Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, July 12, 1993 TAG: 9307120084
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: DALLAS LENGTH: Medium
Or how about the luxurious Kiawah Island resort in South Carolina?
Those golfing meccas, along with three other prominent clubs and resorts, are being put on the block this week by the Resolution Trust Corp., which hopes to pocket more than $350 million from the sale.
"I would suspect that you're looking at one of the finest collections of golf - pure golf - assets that will ever be offered as a collection," said Roger Maxwell, vice president of Marriott Golf.
The RTC wants Wednesday's open-bid auction in Dallas to draw high rollers willing to plunk down big bucks. But it's still a bargain for the thrifty country club shopper - the book value of the golfing gems is $708 million.
The agency calculates their investment value at more like $366 million. The agency insists that minimum bids for all the clubs combined must total nearly $256 million.
The RTC took over the clubs in 1992. They had been owned by Landmark Land Co. Subsidiaries of New Orleans' failed Oak Tree Savings.
The company has worked hard to market the glamorous fire sale, and it is offering to finance as much as 75 percent of the purchase price at low interest rates. The agency expects 20 to 50 bidders, who must put up $250,000 per property.
"People will be waving paddles around for tens of millions of dollars, basically," RTC spokeswoman Felisa Neuringer said. "Certainly when you've got people in that kind of format, the adrenaline starts going and people get very competitive and that can't hurt."
The resorts include four in California: PGA West and La Quinta Golf & Tennis Resort in La Quinta; Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage; and Carmel Valley Ranch near Carmel.
Also on the block are the Palm Beach Polo and Country Club in West Palm Beach, Fla.; and Kiawah Island resort near Charleston, S.C. - minus its famed oceanside golf course. That course won't be auctioned because the RTC is negotiating with three potential buyers.
The layouts among them have been the site of more than 70 nationally televised golf championships on courses designed by Pete Dye, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. The 8,000 acres of properties also include equestrian facilities; more than 100 tennis courts - Mission Hills has been the site of Davis Cup matches; nearly 1,000 resort hotel rooms; and hundreds of villa rentals, along with land for residential or commercial development.
The auction is part of the reorganization plan the agency has filed as Landmark's chief creditor in bankruptcy court in Charleston, S.C.
Among potential bidders, Ross Perot Jr.'s Hillwood Development Group has expressed interest in all six clubs.
Club members also have organized to try to bid on their home links.
In the complex process, bidders first will vie for the individual resorts, then for all six clubs. Finally, the top two individual bidders for each resort can challenge the top multiple bidder.
Some speculate with Hill that although they may not prevail at auction, homeowners and member groups eventually will end up owning many of the properties.
by CNB