Tim Fries, the former Head Golf Professional of Transit Valley Country Club in East Amherst, N.Y., is leading the company that purchased the nearby Glen Oak Golf Course for $2.78 million. In Savannah, Ga., OC Welch has purchased The Wilmington Island Club, with plans to change the property’s name to Savannah Country Club.
Glen Oak Golf Course in East Amherst, N.Y., has been sold to a team led by the former head golf professional at nearby Transit Valley Country Club, the Buffalo (N.Y.) News reported.
Tim Fries leads the limited liability company that purchased the golf club for $2.78 million in a transaction that closed February 16, according to a deed filed with the Erie County Clerk’s Office.
Fries and his partners plan to expand the programs available at the golf course to make it an integral part of the community, the News reported.
“At Glen Oak Golf Club our mission is to provide the best golfing, dining, and social experience possible for all of our customers,” Fries said.
Fries plans to work with Brian Mietus, a chef at Bacchus Restaurant, and to pursue partnerships with local golf associations. Fries spent about 10 months working on his plans for the course and negotiating the purchase with the course’s ownership. Fries’ FITC Golf Developments Inc. purchased the property from Golf & Country Clubs Inc., headed by Richard Meath, the News reported.
Fries’ group got a good deal for the property, at least compared to what the Town of Amherst considered paying for Glen Oak several years ago. Former Supervisor Barry A. Weinstein in 2015 called for the town to buy Glen Oak for $4.6 million as part of a complicated land swap that would have seen the town sell off part of its Audubon Golf Course and use leftover money from that sale to buy the former Westwood Country Club. Glen Oak’s owners previously had approached the town about purchasing the course, the News reported.
Weinstein scuttled the proposal in spring 2016 after running into opposition to his plan and after the town faced a $4 million judgment in a lawsuit filed by a developer, the News reported.
Fries recently wrapped up a four-year term serving as one of 14 district representatives on the PGA of America’s board of directors. Glen Oak opened as the Ransom Oaks Golf Course in 1969. It was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., the News reported.
OC Welch, who founded OC Welch Golf Properties four years ago and won the management contract for Bacon Park Golf Course, has agreed to purchase The Wilmington Island Club in Savannah, Ga., from developer Bill Foster, Savannah Now reported.
Welch did not disclose financial terms of the purchase but said he tried to acquire the club from the Sheraton parent company more than 20 years ago when Foster ultimately bought the club for $6.5 million. The purchase is scheduled to close next week, and Welch plans to change the name of the club to the Savannah Country Club, Savannah Now reported.
“It’s full of history,” said Welch. “When we were kids back in the ‘60s and ‘70s, going (to the course on Wilmington Island) was really going somewhere.”
The Wilmington Island Club’s 18-hole layout was originally designed in the 1920s by Donald Ross. It was originally named for General James Oglethorpe and the club was also known as the Savannah Inn & Country Club for part of its history, Savannah Now reported.
While Foster owned the course, his son, Mike Foster, managed the course and it became the host of the Oglethorpe Invitational. The club has approximately 400 members, Welch said, but the membership was reduced by approximately 70 members in 2017 following a mass move to the Savannah Golf Club, Savannah Now reported.
“Didn’t really have a desire to sell it, but I’ve got a lot going on with building two more nursing homes and plenty of other things going on right now,” said Foster, a developer whose properties include several nursing homes. “I love the island, love the property and love the people. I haven’t gotten too into the details, but I think (Welch) has a chance to continue what we did and continue to improve on it.”
Welch said acquiring a new property has not changed his commitment to OC Welch Golf Properties managing Bacon Park’s 27-hole facility. The new club will remain semi-private, but that designation may be reevaluated depending on the growth of the membership, Savannah Now reported.
“I would like it to be a competitive club and stand its own ground,” said Welch, who said he was a member of the club for a short time several decades ago. “The place needs a lot of work, and I’m going to do whatever I can afford to do. But it needs as much work internally as Bacon Park needed externally.”
In addition to the golf course, the Wilmington Island Club features six lighted tennis courts, a swimming pool with a children’s pool, a Nautilus-equipped fitness center and a large clubhouse with several dining rooms as well as a bar, Savannah Now reported.
“The (club) looked like it was going to close, and the community should be thankful that (Foster) decided to sell the club to me because it would have a tragedy to have houses built on that golf course,” Welch said. “They prevented that by reaching out to me, because they know I won’t build houses on the course. He could have sold for two times or three times what he is selling it to me for, but he’s done a great service to the community.”
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