Valley golf course offers own stimulus package

The idea is simple. Pass on good fortune to your neighbor, or, as Tom Brooks says, spread around the points of light.

Brooks is the owner of the Carson Valley Golf Course. In an economy where local businesses are hurting, his business has been faring rather well.

"With the economy being what it is, we're actually doing pretty well," he said. "People in the Valley are still coming in to play."

But Brooks, who bought the business from his parents eight years ago, wants to give some of his success back to the community. That's why he started a pay-it-forward promotion.

Until the end of April, anyone who pays a normal green fee to play golf will be handed back a $2 bill and told to spend it in the community.

The idea came from a conversation Brooks had with friends. He said they were discussing the course of the economy when someone mentioned a news story they'd seen about a Midwestern man who flooded his community with $2 bills.

"We thought it was a great idea, and thought how to make it fit with what we're doing," Brooks said.

He said he had to approach Wells Fargo about obtaining a ready supply of $2 bills.

"They're not in common circulation," he said. "When people get one, they just kind of stand there and look at it, and say, 'Wow, it's really a $2 bill? What a great idea.'"

Brooks said the rarity of the bills makes them easier to spot in the market place.

"I saw one in Raley's the other day," he said. "People will come back here and use them to buy something. We're actually giving them back as change."

As the bills continue to circulate and stimulate the local economy, Brooks hopes that they become symbols of solidarity.

"It's such a simple concept," he said. "It's positive for everyone. I'm tired of all the gloom and doom. I want to grab a few points of light and spread them around."

On Friday, California resident Garth Miller visited the golf course. He paid his green fee and looked happily puzzled when handed back a $2 bill.

"I'm all about supporting the local economy," he later said. "I've always been really impressed with the Valley and I'd love to see it prosper."

Assistant golf professional Nels Ahnlund has been working at the course for two years. He said he's been receiving a lot of feedback about the promotion.

"Especially from people not from here," he said. "They say, 'I want to live in a place where this happens.'"

The promotion is only one element in Brooks' overall plan to invest in the golf course.

"I've been trying to make it better with small improvements," he said.

One investment he's made is in a new side company, Mountain Golf & Utility Cars. A colorful assortment of the golf cars now lines the front entrance to the course.

"We're an authorized Yamaha dealer," Brooks said. "The shiny cars really have curbside appeal, and we've gotten a great response from the business community. An awful lot of people need the cars, whether for ranch or yard work, or for events like weddings, where people need to be shuttled around for a weekend."

Brooks said the golf course has been servicing the cars for years, and that selling them from the same location was a natural step.

"It's a lot different than paying for a store on Main Street and paying all that overhead," he said. "Running it from here makes it affordable, direct from the factory, with no extra middleman."

The new company sells and rents a variety of cars, both new and used, gas-powered and electric. It also offers service and repair, including a mobile service, for all brands and models.

"If it looks like a golf car, we can service it," Brooks said.

Carson Valley Golf Course is located at 1027 Riverview Drive. For more information about Mountain Golf & Utility Cars, call 265-1771.