Many people have bought second and third homes in golf developments for the high-end courses designed by well-known professional golfers, the tight-knit community and the plush clubhouses.
McDowell, from Northern Ireland, said the European Tour, which has spread to the Middle East, South Africa and Asia, should emulate the California and Florida swings on the PGA Tour and bundle big-purse competitions at high-end courses around its cornerstone events, the BMW PGA Championship and the British Open.
In 2008 golf participation and spending slid at private clubs and public courses alike.Since the economy has picked up, benefiting the rich more than the poor, high-end courses in good locations have been doing well, according to Donald Trump, who owns 18 of them.
The existing nine holes can not be salvaged because they don't measure up to the definition of a high-end course, Mrs. Tortorella said.
The high-end course, which had playing fees of up to $500, will re-open next year after its closure cost Wynn Resorts 16,000 rounds and between $10 million and $15 million of domestic casino business.
Punta Mita was created 15 years ago when the Mexican development company DINE bought property to create a luxury resort with high end hotels and world ranking golf courses.
He needed a niche, and high-end public courses seemed to be it.
In the last decade Donald Trump proposed and then, after community outcry, withdrew plans for high-end golf courses in Bedford, Yorktown and Putnam Valley.
The abandoned coal mines that once sliced through the landscape have been carpeted with greens and fairways for two high-end golf courses flush against the surf.
It is hard not to be outdone by these imports, but Tuller's kitchen tries to hold its own, turning out an attractive selection of high-end main courses and sides.
That was considerably more than the peak cost to play other high-end public courses in the region like Bethpage Black State Park on Long Island ($150), Ballyowen Golf Club in New Jersey ($135) or the Centennial Golf Club ($135) in Carmel, N.Y.
