Clinton Township voters to decide whether Saxon Golf Course can sell alcohol
In the upcoming primary election, in addition to casting votes for elected positions, voters in Clinton Township will be asked to vote on one more question: Should privately-owned public golf courses in the township be allowed to sell alcohol?
The question was raised by, and would only currently apply to, Saxon Golf Course — a 27-hole public golf facility which is looking to sell alcoholic beverages in the normally-dry Clinton Township.
“Our main intention is just to sell six-packs out of the clubhouse,” said Andy Olczak, the owner of Saxon Golf Course. “But we do have a nice picnic shelter. There’s possibilities that we can work with there.”
According to Olczak, the referendum question made it onto the ballot after a petition which received over 600 signatures.
“We had to get a petition signed in order to get it in the ballot,” Olczak said. “We gathered 600 signatures, mostly going door-to-door. We had a lot of support from a lot of people.”
According to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, as of January, Clinton Township is one of 29 municipalities in Butler County to restrict sales of either retail beer, retail liquor or both. As of May 2025, the board’s database contains only one liquor license with a Clinton Township address — a grain alcohol license for a private home on Ekastown Road.
However, some “dry” municipalities in Pennsylvania — including three townships in Mercer County — have carved out exceptions for privately-owned public golf courses, which is what Saxon Golf Course is hoping for.
Not all liquor licenses in Pennsylvania are made equal. There are different types of licenses for different locations, such as hotels, restaurants, casinos, wineries, distilleries, and both public and private golf courses. If the referendum passes, it would only apply to Saxon Golf Course, as it is the only “privately-owned public golf course” in Clinton Township.
Pennsylvania is one of 14 states, plus the District of Columbia, which uses the “closed primary” system, in which only registered voters of a party can vote in that party’s primary. This means that voters not registered to a party cannot vote in primary elections.
However, for this referendum question, those not registered to a party can vote. A nonpartisan sample ballot for Clinton Township voters has been posted to the Butler County Bureau of Elections website, which contains only the referendum question.
More election coverage can be found here.
