WALKER, Mich. — Change has become standard operating procedure for Chris Sobieck since he bought The Mines Golf Club, whose property is partially inside Grand Rapids and partially inside Walker.
Since purchasing the property, Sobieck has invested heavily in improvements, growing from 45 to 110 employees while maintaining the vision of original owner Dan Schimmel, whom he still consults on major decisions.
The first major addition was an event center and restaurant, driven by the need for golf cart storage to transition from gas to electric carts. The facility now hosts weddings, corporate events, and golf outings, with 26 weddings in its first year despite not starting bookings until July.
"We can put 250 people in there pretty comfortably," Sobieck said of the event space, which features two giant screens for presentations and a dedicated bridal suite.
The next phase involves a $6,000-square-foot year-round driving range facility set to open by October 2025. The project will feature 11 bays total: seven private heated bays with garage doors, TopTracer technology, and televisions, plus a four-bay community room with simulators.
The facility will include a full bar and grill operation, automated ball dispensing, and even a robotic range ball collection system Sobieck jokingly calls "the golf Roomba."
"There'll be a robot that picks the range balls, instead of a person," he explained. "That allows us to move the staff member to a more front-facing, customer-assisting position."
Sobieck serves as head coach for the Grand Rapids Community College men's golf team, making The Mines their home course. He previously coached at Davenport University for five years and Forest Hills Central for eight years.
"Golf has given us so much that we're using golf to give back to others," he said. "As I get older, you want to make sure that we give those opportunities to someone else, hopefully they can use golf to move up as well."
The multiple revenue streams — golf course, driving range, event center, and restaurant — provide stability against potential downturns in any single area.
"Now we have four different parts that we can work off of, and if one falls a little, hopefully the other ones can pick it up," Sobieck explained. "So it gives us more stability."
"Basically, my whole life I've been in golf," said Sobieck. "I started at 15 at a driving range, used to drive a little moped to go work there until I got my license."
That humble beginning led to Michigan State University with plans to become a golf course superintendent, then to Eastern Michigan University where he played golf, and eventually to management roles at several Michigan courses before purchasing The Mines from the Schimmel family during the COVID pandemic in 2021.
The timing proved fortuitous. While many businesses struggled during the pandemic, golf experienced an unprecedented surge in popularity.
"Golf was the beneficiary of COVID because it was one of the few things you could do," Sobieck explained. "It brought a whole bunch of young people, women, into the game because it was one of the few things you could do. People found out that it's a pretty fun sport."
The sport's resurgence has been amplified by social media, particularly golf influencers on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. The Mines itself has seen success in this arena, with one TikTok video reaching 50,000 views.
"Once you get the algorithm, when I'm scrolling through Instagram, I get lots of golf stuff, and it's really good for the game," Sobieck noted.
Despite Michigan's reputation for harsh winters, Sobieck argues the state offers advantages for golf course operations. Climate change has extended the season, with The Mines typically open from March through December.
"We probably have a bigger season than they do in the South," he said. "In Florida, when it's 95 degrees and 110 degrees with humidity, it's not as popular as the summer where it's beautiful in Michigan."
The Mines has intentionally kept prices affordable, reflecting Sobieck's own background as a public golfer who had to "scrape together a few bucks to go play golf."
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