"The last two or three years have been abysmal in the golf market," Jon Knudson, a golf-course specialist with CB Richard Ellis Inc.'s Phoenix office tells GlobeSt.com. "We've seen a demand for golf courses decrease due to the tremendous supply."

Tough economic times and an over abundance of golf courses in the Southeast, particularly in the Myrtle Beach and Florida markets, have dealt a crushing blow to course owners, many of whom have been forced to enter bankruptcy, says Knudson, who along with partner Roger Garrett, recently sold two Valrico, FL courses for Bank of America. The courses, the private River Hills Country Club and Bloomingdale GolfersClub, a public course ranked one of Florida's 10 best, went to Manassas, VA-based Fore Golf Services for a combined $8.3 million.

In the Phoenix area, where an abundance of golf courses dot the landscape, sales are at a near standstill. But it isn't the lagging economy or the large number of courses that have driven down Phoenix course sales. It's the lack of course offerings.

"Golf has hit rock bottom in several major markets across the nation and Phoenix has been affected by the lagging economy," Knudson admits, "but it's not to the point where (Phoenix course owners) have to sell." In fact, he says, the Valley's golf courses are in high demand. Fueled by a population of more than three million and a tourist industry that brings in millions more, the area's courses are drawing enough golfers to sustain themselves in tough economic times. While that's good news for course owners, it means that few Valley courses are put up for sale.

"Nothing significant has changed hands (in Phoenix) in probably a year," Knudson says, adding that one of the most recent listings, a Scottsdale course, was pulled off the market when bidders low-balled their offerings. "They're very hard to get," he says of the Valley's golf course listings. So hard, in fact, that contrary to the trend throughout the rest of the nation, the Valley's golf properties are demanding top dollar.

"If you came here searching for a new property and were willing to overpay, you could find a golf course," Knudson says, "but if you're looking to pay market value, it's unlikely that someone would sell."

The lack of available Valley golf properties is pushing specialists like Knudson to other areas of the country where course offerings are more plentiful and buyers are eager to take advantage of cut-rate deals. Last year alone, he and his partner, members of the only golf course specialty division in the Phoenix area and one of the few course sales specialists in the nation, sold 13 courses throughout the country, seven in Florida. "That's pretty staggering," he says. If interest in golf continues to lag and the economy continues to languish, he says there could be even more "for sale" signs hung on golf course greens-- even in Phoenix.