Check out StrackaLine’s hole-by-hole course guide and maps for the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club, site of the 2023 U.S. Open.
Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course, site of the 2023 U.S. Open, was designed by George C. Thomas Jr. and opened in 1928. It was restored by the team of Gil Hanse, Jim Wagner and Geoff Shackelford in 2010.
Situated on a terrific piece of rolling ground and serving as an urban oasis off the busy Wilshire Boulevard, the North Course will play to 7,421 yards with a par of 70 for the U.S. Open. The course features three par 5s and five par 3s, with two of the downhill par 3s playing longer than 280 yards.
Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course ranks No. 2 in California on Golfweek’s Best list of top private clubs in each state, and it is No. 14 on Golfweek’s Best list of top classic courses built in the United States before 1960.
Thanks to yardage books provided by StrackaLine – the maker of detailed yardage books for thousands of courses around the world – we can see exactly the challenges the pros face this week in Los Angeles. (Because of variations with the USGA’s setup for the Open, the yardages provided below are not always the same as will be played in the Open.)
See photos of each hole for this year’s U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course.
Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course won’t play like most other U.S. Open host sites. Designed by George C. Thomas Jr. and opened in 1928, then restored in 2010, LACC will offer wider fairways with a greater emphasis on strategy than many recent Open courses.
The team of Gil Hanse, Jim Wagner, Geoff Shackelford and several top assistants cleared out loads of trees during that 2010 restoration, allowing the course to play as Thomas intended. That means players must be on the proper side of a given fairway to attack flags on various portions of the greens – even a good swing from the wrong angle can result in a missed green.
Many holes feature greens with bunkers carved into the putting surface – it’s entirely possible to have to pitch from a putting surface, over a bunker and back onto a green, or to have to putt around the trap and accept your fate.
And don’t consider all that width off the tee to be necessarily easy. Many of the fairways feature dramatic slopes, forcing players to consider accuracy to a preferred high spot in the fairway over raw distance that might result in a steep approach shot.
Golden-age golf architect George C. Thomas Jr. believed golfers should be presented with options — sometimes a confusing array of choices. His best courses offer multiple ways to play many holes, providing the best scoring chances to those players who choose the optimum angles in often wide playing corridors and who then have the ability to execute the preferred shot.
Those kinds of strategic demands will be on full exhibit in this year’s U.S. Open at The Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course, Thomas’ most highly ranked course as judged by Golfweek’s Best raters. Each of Thomas’ top three courses — including Riviera and Bel-Air — is near Los Angeles, but it’s LACC that tops the list, tying for No. 13 among all classic courses built before 1960 in the U.S.
Thomas’ North 1927 routing at LACC actually supplanted another layout by previous architects, introducing width and strategy atop glorious inland landforms, all within the urban confines of Beverly Hills with the Los Angeles skyline a frequent backdrop. Hills, valleys, barrancas and ridges provide constant intrigue as players approach a sublime set of greens guarded by bunkers that often intrude into the putting surfaces themselves.
As with many historically significant courses, Thomas’ design suffered through ensuing decades as holes were adjusted, bunkers and greens were shifted or moved outright, and trees grew where none belonged. Enter the modern architecture team of Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner — working in consultation with author Geoff Shackelford — at LACC.
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The trio began a restoration of Thomas’ North layout, with a first phase focused on a bunker restoration that evolved into the second phase of pretty much everything else. Several original Thomas greens were reintroduced, the dry gullies were brought back into play and width was re-established. The team’s work concluded in 2010 to rave reviews. This year’s Open will be the third in the past four years on courses restored by Hanse and Wagner, following the championships at Winged Foot West (2020) and The Country Club (2022).
The U.S. Golf Association has narrowed the fairways – which can reach 60 yards wide in places — a bit for this Open, but the North (7,381 yards; par 70 for the Open with five par 3s and three par 5s) still will play much wider than a typical Open layout. But what does all the talk about strategy mean, exactly, and how will it come into play in June? Check out three great examples at LACC on the following pages, with yardage book information provided by StrackaLine.
Players typically serve as advisors on these projects, but this was more of a polite debate than a straight strategy session.
FORT WORTH, Texas — Before revered golf course architect Gil Hanse was signed on the dotted line to lead a massive $20 million overhaul of Colonial Country Club, longtime member and Colonial advocate Ryan Palmer sat in a room with Hanse to hash out a few details.
Players typically serve as advisors on these projects, but according to Charles Schwab Challenge Tournament Chairman Jim Whitten, this was more of a polite debate than a straight strategy session. Palmer and caddie James Edmondson, who has won the Colonial club championship five times, talked through a few of the holes they’ve seen in other places, some of which they haven’t been particularly fond of.
“That was a turning point. There were a lot of people bitching about the money and some other things,” said Whitten, who was driving around the course on Friday in his Tartan plaid members coat. “This was an airing of grievances about some of the stuff he’s done across the country. At one point, Ryan said, ‘Tell me what you did on 17 at TPC Boston. Tell me what your explanation is, what you did with that green. I hated that hole.’ Gil explained why he did some of these things and both he and James went, ‘OK, I get it now.’ And then Gil explained what he wanted to do here at the club, so they kind of went back and forth.”
Soon after that meeting about a year ago, the paperwork was signed and Hanse agreed to help revamp the acclaimed club, which was designed by the duo of Texas’ John Bredemus and Oklahoma’s Perry Maxwell, and opened in 1936. The course ranks 85th on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses 2022 list.
The project still needed the club’s support and to help garner favor Hanse set up a number of open meetings for club members to attend and poke holes in the plan.
After the meetings, which Palmer and Edmondson took part in, 85 percent of the members voted in favor of the plan, even with the hefty price tag.
“You can’t get 85 percent of the people to vote on what’s black and what’s white,” Whitten said. “So we were very happy with that kind of support.”
Palmer took part in the final walkthrough of the plans with Hanse and Tour officials in advance of this week’s event. The four-time PGA Tour winner said the end result will put a shine on a golf course that has been a stern test for Tour players for decades.
“It’s going to be spectacular,” Palmer said. “We kind of put our little stamp of approval, I guess you could say, of being a Tour player. I was able to talk about different shots we wanted to see, what we don’t do and don’t want you to do to the golf course.
“The plans are going to be unbelievable. This will be the best golf course in town easily, I think, after it’s all said and done. Just the way it plays, it stands up to the game’s greatest each and every year, and this course shows. I think it’s going to get harder for us, and I’m excited for the membership and for the city of Fort Worth.”
Ryan Palmer plays a shot from the first tee during the first round of the 2020 Charles Schwab Challenge golf tournament at Colonial Country Club. Palmer was the first player to tee off as professional golf made its return. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-USA TODAY Sports
A much-needed revamp
Although the course is among the shorter on the PGA Tour, the reason for the redesign had little to do with adding length. In fact, that wasn’t even on the task sheet for Hanse, according to Whitten, who has been a member at Colonial for 31 years.
“We had significant drainage and irrigation problems. And our greens, depending on how bad the summer was were really getting stressed out,” Whitten said. “Our greens are thirty-something years old and they were having layer after layer fixing and this and sanding and all this stuff, so they got bigger. And when you do that, it creates an area that holds moisture in it, which isn’t good for the green and it needs to get in and out of the green. So holding moisture was a problem and so when it was all said this golf course has not been looked at in many years.”
Although a few greens were redone two decades ago, many of them had been untouched for much longer and so the plans call for adding a hydronic system about a foot below the putting surface which can circulate warm or cool water to alter the temperature of the soil.
Colonial members decided to stay with bentgrass and maintained much of the green complexes, but let Hanse work his magic in other areas.
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Positive reaction from players
That has some, like Jordan Spieth, eager to see what the 2024 version of the tournament will be like. Shovels will go in the ground to start the renovation as soon as a winner is crowned on Sunday.
“I always thought courses like this, Hilton Head, these classic courses that stand the test of time, it’s like what are you going to do to these places? I think that’s kind of everyone’s first response,” Spieth said. “Then I saw them, and I was like, wow, this looks really, really cool. It looks like it maintains the character of what Colonial is while creating some excitement on some holes that maybe could use a little bit of adjusting.
Jordan Spieth plays his shot from the third tee during the third round of the 2020 Charles Schwab Challenge golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-USA TODAY Sports
“So changing a few of the tee lines where, instead of as much of a straight shot, you kind of see more of working the ball into a fairway. I’m not sure how much is public, but I know the idea of flipping the nines and making the 8th hole into the 17th, I think that might be the biggest change on the course from what I’ve seen. It looks like it might be a great par 3 to bring more of the creek and the river into play. So I’m always a proponent of that.”
Spieth said a recent Tour stop highlighted what can happen when a historic track is refurbished, while keeping history and the original designer’s intent in mind.
“Last week at Oak Hill you saw a renovation that was done extremely well and very highly regarded by, it seems, critics and players alike,” said Spieth, who missed the cut this year, but has plenty of success at the Charles Schwab, including a win in the 2016 event. “Change is sometimes better, sometimes not necessary. I think here Gil will do a really good job of maintaining the integrity while adding even some more character and modernization to it.”
The East course at PGA Frisco is scheduled to host 26 championships through 2034.
There are big plans for the PGA of America’s new home in Frisco, Texas, including the playing of multiple major championships.
The first of those is taking place this week at the 83rd KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.
PGA Frisco officially opened on May 2, with the Beau Welling-designed West course the first to open. The East, designed by the team of Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner, is scheduled already for 26 championships through 2034.
The Fields Ranch courses are part of the Omni PGA Frisco Resort. The property also serves as the new headquarters for the PGA of America, which previously had been located in South Florida.
How will the East course play? Ahead of the Senior PGA, several players discussed the layout, as did Hanse, the mastermind behind the venue.
Check out the photos of the new Fields Ranch West course at PGA Frisco in Texas.
PGA Frisco, the new home of the PGA of America just north of Dallas, officially opens for golf today, with the property’s Fields Ranch West course accepting tee times for play from this point onward. The other course on property, Fields Ranch East, officially opens for public tee times starting May 30.
The West was designed by golf architect Beau Welling and plays along Panther Creek in a prairie setting with oak and mesquite trees. The East, designed by the team of Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner, will play host to 26 championships through 2034, including the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship on May 25-28.
The Fields Ranch courses are part of the Omni PGA Frisco Resort that includes a 500-room hotel, 10 four-bedroom ranch houses, a spa, two ballrooms, 19 meeting rooms, nine outdoor event venues, a pavilion, 13 restaurants and bars, and retail shops. The property also serves as the new headquarters for the PGA of America, which previously had been located in South Florida.
Besides the two main courses, Fields Ranch also is home to a 10-hole lighted short course named The Swing and a lighted 2-acre putting course named The Dance Floor. It also includes the data-driven PGA Coaching Center and the Jerry J. Ransom Northern Texas PGA Golf House.
“No matter what you are looking for in a golf trip, Omni PGA Frisco Resort has all the aspects and amenities to provide a world-class experience for every guest,” Jeff Smith, vice president and managing director of Omni PGA Frisco Resort, said in a media release announcing the opening of Fields Ranch West. “In partnership with the PGA of America, we look forward to being one of the most sought-after golf destinations in the world.”
Rates for Fields Ranch East, a walking-with-caddie experience, start at $277 for public-access play (booked up to seven days in advance), and the fees start at $252 for resort guests (booked up to 120 days in advance). The fees for Fields Ranch West start at $222 for public-access players and $202 for resort guests. City of Frisco residents can schedule rounds 10 days in advance with up to 20 percent in discounts when booking outside of 48 hours and up to 50 percent off when scheduled within 48 hours of the day of play. Additional cart and caddie fees are applicable. Visit www.fieldsranch.com for details.
All combined for the courses and hotel, the property sits on 660 acres and was completed as a public/private partnership between the PGA of America, Omni Hotels & Resorts, the City of Frisco, and the Frisco Independent School District.
Check out the images of Fields Ranch West and several hotel amenities below.
The Volunteer State proves that nine holes can be enough with Sweetens Cove and the Course at Sewanee.
Golfweek’s Best is willing to buck tradition when it comes to the top public-access layouts in Tennessee, as two of the three highest ranked layouts are just nine holes.
Sweetens Cove, which has built a loyal following online and on its untraditional tee sheet, comes in at No. 1. Located about halfway between Nashville and Atlanta in tiny South Pittsburg, the design by the firm of King-Collins offers fresh twists on classic architectural features across its nine holes. It has created massive interest in a flat floodplain between mountains, proving that golfers are more than willing to travel to find a good time.
Likewise, the Gil Hanse-redesigned Course at Sewanee is a can’t miss in Tennessee despite being just nine holes. Perched atop a mountain at the University of the South, several holes feature long views over a valley while various tees allow the nine holes to play entirely differently on subsequent loops. Sewanee comes in at No. 3 on Golfweek’s Best 2022 public-access list for Tennessee.
Golfweek’s Best offers many lists of course rankings, with that of top public-access courses in each state among the most popular. All the courses on this list allow public access in some fashion, be it standard daily green fees, through a resort or by staying at an affiliated hotel. If there’s a will, there’s a tee time.
(m): Modern course, built in or after 1960 (c): Classic course, built before 1960
Note: If there is a number in the parenthesis with the m or c, that indicates where that course ranks among Golfweek’s Best top 200 modern or classic courses.
The top two public-access golf courses in Oklahoma ignite a college rivalry, while the state’s best private layout is a major veteran.
The top two public-access golf courses in Oklahoma bring out a college rivalry, Cowboys versus Sooners.
No. 1 on Golfweek’s Best list of public-access layouts in Oklahoma is Karsten Creek in Stillwater, a Tom Fazio-designed layout that serves as the home course for the Oklahoma State golf teams. Opened in 1994, Karsten Creek was named for Ping Golf founder Karsten Solheim, and the course plays around Lake Louise, named for Solheim’s wife.
No. 2 on that list is Jimmie Austin Golf Club at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. The club originally was laid out by Perry Maxwell and opened in 1951, and it was reworked by Bob Cupp in 1996 and again by Tripp Davis in 2017.
On the private side, Southern Hills in Tulsa takes the top spot. Designed by Perry Maxwell in 1936 and restored by Gil Hanse in 2019, Southern Hills has been host to a slate of top tournaments including three U.S. Opens (1958, ’77 and ’01) as well as five PGA Championships (1970, ’82, ’94, ’07 and ’22).
Golfweek’s Best offers many lists of course rankings, with that of top public-access courses in each state among the most popular. All the courses on this list allow public access in some fashion, be it standard daily green fees, through a resort or by staying at an affiliated hotel. If there’s a will, there’s a tee time.
(m): Modern course, built in or after 1960 (c): Classic course, built before 1960
Note: If there is a number in the parenthesis with the m or c, that indicates where that course ranks among Golfweek’s Best top 200 modern or classic courses.
The first course at the new Apogee Golf Club is slated to open as soon as 2023, with two more courses on the way.
When Mike Davis announced in September 2020 his plan to retire as CEO of the U.S. Golf Association, he said he intended to launch a second career as a golf course architect and partner with Tom Fazio II. A little more than a year after he officially stepped down, those plans are coming to fruition with an ambitious project.
Davis and Fazio – who often goes by Tommy and whose uncle is famed architect Tom Fazio – are set to embark on building the private Apogee Club, which will consist of three 18-hole courses in Hobe Sound in southeast Florida.
“I’ll give you the Reader’s Digest version. It’s 1,200 acres. It’s three 18-hole golf courses, it’s two short courses, it’s cottages. There’s no housing to it, so there’s not a real estate play. There’s one big practice range, almost 360 (degrees), and a performance center and another smaller practice range,” Davis said in a recent phone interview. “One of the courses is going to be designed by Gil Hanse, one designed by Kyle Phillips, and then Tommy Fazio and I are doing the third. But we’re overseeing the in-house construction, and I’ve been very involved with the permitting process.”
Davis said he’s been doodling golf courses since he was a kid and that during his tenure with the USGA he was a student of architecture, benefiting from staging championships and playing at most of the best courses around the planet. After the 2019 Presidents Cup, for instance, he toured New Zealand and played many of its esteemed layouts. Davis said he had a few different architects approach him about partnering, but the logistics seemed to work well with Fazio, who is based in nearby Jupiter, Florida, where Davis owns a home. (He and his wife rebuilt it since his retirement.)
Mike Davis (left) and Tom Fazio II have broke ground on an ambitious project named Apogee Club in Hobe Sound, Florida. (Courtesy Fazio-Davis)
“I knew Tom had skill sets that not only I don’t have, but I’ll probably never have, where he’s just spent his life building golf courses,” Davis said. “It’s just been fun coming up with the vision and then turning a vision into a master plan and then going from a master plan to literally finding the site, negotiating it, buying it, and just the whole thing, the permitting process. It’s been so much fun where even to retain Gil Hanse, to retain Kyle Phillips, to kind of master plan the property and say, OK, Gil’s course is going to be over here, Kyle’s is going to be here, ours is going to be here, how will we make them different from one another?
“But at the same time the vision is to make it a very golfer-friendly facility that’s fun to play, that doesn’t beat you up, that you’re not losing a bunch of golf balls. It’s very walking friendly; they’ll have caddies. And as much golf as there is in the greater Jupiter area, it’s underserved right now. You can’t get into clubs. You can’t get on golf courses. It’s a hotbed for golf, but even before COVID it was underserved.”
Such a huge undertaking requires deep pockets, and Davis and Fazio found not one but two principals who fit the bill. As they began quietly looking for land, Davis approached Mike Pascucci, who made his fortune in the car-leasing business and founded Sebonack Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., and asked if he’d be interested in a project of this magnitude.
“He jumped in immediately and said, ‘I’d love to do it.’ As this thing grew and we knew what kind of capital it would take, and not just capital but how much time it was going to take, he kind of said, ‘Listen, I’m not sure we don’t need a partner here just to help with the enormity of this project,’ ” Davis recalled.
Steve Ross, the largest private real-estate developer in the country and owner of the Miami Dolphins, stepped in.
“You couldn’t pull this off without people like Mike Pascucci and Steve Ross. You couldn’t do it,” Davis said. “What’s really cool about it is they’re doing it more as a legacy project. They don’t need to do this. But they just want to leave something behind that they and their families can look at and say, hey, this is something we created from scratch. It’s just fun to be around people that successful who aren’t resting on their laurels.”
Besides the financing, Pascucci and Ross are responsible for the name, Apogee Club.
“I’m not sure I’d heard the word before, but its meaning really is the pinnacle of something. They wanted something unique, and obviously the name is unique,” Davis said.
Mike Davis (right) and Tom Fazio II visit the grounds of what will become Apogee Club. (Courtesy Davis-Fazio)
Following a public hearing Sept. 27, clearing and grubbing began on a piece of land featuring live oaks, pine trees and very sandy soil.
“Gil is going to do the first golf course that will start construction (this) month, and if everything goes according to time frame, we should have a golf course hopefully at least in part ready to play by the end of 2023,” Davis said. “Tommy and I will start the second golf course basically a year later, so it will open and be ready to play by the end of ’24. Kyle Phillips will do the third course, which will be open for the end of ’25. That’s what’s so neat about Steve Ross and Mike Pascucci is they want to see this thing done. They’re not doing one of these things where let’s see how many members we get before we build the next golf course. They’re saying, let’s do it and we’ll get members in due course, and if it takes a while, if we have a recession, so be it. We want to do this thing right.”
It’s got the potential to be quite the second act for Davis and a special place to celebrate the game he has enjoyed since his youth in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
“It’s going to be kind of this oasis for great golf,” he said. “The amount of work is staggering, but I’m just loving it. It’s fun.”
Spoiler alert: It’s yet to be announced, but the course is almost certain to be added as the 2041 Ryder Cup site.
FRISCO, Texas — If the coffee at the soon-to-be-completed Omni PGA Frisco Resort doesn’t give you a sufficient morning jolt, a peek at the scorecard of Gil Hanse’s Fields Ranch East Course certainly will.
The sprawling and spectacular track — part of a 660-acre complex that houses Hanse’s East Course, Beau Welling’s West Course and the PGA of America’s impressive new home — opens with what we can safely refer to as major numbers. Major as in the numerous championships that will be played there, including the 2027 and 2034 PGA Championship and the 2025 and 2031 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
And major in terms of sheer distance — like an opening three-hole stretch that can play to 1,699 yards, including a 633-yard first hole that often plays into a stiff breeze.
Don’t come here half-asleep, the East Course seems to be saying.
But while the complex, which sits on a rare bit of rolling land on the northern tip of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, will best be known for the 26 PGA of America championships scheduled over the next dozen years, there’s an interesting bit of behind-the-scenes symbiosis that’s led to the finished work.
The new PGA of America home at the Frisco complex. (Photo by Gabe Gudgel/Golfweek)
Teamwork was the key
Gil Hanse, a golf architect who can’t squeeze enough room into his planner for major course re-designs these days, and self-described project “underdog” Beau Welling formed an interesting and complementary team to make a special piece of property into something that will change the dynamic of golf in the state of Texas.
During a recent media preview, the two sat down for a fireside chat and explained that this was the first time they’d ever worked together, but both sides were excited about the possibility of collaborating again in the future.
Welling not only created the plan for the West Course, a challenging yet playable layout that rolls through the former ranch land, but he also developed the entire site plan, meaning he accounted for details like massive crowds, TV towers and even future concession stands.
It’s all part of a property that’s expected to drive massive tourism and growth in and around the yet-to-be-finished Omni, a resort that will include a two-acre putting course; an entertainment area named The Dance Floor with a massive TV screen to be programmed by PGA of America officials; and a par-3, 10-hole short course called “The Swing.”
But as for the main attraction, Hanse’s East Course, the idea was to make this a track that could challenge the best players in the world.
Spoiler alert: It’s yet to be announced and won’t officially be for years, but the common knowledge among all the key players is that if the course gets satisfactory marks during its run hosting the 2027 PGA Championship, it’s certain to be added as the 2041 Ryder Cup site.
Gil Hanse designed the East Course and Beau Welling designed the West Course at Fields Ranch on the PGA Frisco complex. (Photo by Gabe Gudgel/Golfweek)
Prepping for a major (and a Ryder Cup)
All this left Hanse with a massive challenge, but in recent years he and managing partner Jim Wagner have been given plenty of opportunities to tackle big things. The tandem’s original design skills were on full display at the Olympic Course for the 2016 Games in Brazil, and restorations to major-championship courses have included Winged Foot, Los Angeles Country Club, Oakland Hills South, Baltusrol, Southern Hills and beyond.
But instead of reworking an existing course in advance of a major, this job called for sculpting from conception. That allowed Hanse and Wagner to put some of their routing theories into action.
“When the stage is set, we’d rather see positive outcomes determine champions as opposed to negative outcomes. We really enjoy watching golfers making birdies and eagles to win, as opposed to some guy double bogeys, another guy bogeys and barely hangs on,” Hanse said. “And so the way we’ve set up the finish is we’ve got, you know, a pretty tough stretch of holes on the back nine — the drivable 15th, 16 is a hard four, but then 17 is the shortest par-3 on the golf course and 18 is a reachable five for all those guys.
“So they’re going to have to make decisions and, hopefully, they’ll have positive outcomes determine the way that it all falls out.”
Of course, Hanse didn’t create everything from scratch. He’s openly admitted to “borrowing” design concepts from some of the biggest names before him, a practice that worked well on this project. When asked if greats like Donald Ross, Perry Maxwell and Alister MacKenzie influence his work, Hanse didn’t hesitate to answer.
“Every day. Every day they do,” he said. “We’re fortunate that we are very active in that side of the business as well. And so we’re constantly trying to explore and figure out what they did at their particular projects. And Jim and I are both very open in that we steal ideas from them. If we see something that we really like, we’ll certainly borrow literally from that, but it’s also really nice because we can talk about situational things — that we don’t want to necessarily build that green that Ross built. But that green site feels a lot like (one) at Oakland Hills. And so, then there’s a context and we can talk about those things that way as opposed to — we’re going to build exactly a replica of that.
“But we were always influenced by them, because it’s the highest art form in our profession is, is created during those times. And so we’re always inspired and certainly informed by what they did.”
Moderator Stephen Reynolds, left, Gil Hanse, and Beau Welling, during a recent event in Frisco, Texas. (Photo by Tim Schmitt/Golfweek)
Moving earth from west to east
While Hanse was working on his East behemoth, Welling was whittling away at some of the higher pieces of property on the ranch. The two realized early on that they had something the other needed.
The result was a massive movement of earth from the West Course to the East, largely to help the latter deal with Panther Creek, a tributary that winds through the region before dumping into Lewisville Lake.
Although the area is often dry, Hanse and Welling had to be ready for the occasional floods that plague the region. That led to loads of dirt being repurposed, although Welling wasn’t sure of the exact quantity.
“I’m terrible at numbers. I have no idea how much I don’t remember exactly. There was a big export of material from the west to the east,” Welling said. “So there were awesome parts of topography, like where the halfway house is, but then there’s all the stuff that was dead flat along Panther Creek and all that had to be amended in order to protect it from the floodwaters.
“And so we had to move the earth, not so much necessarily to create topography that we might have done along the way, but it really was just to elevate everything such that when the flood event does happen, it’s not inundating the investments been made in the golf courses.”
Although the area around the complex is still largely empty, a number of condominiums and mixed-use projects are either in the works or under construction. And Welling thinks that will make Fields Ranch even more important in years to come.
“I think what’s going to be really neat, long-term, is as the town and city now develops around them, this is going to be this oasis in the middle of the built-up environment that’s going to have flora and fauna and wildlife and whatnot,” he said.
Beau Welling, left, shows Gil Hanse a photo on his phone during a recent event in Frisco, Texas. (Photo by Tim Schmitt/Golfweek)
More to come?
Although they’re very different creatures — for example, when Welling mentioned at dinner that he’d had someone dress up as Sasquatch to walk outside the window at his recent wedding, Hanse laughed in disbelief and asked to see pictures — the combination created magic in this bucolic Texas pasture.
“I knew innately from the original phone call, this was gonna be such a massive, special thing and we just wanted to be a part of it and to get to be able to work alongside Gil. His guys, as you know, are special. I certainly consider him friends of ours now, and we really had a great time with all this,” Welling said. “We talked about collaborating and it’s not some marketing thing we’re talking about. I think the two firms really got to appreciate each other and I think part of that is that we’re real people.
“Like we don’t just sit around and talk about golf all the time. So I remember great dinners or we talked about music, we talked about football and we talked about whatever, so it was just really a wonderful great experience.”
That’s when the question came of whether this was the first time the two had worked together.
“Yes,” Hanse said, looking over at Welling. “And hopefully not the last.”
