Introduction
Golf is a game that is popular among many different age groups. Once a ‘niche’ sport only catering to the rich, golf has become more and more accessible throughout the years (Adams, 1985). The ongoing development of new golf courses and the continuing expansion of golf technologies allows the game to reach a newer audience. By playing golf, not only can you admire the scenery and natural beauty of a particular region, it is a great way to get some exercise. Golf in Vancouver is particularly rich in terms of the natural scenery available to utilize as an aspect of a golf course. From the ocean to the coastal mountains, the Metro Vancouver region possesses the naturalistic qualities that make golf courses most enjoyable.
The development of a golf course is not only a way to beautify a particular area, but also a way to implement a form of recreation. The impact of building a golf course also has implications in other areas such as the economy and tourism. In terms of the economy, golf courses can lead to job creation. These jobs are created in the building phase of the course, as well as jobs for maintenance and the daily operations. The addition of new golf course not only creates jobs, it increases competition between courses, which could potentially reduce the cost of playing golf further. It also gives the golfer more options in terms of where they could play their next round.
Globally, golf tourism is considered a major tourist activity (Haydam & Tassiopoulos, 2008). Golf can be used as a direct form of tourism (i.e. golf tourism), but it can also act as a special interest activity to be done adjacent to other forms of travel (i.e. a game of golf during a business trip) (Haydam & Tassiopoulos, 2008). It is estimated that there are over 60 million golfers across the world (Haydam & Tassiopoulos, 2008). In the case of Vancouver tourism, golf can be used as an attraction intended to lure potential tourists. In 2004, British Columbia was named “Undiscovered Golf Destination of the Year” by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) (IAGTO, as cited by Tourism BC, 2003). Not only could this be a boost to the tourism sector, it also has a direct effect on the economy.
This project specifically looks at the development of a new public golf course in the Metro Vancouver region. A public golf course is one that is open to all people who wish to play it. It looks at the practicality of locating a new golf course under three different perspectives. These perspectives are golf tourism, a golf course developer, and where a golf course should be located for the current population of Vancouver. To achieve this, a multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) is performed. It takes into consideration a number of factors, such as land use, proximity to other golf courses, and population and income information in the form of census data. In total there are two constraints and 11 factors. When looking at the three perspectives, the MCE takes into consideration all the constraints and factors. To isolate each case, the WEIGHT function is used to give different weights to each factor based on it’s important to the perspective it is looking at. For example, in terms of golf tourism, I looked at building a golf course in areas that already possess aesthetically pleasing scenery (i.e. natural features such as proximity to lakes and rivers as well as elevation).