Today is a red-letter day for the Otago Golf Club as it retires a hefty mortgage which, in 2005, threatened to cripple the asset-rich but cash-poor Balmacewen club.
The debt had been accrued by historical transactions such as building the clubhouse at a cost of $130,000 in 1970, while selling land to John McGlashan College for 33,000 but spending considerably more revamping the golf course.
By the time of the annual meeting in April 2005, the club had a mortgage of $440,000 and an annual operating loss of $60,000 and, all up, was in debt to the tune of $564,000.
If any blame could be laid at recent committees, it was only the failure to address debt as the club had to make large interest payments.
After considerable unrest and lobbying, a record number of 150 members attended the annual meeting in 2005 when John Bell, Ian McPherson, Pat White and Francis Whitaker ousted the previous committee.
Bell became president and McPherson the club captain, while the new committee co-opted Athol Stephens, financial director of the Dunedin City Council, as the club's financial director, a position he holds today.
The new committee put forward an eight-year business plan to address the issues, and financial budgets were prepared which were reviewed annually.
To cushion the blow, members were approached and $110,000 was raised immediately through interest-free debentures repaid over a 10-year period.
Then the new committee set a target to be debt-free within eight years, something that has been achieved with time to spare.
Annual subscriptions increased from $795 to $845.30 and bar prices also took a hit. The club also targeted diverse income streams by promoting more use of its clubhouse facilities.
Subscriptions have been reviewed annually and are currently set at $1040, but this has not affected membership, which has increased to more than 700, with 586 registered as full playing members.
During the past seven years, the club has not stinted on the necessities, as all of the greenkeeper's machinery has been renewed and nothing in the shed is more than 5 years old.
The administration systems have been updated and the members' lounge has received an uplift.
All of the motorised carts have been replaced during this era and the catering has been returned to an in-house system, instead of contracting out and profits now benefit the club.
On the course, old pine trees have been milled for firewood and have been replaced by more than 250 natives planted each year.
The 17th hole has recently been lengthened, at a cost of $23,000.
With the national interprovincial tournament at Balmacewen later this year, money will be spent on painting and tidying up some parts of the clubhouse, while the new stone entrance will impress many of the visitors.
The stewardship of the club is in good hands, although Bell and McPherson have since moved on.
Pat White is the president, and Evan Robb, who took over as acting manager in 2003, remains in that position today.
The Otago Golf Club is one of the oldest in the southern hemisphere and has been on the present site since 1892.
As Bell said in 2005: "We are aiming for nil debt, to maintain the quality of the course and return Balmacewen as a premier golf course".
There is little doubt all of these aims have been achieved.
