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  • The Yule Golf Course in Alexandria is closing on Nov. 11 and was sold last week in an auction. The new owner, farmer Dale Rinker, is expected to convert the course to farmland. Don Knight

    1104 news Yule 02.jpg

  • Homes can be seen along the northern boundary of Yule Golf Course near the third green. The course in Alexandria is closing on Nov. 11 and has been sold. The new owner, farmer Dale Rinker, is expected to convert the course to farmland. Don Knight

    1104 news Yule 07.jpg

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November 5, 2012

Yule Golf Course sold in auction to area farmer

Alexandria officials tried to save the landmark

By Baylee Pulliam The Herald Bulletin

ALEXANDRIA, Ind. — Yule Golf Course, an Alexandria landmark for 45 years, will likely replace its greens with grains.

Almost all of the 158-acre property, located at 800 S. Harrison St., were auctioned off last week to a local farmer, Dale Rinker, who bid just shy of $1 million. A $40,000 offer to buy the 1.9-acre plot that holds the clubhouse was not accepted.

Brachen McCurdy, who manages the course for his father, Dr. Bob McCurdy, said there were “a lot of different reasons” for the sale, but mainly cited the economy.

“Alexandria just can’t support a golf course,” he said. “All we can do is try to make the transition as smooth as possible.”

Alexandria Mayor Jack Wood said he and other officials met with the McCurdys about the city maintaining and running the course for a two-year period, while they look for other buyers who would keep it as a golf course. That plan wasn’t viable, Brachen McCurdy said.

The mayor said he was “devastated” by the sale.

“We tried all we could (to save the course),” Wood said. “It’s a huge loss. I feel so bad for the people who live around there and the businesses who’re down there.”

Wood said this could mean lower property values for residents of Yule Estates, which runs along a stretch of Fairway Drive and is surrounded by the course on three sides. And the area’s businesses could see fewer customers, he said.

Rinker, from Yorktown, could not be reached for comment.

“I really hate to see it go. I didn’t want it to sell,” said Jerry Kilgore, 79, who’s lived on Fairway Drive for about 35 years.

Kilgore said he hasn’t decided if he’ll stay if the golf course is replaced with crops, but said his home’s value will probably “drop quite a bit.”

The property is currently zoned as residential, but can be used for agriculture if Rinker meets with the Alexandria Board of Zoning and Appeals.

Brachen McCurdy said the sale was “the end of an era (for his family). This community has been great to us.”

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