The Bellevue, Neb. club has been adding 30 to 40 members per year and expects that number to double this year, in response to special pricing that commemorates its 1966 founding. The club’s only remaining charter member estimates that he has played more than 3,000 rounds on its course, but has never tired of it because “each [round] has a different feel.”
Dick Hindman, the only remaining charter member of Platteview Country Club in Bellevue, Neb., recalled the humble beginnings of the club in 1966 when interviewed about his membership experience by the Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald.
“We only had a few holes that we could play that first year and there were only about six carts,” Hindman said.
Ffity years later, the World-Herald reported, Platteview CC has flourished into one of the top courses in the Omaha metropolitan area. And the club has planned several big events as well as a membership drive to honor its 50th (golden) anniversary this year.
Since its opening, Platteview CC has provided its members with a country-club feel while also maintaining the integrity of the course and its location, General Manager Bobby O’Keefe told the World-Herald.
“It really gives people a true golf experience of getting away from the city,” O’Keefe said. “We don’t have a house on the course.”
That is just one of the many drawing points that gets people to join, and stay, with the club, O’Keefe added.
“We’ve got several longtime members,” he told the World-Herald. “I think people feel comfortable here and it’s one of the most affordable clubs in the area.”
At the time Platterview was founded, Hindman recalled for the World-Herald, “the Farmers Home Administration was providing money for communities to build golf courses.
Many of the courses built with that support were only nine-hole layouts, Hindman added, “but Platteview was unique because they built 18 holes on 160 acres. And they had a golf architect design a championship golf course.”
One of the key features of Platteview, then and now, is the diversity that has existed among its membership, Hindman told the World-Herald.
“That first year, there were some farmers and construction workers like me, but it also had a strong presence from the Sarpy County (Neb.) courthouse, with judges and lawyers as well as the law enforcement agency,” he said. “It was, and still is, a good mix of people.
“It may be a varied group, but once you step on that No. 1 tee box, you’re all the same,” added Hindman, a longtime resident of Bellevue. He estimated to the World-Herald that he has played more than 3,000 rounds over his years as a member. But each round, he emphasized, has had a different feel because of the beauty of the course.
“You never tire of this golf course,” he said. “It’s got a lot of different contours and every lie is different. It’s always a challenge.”
While many of the members have changed over the years, the one thing that has remained consistent is the course itself, Hindman added. “There have been a few things done that have made it more user-friendly, but the basic design of the course hasn’t changed in 50 years,” he said.
The 6,500-yard course will host USGA Mid-Amateur and Junior Amateur-qualifying rounds as well as the Nebraska Golf Association’s Match Play and Four Ball Championships in 2016, the World-Herald reported. It also serves as the home course for Bellevue University’s nationally ranked men’s and women’s golf teams.
O’Keefe, who has been Platteview’s General Manager for 10 years, told the World-Herald that the club gains about 30 to 40 new members per year. But because of special rates being extended to mark the club’s 50th anniversary, he expects that number to be closer to 75 this year.
In honor of its 1966 opening, yearly membership rates have been reduced to $1,966 for this season, the World-Herald reported. The club has already gained more than 50 members since the special pricing took effect, O’Keefe said.
Non-members also have the opportunity to check out the course by playing 18 holes with a cart for $65, the World-Herald reported. Special non-member days where the course can be played for $45 are also offered, O’Keefe said, and that rate also applies to guests playing with a member.
There will be a member-appreciation tournament this spring along with other events to honor members and staff throughout the season, the World-Herald reported. “We have something planned for every month,” O’Keefe said.
Tell Us What You Think!
You must be logged in to post a comment.