Trumps check out Roslyn club

For the past few weeks, there’s been a little buzz about The Trump Organization buying the Engineers Country Club in Roslyn Harbor.
 
Eric Trump, executive vice president of development and acquisitions, said yes, he and father Donald toured the club a month ago but no, they haven’t bought it.
 
“I’ve been to the club, etc., but we’re not looking at purchasing it right now,” said Trump, who’s also in charge of Trump Golf, a fast-growing enterprise, buying up tony and unique golf courses.
 
In this year alone, he said, The Trump Organization has added three golf courses to its portfolio and regularly visits and assesses the potential of golf courses across the nation. It’s been a great time for Trump Golf, because country clubs, going bankrupt or closing since Wall Street’s implosion, have been great buys.
 
Could Engineers be a great buy?
 
“A club like that is in our backyard,” Trump said. “Could it be a potential. Yes. But you have to get to a certain point with these clubs to see if it’s worth it financially for us or whether it makes sense for the members. We’re not there with it and we’re not even quite frankly close.”
 
The Engineers club, which started in 1917, has what’s considered a challenging, 18-hole course laid out across 150 acres, designed by golf course architect Herbert Strong. It’s been the scene of two championship matches.
 
When the club ran into trouble after Wall Street imploded, it offered specials on dues to attract newcomers, gobbling up several members from other clubs with its $12,000 fees versus $22,000-plus elsewhere. But the Long Island country club loyalty is no longer what it was once; members shift from club to club to follow the bargains.
 
Trump said the business is looking for a little bit of everything and a world-class potential in its golf club acquisitions.
 
Trump Golf has various membership levels that allow entree into more than one club, and with golf courses in Westchester, the Hudson Valley and New Jersey, the executive acknowledged that one on Long Island would make sense. It’s where a lot of Wall Street honchos and country club members live and play.
 
“It really would make a lot of sense for us to look in eastern Long Island,” Trump said. “It’s in our backyard and makes a lot of sense for us.”
 
Eastern Long Island? Maybe there’ll be more buzz later.

Donald and Eric Trump, center, with Ivanka and Donald Jr.