Golfing Weather Called ‘About As Good As It Can Get’

OCEAN CITY — Buoyed by a successful season blessed with great weather for the most part, resort officials are recommending a modest increase in the hotel package rate at the town-owned Eagle’s Landing golf course.

During the Sept. 10 Recreation and Parks Committee meeting, Eagle’s Landing PGA Professional Bob Croll presented a plan to increase the municipal course’s standard hotel package rate for the prime weekends in the offseason. The Recreation and Parks Department voted to forward a favorable recommendation to the Mayor and Council for approval of the proposed rate increase.

“We’re looking to increase the hotel package rate for the prime weekends in the fall,” said Croll. “They’ve grown tremendously in popularity. It’s really pretty simple. It’s just seven weekends in the prime package season in the fall.”

Croll said the modest hike in the hotel package rate will keep Eagle’s Landing in the same basic rate structure with most of its private-sector competitors.

“It would still be a very competitive rate and I don’t see us losing any rounds because of the increase,” he said. “Among our competitors, we’re still the second lowest rate. That’s just where we want to be as a municipal course.”

Croll provided an overview of the summer season at Eagle’s Landing and the upcoming fall package season. He said the municipal course thrived this summer, largely because of the stellar weather.

“It has been a great season,” he said. “With the weather last year, it was about as bad as it could get. The opposite has been true this year. It has been about as good as it can get. We’re still getting more than our share of rounds compared to our competitors.”

Croll also provided an update on some of the larger projects at Eagle’s Landing. For example, last year it was determined many of the wooden cart bridges at the 30-year-old municipal course had fallen into disrepair and were in urgent need of replacement with an estimated cost of $230,000. The Mayor and Council including the funding for the project in the capital improvement plan. Croll said the project is expected to start after the first of the year and be completed in advance of the next summer season.

In addition, Croll provided a brief update on the new spray irrigation system at Eagle’s Landing. In 2014, Ocean City entered an agreement with Worcester County to create a spray irrigation system at Eagle’s Landing, essentially a win-win for both parties in that the county gets to dispose of treated effluent and the golf course much needed irrigation. Croll said this week the system is working as planned.

About The Author: Shawn Soper

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Shawn Soper has been with The Dispatch since 2000. He began as a staff writer covering various local government beats and general stories. His current positions include managing editor and sports editor. Growing up in Baltimore before moving to Ocean City full time three decades ago, Soper graduated from Loch Raven High School in 1981 and from Towson University in 1985 with degrees in mass communications with a journalism concentration and history.