The Business of Golf What Are You Thinking?: The Primer - A Textbook: How to Maximize the Financial Return of a Golf Course

The Business of Golf is a series of two books with a passionate focus on creating value for the golfer based on a foundation that produces a return on an investment for the golf course owner. The Business of Golf What Are You Thinking? functions as a primer for avid golfers, college students in Professional Golf Management Programs, and golf industry professionals seeking to refresh their knowledge on the fundamentals of the golf industry and operating a golf course. This book garnered widespread appeal, due to its singularity as a source that provides strategic, tactical, and operational guidance, It has been purchased in over 16 countries and is used by 15 universities and colleges in their curriculums. In contrast to the basic primer, The Business of Golf Why? How? What?, first published in 2013, caters to the seasoned industry professional. The book guides a golf course management team in creating a strategic vision, determining the resources to be allocated and the policies and procedures that require consistent execution, accompanied with 21 templates that can be licensed at golfconfergence.com. Both of these books represents over a decade of research conducted in partnership with golf courses worldwide. The perspective contained in both addresses comprehensible and executable principals that encompass a diverse range of subjects including architecture, agronomy, intellectual property, rate structures, social media, water utilization and yield management. While the insights presented are clear, the analysis undertaken was extensive. The principles in these books formed an integral part of a Clemson University Ed.D.D. dissertation in which 11 leading golf course managers operating 34 golf courses vetted and validated the principals herein contained. Assurance of identifying the potential of a facility resides in the application of the books concepts. These books help the golf course management team and staff develop a focused and disciplined approach based on quantitative data to identify and mitigate the impact of uncontrollable factors (economy, location and weather). From understanding these fundamentals, the controllable factors can be leveraged to enhance each golfer s qualitative experience while ensuring a positive financial return on investment to the golf course stake-holders.

Known to his friends as Rain Man because of his amazing recall of any course he has played, any person he has met, or any place he has traveled, James J. Keegan has a zest for golf and for life itself. With a great heart and a quick mind, he has established a wide-ranging network within the golf industry, an industry in which there may be only one degree of separation from the management leaders who make a positive difference. He leverages his educational background with his extensive experience in the golf industry to frame a vision that can be understood by all. He quickly "cuts to the chase." As Managing Principal of Golf Convergence, J. J. Keegan has traveled in excess of 2.5 million miles, engaging with owners and key management personnel at more than 4,000 courses in 41 countries. Having successfully combined his passion for golf with his business acumen, Keegan is uniquely qualified to offer expert guidance on the best management practices, trends and issues facing golf courses today. Currently, he serves as a panelist for Golf Magazine s Top 100 Golf Courses. He is an Executive Member of the National Golf Foundation, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, and the National Golf Course Owners Association. He is a former member of the Club Managers Association of America. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, and has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and leading golf publications. In 2012, JJ Keegan was named "The Authority on the Business of Golf" by Avid Golfer Magazine and was recommended by Golf, Inc., as a preferred consultant to the industry. A former certified public accountant who has a B.B.A. degree from Texas Christian University, Keegan earned an M.B.A. in corporate finance from the University of Michigan. He also served as a captain in the United States Air Force.