The state is spending millions to bring operations back up to par at Leo J. Martin Memorial Golf Course in Weston and Canton's Ponkapoag Golf Course, where it hopes one day to host a major pro tournament.
The Department of Conservation and Recreation's plan for "Ponky" includes $2.6 million to reopen nine closed holes at the 36-hole course, plus drainage improvements already under way and an irrigation project slated to start this spring.
DCR Commissioner Ed Lambert said conditions at the courses haven't always been the best, but the state has hired new managers, reclaimed golf cart and driving range operations from private vendors and purchased 120 new carts.
"Now we'll be making the profit and putting it back into the operation," he said. "It will be used to pay some of the investment in staff and capital that allows us to raise even more money."
Golfers' fees will remain at current levels and cart rentals will cost less. Both courses also will start accepting reserved starting times for Friday through Sunday and holidays.
The 77-year-old Donald Ross-designed Ponkapoag and the 18-hole Leo J. Martin course, which opened in 1930, are "great old establishment courses that people always have been passionate about," said Joe Sprague, executive director of the Massachusetts Golf Association, which promotes amateur golf in the state.
"If they're going to keep the prices the same and have the conditions improve, that's a win-win for golfers," said Sprague.
The improvements follow unsuccessful efforts to privatize the courses in years past. Last year, the Legislature agreed to let the DCR keep 80 percent of its revenue, up to $14 million annually, instead of returning it all to the state's general fund and awaiting a smaller re-appropriation. That allows the courses to now serve as "profit centers," according to Lambert.
"It's really an entrepreneurial way for us to operate, and it reduces costs to taxpayers," he said. "This year … we've already increased (the overall DCR) revenue stream from $1 million to $2 million."
The DCR will host a public hearing today at Ponkapoag to discuss the proposed changes.
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