Last month we talked about the golf courses as part of the development strategies of housing developments. Today, we will answer the question I get asked most often: Who is going to play on all the new golf courses in Egypt?
The easy answer is: golfers who live in Egypt and tourists.
First, let’s look at golfers in Egypt. As I said before, 15 years ago there were only a few hundred golfers playing in Gezirah, Mena House and Alexandria Sporting, mostly Egyptians from wealthy families. There may have been a couple of hundred foreign residents playing as well.
Today, the number of Egyptian golfers has at least doubled, perhaps even tripled. The number of foreign players has probably increased by a similar number. People from the Far East can learn golf in Egypt, whereas the sport is too expensive to play in China, Japan or Southeast Asia. But a couple thousand golfers are not going to fill 20 golf courses, which is the number we will have within a year to 18 months.
Regardless of whether golf is a growing sport, the number of Egyptian golfers is not going to grow overnight. That will take time and effort. I will take up this subject later on.
To fill up the courses quickly, Egypt must attract golf tourists, especially during the seven winter months in Europe: October to the end of April. The number of tourists we are talking about is surprisingly few. In the winter months, an 18-hole golf course in Egypt will comfortably accommodate a maximum of 120 golfers teeing off in groups of four -we call them foursomes – between 7 am and 12 pm, playing their games in four and a half hours.
The typical golf tourist plays five rounds in a week, ideally at more than one course. If all 20 golf courses were full every weekday (we have to leave time on the weekends for local golfers to play), that would be 2,400 golfers per week or 67,200 golfers during these seven months. That’s less than 1 percent of the golfers in Europe. It is also less than 1 percent of the tourists who come to Egypt every year.
Can Egypt attract 1 percent of the golfers in Europe? Only with a concerted effort from all the golf courses working together. Still, this is not really a daunting task. Egypt has all a golfer could want: good weather every day; comparatively low prices for hotels, food, and golf course fees; one of the nearest destinations to Europe, and – very importantly – within one time zone of the tourist market.
It is beginning to happen. The courses on the Red Sea and Sinai are busy during the winter and are making money for their resorts. Golfers typically spend twice as much as the average tourist, so it is worth a little extra marketing effort to bring them.
There are some tourist agencies in Egypt specializing in golf, and the courses attract golfers directly through relationships with golf clubs in Europe, but a lot more has to be done. Mostly, it requires cooperation among the courses, and some financial support from the Ministry of Tourism for attending tourism exhibitions in Europe, and bringing golf tourist agents to Egypt on familiarization visits (or Fam Trips).
Will the cooperation happen? I am optimistic. Already I see most clubs cooperating. It should be a no-brainer. Adding just two foursomes a day to a golf course during the high season brings nearly $100,000 of income that goes directly to the bottom line of the course. An extra foursome on a golf course is like selling four more rooms in a hotel that is not full. There is almost no cost to having the additional guests; in fact, the guests – or the golfer in this case – will also spend money eating, drinking and buying things in the shops.
So, if you are an investor, golf is good. It is certainly not quick money – that happens when you gamble in the real estate or stock markets. But, if you are looking for a steady and rising income, it is a good bet. Besides, if you own a course in Egypt, you can play golf everyday for free! As always, remember to keep your head down and swing away.
