At last, Michael Jordan has found a way to avoid crowds. Hold a press conference to discuss land development. Compared with retirement revelations, real estate announcements constitute something of an air ball.
The former Bulls superstar comprehended as much Friday morning. Before launching the Michael Jordan Golf Co., Jordan looked around a modest-size room on the third floor of his popular downtown restaurant and noticed there wasn’t much there.
The sweet rolls outnumbered observers, an unofficial indoor record for media restraint. Jordan, who isn’t accustomed to performing before empty seats, twice commented on how “small” the gathering was. But he carried on smoothly, as you knew he would, only six weeks after quitting the NBA to pursue this peace and quiet that greeted the first major business venture toward the rest of his life.
Besides, Michael could sell sand in the desert, so selling sand traps to a golf-crazed nation doesn’t seem laden with high risk. Jordan confirmed that this venture is entirely in keeping with his “second passion,” leaving us to presume the leader in the clubhouse is still basketball-a game he played better than anybody ever, but a game he uses only on a recreational basis now.
“Did you watch the Bulls last night?” inquired someone of his ex-team’s 120-98 drubbing at Portland.
Jordan knew this was coming.
“They’ve been very, very competitive,” he said. “Last night was just one of those nights.”
And no, Jordan maintained, he has no itch to return to the sport that had made him wealthy enough to engage in other forms of “relaxation” such as golf. That’s his word, relaxation. While a student at the University of North Carolina, Michael merely dabbled. But given a makeshift set of clubs by Davis Love III, who would become an outstanding professional golfer, Jordan got hooked on why his ball sliced.
He’s been beating his brains in since, and now he wants others to catch this disease. Specifically, he wants his Michael Jordan Golf Center to serve all, including youngsters, like he was once, who might not have the inclination or wherewithal to get involved. Golf, Jordan reminded, is the sport for ages 8 to 80. By its nature, golf should be for entire families, not just those fortunate few who belong to country clubs.
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The concept is noble, and Michael’s name won’t hurt its viability one bit. Our landscape is liberally sprinkled with driving ranges and public fee courses, but for all the rhetoric about getting America’s youth into golf, not enough facilities dare endanger their bottom lines. Why can’t an hour of tee times each summer day be set aside at discounted rates? Not every kid has money to throw around and daddy’s car keys.
On the drawing board, the Michael Jordan Golf Center looks spectacular. Putting and chipping greens, classrooms with instructors staffing them, miniature golf, 80 practice tees with all the “amenities” such as water hazards and bunkers. Yet, if we’re catching Michael’s drift, the big picture entails accessibility and affordability. He has enlisted Father John P. Smyth, a wonderful human being who is executive director of the Maryville City of Youth, to be on the advisory board.
But, as ever in real estate, it’s location, location, location. Calvin Peete and Chi Chi Rodriguez, to name two minority success stories, have developed programs to extend golf beyond leafy suburbs. Bringing the city to a Jordan Golf Center wouldn’t be necessary if a Jordan Golf Center somehow could be brought to the city-whether for kids or business people who wish to hit a bucket of balls during lunch hour.
“That would be ideal,” said Michael. “But where do you find a site?”
Jordan estimates the first center will cost $2 million. After his retirement, Jordan’s economic impact on Chicago was estimated at up to $1 billion. For a change, maybe it’s time this city could think about scoring a few points for Michael.