A Charleston, SC, bankruptcy judge will soon decide if one of Myrtle Beach’s few private golf courses can go ahead with a reorganization plan that includes a sale to a North Carolina course operator.  Three hundred members of The Reserve at Litchfield Beach voted overwhelmingly more than a year ago to turn the club over to the McConnell Group, which had promised more than $1 million in renovations and to keep the club private for at least 10 years. 

        The Group, led by founder John McConnell, had planned to add the

        The major point of contention was raised by resigned and inactive members who would lose the chance to get back most of their initiation fees.  Under the Reserve’s bylaws, a former member can receive up to 90% of his or her equity payment when four new members join.  The deal with McConnell, who would pay $1 for the club plus its debts to secured creditors, would not include payment to the former members.  The 175 resigned members have hired a lawyer to argue their case before the Charleston judge.

        After five hours of testimony yesterday, according to the Myrtle Beach Sun News, the case was continued until today.  We will keep our eye on the story.

        Things at The Federal Club, a financially beleaguered Arnold Palmer designed golf course just outside Richmond, VA, are going from bad to worse.  The former private club in a planned golf community, whose course cost $9 million to build, was considered one of the most promising projects in the area just five years ago. 

        But after trying just about everything, including opening up for public play and declaring bankruptcy for the purpose of reorganization, The Federal Club is once again on the ropes, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.  Its major creditor, Essex Bank, is asking the court to remove the club from protection in order that the bank may take it over.  The bank charges that the club’s owners have used cash from the club’s meager operations to pay other creditors. 

        The owners say the bank had a plan from the moment bankruptcy was filed to take over the club. They say they have added 20 new members recently by offering joint club membership with another local course.  The court will rule later this month.

        I am taking requests for the month of March.  Having landed last night in Pawleys Island, SC, just south of Myrtle Beach, I am ready to take care of business -- and a little relaxation -- for the next few weeks.  My scheduled travels will take me to Jekyll Island, GA, for a collegiate golf tournament the weekend after next, and then to the Marine Corps base at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, NC the last weekend of the month for another college golf tournament (my son is scheduled to compete).  I'll be checking out a few golf communities along the way.

        Our March issue of Home On The Course details how one golf-community homeowner and his wife manage to spend three months a year in a “second home” without paying taxes or any of the other upkeep associated with vacation home ownership.  Instead, with lots of research (fun for them) and a little bit of bargaining, they wind up renting $2 million dollar homes for less per night than they would pay at a Holiday Inn Express.  Learn the details in our March edition, coming in a few days.  We also list a few homes currently for rent in some of our favorite golf communities.

        Signing up to receive our free monthly newsletter is easy.  Just fill in your name and email address at the top left of this page; then confirm your subscription when you receive an automated message (we do that to protect against spam).

        That’s all there is to it.  In a few days, you will know what other subscribers do; how to live in two homes during the year while owning just one.