New owners take swing at struggling golf course
MCTN, a limited liability company with partners in Denver and San Diego, paid an undisclosed amount in August for the 18-hole Gleneagle Golf Club, northeast of Interstate 25 and North Gate Road.
MCTN bought the club from Bethesda Development Co. of Colorado Springs. MCTN owns the Eagle Trace Golf Club in Broomfield, north of Denver.
The Gleneagle Golf Club, a public course covering 144 acres, is part of the unincorporated Gleneagle subdivision directly north of Colorado
Springs’ northernmost tip.
In 1992, Springs-based Escalante Golf Inc. bought the course from Bethesda, which developed much of the Gleneagle subdivision. Bethesda is part of Springsbased Bethesda Associates, parent of the worldwide Bethesda Ministries.
After a decade of ownership, Escalante was unable to refinance a maturing loan on the golf course and turned the property back to Bethesda in October 2002. Escalante had struggled with competition from other courses, last year’s drought and wildfires.
MCTN managing partner Frank Owens, a Denver marketing executive, said he and his group liked Gleneagle’s potential. Upper-middle- class to upscale homes and neighborhoods surround it. Its amenities include a clubhouse and banquet facilities, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, tennis courts and a fitness center.
“It has a tremendous amount of upside,” Owens said. “That’s what we saw.”
Owens said his group will market toward juniors, women and seniors to increase play. A golf learning center and junior golf clinics are planned. The new owners want to boost use of banquet facilities and upgrade food and beverage service.
No major expansions are planned, Owens said. It’s possible fees could rise, but MCTN doesn’t want to price players out of the market.
“We want to develop traffic and play, rather than raise rates and operate on a small base with a higher price,” Owens said. “We want to keep the rates very affordable but also develop a lot of consistent play.”
Other members of MCTN include Owens’ wife, Jennifer, a Denver real estate developer, and San Diego attorney Miles Scully.
The new owners plan an open house Sept. 26.
A Florida-based business group bought the Woodmoor Pines Golf & Country Club, an 18-hole private course, in August. Last year, a Denver group bought the 18-hole Divide at King’s Deer, a public course. Both Woodmoor Pines and the Divide at King’s Deer are in unincorporated El Paso County, north of the Springs.
Although Escalante no longer owns Gleneagle, it did buy the Pine Creek Golf Course in Briargate on Colorado Springs’ north side in 2002.
CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0228 or rladen@gazette.com
COLOR MAP: Gleneagle Golf Club
THE GAZETTE
Author: RICH LADEN