Checking in with New Orleans’ North Course

Hurricane Katrina really did a number on the four golf courses located in New Orleans’ City Park. The North Golf Course reopened three years later, however and now sees plenty of action. Superintendent Louis Bischoff tells Golfdom it turned 49,000 rounds last year. Photo: Billy Casper Golf

While I was working on this month’s cover story, I had a good excuse to phone up City Park’s North Course in New Orleans, where Louis Bischoff has been the superintendent for five years.

Still no phone in the maintenance facility, but Louis rang me up a day after receiving my message from the pro shop. Louis has been living in New Orleans for seven years, and he’s been the superintendent at the North Course for the last five years. He was previously at Sunkist CC in Biloxi, Miss.

The North Course was shut down by Katrina, but reopened in 2008. This is what the course looked like when I was there after Katrina hit (thanks to GCM for the pic). Mr. Mitsubishi has the tee, eh?

“It was a piece of cake,” Bischoff says of re-opening the course. “It helps if you know what you’re doing.”

Currently there is only one course at City Park in New Orleans. In the early 2000s there were four courses. The South Course was shut down pre-Katrina and made into a green space. The East and West Courses are still in no-man’s land following Katrina. They’re said to be “coming soon” with no date set.

The North Course saw a lot of attention last year, turning 49,000 rounds.

“You can say ‘wow!’ because it is ‘wow!’” Bischoff laughs. “That’s a big step for me, going from managing a private course to working a public municipality — as far as rounds played per day, it’s intense. That was another learning curve for me, for sure.”

Despite some bad weather, Louis seems thrilled to be at the course and in New Orleans.

“It’s been a rough season, but we’re making due,” he says. “The weather was pretty bad on us, both spring and early summer — lots of rain. It’s been challenging this year. I think it’s been challenging for a lot of people.”

If anyone would like to reach out and say hi to Louis, he can be reached at lbischoff@cityparkgolf.com