Cimarron Club/Course Looks Dead
By Gregg Wendorf
Advance News Journal
If only golf courses could talk, the tales they could tell.
“A hundred bucks closest to the pin.”
Stopping by the old Cimarron Golf Course on Monday was a step back in time, but a bittersweet one at that. Forty years ago, circa the early 1980s, Cimarron was one of the new master-planned golfing communities in Hidalgo County, along with the Plantation Country Club in Pharr.
Over the decades, both courses fell on hard times. In the case of Plantation, the city of Pharr was there to take it over and convert it to a public municipal course. In the case of Cimarron, however, there was no public savior to be had. The city of Mission already had its own municipal course, Shary, which dates back to the 1920s, and besides that, golf courses these days are looked upon as a bad investment.
A local businessman and his family bought Cimarron approximately three years ago, but announced last year that it was closing the facility, due to financial losses.
That case, if you will, is now in federal bankruptcy court and state District Court where the Cimarron HOA, led by the likes of HOA President Larry Fair, Attorney Rick Salinas, Consultant Hollis Rutledge, and longtime property owner Joe Phillips, are working to legally wrest control of the property from its current owner, Joseph Kamel.
In the 206th District Court (Judge Rose Guerra Reyna), the lawsuit is styled: Homeowners Association of Cimarron, Inc and Joseph Phillips, Keith Moore vs. Joseph Kamel.
Filed two-and-a-half years ago, the suit claims that Kamel is trying to rezone several areas of the golf course and common areas for retail and commercial development. Even though the city rejected Kamel’s plans, claims the suit, there are signs that he is proceeding as planned — for example, dirt being moved by front-end loaders and backhoes in some areas previously designated for rezoning. If this is allowed to proceed, claims the suit, it will also adversely affect the golf course drainage and property values.
In the end, the HOA wants to steer its own destiny by creating a public improvement district (PID) at Cimarron. If the city ends up condemning the property because it’s not being cared for, grass not being cut, etc., then the PID would be in a position to offer to purchase the property.
No More Course
No matter how the lawsuit ends, the days of golf ever returning to Cimarron are a thing of the past.
You look out on the course today, and the once beautiful green grass that covered the tee boxes, fairways, and greens has now turned into this dark brown landscape that looks burned beyond recognition.
What has to be done, is for the grass to remain cut. If not, the number of rats, possums, snakes, and other assorted rodents will soon be moving into Cimarron as well, which is just the opposite of what the HOA has planned for the future.
For property values to remain high, or suffer only minimal losses until the market catches up, the aesthetic beauty of Cimarron must be maintained, one would think. If not a golf course, then at least a landscape that looks green. With all that grass, though, how much does it cost to water? Too much for the HOA fees to cover.
What happened to Cimarron, you ask.
The fact is, many private and public golf courses lose money today. According to a 2020 report by the National Golf Foundation, over half of all golf courses in the United States lose money. This is due to a number of factors, including:
• Declining popularity of golf. The number of golfers in the United States has been declining for several years. This is due to a number of factors, including the rising cost of golf, the increasing popularity of other sports, and the changing demographics of the United States. Some studies suggest that dads in their 30s today are less likely to devote an entire Saturday morning to golf, compared to their parents’ generation.
• Increased competition is another factor. There are many more golf courses today than there were just a few decades ago. This has increased competition for golfers, and it has also made it more difficult for golf courses to raise prices.
• Rising costs also play a part in a game/sport known for many years as a rich-man’s luxury. The cost of operating a golf course has also been rising for several years. This is due to a number of factors, including the rising cost of labor, the rising cost of maintenance, and the rising cost of energy. (Source: The National Golf Foundation.)
For the people who once played Cimarron, stopping by it today, looking at the old pro shop now going to ruin, the brown grass, the absolute emptiness shrouding the common area, including the tennis courts, pool, it’s hard to remember how blowing and going this place was back in its heyday when it was on the cutting edge of Valley development.