Berkleigh Country Club in Kutztown, which for years was the home to the LPGA's Betsy King Classic, ceased to exist last week and its contents auctioned off.
Longtime member Rich Lerner of the Golf Channel, who grew up in Allentown, wrote a loving tribute to his boyhood haunt for the Golf Channel website.
Rich begins his piece:
Berkleigh Country Club died last week. It ended by auction -- pin flags, tee markers, club championship boards, hole-in-one plaques and kitchen equipment. As collectibles go, we’re not talking the ’86 Masters, but for those of us who loved the modest Pennsylvania course, it was a sad occasion.
For the rest of the story, click here.
2 comments:
Some golf courses mean more to you than just the value of the golf that can be played. To many there are memories that link to our childhood and remind us of a different time. Any course closing is a sad day.
Lerner's Berkleigh is an example of changing demographics in an ethnic club in a non-major metro area. This is also happening in second and third tier clubs, at least in the Philadelphia area. Young 2 income families don't have the time or spend money on vacation homes so they play golf at daily fee courses in the Poconos or the Jersey shore. Some clubs here are offering a one year "trial" membership,others are doing annual memberships, others are doing weekday only memberships- anything to increase cash flow.The Merions and Aroniminks of the world are not in trouble.
Post a Comment