Changing of the Guard at Grand Island Club
Monday, April 26th, 2010
Vic McKinley is retiring as general manager of the Grand Island Club on May 2, although you may not realize it. He’ll still be at the club but he’ll be working on his game, not club business.
“I’ll be playing golf for sure and I may marshal a tournament or two,” McKinley says.
McKinley came to the Albany area after retiring from a 30-year career with General Motors. A love of golf moved him to volunteer at
the Grand Island pro shop. From volunteering a few hours a week, McKinley moved to part-time, then full-time work in the pro shop. He was asked to take the position of general manager at first temporarily and then permanently. He has been general manager for about five years.
A good club for your bag
Grand Island is currently on an upswing, thanks to the efforts and sacrifices of the club’s employees and volunteers. According to McKinley, “we have the best greens in the area because of our outstanding superintendent and grounds crew. Our folks are some of the best in the business – they play golf themselves and they know what they want from a course as golfers.”
Not only are the playing conditions good, the club’s financial condition has improved as well. The club was acquired by Lee County about seven years ago as part of a donation and land acquisition agreement. The club’s goal is to be self-financing. In the fiscal year that runs from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010, the club hasn’t had to draw on any public funds.
“Our revenues are up 8 percent this year as a result of a successful membership drive,” McKinley reports. “We lowered our membership rates, created some special categories and added 100 new members.”
The membership increase came during one of the toughest economic times in recent history. According to McKinley, some are estimating that 20 to 25 percent of the golf courses in the U.S. will go out of business as a result of the recession. Increasing membership and revenue in that environment is a real accomplishment.
In addition to growing revenues, club management took a hard look at every expense item in its budget. Cost reduction efforts included securing lower rates from vendors, moving some individuals from full-time to part-time status and some layoffs.
“The personnel decisions were some of the most painful I’ve had to make in my career,” McKinley says.
Ready to tee off on retirement – again
Now McKinley prepares to retire for the second time. With the club open 364 days a year, the work schedule has proven too consuming for McKinley’s retirement plans. His successor, who has not yet been named, will inherit a talented, committed team and excellent facilities.
“It’s a great family-oriented club,” McKinley says. “Everyone knows everyone and it’s a great place to bring your kids. Come out and enjoy yourself.”
That’s just what McKinley plans to do when he retires again
