[psheehan]

Dave,
The courses where I live in NC were recently (about a year) taken over by Troon management. Troon is a large organization and I would guess it depends on who is in charge. I found them to be a bit arrogant and not particularly good. Our greens maintanence has suffered, even allowing for unusually harsh weather this summer. They have been unresponsive to any suggestions or criticisms.....by that I mean they acknowledge receipt of said communication and do nothing. They sent a restauranteur to be head of the whole thing....he is barely a golfer, owns clubs, doesn't play and just sort of smiles about everything. And they have fired some people who were effective and hard working, while retaining most of the 'cool aid drinking brown noses' who don't do much.

Play is slower (rangers can't confront slow groups..it isn't the troon way) the greens are worse, course setup which was always a problem is just as bad. Prices are higher.... I'm not loving them. The employees they brought in from troon itself are not first class in either competence or presentation.

The also lost their contract at Tidewater, a great course down the road a bit, a few years back. I'm told there was the arrogance factor and the loss of some greens.

I think it depends on who you get in charge...and how the ownership frames the current problem; they strike me as a big beauracracy. They seem to think that improvements are things like... 'troon tees' and having all the sand bottles line up in the same direction on golf carts... or using the 'troon standard' for rakes half in and half out of bunkers. The routine answer for everything is "well, that is the troon standard," when you laugh they look confused. If you are coming from american golf... it still might be an improvement.