Lem Mackedon, left, and Marty Davis show off one of the new flags at the Fallon Golf Course.
Business at the Fallon Golf Course has been booming this summer.
Part of this falls to new management from Fallon Golf Course, Inc. and golf pro Marty Davis, who took over management of the facility earlier this year. During the July breakfast meeting of the Churchill Economic Development Authority, Davis introduced himself to CEDA members and outlined what’s been happening at the course and his vision for its future.
Late last year, the golf course’s management, Duncan Golf Management, decided to pull out after three years. Churchill County created Fallon Golf Course, Inc. as a nonprofit to run the course and keep it in use to the community. They operated with a skeleton crew of employees at the start of the year and searched for a new director. Davis was hired and took over in March.
Davis said his No. 1 goal is to ensure the Fallon Golf Course is self-sustaining for a long time going forward. Short term, he wants to make improvements to the facility — purchasing newer maintenance equipment, new golf balls and giving a facelift to the clubhouse.
“He’s done an amazing job and I expect it to continue for many years,” Lem Mackedon, of Fallon Golf Course, Inc., said. “We have the best director of golf in the state of Nevada if not the whole west coast.”
Davis said his goal at the moment is to keep improving the golf course and make it sustainable over the next 20 or so years. He also hopes to bring on an apprentice and pass on everything he knows so the person can eventually take over.
“What we have here is kind of a clean slate,” Davis said. “It was interesting for me coming here, because it’s like opening a new golf course that’s already open and bringing it into the new age of golf.”
Among some of the changes at the course, they recently installed brand new cups and flags at the greens; Davis also installed a new ball dispencer that accepts credit cards and purchased more golf carts. The golf course has also stocked up on equipment and parts for maintaining the grounds and equipment.
One of the biggest changes has been the hiring of a new superintendent, Andrew Palmer. Davis said Palmer has been doing a great job keeping the grounds clean and the equipment in good condition. He added that Palmer has been able to maintain some of the equipment better than it had been — they maintained everything, but not to the same level.
Davis also noted the restaurant and bar have become fairly popular. He said there are many events coming up that make use of the facilities being scheduled and general, day to day use is on the rise.
“The golf course is pretty valuable to the community,” Mackedon said. “It’s pretty much invaluable and if you were to lose that asset, you would probably never get it back.”
Expansion of the course is also a possibility. Davis noted the golf course currently has nine holes — however, there is land owned by the county that could be developed to expand into another nine holes.
The golf course is also working on a website. According to Davis, the site will allow people to book tee times and plan events, among other opportunities.
“We’re excited about the future for sure,” he said.
The Fallon Golf Course can be found online at www.fallongolfcourse.com and on Facebook at /fallon-golf-course.