable.”

The financial woes of the Hempfield course are an illustration of an industry suffering through a decade of tough times. The National Golf Foundation in a report released last year said the number of courses closing annually in the United States had dwarfed the number being built for eight years running. In 2013, 14 courses were built and 157 closed. The report said 643 courses have closed since 2006.

The golf foundation projects that the trend will continue into the foreseeable future. It's all about economics, said Jeff Rivard, executive director of the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association.

“Are there many people out there who can afford $30 to $40 to play golf?” Rivard asked.

Residents in the neighborhood of homes nestled around the course said they were disappointed that an amenity that was once a draw is getting the hook. Many said the course factored into their decision to buy in the subdivision of upscale homes near Westmoreland County Community College.

“It's sad to see it go,” said Dominick Domasky, who has lived on Innisbrook Drive in Cherry Creek for four years. “I'd love to see it remain a golf course, maybe under different ownership.”

About 20 golf course workers will lose their jobs when Scenic Links closes. Three or four will be kept on to maintain the property, Allison said. But it is the unknowns about the course — whether it will again open for golf or one day be developed with houses or businesses — that have residents on edge.

“Everybody's concerned as to what's going to happen,” said Jerry Wolfgang, president of Cherry Creek Homeowners Association.

Homeowners have received a discount on play since the course and subdivision were built, lending the feel of a golfing community. But there was no direct tie between homeownership and affiliation with the course. Terms of the January sale of the property did not require Allison to keep the course open, Millstein said.

“It's sad for the residents ... to not know what's going on,” Louise Perruquet said. “I never felt like I was deceived, but I never felt that it wasn't going to be a golf course.”

Renatta Signorini is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 724-837-5374 or rsignorini@tribweb.com. Staff writer Craig Smith contributed to this report.