Colorado AvidGolfer Magazine April 2024

Since our humble beginning in 1999, we’ve understood that it takes more than one man’s vision to create a golf destination that engages the senses and stirs the soul. This circular journey of discovery and growth always leads back to those who share it with us. To everyone who poured themselves into creating the Bandon Dunes of today, to our staff and caddies, to our community, and to all inspired to travel to the ends of the earth to play this great game, we are forever grateful.

THE 2024 GEAR GUIDE IS HERE!

Golf course designers have degrees in metallurgy, rocket science, physics and engineering. It shows in the subtle improvements clubs and balls are making each year. By Ted Johnson PG. 24

FEATURES

wyndham wants his masters// 34

Just 12 months ago Colorado-native Wyndham Clark was a relative unknown on the PGA Tour. What a difference a year can make.

By Jim Bebbington

SCOTLAND FOR THE BRAVE//

50

A buddy-trip to northeast Scotland can be the trip of a lifetime, but getting out on the best courses and keeping the trip budget-friendly is possible too. By Jim

Bebbington

2024 CLUB GUIDE// 53

Colorado private clubs are bridging a generational divide – seeking to please traditional members while appealing to the millennial generation of young parents and professionals.

DEPARTMENTS

10// FORETHOUGHTS

It is rare that a golf community gets to watch in real-time as one of their own reaches the sports stratosphere. Enjoy Wyndham Clark.

14// THE CGA

People of the CGA – Will F. Nicholson III

By Kayla Kerns

16// THE GALLERY

April means it is time for the annual rite of passage: skiing nine runs, playing nine holes, and watching nine innings – Eleven Colorado caddies earn Chick Evans Scholarships – How to keep negative thoughts away from the first tee box

80// blindshot

The first months of his professional career have showed Aurora’s Davis Bryant how to compete.

By Jim Bebbington

ON THE COVER

PLAYERS CORNER

39// RAVENNA’S NEW WATER FEATURE

The Club at Ravenna preps for summer with a stunning new water feature.

By Kim D. McHugh

SIDE BETS

41// FAREWAYS

Country Club chefs tell the secrets behind keeping their ‘families’ well fed.

By John Lehndorff

44// nice drives

The Hyundai ionic6 and Ford MACH-E By Isaac Bouchard

PGA star Wyndham Clark answers questions during one of his many media interviews at the Genesis Open in February.

Photo by Felix A. Marquez

APRIL 2024 | VOLUME 23, NUMBER 1

coloradoavidgolfer.com

PRESIDENT & GROUP PUBLISHER

ALLEN J. WALTERS

CONTENT DIRECTOR

JIM BEBBINGTON

SALES, MARKETING & ADVERTISING

vp of sales & marketing

LORI PERRY

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digital marketing manager / content strategist

BRENDAN O’KEEFFE

office manager

LAURIE LEWIS

ART & EDITORIAL art director

CHRIS DECONNA

art director , avidlifestyle

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editor -at- large

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automotive editor

ISAAC BOUCHARD

style editor

SUZANNE S. BROWN PARTNER

CHRIS PHILLIPS

contributors

ANDY BIGFORD, CLARKSON CREATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY, TONY DEAR, DENNY DRESSMAN, SUE DRINKER, DICK DURRANCE, CHRIS DUTHIE, SCOTT GARDNER, NICK MCQUEENEY, KAYLEE HARTER, TED JOHNSON, JOHN LEHNDORFF, TOM MACKIN, KIM MCHUGH, JAY MCKINNEY, JON RIZZI, CHRIS WHEELER

IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO LEARN FROM THE BEST

It’s not every day that we get to watch greatness gather steam.

Wyndham Clark’s rise up the leaderboard of the PGA Tour has been an amazing thing to watch over the past 11 months.

Clark, a Highlands Ranch native, went into last May as a respected PGA Tour pro who tended to do just enough on Sunday afternoons to lose close tournaments. Then in May he won. And won again. And has now won a third time.

He became world famous. He represented his country at the Ryder Cup. He became the face of Mark Wahlberg’s clothing brand MUNICIPAL.

John Pavlakovich

NMLSR ID: 801982

Sr. Mortgage Consultant

Cell: 720-308-2507

John.Pavlakovich@phmloans.com

JohnPavlakovich.phmloans.com

215 Saint Paul St, Denver, CO 80206

So it should come as no surprise that as the 2024 PGA Tour season Clark is among the Tour’s most high-profile players. And this month he has his first chance at one of golf’s greatest prizes – a green jacket from Augusta National.

Our cover story this month looks at Clark’s past year and talks to people who know him well about what the future could hold for him.

Brian Kettler, his former high school English teacher at Valor Chrisitan High School, has kept close to Clark. He has been with him as Clark worked through the death of his mother, Lise, of breast cancer in 2013. He said watching Clark’s success now is even more fulfilling knowing what he’s been through.

“It would be a joy to be there for Wyndham’s big win but it’s a different kind of joy when you’ve been (with him) through the valleys,” Kettler said.

In addition to sharing Clark’s story, this edition keeps the Spring season going with a deep look

into the state of Colorado’s private golf clubs. Most have seen an uptick in members and interest as part of the golf boom that began during Covid and has shown no signs of abating. But it is the nature of clubs that each has to show its worth and value, every day. Club professionals tell us they are working to keep their members content and to make their facilities places where people can re-charge, relax and re-connect.

Also it is time for our annual round-up of the latest in golf club technology. The average golfer can be forgiven if they feel a little overwhelmed by $600 drivers and $500 putters. Ted Johnson, who has tracked the industry for AvidGolfer readers for several years, cuts through the golf-marketing malarkey and in this year’s edition helps readers know how best to put their money to work on the course.

And one of the best parts of being a golfer is dreaming big. For many years, for me that meant dreaming about playing golf in Scotland. When I finally did it, my son and I had the trip of our lives. We found that with a little preparation some of the great courses are ready and waiting. Carnoustie is surprisingly fun – desptie its famous nickname ‘Carnasty.’ The Old Course at St. Andrews is so overwhelming that the starter will coach first-timers to get them to calm down. North Berwick is lesser known - it doesn’t host The Open - but is absolutely magical. The list is long of courses worth your time.

The 2024 season is upon us. Get the tips here that work for you, take inspiration from Clark and the others you read about, and then take that information to the course and put it to use. The game is afoot.

-JimBebbington|jim@coloradoavidgolfer.com

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at

WILL F. NICHOLSON III

MEET ONE OF THE NEWEST BOARD MEMBERS AT THE CGA

ByKaylaKerns

Will F. Nicholson III (also Vice President and Treasurer of the Colorado Golf Foundation), is one of the CGA’s newest Board Members. Will is a fourth-generation Coloradan who spent the entirety of his four-decade career in the investment management industry; the last thirty were focused on advising foundations and endowments on the structuring and monitoring of their investment portfolios. Will learned golf at the Denver Country Club as a child and where he continues to play regularly as a member. He is also a member of Castle Pines Golf Club.

KK: Tell us about your family’s history with the game of golf

WN: My grandfather, Will F. Nicholson, served as a Director of the Western Golf Association (WGA) from 1933 to 36 and as a member of the United States Golf Association (USGA) Executive Committee from 1937 to 41. While serving at the USGA he was instrumental in bringing the 1938 U.S. Open to Cherry Hills and served as that tournament’s general chairman. 1938 was the first time the US Open had ever been contested west of the Mississippi. My dad’s time serving the game of golf encompasses such a long list I can’t possibly go into it all. But, some of the highlights include serving on the Board of the CGA for several decades and serving as a member of the USGA Executive Committee from 1974 to 1982 and as its President (1980 to 81). Additionally, as a member of Augusta National Golf Club, he served as Chairman of

its Competition Committees from 1992 to 2006, having primary responsibility for conducting the Masters golf tournament. Through all of this he became highly regarded worldwide for his expertise on the Rules of Golf.

KK: How did you get involved with the CGA and what is your position now?

WN: I can’t help but tie it back to my dad. He got me interested in the rules of golf as a kid and I got involved with the CGA early on by taking some rules classes and becoming an on-course official. I did a fair amount of junior golf tournaments as a rules official, but I also officiated at some higher-level competitions for the CGA. Also, my experience around caddies led me to be invited to join the CGA Caddie Committee and become a WGA Director, which I have been for over 20 years now. Late last year I was elected to serve on the CGA Board and am very excited to become more involved.

KK: What is your involvement with the Colorado Golf Foundation?

WN: I was asked to join the CGF board in 2016 and I pretty much dove in head first. I’m the kind of guy when I’m asked to serve on a board, I don’t do it for the glory; I do it to make a difference, meaning I work at it. As treasurer, I began by simplifying the financials and making them easily understood by most. When the notion of putting the money to use even if you don’t give it away came up, we created the endowment. The initial endowment was $1.8 million in 2017, and at the end of 2023, we have almost $3.5 million in endowment thanks to investment growth and additional contributions.

KK: And what is the endowment used for? WN: The endowment generates a constant stream of “income” that’s used to further the foundation’s mission, which is to provide funding for Colorado-based golf organizations and programs that use golf to build important life-skills and character, with an emphasis on instilling hard work and self-reliance in young people. In the last several years, the CGA and the CGF have really come together with a common purpose to benefit youth through the game of golf. Both of us have a similar approach focusing on three areas: Caddie Programs, Youth Player Development, and Community Outreach.

KK: What was a pivotal moment in your golf journey?

WN: I must have been maybe 10 or 12 years old, and my dad said, “Hey Will, I got a present for you,” and he gave me a 3 iron. He told me, “Learn to love this club.” I took him to heart, and to this day, I can’t think of anything much better than hitting a long iron flush.

KK: I can’t help but ask, but what’s the logo on your shirt?

WN: Ha ha. That’s the Laughing Man, a character who is expressing his joy at having holed out and who adorns the weather vane atop the clubhouse at the Denver Country Club.

KK: What is one piece of advice you would give to your younger self or younger generations?

WN: Two parts to my answer, both of which have rock-and-roll overtones. The first might sound corny, but it took me a long time to appreciate the Eric Clapton lyrics “Love is lovely” “Plant your love and let it grow.” Second, is something I heard often as a youngster, “You can’t always get what you want” that, thanks to the Rolling Stones, was modified in my teenage years to “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.” So, my advice would be to remember that you can’t always get what you want, but if you plant your love and let it grow, you’ll probably get what you need.

In the last several years, the CGA and the CGF have really come together with a common purpose to benefit youth through the game of golf.

WILL F. NICHOLSON III//

PHOTO CREDIT: ADOBE STOCK

i-225

It’s Spring, and that Means it’s 9-9-9 Season!

ByJimBebbington

April and May are the months when the fabled Colorado 9-9-9 challenge becomes possible. Ski nine runs. Golf nine holes. Watch nine innings at a Rockies game. All in the same day.

The 9-9-9 season starts with the Rockie’s home opener – April 5 this year. It ends when the last ski run shuts down. That’s usually Arapahoe Basin; in 2023 that was June 4. Why do it? According to 9-99 veterans, because it’s a blast, and because you are young. “We started at 6 a.m. and kept it going until 10 p.m. and after… and I can’t keep up with that anymore,” said Tyler Stanley, a 31-year-old Chicago transplant who did the 9-9-9 three years in a row.

He did it once alone, meeting different friends and his wife for different stops. Then he organized a fundraiser around it for two years, getting upwards of 30 people. They even added a ‘9’ – beginning the day with a nine-mile run.

“You have to start at 6 a.m. because you have to get done with that (run) and get out to the mountain,” he said. “ For a lot of folks, you do it once and you’re done.” The hardest part? Staying awake for the end of the Rockies game, he said. Some groups add other ‘9’s: - drink nine beers, eat nine hotdogs, take nine shots.

How to do it

SKI: Eldora Mountain or Arapahoe Basin give you either the closest option, or the latest season. Eldora lifts begin at either 8:30 a.m. or 9 a.m.; it closed for the season last year April 16. A-Basin lifts start turning at 9 a.m.

GOLF: The closest golf course to Coors Field is the city of Denver’s City Park Golf Course. The Hale-Irwin redesigned course is one of the most popular courses in the state – a good test, and very affordable. To get tee times it is best to pay $50 to join the city of Denver’s golf access program; you can book tee times 14 days in advance. Other close options include CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora. Coming back from Eldora you can hit Boulder’s Flatirons Golf Course or Westminster’s Walnut Creek Golf Preserve. En route from A-Basin there’s options all along the I-70 corridor including Fossil Trace Golf Club, Applewood Golf Course or Willis Case Golf Course

ROCKIES: The Rockies give you two possibilities for your 9-9-9. Go to a day-game and finish your day with twilight golf, or else play in the afternoons and end the day at Coors Field. The team has 1:10 p.m. starts on April 7,10,21 and 25 this month. There are seven 6:40 p.m. starts during April’s two home stands, April 5 -12 and April 19-25. In May and early June, as daylight lengthens, more options become available. Rockies.com

PHOTO

11 Colorado Caddies Earn Evans Scholarships

ByJimBebbington

Eleven Colorado students were awarded Western Golf Association’s Chick Evans Scholarships, a full housing and tuition scholarship for golf caddies and the nation’s largest privately funded scholarship program.

The scholarship is valued at an estimated $125,000 over four years. The Colorado caddies will begin college this fall as Evans Scholars, with most expected to attend the University of Colorado in Boulder.

The Western Golf Association has pledged proceeds from the 2024 BMW Championship, held Aug. 20-25 at Castle Pines Golf Club in the Denver area, to the Evans Scholars Foundation to help award more full-ride scholarships to deserving caddies across Colorado and nationwide. The scholarship has grown from the first two caddies in 1930 to 1,130 scholars in school in 2023. This past year, the Evans Scholars Foundation paid out $27 million in tuition and housing expenses, a record for the organization.

At a Glance

Since 2007, the BMW Championship has contributed more than $50 million to the Evans Scholars Foundation.

The 11 Colorado recipients are:

• Noah Johnston, Basalt, Roaring Fork Club, Basalt HS

• Alysia Ledbetter-Redwood, Colorado Springs, Broadmoor Golf Club, The Classical Academy HS

• Jordan Moon, Colorado Springs, Broadmoor Golf Club, Cheyenne Mountain HS

• Landon Swan, Colorado Springs, Broadmoor Golf Club, Palmer HS

• Madeleine Clark, Denver, Meridian Golf Club, Denver South HS

• Cristian Garcia Arroyo, Denver, Cherry Hills CC, Regis Jesuit HS

• Maya Glazer,Denver, Cherry Hills CC, Lakewood HS

• Samuel Habib, Denver, Lakewood CC, Cedar HS

• Sutton Dodds, Eagle, Red Sky Golf Club, Vail Christian HS

• Kale Potter, Grand Junction, Tiara Rado Golf Club, Palisade HS

• Josue Martinez Castaneda*, Wray, Ballyneal Golf Club, Wray HS

*Awarded the Evans Scholarship for three years as they are currently a freshman in college.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, THESE ARE SCHOLARS ALYSIA LEDBETTER-REDWOOD, LANDON SWAN, JOSUE MARTINEZ-CASTANEDA, SUTTON DODDS AND JORDAN MOON. PHOTO COURTESY THE WESTERN GOLF ASSOCIATION

Leaving Negative Thoughts Behind when you Head to the Tee Box

ByJimBebbington

They had a packed agenda at the Colorado Golf Association’s annual women’s golf summit in February for an audience of veteran women golfers who run golf leagues all over the state. These are serious golfers.

And yet, even among these amazing and accomplished players, what was one of the most-attended workshops of the entire day? A talk by PGA teaching pro Elena King “Stop Worrying - How Self-Talk Undermines Performance.”

Just goes to show you – even the experts wrestle with how to keep our brains from getting between us and performing our best.

About half the attendees at the entire event filled a crowded hall to hear King take the audience through a clear conversation: golf is simple – thinking is hard. “Why do we worry? How does worry impact our performance? What are strategies we can use to manage worry?”

King is a longtime teaching instructor at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora. Colorado AvidGolfer voters just named her one of the top instructors for women golfers in the state.

She said her talk was intended to help her audience realize how normal negative thoughts are to all of us, but also how it is possible to manage them.

“Worry is the anticipation of a negative event,” she said. “It creates doubt. It creates fear. It creates anxiety. It creates tension. What happens between the range and the first tee? There’s a lot of negative people talking in my head.”

King recommended that players work to recognize when their brains are filling with negative thoughts. “As a golfer no one cares about what you’re doing; we’re all worried about what we’re doing,” she said. “It’s important to manage what we say to ourselves and each other.”

She armed her audience with some resources if they wanted help in more positivity and success on the tee box and in life:

• Michael Gervais’ Finding Mastery : It is a book, a website and a podcast but centers around curtailing the amount of time we spend focusing on what other people think of who we are and what we do.

• Brene Brown’s Tedx Talk on The Power of Vulnerability : She discusses her research into how people accept their vulnerability.

• Fred and Pete Shoemaker’s Extraordinary Golf

• Rick Jensen’s Easier Said Than Done

• Joseph Parent’s Zen Golf

“We can change mentally what we say which changes our emotions which changes our physical reaction,” King said.

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In 2023 CommonGround had 42,000 rounds

CommonGround Clubhouse Re-Opens

ByJimBebbington

The clubhouse at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora may not look all that different, but it’s a world of improvements from the older building.

For the past year staff at CommonGround have been operating out of trailers off to the side of the parking lot while the course’s clubhouse was renovated.

The work finished up this spring, and the building now gives staff more room to make the operation run well. Before the pros, proshop staff, merchandise and concessions were housed in space that essentially occupied the entirety of the clubhouse. There were few offices, little storage, and the concessions operations were limited by the lack of cooler space. So when regular patrons return to the building this spring, they may not notice all the changes. The public spaces – check-in counter, concessions counter and tables are all pretty much the same.

But the merchandise no longer fits with space with the customers who just want a post-round hotdog – it has its own area now. Storage now lets them keep stock inside and not chained in a storage shed in the parking lot. The teaching staff have offices to meet with students, and the concessions area has a restaurant quality walk-in refrigerated cooler.

Ben Pennymon, CommonGround’s director of golf, said everything previously was fighting in and out of the front doors – staff, customers, supplies.

“Not the best way to operate,” he said. In 2023 CommonGround had 42,000 rounds. Next up the complex is building a new range building and dispensing machine. “The same high volume we experience on our golf course we experience on our driving range,” Pennymon said. “Many times throughout the summer its standing-room-only.”

PHOTO CREDIT: BRADEN HANSEN, PREMIER AERIALS

PHOTO CREDIT: JIM BEBBINGTON

By Ted Johnson

Legendary golf club designer John Hoeflich tells the story of how the arms race of better golf clubs, balls and equipment really began:

Nearly a century ago a dentist in southern Massachusetts missed a 3-foot putt, and it baffled and frustrated him. So he took the offending ball into his office and for an X-ray and learned the center core of the ball was not, in fact, in the center, which indeed can cause a ball to wobble off line.

From that, he and a few others joined together to create a better golf ball. That company is called Acushnet, and it’s the parent company of Titleist.

Then forty years ago, golf underwent another revolution when it transitioned from persimmon-headed woods to steel clubheads. A decade later came the titanium wave, and since then the designs have evolved into exotic blends of steel, titanium, carbon fiber and even 3D printed metals. Our drivers and fairway woods have moveable interior weights that help induce better shots. It’s like going from a Model T to a Formula 1 race car in the same span of time.

Today’s top-end drivers, irons and putters represent years of innovation involving materials science, mathematics, aerodynamics, chemistry and physics – basically the scholarly fields that comprise rocket science.

“The challenge is,” said Tom Olsavsky, vice present of R&D at Cobra Puma Golf, “everyone wants everything at once. Better distance, better feel, better consistency.“ And that explains why drivers can cost $600, and putters nearly as much.

The most difficult club to hit has been “long irons,” the 3- and 4-irons. They had smaller heads and even smaller sweet spots, meaning the slightest mis-hit had terrible results.

Now many models of these clubs consist of five computer-milled pieces that are welded or glued together. A razor-thin face that gives a “trampoline effect” goes in the middle. The head is hollow but filled with synthetic foam to give off the proper sound and feel. Tungsten weights in the heel and toe keep the face stable even on the most off-center hits. The overall effect is these design features make these modern clubs much more forgiving than their predecessors of even 10 years ago.

For many years the idea of combining materials in clubheads was unheard of, Hoeflich said. For example, it was not possible to weld a titanium piece to a piece made of steel. And there was no way to secure sheets of carbon to a metal sole plate. Now there is.

“The epoxies have become so much better,” said Michael Yagley, Vice President, Innovation/AI for Cobra Puma Golf. “And tape. The 3M VHB tape has amazing bonding strength to dampen vibrations. We use it in metal woods and irons, too. It’s used to keep wings of airplanes together.”

Also tools of design are so much better. With computer-aided design (CAD) software, it is now possible to design a club on the computer and even project what kind of sound it will produce when striking a ball. And now there’s 3D printing.

“I am looking out of my office window now at guys on my team who printed out a 3D version of a clubhead yesterday and are now hitting it on the range,” Yagley said. And for all these advancements in tools and materials, the challenges in the golf market remain extreme.

In 2023, Olsavsky and Yagley took the Cobra design team to NASA’s complex in Houston to sit down with their engineers to explore ways

to achieve better aerodynamics of the Cobra drivers and fairway woods. They laid out the complexity of the issue: The driver head could only weigh 200 grams with a size of 450 cubic centimeters. It had to, depending on the strength of the player, be able to withstand up to 4000 Gs (forces of gravity). It had to have a certain frequency and volume of sound at impact. It can’t break. It had to have specific interior features, and it had to last 7,000 swings. Oh, and it could only cost so much.

“There were like ten of their engineers in the room, and they said, ‘Yes, this is very complex. We don’t know how you do it’,” Yagley remembered.

Yagley majored in Aerospace Engineering at Iowa State. Olsavsky is a mechanical engineer. Cobra’s Darkspeed line of drivers, fairway woods and irons have come out of this endeavor, but the design teams of the big club manufacturers are full of mathematicians, physicists, material scientists and the like.

PHOTO CREDIT: ADOBE STOCK

01. PING G430 MAX

Why You’ll Love It: Incremental tweaks over the years keep making it better

Why You Should Buy It: 25-gram weight offers draw-fade adjustability

Insider’s Insight: Thin T9S+ Forged Face gives more energy; yet head is very stable Price: $550

02. CALLAWAY PARADYM Ai SMOKE MAX

Why You’ll Love It: Carbon fiber in head, AI-designed face

Why You Should Buy It: It’s lighter, has more forgiveness in hot face, making it all sweet spot

Insider’s Insight: Tungsten weights & carbon sheets = overall stability for distance

Price: $600

03.

COBRA DARKSPEED X

Why You’ll Love It: Hightech materials meet aerodynamic design

Why You Should Buy It: Induces less resistance on downswing for more speed = distance

Insider’s Insight: Carbon crown & sole plus H.O.T face = Cobra’s best in years

Price: $550

04.

TAYLORMADE

Qi10 MAX

Why You’ll Love It: Carbon & titanium mixed for high stable head

Why You Should Buy It: High moment of inertia (MOI) which means little twisting on impact

Insider’s Insight: That means larger sweet spot, more energy into the ball = distance

Price: $600

05.

TITLEIST TSR1

Why You’ll Love It: Aimed at under-90 mph swing speeds

Why You Should Buy It: Multi-thickness in face, better aerodynamics, aerospace titanium

Insider’s Insight: Company known for appealing to best players expands its market Price: $600

06.

MIZUNO ST-G

Why You’ll Love It: Pear-shaped, smallhead = induces on-demand shot-shaping

Why You Should Buy It: Two weight tracks on sole can be pushed to more extreme positions

Insider’s Insight: Better players like 440cc more desireable than “max” heads

Price: $600

O2

01. CALLAWAY Ai SMOKE MAX

Why You’ll Love It: Same hot face as Smoke driver; shallow face = high launch

Why You Should Buy It: Carbon chassis means 24 grams shifted for launch, spin, forgiveness Insider’s Insight: Unique customization as each carbon sole has its own unique color Price: $350

02.

COBRA DARKSPEED LS

Why You’ll Love It: Thin, titanium face and compact head appeal to ballstrikers

Why You Should Buy It: Low center of gravity (Cg), higher lofts produce more carry distance

Insider’s Insight: Throwback design allows for easy shaping; 3 other models to choose Price: $400

03.

PING G430 MAX

Why You’ll Love It: Carbon crown and maraging steel face = high launch

Why You Should Buy It: Another low Cg wonder that has custom fitting to match your swing

Insider’s Insight: One of 4 models ranging in lofts from 12.5 to 25.5 Price: $350

04. CALLAWAY PARADYM Ai SMOKE MAX FAST

Why You’ll Love It: Older golfers, throw away your 5-, 4-, 3- irons

Why You Should Buy It: Designed for moderate or slow swing speeds, same Smoke face

Insider’s Insight: Extreme forgivesness in line that goes up to 33 degree face loft Price: $280

05.

TAYLORMADE Qi10 MAX FAIRWAY

Why You’ll Love It: Head has ultimate forgiveness but yields pro performance

Why You Should Buy It: Ultra high moment of inertia (MOI) and low Cg means easy to hit

Insider’s Insight: No more “toe” or “heel” hits - it’s all sweet spot Price: $350

06.

TAYLORMADE BRNR MINI DRIVER

Why You’ll Love It: Driver and 3-wood in 1 club. Works off turf like off tee

Why You Should Buy It: Titanium, carbon and steel head; two 13-gram weights; 11.5 face loft Insider’s Insight: Throwback to retro 90s design with new colors; it’ll turn heads Price: $450

O5

O4 O6 O3

O2

01.

CALLAWAY PARADYM Ai SMOKE HL IRON

Why You’ll Love It: HL stands for High Launch from low, deep Cg

Why You Should Buy It: Weighting + longer blade = confidence-inducing club

Insider’s Insight: Bevelled leading and trail edges reduce digging = consistent hits

Price: $145 per club

02.

COBRA KING FORGED TEC

Why You’ll Love It: 5-pieces forged into one, better player iron

Why You Should Buy It: Interior foam in head for quiet, “pure hit” feel, yet still yields distance

Insider’s Insight: Traditionalists will love the look in this high-tech wonder

Price: $171 per club

03.

MIZUNO PRO 221

Why You’ll Love It: Great Mizuno feel in super techno-iron

Why You Should Buy It: Slots in cavity & thin face for high flex & ball speed Insider’s Insight: Hightech “Chromoly” forging in irons 4-7; grain-flow steel in 8-PW

Price: $188 per club

04.

PING i530

Why You’ll Love It: Forged, maraging-steel face = significant speed

Why You Should Buy It: Compact, hollow head with great forgiveness

Insider’s Insight: Tungsten toe and shaft tip weights for finely tuned fitting

Price: $145 per club

05.

TITLEIST T150

Why You’ll Love It: Same platform as T100, but faster & longer

Why You Should Buy It: Distance comes from lofts 2 degrees stronger

Insider’s Insight: Consider blending 4-5-67 T150s with 8-9-AW-PW with T100s Price: $200 per club

06.

PING G730

Why You’ll Love It: Maximizes distance off high flexing stainless steel face

Why You Should Buy It: PurFlex cavity badge enhances feel and produces powerful sound Insider’s Insight: Bigger head, more offset, wider sole increases MOI = bigger sweetspot

Price: $190 per club

01.

CLEVELAND RTX ZIPCORE FULL FACE 2

Why You’ll Love It: Sandblasted face, and laser-milled lines all over the face

Why You Should Buy It: No matter if it’s sand or rough you’ll still get spin Insider’s Insight:

Lots of options: Lofts range from 46- to 60-degrees

Price: $170

02.

TITLEIST VOKEY DESIGN SM10

Why You’ll Love It: Legendary wedge master comes out with another model

Why You Should Buy It: Pros hit their wedges more than any other club; Vokey No. 1 on Tour Insider’s Insight: Study up: 26 options in face loft (46- to 60-degree) and bounce angles

Price: $180

03.

CALLAWAY JAWS RAW

Why You’ll Love It: Mini-grooves between the grooves reduce water on face

Why You Should Buy It: New raw finish will rust but in darker shade to reduce glare Insider’s Insight: Slightly larger head but milled-grind sole cuts through the turf

Price: $180

04.

CALLAWAY JAWS

RAW FULL FORCE FACE GROOVE

Why You’ll Love It: Raw face brings more feel through contact

Why You Should Buy It: Micro-grooves between grooves add more friction for one-hop&stop

Insider’s Insight: Angled walls of the grooves “elevate” groove sharpness

Price: $180

05.

EDEL SMS

Why You’ll Love It: Swing Match System uses 2 2-gram & 1 8-gram weights

Why You Should Buy It: Helps match your angle of attack and match your swing

Insider’s Insight: P Grind is one of 4 different soles to get clean contact through turf

Price: $200

06.

CLEVELAND CBX 4 ZIPCORE

Why You’ll Love It: A game improvement wedge? Yes, forgiving and trusty

Why You Should Buy It: Weighting is more toward toe as well as top to bottom Insider’s Insight: This makes for a much larger sweet spot, increasing confidence Price: $170

O1

TOULON DESIGN

Why You’ll Love It: Deep full-face grooves give unique sound and feel

Why You Should Buy It: Two sets of weights in head improve moment of saves 40 grams that’s redistributed in head

PING ANSER 2D

Why You’ll Love It: Classic Anser in stunning gunmetal finish

Why You Should Buy It: It takes a milling machine more than 3 hours to shape this head

Insider’s Insight: Every surface and radius precisely shaped for appealing traditional look

Price: $450 03.

TITLEIST CAMERON PHANTOM 5.5

Why You’ll Love It: Compact mallet for stability but with a blade-like feel

Why You Should Buy It: Dual-milled stainless steel & aluminum head gives velvet sensation

04.

COBRA AGERA RS-30 3D PRINTED

Why You’ll Love It: An all black 6061-aerospace grade aluminum insert in face

Why You Should Buy It: Carbon, steel & aluminum come together for high MOI stability

Insider’s Insight: Off-center hits travel true & descending loft in face induces top spin Price: $350

05.

PXG BATTLE READY CLOSER 2

Why You’ll Love It: Pyramid face milling produces true roll on every putt

Why You Should Buy It: Face is 0.055-inch thick, super responsive with great feel

Insider’s Insight: Thin face and interchangeble heel-toe weights produce high stability Price: $390

06.

LAB DF3

Why You’ll Love It: New company based on lie, angle and balance (LAB)

Why You Should Buy It: Each model designed for very little face rotation, increasing MOI

Insider’s Insight: Off-center hits travel true as putter and shaft find correct path to ball Price: $449 O5

Insider’s Insight: New paddle-style grip with chain-link design for loose hands control Price: $450

O2

O1

01. BRIDGESTONE TOUR B X MINDSET

Why You’ll Love It: A ball that wants you to stop, think, focus before each shot

Why You Should Buy It: New markings refocus your mind on the shot and what’s required

Insider’s Insight: High performance ball works best with swing speeds over 105 mph

Price: $50/dozen

02.

TITLEIST AVX

Why You’ll Love It: Redone core, new under layer and softer urethane cover

Why You Should Buy It: Slower swing speeds will get more performance than from ProV1 Insider’s Insight: Some felt older version was too squishy; now firmer but with better spin

Price: $50/dozen

03.

SRIXON Z-STAR

Why You’ll Love It: The micronic layer of specialized urethane increases spin

Why You Should Buy It: Core is soft deep inside, harder on the perimeter = distance & feel

Insider’s Insight: The 338 Speed Dimples cut through the wind

Price: $50/dozen

04.

TITLEIST PROV1X

Why You’ll Love It: High performance ball delivers on distance, feel & spin

Why You Should Buy It: A larger inner core gives the engine more horsepower = distance

Insider’s Insight: Soft cast urethane cover provides stop-fast spin on approach shots

Price: $55/dozen

05.

SNELL MTB PRIME

Why You’ll Love It: 3-piece & urethane-cover ball = high performance, not cost

Why You Should Buy It: Perhaps not as long off tee, but iron play into greens is superb Insider’s Insight: Dean Snell’s name is on the original patent for the ProV1

Price: $25/dozen

06.

TAYLORMADE TOUR RESPONSE

Why You’ll Love It: Wide, easy alignment strip also makes for easy visibility

Why You Should Buy It: Urethane, cover, softer core for slower swing speeds

Insider’s Insight:

Tour Flight Dimple

Pattern same as TP5 for longer carry

Price: $43/dozen

Contributor Ted Johnson has written CAG’s annual Gear Guide since 2013.

O6

O3

O4

O5

O2

CLARK’S WILD year LEADS TO AUGUSTA

As the PGA and LIV continue to dance around one another in the ring, Clark and the best golfers in the world from both leagues will settle it themselves in Augusta

By Jim Bebbington

Clark’s stock going into the 2024 Masters is as high as ever

A year ago Wyndham Clark was a relative unknown. He had been a PGA Tour professional for four years, but other than a playoff loss at the 2020 Bermuda Championship he had not covered himself with much PGA glory. He had earned about $1 million a year since 2019. Unlike today few outside of his home state of Colorado and his college programs at Oregon and Oklahoma State knew much about him.

What a difference a year can make.

Then he won his first PGA Tour victory last May at the Wells Fargo Championship, and amazing things began to happen:

- U.S. Open champion

- Member of the U.S. Ryder Cup Team

- Regular in featured foursomes early in tournaments and being promoted as a marquee name during TV coverage.

- The first golfer sponsored by Mark Wahlberg’s clothing brand, MUNICIPAL.

- Tour and FedEx Cup earnings of just shy of $16 million.

But when he was asked what his first victory meant to him – what really changed in his life – Wyndham Clark was quick to answer: now, finally, he would get to play in the Masters.

“First off, winning (means) getting into the Masters and that’s a dream come true,” he said last summer. “That’s the only tournament I haven’t played in in professional golf is that one. So, you know, just playing that, it’s amazing.”

BREAKTHROUGH YEAR

Clark’s stock going into the 2024 Masters is as high as ever.

Even his putter is working.

Clark’s game has been solid ever since he won high school championships in Colorado for Valor Christian High School. Once he became a professional, it was never a question of whether he had the game to win. It was his mind.

Clark struggled with keeping his emotions away from his golf swing. His first few years are the definition of watching a player learn how to win.

Then last winter he began working with a new sports psychologist – Julie Elion of Cape Performance. She worked with Clark to find the right mix of competitive fire and humility in dealing with the inevitable stumbles of professional golf.

It was at Valor Christian that Clark met someone who has seen the transition firsthand, his sophomore year English teacher Brian Kettler. Kettler is still a teacher at Valor but traveled in January to Pebble Beach to root on his friend, and was staying with him in Clark’s rental home when he got the call that the final day of competition was cancelled and Clark had won again.

“We have a transparent friendship,” Kettler said. “It’s a combination of all of it; it’s the gift of 15 years of friendship I can see it in

PHOTO CREDIT: FELIX A. MARQUEZ

With Clark’s personal story of his mother’s passing and his openness about his mental health and emotions, Vox producers have called Clark’s episode ‘powerful.’

his eyes whether he wants to chill out or if he is ready for more conversation. It’s a joy to watch him handle himself post round.”

With the weather howling on the Sunday of what should have been the final round of Pebble Beach, Clark and Kettler killed time by playing full-contact ping pong. “It was a typical ping pong battle – sweating, laughing, talking smack….”

Kettler said through the weekend it was fascinating to watch his friend deal with all the elements. He couldn’t fully relax, but with the weather delay there was nothing to prepare for. “It was hard to anticipate how it was going to develop,” he said. “As an athlete it’s dangerous to think (it’s over) and then you may have to go out Monday with a one-stroke lead against the best players in the world. When we got the official news it was awesome; it was just one of those moments in life. It was a mountaintop moment.”

“We gave each other a big old hug and shared some tears,” Kettler said.

FULL SWING

And if winning at Bing Crosby’s old clam bake wasn’t enough to keep Clark high on golf fans’ radar, the upcoming season of Full Swing Season 2 will.

The new season of the Vox Media documentary series is on Netflix and features all the chaos of last season – the LIV deal, the Ryder Cup massacre – as well as a deep dive into Clark’s U.S. Open victory. With Clark’s personal story of his mother’s passing and his openness about his mental health and emotions, Vox producers have called Clark’s episode ‘powerful.’

“It’s not easy to just have a bunch of strangers show up with movie cameras and come into your living room and film you doing a meditation,” Chad Mumm, Vox’s chief creative officer, said at a joint press conference he and Clark held before the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. “And it wasn’t just Wyndham, it was his entire team; Rob (Mougey), his agent/manager, John (Ellis) his caddie, and Julie (Elion), his sports psychologist. I think this episode’s going to do

a lot for de-stigmatizing the idea of therapy and how it can help professional athletes and anybody, honestly, be the best they can be.”

Clark said the process of having his ups and downs documented for the show was just an extension for him of sharing honestly what it’s taken to get to this point in his life.

“In these last probably I want to say really the last three to four years you’ve seen people openly be like, man, I’m struggling in life or mentally stuff isn’t right up in the head,” he said. “I think prior to that people were scared to say that and now people are acknowledging that everyone has those issues.

“So I think that’s more of why you’re seeing it. I don’t necessarily think there’s more sports psychologists or people are now buying into it. I think people are opening up more about it. And I think it’s good, I think it shows that we are humans. In tennis or in golf or football or whatever it is, we’re humans and we have -- we have the same struggles that everyone else has.

WYNDHAM CLARK AFTER WINNING THE 2023 U.S. OPEN // PHOTO COURTESY OF THE USGA

CLARK AND FRIEND BRIAN KETTLER AFTER CLARK’S

WIN AT THE 2024 AT&T PEBBLE BEACH PRO-AM//PHOTO COURTESY OF BRIAN KETTLER

It’s just our life is in the limelight and that even adds another stress in life.”

“I hope people watching my episode are inspired by it,” he said. “If they are going through things, that maybe that’s the answer for them, which is going to see a therapist or sports psychologist or helping the next up-and-coming young players that, hey, this is what we do. It really does help.”

BALANCE BETWEEN FIRE & ICE

Through his last successful year Clark has talked about the complex relationship he has with ambition.

Going into tournaments focused on winning? That’s out.

“Yeah, I haven’t really thought about the total number of wins or any of that,” he said during the Genesis Open, held at Riviera Country Club, the site of his 2023 U.S. Open victory.

“I really try not to think about winning. I think when I first got on Tour that’s all I thought about and I didn’t win.

Now I try to not think about winning and I’m winning, so I’m going to try to keep that trend going.”

But at the same time – most vocally during the Ryder Cup – Clark says his ambition is real: he thinks he can be the best golfer on earth. And he wants that.

“I don’t want to put a limit to myself,” he said in LA. “I would love to try to get to No. 1 player in the world. I don’t know when that’s going to happen, if it will happen, but I do know if I continue to do the things that make me successful, I think that’s — there’s a chance that that could happen.

“I’m just going to continue to focus on my process, which is focus on that mental game, working hard in the gym and working hard on the range and then hoping that results in good results, which ultimately gets me to where I want to be in the world.”

And for at least one week later this month, that place is Augusta, Ga.

It’s a visit he has earned.

Clark says his ambition is real: he thinks he can be the best golfer on earth. And he wants that.

PHOTO BY JON RIZZI

MASTERS 2024 | APRIL 11-14

This year’s field will again include the best in the world –Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka and many more. Wyndham Clark will be one of 11 first-timers, alongside fellow world Top-10ish player Ludvig Aberg.

How to Watch:

• Stream the tournament for free from Masters.com or the Masters app

• On-air, the first two rounds will be on ESPN beginning 1 p.m. each day. Saturday and Sunday rounds will be on CBS beginning 1 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday, the 14th.

How to Follow:

@TheMasters feed is on X, Facebook and TikTok

*All times Mountain Time

WYNDHAM CLARK AND HIS GIRLFRIEND JULIA KEMMLING AFTER HIS U.S. OPEN VICTORY//PHOTO COURTESY OF THE USGA.

Grazie for Il Prato

Photos provided by: The Club at Ravenna

Akin to assembling a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle, The Club at Ravenna has taken some time to arrange the last few pieces in its master plan.

Its debut in 2007 instantly put it on the map as one of Colorado’s premier gated communities and private golf clubs. From day 1 it has been anchored by a multi-award-winning, 7,263-yard Jay Morrish-designed golf course and enjoyed an enviable setting among the red rocks of the Dakota Hogback near Waterton Canyon in the foothills west of Denver.

Now the upscale community has added another stellar amenity—Il Prato.

Il Prato (the lawn in Italian) is a new gathering place and water feature for members and their guests. It joins La Bella Vita (the good life), the club’s impressive, three-story fitness center, swimming pool and outdoor entertainment area that opened in 2018, and Villa Ravenna, the club’s spectacular, 25,000-square-foot Tuscan-inspired clubhouse, which opened at the end of July 2022.

“We spent a lot of time trying to figure out what should go in that space near the eighteenth green. It was important to create both a unique sense of arrival for golfers finishing their round, but also a really magical spot for special events and where members have another place to hang out and enjoy a picnic or play with their kids,” says Kevin Collins, the club’s owner and CEO.

Once a design was agreed upon, excavation on the site began in the fall of 2022 and Il Prato was unveiled late last July just in time for The Bravado, The Club at Ravenna’s member-guest golf event.

“(Landscape contractor Mike Wehling) went to the quarry to begin selecting stones, and they’re big stones with some being seven, eight and nine tons each, and then he went out and sat (at the site) looking at all the stones trying to figure out how we would put it all together. He had the crane moving stones and setting them in specific places so the water would flow over particular areas. It was quite a process, but he wanted to create a soothing water sound while also making sure the area worked in terms of scale.”

Built in three tiers, Il Prato features an upper pond, one small lawn area, a large lawn area capable of having an event tent occupy the space and an intimate seating area overlooking the finishing hole that accommodates four Adirondak chairs. Of course, there are the more than three dozen aforementioned stones, the largest of which are strategically aligned to allow the water to cascade over the stones to a lower pond, subtly serenading both golfers approaching the 18th green as well as those seated on the back patio of the clubhouse, where the rock formations and landscaping can also be admired.

“We knew lighting was key, so the final touch was integrating that into the space. When it’s lit up in the evening, it’s a great complement to how the clubhouse is lit up,” Collins explained.

Not surprisingly, Il Prato has garnered accolades from members and its popularity as a place for staging events quickly caught on. Last August, a 120-guest wedding was held there with the couple choosing the location for its close proximity

Story By Kim D. McHugh Photos by Johnny Brewers - Homefield Productions

The Club at Ravenna’s Il Prato adds an exclaimation mark to its finishing hole

to the clubhouse, as well as panoramic views that encompass the foothills, downtown Denver in the distance, an expanse of red rocks and the fairway and green of the eighteenth hole.

Another memorable experience was when Patience Hooks, one of the club’s personal trainers, led summer yoga classes on the lawn and Fitness Director, Zane Bickler, took his Fitness Circuit participants up there for a morning workout. In October, the club’s Harvest Party took over the space, incorporating a four-station ‘wine walk’ where guests started at the clubhouse and ascended to the lawn area all the while sampling wine, wild boar and other seasonal delights. In early February, shortly after their off-campus church wedding, Chris Collins and his new bride, Angela, had their post-nuptials pictures taken at the site, which also was the starting off point for their reception at the nearby clubhouse.

Il Prato has already demonstrated that it’s also an attractive setting for

member-hosted bridal luncheons, birthday and milestone anniversary parties, and after-the-round soirees associated with charitable organization fundraising golf tourneys. This year it will be the venue for the Great Western Steak Out barbecue dinner and it’s being considered as a place to stage intimate music events.

Typical of how Collins operates, he, with input from his son, is fine-tuning the Il Prato experience so that this spring members and their guests can enjoy the mellifluous sounds provided by the newly added concert quality speakers, which serve to enrich the already inviting atmosphere.

“I believe everything we do here is about quality and things should be as good as you can make them. When you stand up here or you’re on the cart path down below or you’re coming into eighteen or you’re looking up from the clubhouse, everything just flows together. It’s really pretty special."

“We knew lighting was key, so the final touch was integrating that into the space. When it’s lit up in the evening, it’s a great complement to how the clubhouse is lit up” - Kevin Collins

PHOTO COURTESY OF OCOTILLO RESTAURANT AND BAR

ALL FAMILY MEAL IN THE

By John Lehndorff

The secret ingredient of Colorado golf course success is well-fed caddies, cooks and groundskeepers

There’s nothing like that breakfast burrito and coffee for an early morning tee time and those hot dogs at the turn. Is there anything better than a great sunset meal with vintage wines on the patio after a successful round?

Food may not be the most important part of a good day playing on Colorado courses, but golf wouldn’t be the same without it. That’s why feeding members, golfers and guests is always Job No.1 for golf resort chefs. They willingly share mouthwatering details about their menu

delights. Take the koji-cured steak with miso butter, cippolini, spiced celery root purée and shiitake demi that chef Charles Klein serves at The Periodic Table at Catamount Ranch & Club in Steamboat Springs.

Ask those same kitchen generals and restaurant managers about feeding the men and women behind the curtain - golf club dishwashers, front desk hosts, cart attendants and office workers, and they get serious. “Family meal is very important. You got to make

something to feed the staff, and you have to make it great. I tell my cooks: ‘You can’t say: ‘It’s just for the staff.’ It’s your family. You can’t feed them slop,” says Charles Klein. In restaurants and at golf resorts across the globe, feeding the help is often called “family meal” whether everyone sits together for pre-service chicken pot pie or wolfs down Hot Pockets standing up in the middle of the dinner rush.

The “family” part is serious, not sentimental. During Colorado’s long sunny season, golf

course employees often see their work family more each day than their spouse and kids. And given rural locations, golf staff can’t exactly drive out for a quick burger.

“Sometimes we use the same ingredients we serve in the restaurant. I may have some really good pork chops I can’t use on the menu and I’ll serve them or family meal. It turns a solid meal into something extraordinary. I love being able to do that,” Klein says.

Thanks to a steady parade of tournaments, choice leftovers are also on the staff menu at The Periodic Table. “The second those tournament lunches are done, there’s a line for the extra beef tenderloin. It’s a quiet rule - tournaments mean really good food for the staff. It rewards them for the long hours they put in day after day,” he says. Making the family meal can be intimidating for a young cook, Klein says.

“You’ve got to cook for the chef, too. Honestly, all the chef wants is a staff meal made before service starts. He’s happy to eat any meal he doesn’t have to cook himself.”

Besides fueling the work of cooks, caddies and groundkeepers, family meal is part of saving money and cutting food kitchen food waste, Klein says. “I always have a shelf in my walk-in cooler filled with produce, protein and sauces that are leftover, but still good. The cooks get creative with the things that we have. That’s really the core of it,” he says.

Chef Klein’s fall-back favorite family meal choice comes down to curry. “When I was younger, I did some travelling and cooking in Australia. We had curry every day there, whether it was Indian curry, Thai curry or Japanese curry. It’s a comfy, filling family meal everyone can enjoy.”

CADDIES CHOOSE PULLED PORK, FISH ‘N’ CHIPS

With its incredible views of the Colorado National Monument, Redlands Mesa Golf Course draws golfers from across the Southwest.

Ocotillo Restaurant and Bar at the Grand Junction destination dishes upscaled comfort classics to members and the public, and also feeds a large staff, according to Kate Weckerly, Octotillo’s restaurant manager. “In the summer, the staff can be working tournaments from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., but we technically don’t ever close year round, unless there’s snow on the course. We had golfers with tank tops out there in early February.”

At Ocotillo, family meal is available as well as discounts for workers not on the clock. “The street tacos on our menu are a staff favorite, filled with ahi tuna, grilled salmon, crispy fish, steak, spicy chicken, Thai shrimp, shredded pork or vegetables. It allows them to customize,” Weckerly says.

“We want to cultivate a good culture here, and make sure everyone is cared for and can get a break. It’s nice if the staff gets to decompress, eat, and make calls. We have a little office or they can eat outside,” she says.

The dining preferences of the staff is as varied as players on the links. “The caddies seem to like our pulled pork sandwiches, fish and chips, and burgers, of course,” Weckerly says. Because Ocotillo is also a popular venue for tournaments and weddings, the staff diet gets to enjoy some high-end party food. “It’s pretty fun after huge events because all of us - kitchen and front of house, eat and talk about the highs and lows of service,” Weckerly says. When there are lots of leftovers, the staff gets to take food home. “That’s a really big thing for the college kids who work here,” she says.

The restaurant staff can order from the menu including shrimp po’boys, Cajun shrimp pasta and club sandwiches, according to Weckerly.

If it came down to just one dish that makes everyone on the staff and in the restaurant happy? That would be creamy chicken pot pie in a flaky crust.

FROM BISON BOLOGNESE TO HOT POCKETS

Consider a golf season from the perspective of a veteran Colorado golf club chef. “For 175 days we crank every day,” says Sarah Wills, executive chef at Ballyneal Golf & Hunt Club in Holyoke.

“Monday to Sunday, our kitchen is busybreakfast, lunch and dinner. I’ve got someone cooking at 5 a.m., and someone else cleaning up at 2 a.m.,” she says. “It’s kind of a pain in the butt to feed everybody but it is so important during those long days. In movies and TV shows, people see the chef sit down and eat with the kitchen and bar staff. That’s not possible in a small place like this,” Wills says.

While members are dining happily in the restaurant, waves of staff members roll through Ballyneal’s kitchen. “We’re feeding greenskeepers at 10:30 a.m., the office people at 1 or so, then the night-time staff before service,” she says. Willis posts a monthly menu for maintenance, cooks and caddies that features favorites such as spicy Buffalo chicken on a bun or Caesar salad or in a wrap.

“I don’t ever sit down and eat. It’s just the nature of the beast. After cooking all day, my favorite meal is a burger patty smashed with American cheese on a bun. I’ll make them for everybody to take home at 11 o’clock at night. I always make sure the dish people are fed,” Willis says.

Maybe a burger doesn’t rank with tips and 401k contributions as job benefits, but the guarantee of a free meal should never be underestimated. “What we serve is not always fancy, but it works. We have people that come to work for that meal,” she says. Restaurant and bar staff who wait until after closing can order regular menu favorites like bison Bolognese and chicken alfredo, according to Wills.

“The members and diners always come first. I even order Hot Pockets. If we’re really busy, we make them with a side salad or fries. I always say: ‘If you don’t like the food, don’t complain. Pack a lunch.’”

CHARLES KLEIN

“Family meal is very important. You got to make something to feed the staff, and you have to make it great. I tell my cooks: ‘You can’t say: ‘It’s just for the staff.’ It’s your family”charles klein.

Beyond the Dish

Comfort food rules when it comes to the menu that golf course restaurant chefs offer their work families.

“No matter what kitchen I’ve been cooking in or the cuisine the restaurant serves, family meals have always included curry,” says Charles Klein, executive chef at Periodic Table restaurant at Catamount Ranch & Club in Steamboat Springs.

“You can buy yellow, red or green curry paste in little bottles at the supermarket. Mix it into coconut milk and broth, add whatever vegetables you have and fish, pork, chicken or beef. Give it a little attention and serve it with a nice bowl of rice,” Klein says.

The Periodic Table Family Curry recipe, along with other recipes from this article, can be found at ColoradoAvidGolfer.com.

By Isaac Bouchard

RISE to the tESLA Ford and Hyundai CHALLENGE

Tesla blazed the path with electric cars that could actually replace those with internal combustion engines (ICE), and it seemingly took the legacy companies forever to catch up.

But now there are genuine rivals, ones that beat the Musk machines in many measures. The Ford Mach-E and Hyundai Ioniq6 are two of the most compelling. The Ford arrived first, and it’s a helluva first EV effort. Its style seems to engage a large cross-section of the public and its cabin is first-rate, with great quality and some beautiful touches, such as the swath of cloth that fronts the dash. It has less cargo room than the archrival Tesla Model Y, but is a much nicer place to spend time in—not only because of the posher trimmings but because it rides so much better. The Model Y is seemingly tuned for the track and pummels occupants without remit or seeming remorse. The Mach-E has excellent damping and smothers area road blemishes with excellence. It’s also quieter and more refined. It’s not as quick in normal guise

HYUNDAI IONIQ6

as the Tesla, but is faster accelerating than most will ever need.

The Ioniq6 is not Hyundai’s first mainstream EV. That honor goes to the Ioniq5, whose E-GMP platform is shared across the Hyundai Group. The 6 is aimed squarely at the Tesla Model 3 sedan. Its looks are polarizing; it can be compared to everything from a VW Beetle to a riff on the Porsche Taycan—or even a 1930s Chrysler Airflow.

It’s obviously designed to cheat the wind, and it gets excellent EPA ratings and real-world range as a result. It is also a blast to drive, with direct steering, a sports sedan-worthy chassis and great ride/ handling balance. And it’s fast—Tesla fast.

The Ioniq6’s interior is almost as progressive as its exterior form, with lots of intriguing detailing and a great nighttime vibe. It is also comfortable and very roomy—except for the trunk, which is much smaller than the one in the 3.

(THE IONIQ6) IS ALSO A BLAST TO DRIVE, WITH DIRECT STEERING, A SPORTS SEDAN-WORTHY CHASSIS AND GREAT RIDE/HANDLING BALANCE

Side Bets Nice Drives

The big question of course is whether these rivals have enough range, and the short answer is yes. The Mach-E is rated at 290 miles, and can indeed go mid-200s driven at spirited speeds. Some Ioniq6 models claim EPA numbers in the mid-300s.

In AWD Limited form, with 20-inch wheels that chop off 40 miles of range, it is still rated—and capable—of doing a genuine 270 miles between charges. And, since the Genesis-Hyundai-Kia platform charges faster than anything this side of a Lucid Air, you can add 150 miles or more in 15 minutes. Not so the Ford, whose 400-volt architecture doubles that time.

Yes, some Teslas are EPA-rated to go farther, though independent testing proves these numbers are optimistic by an average of 35 percent. As may be; you can go 20-30 miles more between charges in a Model 3 or Y on average. Up until now you benefited from by far the best charging infrastructure, a Tesla exclusive. This year, though, Tesla owners are going to get a surprise, when Ford and Hyundai drivers (along with those who own BMW, Rivian, GM, Honda, Polestar, Nissan, Jaguar, Stellantis and others) start sharing the use of their heretofore exclusive Superchargers.

That marks a sea change in how an EV can be used for most, and makes the Ford Mach-E and Hyundai Ioniq6 seem an even more compelling way join the EV game without having to support Tesla.

HYUNDAI IONIQ 6

EPA MPG Ratings: 111/94/103e

0-60mph: 4.4sec

Price as tested*: $58,425

Rating: 4.5 Stars

HYUNDAI IONIQ6 INTERIOR

FORD MACH E TYPE S

EPA

0-60mph:

SCOTLAND brave for the

Story and Photos

By Jim Bebbington

A trip with buddies to northeast Scotland can be one of the best golf experiences a player can have. It is home to St. Andrews’ seven courses, Carnoustie’s famous Hogan’s Alley, the breathtaking charm and challenge of North Berwick (pronounced: ‘Bear-ick’), the beautiful vistas of the Gullane complex, and many, many others.

It can also leave your wallet a smoking ruin of smoldering ash.

WHEN TO GO

The Scots have a saying – if you’re going to wait until it stops raining to play golf, you’ll never play.

The remote ST. PATRICK’S LINKS finds itself in the red-hot center of the golf world.

By Bruce Selcraig

Here’s the little secret about most of the top, exclusive courses in Scotland – they want you to come. Getting a tee time isn’t impossible – with planning. But the costs of golf there can be very high - $400 for Old Course summer 2024; Kings Barns up the hill is more than $500 - visitors pay top-rate so that local members can play at a substantial discount. They’re glad we’re there.

Now, how do you make it happen – and keep the costs under control?

Summer is always the best chance to get clear, warm days in Scotland. However, just as in Colorado, it is very possible to plan for a round in December or January and get crisp, cool, calm weather; throw on a sweater and you are all set. But, you can also get blasted sideways by howling winds and pelting rain. True story: visiting in 2016 for Hogmanay (one of the world’s largest New Year’s Eve celebrations that has to be seen to be believed) I booked a foursome at Bruntsfield Golf Club in Edinburgh. The days had been highs in the 50s and clear all week. The morning of our round we got into the cab and by the time we reached Bruntsfield four inches of snow fell. The course staff were very supportive and would have let us play, hitting from tiny plastic mats we would have had to carry with us. We took the cab back, disappointed.

The Old Course, North Berwick, Carnoustie and other greats are accessible with planning, luck and a spirit of adventure

Takeaway: Travel and golf deals at off-peak times of the year can cut tee time costs by two-thirds.

WHERE TO STAY

If you want to feel young again – as in ‘Hey, look at me! I’m in college again!’ young – you cannot do better than staying in the dorms at either St. Andrews University or the University of Edinburgh in the summertime. Room rates are some of the least expensive in town. So too, often, is the quality of the furniture in your room. You will be staying in actual dorms used by actual students – you remember what those are like, right? Feel free to shudder. But they are clean and convenient. And in Edinburgh you will be surrounded at the daily cafeteria breakfast by fellow adults –vacationers, musicians in town for Fringe Fest, touring motorcycle clubs whose intimidating-looking bikes hide the fact that most of them are high school teachers, librarians and retired postal workers.

Takeaway: Rather than try to publish a gigantic URL to the two websites, we recommend you Google “Summer accommodation” and the name of either St. Andrews University or Edinburgh University. Summer rates during high-season can be found for about $250 a night for two people

WHEN TO BOOK

This is the key to a Scotland golf vacation –plan it a year in advance. Travel groups and agencies are there for your last-minute trips. Many can book you straight into nice places and get good tee times but will be charging a premium for doing that. For tee times in particular, the courses at St. Andrews Links tee time bookings begin in late August each summer for the following year. Want to stay in a nice AirBnB in Edinburgh in August, during their 30-day Fringe Fest celebration? So do about 500,000 other people.

Takeaway: Book early for the best deals.

HOW TO GET A TEE TIME

There is a ton of great golf to be had without playing the St. Andrews Old Course. But no other course can make adults hug on the 18th green feeling they have accomplished something special. Here’s how to get out.

1. Use the annual lottery. It opened Aug. 30 and closed for entries Sept. 20 in 2023. It’s highly competitive but it’s the best first option and you will never forget the day you get the email telling you ‘You’re in.’

LOOKING BACK FROM THE OLD COURSE TO DOWNTOWN ST. ANDREWS

2. Keep checking their tee time page: standrews.com/request-a-tee-time - At some point after the lottery winners are accommodated, they’re going to turn on the page for 2024 bookings. It may not have any openings for your days there, but you never know.

3. Just go, and enter the daily lottery: This is your next best option. Set your plans and go – then enter the Old Course lottery for tee times 48 hours later. You enter by 10 a.m. any day and by 5 p.m. you get an email notifying you if you got a tee time for two days later. You can book a full itinerary for other activities, but be prepared to drop everything and enjoy the round of your life. The course is closed Sundays to play, so don’t bother entering on Friday.

4. New this year: no more camping!

For years the final way to get a tee time was to camp out overnight next to the Old Course starters shack. At 6 a.m. the next morning, the starter would start doling out single slots throughout the day as players with tee times would cancel. The system had been in place since the 1990s and the overnight experience was almost a rite of passage for any Scotland golf trip. But this spring St. Andrews Links Trust did away with the overnight tradition because too many people were spending too long in the cold Scottish weather. Instead, they have a check-in terminal in the starter shack now. You have to go to the shack, be photographed, and enter in your desire to play as a single the next day. Then at 5 p.m. they’ll randomly pull the first set of names and notify people by text message. The next day if there are cancellations more people will get that magic text message. Takeaway: Saturdays are considered the best chance for a last-minute single to get a spot because many golfers stay out late the night before and don’t get up in time.

A trip with buddies to northeast Scotland can be one of the best golf experiences a player can have. It is home to St. Andrews’ seven courses, Carnoustie’s famous Hogan’s Alley, the breathtaking charm and challenge of North Berwick and many others.

PLAY THE OTHER GREATS

• There are six other St. Andrews Links courses: New Course, Jubilee, Eden, Castle, Strathtyrum and Balgove. Eden is the hidden gem – it’s the least expensive 18-hole course, $85, and a perfect first round for the week to get ready for what’s to come.

• Carnoustie is an hour’s drive north of Edinburgh and is very worth the trip. It’s considered the hardest British Open course and it can absolutely murder you if you hit from way back. One trick: agree to take four singles slots if that’s all that open when you book. Then keep in touch with the nice people in the pro shop, and they will work your group together as a foursome if they can. Buy a hat - the course has the coolest logo and crest in the UK.

• In the town of Carnoustie there are also a bunch of other courses; two others on the grounds of the Carnoustie Championship course and another course, Panmure, is right across the street.

• There are no bad options in the Edinburgh area. Kilspindie is a tiny dot along the coast that can feature winds that will have you hitting driver on short par 3s. The Gullane courses are all good, but the No. 1 course features a breathtaking view from the No. 7 tee box from where you can see everything from Muirfield and North Berwick all the way to downtown Edinburgh. The first six holes are pleasant diversions – then the claws come out as you near the water.

• North Berwick has to be played to be believed. Your head will spin from the wall, the blind greens, and the No. 1 and 18 combo that mirrors the Old Course but has even more contour and undulations. This course is special.

Takeaway: Like dogs, there are no bad boys or girls here. Go and enjoy.

THE LINE FOR AN OLD COURSE TEE TIME AT 6 A.M. MOST OF THE GOLFERS SLEPT IN LINE OVERNIGHT.

NORTH BERWICK. //PHOTO BY JOHN VANDERLAAN

Clubs Working to Keep Pace with Demand

The people who run private clubs in Colorado like to give their members what they want. That has often been good service, good golf, good food, good amenities, and a place to feel good about being a member of.

But as the golfing population has gotten younger with the explosion of interest generated during the Covid era, clubs are finding that they have to evolve too.

The millennial generation is the largest single group in the U.S. now; there are more of them than baby boomers, Gen-X, and the Gen-y young’uns coming up behind them. There are more than 72 million people in the U.S. between the ages of 28 and 43, and some days it seems like all of them have moved to Colorado and are in line for a tee time.

To keep their memberships strong, many clubs are fishing where the fish are, evolving to cater to this new type of member.

The Ranch Country Club and Hiwan Golf Club are among the clubs adding amenities aimed at young parents. They have daycare services available for older children for parents to use when they come for classes, golf or dinners, and

summer camps that are intended to provide a good experience using the club’s pools and courses.

Now the clubs are working to set up care services for even younger.

“Many prospective members are looking for year- round daycare starting at infant age,” said Micah Levensen, director of membership for both clubs.

The average age of their members 10 years ago was 64; today it is 51.

“We have tons of young families,” she said.

As always, the trends in affordability remain in the eye of the beholder.

Almost all clubs raised their monthly dues, according to our annual survey of clubs that is printed later in this edition.

Several clubs have pushed their initiation fees past $200,000 and several of the old-guard clubs are no longer releasing publicly how much they are charging new members.

For clubs that are offering good service, however, they find they are still getting new members.

“I thought with the way the economy is going and inflation

it would affect membership, but it was still a very good year last year,” said Tracey Kalata, membership director at Garden of the Gods Resort in Colorado Springs.

Judging by the number of pickleball courts being added at clubs all across Colorado, the sport is well-beyond its early days when people curiously explored this new pastime. Pickleball now is a bona fide expectation for many club members.

“Like the rest of the world, we are adding an additional three pickleball courts to our existing four,” said David P. Chadbourne, the general manager of the Maroon Creek Club in Aspen. “There is big demand that isn’t going away anytime soon.”

Courses from Cherry Hills Country Club to Aspen Glenn and everywhere in between have included golf simulator bays as an important part of recent renovations. The number of players enjoying ‘off-grass’ golf in the U.S. is growing at an even steeper rate than on-course participation.

Aspen Creek is an example of a club that spent 2023 keeping pace with the amenities-arms race that all clubs face – trying to keep up-

to-date across the board from their golf courses to the clubhouse and beyond.

“Last year we finished a course renovation including redoing all of our bunkers,” said James Folske, the membership director for Aspen Glen in Carbondale. “We put in all new bunker liners, new sand and even moved many locations to make our course more up to date with the modern times and equipment that has changed the game. Jack Nicklaus and Jack Nicklaus II came back out to be a part of this process and to keep us a Jack Nicklaus Signature Course.”

And clubs are also finding that members are using them, in some cases, more than before. Things have changed quite a bit in the past 10 years, and whether it is simply providing a place where it is possible to get a tee time, or else a good community of people with shared interests, today’s private clubs are finding that when they provide a good experience, their members stay happy.

“Post-covid everyone is wanting to be more connected and interacting on a social level,” Chadbourne said.

CHERRY CREEK COUNTRY CLUB

Golf Vehicles are Branching out to the Neighborhoods

It turns out golfers were a couple decades ahead of the crowd when it comes to driving electric vehicles.

EVs are common on our highways. But for many years they’ve been quietly trundling up and down the fairways and paths of golf links.

Colorado Golf & Turf of Littleton has been part of that growth. An early provider of gas and electric vehicles for golf courses, Colorado Golf and Turf is now riding a wave of new EV development.

For Colorado Golf & Turf this is a year of taking advantage of some big moves the company made in 2023. Their new office in Grand Junction opened last year – just their third location after their home in Littleton and their Nebraska Golf & Turf affiliate in Lincoln, Neb. They also added some partnerships and new lines.

The company began as the region’s Club Car distributor and has grown to offer an array of vehicles and tools for the golf and landscaping industry. And as the personal use of vehicles that are increasingly mis-named ‘golf carts’ – the company has filled that need as well.

One of the growing segments that is coming

to Colorado is the neighborhood electric vehicle. This is a category of EV which can travel at speeds up to 25 MPH and is legal on roads with up to 35 MPH speed limits. They are very common in sunbelt planned communities in Florida, Arizona and elsewhere (think of the videos of the parade of carts you’ve seen from The Villages development north of Orlando).

Now they are being used in mountain towns like Aspen, Vail and Breckenridge. And newer master-planned communities, like Sterling Ranch south of Littleton, are candidates too.

“They’d be allowed in any gated community,” said Abbie Randel, Colorado Golf & Turf’s vice president of operations.

Vehicles available through Colorado Golf & Turf include Club Car’s CRU brand as well as the luxury Garia line from Denmark – think stitched leather seats.

Club Car’s CRU is a six-seater, low-speed streetlegal EV that can be outfitted with all manner of couch-style or other seating. Prices start at around $25,000. Garia’s start at around $22,000 for the starter two-seater and around $29,000 for the six-seat option. The on-board mini-refrigera-

tor is an additional $1,000.

The EV industry for golf and utility vehicles like those from Club Car and Garia is going through the exact same technology advancement that the Teslas of the world are also going through. Battery life and range are increasing with each new model.

Colorado Golf & Turf also offers an array of equipment and tools for the turf industry from Husqvarna, Cub Cadet and other brands.

CLUB CAR CRU

GARIA VIA

Two Clubs. Twice the Fun.

CONNECT TO A COMMUNITY YOU’LL LOVE.

Garden of the Gods

COLORADO SPRINGS

DON’T MISS

THE VIEWS Our resort overlooks the stunning Garden of the Gods National Park and the spa, course, dining, wellness center and accommodations all help connect our guests to our beautiful neighbor. The newly-renovated rooms, casitas and lodges make staying on the grounds an elevating experience.

QUESTIONS?

Tracey Kalata Assistant Director of Membership

719.520.4980

tkalata@gardenofthegodsresort.com

OUR EXPERIENCE

THE HALLMARK of the Garden of the Gods Resort and Club is the quality of its members, who are a blend of local Colorado Springs residents and National Members from across the nation. We offer several different membership categories, providing Members with benefits that fit their lifestyle. All Members enjoy world-class activities and amenities, a full social calendar of exciting events and parties, discounted luxury accommodations at the Resort for themselves and their guests, and countless other exclusive benefits.

From the full golf membership to the social membership we offer an array of options to fit your lifestyle. We have added six new pickleball and two tennis courts to the racquet sports complex, and our fitness and pool complex is world-class. Our warmed infinity pool gives members the perfect sunset or mountain view to end the day.

THE GOLF

THE FOOTHILLS BEGIN AT KISSING CAMELS GOLF CLUB at Garden of the Gods Resort and Club. Over 27 championship holes, golfers are treated year-round to a beautiful, fun challenge. At times the views of the Pikes Peak range are so beautiful it can require a feat of mental focus to stay on your game. Our men and women members get priority tee times and access to our programs, golf leagues and tournaments. The original course was designed by one of the greats – J. Press Maxwell – and augmented by the work of Denver architect Mark Rathert. Through the Private Club Network, golf members have ‘member for a day’ privileges at more than 150 member clubs across the country including several front range clubs.

COME FOR THE GOLF ...

Discover the ultimate golf staycation and elevate your golf getaway to new heights, at the renowned Garden of the Gods Resort & Club, Colorado’s premiere wellness destination. Immerse yourself in a world of relaxation, refinement, and rejuvenation, all just 1 hour south of Denver. Our award-winning course, a proud staff pick from Avid Golfer Magazine, promises an unforgettable experience for both the serenity and challenge. Surrounded by peak-a-boo views of the majestic front range, elevate your game like never before. After conquering the greens, satisfy your palate at the newly renovated Kissing Camels Grille and Bar, where comfort cuisine meets culinary excellence. Unwind in our award winning Infinity Pool, with the best views in the state, overlooking Garden of the Gods Park and Pikes Peak, creating the ultimate oasis. Your room key unlocks all of the privileges of a Club Member, granting your access to dining at all three of our restaurants, access to the pools, complimentary fitness classes, and experiences designed for your relaxation and rejuvenation.

COME FOR THE GOLF, STAY FOR THE EXTRAORDINARY. YOUR PERFECT GOLF ESCAPE AWAITS.

27-hole, award-winning golf with mountain views

Award-winning golf shop

Luxury lodge rooms

Fine dining

Hiwan Golf Club

EVERGREEN

DON’T MISS

THE NEW OUTDOOR GRILL. The club is nestled into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and the outdoor experience has always been an important part of the club’s look and feel. Now the new outdoor grill and patio, open this spring, will enable members to enjoy the comforts of club living amidst the beauty of the Colorado foothills.

QUESTIONS?

hiwan.com

Micha Levenson

mlevenson@concertgolfclubs.com

OUR EXPERIENCE

THE MAIN CLUBHOUSE received a $2.1 million upgrade in the fall of 2023 and it shows. New finishings, furniture, lighting and artwork have made the clubhouse a comfortable and welcoming home for you and your family.

THE GOLF

HIWAN HAS ALWAYS OFFERED THE BEST in mountain golf, near the plains. With most Denver courses boasting high altitude as a measly 5,280 feet, Hiwan towers above at 7,000 feet. The rolling and wooded terrain is the first glimpse east of the front range that a golfer can get of what Rocky Mountain golf can be like. With great power comes great responsibility – many of the fairways are pitched toward water and other nefariousness and that extra length can get you in trouble if you’re not careful. Drive responsibly.

PLAY HARD / REST EASY

PLAY HARD / REST EASY

DISCOVER THE POSSIBILITIES

AT HIWAN

DISCOVER THE POSSIBILITIES

AT HIWAN

Experience the pride of membership and unlock the boundless potential for newcomers to indulge in an unparalleled journey at Hiwan. Nestled between the vibrant cityscape of Denver and the majestic Rocky Mountains, Hiwan beckons those seeking a distinctive, enriching lifestyle. Whether you're drawn by the invigorating challenge of athletic pursuits, the awe-inspiring vistas complementing delectable dining experiences, or the joy of crafting cherished memories with loved ones, Hiwan Golf Club promises an unforgettable sojourn. Choose from our three exclusive Memberships tailored to suit your desires and embark on a journey to savor all that Hiwan has to offer. Seize the opportunity to secure your membership today and elevate your golfing experience before the start of the upcoming season.

Experience the pride of membership and unlock the boundless potential for newcomers to indulge in an unparalleled journey at Hiwan. Nestled between the vibrant cityscape of Denver and the majestic Rocky Mountains, Hiwan beckons those seeking a distinctive, enriching lifestyle. Whether you're drawn by the invigorating challenge of athletic pursuits, the awe-inspiring vistas complementing delectable dining experiences, or the joy of crafting cherished memories with loved ones, Hiwan Golf Club promises an unforgettable sojourn. Choose from our three exclusive Memberships tailored to suit your desires and embark on a journey to savor all that Hiwan has to offer. Seize the opportunity to secure your membership today and elevate your golfing experience before the start of the upcoming season.

SCAN HERE TO VISIT OUR WEBSITE & INQUIRE TODAY!

SCAN HERE TO VISIT OUR WEBSITE & INQUIRE TODAY!

OUR MEMBERSHIP TEAM IS HERE FOR YOU!

OUR MEMBERSHIP TEAM IS HERE FOR YOU!

PLEASE CONTACT US AT 303-674-3366 OR MEMBERSHIP@HIWAN.COM

PLEASE CONTACT US AT 303-674-3366 OR MEMBERSHIP@HIWAN.COM

Rio Grande Club & Resort

SOUTH FORK

DON’T MISS

A FULL ON MOUNTAIN CLUB experience is available in South Fork. Our Fishing Lodge at the Rio Grande Club offers a relaxed base camp from which to ply the waters of the Rio Grande River, just out the back door.

QUESTIONS?

Brandon Davis | Membership Director membership@rgcresort.com 719.657.1027

OUR EXPERIENCE

OUR CLUB IS SERIOUS about the variety of sports and activities that it offers its members. Our premier membership, the Golf Membership, gives full access not only to the course, fitness center, pool and tennis and pickleball courts, but also full access to the club’s private stretch of the Rio Grande River and our riverfront lodge. There is no better fly fishing in southern Colorado than along our banks. With two restaurants, club facilities and the best golf in the region we offer the perfect mountain getaway for club members to relax and enjoy. We are located in the middle of the family-friendly and

THE GOLF

OUR COURSE gives two distinct experiences. Nine holes wind through the river basin of the Rio Grande, with ponds and the river providing plenty of challenge. The course rewards straight hitters, and it is not uncommon for players to dial back their yardage to keep themselves in position for a good score. The back nine take players up and down the local foothills and provide gorgeous views and great challenges. You’ll climb high and have stunning views. Then Nos. 17 and 18 will return you back to the alpine luxury of our 25,000 square foot clubhouse..

THERE’S A NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN

The Colorado private-club solar system is about to see a giant, new planet come into orbit.

Dream Golf, the creators of one of the most successful destination-golf experiences in the country – Bandon Dunes in Oregon - is about to begin construction on their signature Colorado location, Rodeo Dunes. The club is seeking to sell about 200 founding memberships at $75,000 apiece, and believes they will hit their goal by mid-summer.

The courses will be member/public. For the other Dream Golf locations that means nearly every tee time is taken up by members and travelers staying on site, and tee sheets can fill up more than a year in advance. The Rodeo Dunes project is potentially up to six courses to be built out over the next decade. Work on the first two is expected to begin this spring.

During a tour this winter of the seething, rolling sand dunes that will house Rodeo Dunes, three things jumped out that will make the complex a strong new member of the Colorado club community:

Momentum: When Dream Golf founder Mike Keiser began work on Bandon Dunes in the 1990s, there were many doubters who wondered if premium-priced golf far from population centers could succeed. Six courses and 25 years later, there are no doubters anymore. Dream Golf has a track record – what it says it will build, it will build. And golfers will come.

Location: The tiny crossroads of Roggen feeks very out of the way from the Denver metropolitan area. The highway interchange off Interstate 76 plunks cars into a tiny village of homes, a motel, and a single gas station where the rest rooms haven’t worked in years. And yet, at noon on a Thursday, it took about 60 minutes to drive there from Greenwood Village. It is much closer than it seems. It is 40 miles from Denver International Airport – the same from the airport to Boulder or Highlands Ranch.

Unique land: The 4,000 acres of sand dunes that Dream Golf has acquired have to be walked to be understood. It would be possible for the course architects to design courses in which every single shot across 18 holes was a blind shot. They will not do that, but that is how heaving and undulating these dunes are. Ballyneal, on Colorado’s

eastern edge, was the first elite club to lure golfers to Colorado-dunes country, and it is routinely listed as one of the great courses in the world. Rodeo Dunes has a canvas that is equal to it, if not more rolling. They have the capacity to create something special.

PHOTO CREDIT: MICHAEL COLANDER, CAG

PHOTO CREDIT: MICHAEL COLANDER, CAG

PHOTO CREDIT: MICHAEL COLANDER, CAG

PRIVATE CLUB DIRECTORY 2024

ASPEN GLEN CLUB

0545 BALD EAGLE WAY, CARBONDALE 970-510-0157; ASPEN-GLEN.COM

BALLYNEAL GOLF CLUB 1 BALLYNEAL LANE, HOLYOKE 970-854-5900; BALLYNEAL.COM

BEAR CREEK GOLF CLUB

BLACK BEAR GOLF CLUB

BLACKSTONE COUNTRY CLUB

BOOKCLIFF COUNTRY CLUB

BOULDER COUNTRY CLUB

BROADMOOR GOLF CLUB

CASTLE PINES

12201 MORRISON RD., DENVER 303-667-4626; BEARCREEKGOLFCLUB.NET

11300 CANTERBERRY PKWY., PARKER 720-330-7087; INVITEDCLUBS.COM/ CLUBS/BLACKSTONE-BLACK-BEAR

$5,000 $575/MO. NO N/A

7777 COUNTRY CLUB DR., AURORA 720-330-7087; INVITEDCLUBS.COM/ CLUBS/BLACKSTONE-BLACK-BEAR $15,000 $820/MO. NO N/A

2730 G RD., GRAND JUNCTION 970-243-3323; BOOKCLIFFCC.COM

350 CLUBHOUSE RD., BOULDER 303-530-4600; BOULDERCC.ORG

ONE LAKE CIRCLE, COLORADO SPRINGS 719-577-5790; BROADMOORGOLFCLUB.ORG

1000 HUMMINGBIRD DR., CASTLE ROCK 303-688-6000; CASTLEPINESGOLFCLUB.CLUB

6400 COUNTRY CLUB DR., CASTLE PINES VILLAGE 303-688-7400;

CHERRY HILLS COUNTRY CLUB

EDITOR’S

SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, FITNESS CENTER, INVITEDCLUBS NETWORK

JACK NICKLAUS/ JACK NICKLAUS II (1997) JAMES FOLSKE

BIRD HUNTING, BOCCE BALL, SHOOTING, LODGING, DINING, SPA, 12-HOLE AND PUTTING COURSES TOM DOAK (2006) BRIAN VEST

PRACTICE FACILITIES

ARNOLD PALMER, ED SEAY (1985) RICH GOINS

CLUBHOUSE, SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL & FITNESS AT BLACKSTONE CC JEFF BRAUER (1996) TIFFANIE TRENCK

FULL GOLF ACCESS TO BLACK BEAR - CLUBHOUSE, DINING, SOCIAL EVENTS, RESORT POOL, FITNESS, TENNIS + MORE

JAY MORRISH (2006) TIFFANIE TRENCK

SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, FITNESS, SPA, DINING, TROON PRIVÉ MEMBERSHIP DICK PHELPS (1958) DAVE FISCUS

SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, FITNESS, DINING, SOCIAL EVENTS WELLNESS CENTER, YOUTH SUMMER CAMPS, PAR-3 COURSE

RESORT PRIVILEGES, PRIVATE MEMBERS’ LOUNGE

CENTER, SPA, PUTTING COURSE, DINING

PRESS MAXWELL (1965) SARAH FREISMUTH

EAST: D. ROSS (1918)

WEST: R. T. JONES (1964) SHAUNA SARTORI

JACK NICKLAUS (1981)

JACK NICKLAUS/ JACK NICKLAUS II (2002)

WILLIAM FLYNN (1922)

GOLF (2009)

HART

JOHNSON

COLORADO GOLF

8000

COLORADO

COLUMBINE

PRIVATE CLUB DIRECTORY 2024

TRAIL, PARKER 303-840-5400; COLORADOGOLFCLUB.COM

3333 TEMPLETON GAP RD., COLORADO SPRINGS 719-634-8851; CSCOUNTRYCLUB.COM

17 FAIRWAY LANE, COLUMBINE VALLEY 303-794-2674; COLUMBINECC.COM

THE CLUB AT CORDILLERA

655 CLUBHOUSE DR., EDWARDS 970-926-4687; CORDILLERA-VAIL.COM

CORNERSTONE CLUB

COUNTRY CLUB OF COLORADO

1000 CORNERSTONE TRAIL, MONTROSE 970-249-1922; CORNERSTONECLUB.COM

125 E. CLUBHOUSE DR., COLORADO SPRINGS 719-538-4080; CCOFCOLORADO.COM

$105,000 $1,105/ MO. YES 475

$75,000 $15,745/ YR. NO 1,085

$75,000 (WESTERN SLOPE); $150,000 (RESIDENT)

$23,000

$15,000/ YEAR (ALL CATEGORIES) NO

9-HOLE SHORT COURSE, DINING, RESORT-STYLE POOL, FITNESS, TRAILS, ABOUTGOLF SIMULATORS, INDOOR BAYS, TENNIS AND PICKLE BALL

SWIMMING, TENNIS, DINING, FITNESS, PICKLEBALL, KIDS’ PROGRAMMING

SWIMMING, TENNIS, PAR-3 COURSE, FITNESS, INDOOR SIMULATORS, INDOOR/ OUTDOOR DINING, SPA

SWIMMING, TENNIS, NORDIC CENTER, DINING, HIKING, FLY-FISHING, SKIING, TROON PRIVÉ PRIVILEGES

DINING, 50 MILES OF HIKING AND BIKING TRAILS , FLYFISHING, HORSEBACK RIDING, SNOWSHOEING, 4-WHEELING, SHOOTING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, ARCHERY

SWIMMING, DINING, TENNIS, FITNESS, SAILING, SPA, BEACH, LAKE, WATERSPORTS, PICKLEBALL

BEN CRENSHAW/ BILL COORE (2006) BAILEY WILLIAMS

UNKNOWN (1954); DICK PHELPS (1987) EMILY BASENBERG

HENRY HUGHES (1956) LEAH CAILLIER

VALLEY: T. FAZIO (1997) MOUNTAIN: H. IRWIN (1994) SUMMIT: J NICKLAUS (2001) ALLYSON MASON

GREG NORMAN (2007) MATT DUSENBERRY (2018) SEAN CRACRAFT

PETE DYE (1973) DANI TUTTLE COUNTRY

676

THE

FORT COLLINS COUNTRY CLUB

LODGING, DINING, SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, FITNESS, SPA, INDOOR GOLF FACILITY

(1984) BILL HUGHES, MPGA

JAMES FOULIS (1902) BILL COORE (1985) GIL HANSE (2009) MOLLY ELM

JAY MORRISH/ TOM WEISKOPF (1995)

FRANK BAUMGARDNER (1968)

TOM WEISKOPF (2005) FLYING HORSE NORTH: PHIL SMITH (2020)

OEFELEIN

STEPHANIE SCOTT

BRANDEN PHILLIPS/ TAYLOR GOUGH

1920 COUNTRY CLUB RD., FORT COLLINS 970-482-1336; FORTCOLLINSCC.COM

THE FOX HILL CLUB 1400 STATE HWY 119, LONGMONT 303-651-7600; THEFOXHILLCLUB.COM

FROST CREEK CLUB 1094 FROST CREEK DR., EAGLE 970-455-3072; FROSTCREEK.COM

GARDEN OF THE GODS RESORT AND CLUB

3320 MESA RD., COLORADO SPRINGS 719-520-4980; GARDENOFTHEGODSCLUB.COM

$15,000 $610/MO. NO 500

$10,000 $665/MO. NO 450

$130,000 $9,900/YR (NAT’L); $12,800/ YR. (LOCAL) NO 425

SWIMMING, DINING, FITNESS, INDOOR & OUTDOOR TENNIS, REICPROCAL PROGRAMS

HENRY HUGHES (1960) PETE DYE (2001) HEIDI ELSER

DINING, SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, FITNESS FRANK HUMMEL (1972) REBECCA CASH

SWIMMING, TENNIS, FITNESS, FISHING, SPA, PADDLEBOARD, ARCHERY, YURTS, NORDIC SKIING, ICE SKATING, SNOWSHOEING, JEEP ACCESS, HIKING AND BIKING TRAILS

KISSING CAMELS GOLF CLUB, LODGING, DINING, STRATA

WELLNESS & SPA, FITNESS, SWIMMING, TENNIS

TOM WEISKOPF (2007) KAKIE HOLLAND

PRESS MAXWELL (1961)

MARK RATHERT (1997)

TRACEY KALATA

Now, it’s Castle Pines Golf Club’s turn. Last year a Colorado private golf club, Cherry Hills Country Club, earned the attention of the golfing world as it did an excellent job hosting the U.S. Men’s Amateur. The course challenged the world’s best amateurs, and the final round provided great theater as then-amateur Nick Dunlap defeated Pittsburgh’s Neal Shipley 4-and-3.

This August the top 50 PGA Tour pros will visit Castle Pines Golf Club for the second round of the FedEx Cup playoffs.

COLORADO CLUBS TEST BEST THE

The Jack Nicklaus-designed course in Castle Rock hosted the PGA Tour’s International Tournament from 1986 to 2006, but hasn’t had a pro event since. This summer the course will challenge the top golfers in the world, with the top 30 moving on to the FedEx Cup final and the largest paycheck in PGA Tour golf. And Colorado private clubs will remain in the spotlight one more year. The USGA’s 2025 Senior Open Championship will be held June 26 to 29 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

2024 BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

WHEN: AUG. 20 TO 25

WHERE:

CASTLE PINES GOLF CLUB, 100 HUMMINGBIRD DR., CASTLE ROCK

TICKETS: BMWCHAMPIONSHIP.COM

TO VOLUNTEER: BMWCHAMPIONSHIP.COM/VOLUNTEERS

PHOTO CREDIT: BRADEN HANSEN, PREMIER AERIALS (BOTH PHOTOS)

GLENMOOR

GREELEY

600 GLACIER CLUB DR., DURANGO 970-382-7800; THEGLACIERCLUB.COM

110

DR., CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE 303-781-3000; GLENMOORCC.ORG

4500 W. 10TH ST., GREELEY 970-353-0528; GREELEYCC.ORG

HARMONY CLUB 4175 CLUB DR., TIMNATH 970-482-4653; HARMONYCLUB.INFO

HIWAN GOLF CLUB 30671 CLUBHOUSE LN., EVERGREEN 303-674-3366; HIWAN.COM

THE CLUB AT INVERNESS

LAKE VALLEY GOLF CLUB

LAKEWOOD

$20,000$30,000 $550/MO. NO N/A

200 INVERNESS DR., ENGLEWOOD 303-397-7878; THECLUBATINVERNESS.COM $5,000 $520/MO. YES 415

4400 LAKE VALLEY DR., NIWOT 303-444-2114; LAKEVALLEY.COM

TWO CLUBHOUSES, SWIMMING, TENNIS & PICKLEBALL, FITNESS, SPA, GOLF SIMULATOR, WINTER ACTIVITIES CENTER

THE

THE CLUB AT PRADERA

MUCHMORETHANGOLF.COM

N. PINERY PKWY., PARKER 303-841-5157; THEPINERYCC.COM

RAINTREE DR., PARKER 303-607-5672; THECLUBATPRADERA.COM

PTARMIGAN COUNTRY CLUB 5416 VARDON WAY, FORT COLLINS 970-226-8555; PTARMIGANCC.COM

PUEBLO COUNTRY CLUB

8TH AVE., PUEBLO 719-543-4844; PUEBLOCOUNTRYCLUB.COM

ARTHUR HILLS (1974)

IRWIN-SCHOEDER (2017) JACKSON LACEK

TENNIS, FITNESS, DINING, MASSAGE, KIDS ACTIVITY ROOM PETE DYE (1985) TERI KUBIK

SWIMMING, TENNIS, DINING, PICKLEBALL, GOLF SIMULATORS, RECIPROCAL PROGRAMS

PRESS MAXWELL/ TOM BENDELOW (1932) JASON CORTES

INDOOR HEATED GOLF FACILITY, POOL, TENNIS, FITNESS, PICKLEBALL JIM ENGH (2007) ERIC KNOTTS

DINING, SWIMMING, TENNIS, FITNESS CENTER, FISHING, YOGA AND PILATES

PRESS MAXWELL (1962) MICHA LEVENSON

SWIMMING, TENNIS, RENOVATED FITNESS, LOCKER AND DINING FACILITIES PRESS MAXWELL (1974) SARAH DEVANNEY

$12,000$15,000 $441$544/MO. NO 485 DINING, PRACTICE FACILITIES, PRIVATE SWIM AND FISHING LAKE PRESS MAXWELL (1964) DILLON MOUNT

FITNESS, GOLF SIMULATOR, TRACKMAN ON RANGE

TOM BENDELOW (1908)/ DONALD ROSS (1917)GIL HANSE (2018)

INDOOR/

TENNIS, GOLF SIMULATORS, DINING, FITNESS, PICKLE BALL

MAXWELL (1960)

SWIMMING COMPLEX, FITNESS, 27 HOLES WITH GOLF PRACTICE FACILITIES, INDOOR/ OUTDOOR TENNIS DAVID BINGHAM (1972) JORDYN KLEIN

FITNESS, PRACTICE FACILITY

ENGH (2005) MAX MILLER

DINING, TENNIS, JACK NICKLAUS (1988) RYAN FLACK

TENNIS, DINING, PICKLEBALL HENRY HUGHES (1903) AMY STRINGER

THE RANCH COUNTRY CLUB

THE GOLF CLUB AT RAVENNA

RED ROCKS COUNTRY CLUB

RED SKY GOLF CLUB

RIO GRANDE CLUB & RESORT

11887 TEJON ST., WESTMINSTER 303-460-9700; THERANCHCC.COM

11118 CARETAKER RD., LITTLETON 720-956-1600; RAVENNAGOLF.COM

16235 W. BELLEVIEW AVE., MORRISON 303-352-2030; REDROCKSCOUNTRYCLUB.ORG

1099 RED SKY RD., WOLCOTT 970-754-8400; REDSKYGOLFCLUB.COM

0285 RIO GRANDE CLUB TRAIL, SOUTH FORK 719-873-1995; RGCRESORT.COM

ROARING FORK CLUB 100 ARBANEY RANCH RD., BASALT 970-927-9000; ROARINGFORKCLUB.COM

THE CLUB AT ROLLING HILLS 15707 W. 26TH AVE., GOLDEN 303-279-3334; THECLUBATROLLINGHILLS.ORG

SNOWMASS CLUB 0239 SNOWMASS CLUB CIR., SNOWMASS VILLAGE 970-923-5600; SNOWMASSCLUB.COM

SONNENALP CLUB 1265 BERRY CREEK RD., EDWARDS 970-477-5376; SONNENALPCLUB.COM

TPC COLORADO 2375 TPC PARKWAY, BERTHOUD 303-522-5711; TPC.COM/COLORADO

VALLEY COUNTRY CLUB

THE COUNTRY CLUB AT WOODMOOR

14601 COUNTRY CLUB DR., CENTENNIAL 720-630-2463; VALLEYCOUNTRYCLUB.ORG

18945 PEBBLE BEACH WAY, MONUMENT 719-884-7241; CCWOODMOOR.COM

$842$995/MO. YES 430

$140,000 $12,000/ YR. NO 425

$7,000 $465 No None at this time

INDOOR GOLF FACILITY, INDOOR/ OUTDOOR TENNIS, SWIMMING, FAMILY POOLS, FITNESS, DINING, INDOOR/ OUTDOOR KIDS PLAY AREA

DICK PHELPS (1974) MICHA LEVENSON

CLUBHOUSE, DINING, POOL, FITNESS CENTER , TRACKMAN ON RANGE JAY MORRISH (2006) ALICIA MONTOYA

DINING, SWIMMING, FISHING, HIKING, GOLF SIMULATOR

SWIMMING, TENNIS, 2 CLUBHOUSES AND RESTAURANTS, FITNESS, YEAR-ROUND GOLF ACADEMY

FITNESS CENTER W/ STEAM & MASSAGE ROOMS, POOL & HOT TUB COMPLEX,RESTAURANT, PRIVATE GOLD MEDAL WATERS & FISHING LODGE

STANLEY HARWOOD (1976) KEVIN ATKINSON (2017) BOBBY NORMAN

TOM FAZIO (2002) GREG NORMAN (2003) TINSLEY CUSWORTH

Ric Buckton & Jay Benson (2001) BRANDON DAVIS

$75,000$250,000 $13,800$37,500/ YR. INVITATION ONLY 500 SWIMMING, TENNIS, FLY-FISHING, DINING, FITNESS JACK NICKLAUS (1999) SAM BROOME

SWIMMING, INDOOR/OUTDOOR TENNIS, FITNESS, HD GOLF SIMULATOR, DINING

SPA & FITNESS, SWIMMING, INDOOR/OUTDOOR TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING, DINING, INDOOR GOLF SIMULATOR

SWIMMING, TENNIS, PICKLEBALL, SPA, FITNESS, DINING, PRACTICE FACILITIES

3 RESTAURANTS, POOL, 600- ACRE LAKE, FITNESS CENTER, WATERFOWL HUNTING, ACCESS TO 30 OTHER TPCS

$50,000 $800/MO. NO 470

$9,000 $462/MO. NO 415

SWIMMING, LIGHTED TENNIS, FITNESS, DINING, CHILDREN’S ACTIVITY CENTER

SWIMMING, INDOOR TENNIS & PICKLEBALL, FITNESS, CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING, CHILDCARE

PRESS MAXWELL/ DICK PHELPS (1967) MARTA KOSTELNY

JIM ENGH (2003) JOANNA MALLORY

JAY MORRISH/ BOB CUPP (1982) DIANE KERCHOF

ARTHUR SCHAUPETER (2018) MICHAEL NEWBERG

WILLIAM BELL (1960) AL JADER

PRESS MAXWELL (1969) STEPHANIE THIEN

EDITOR’S NOTE: THIS INFORMATION IS ACCURATE TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE. IN CASES WHERE INFORMATION IS NOT AVAILABLE (N/A), THE CLUB HAD NOT YET OFFICIALLY ESTABLISHED INITIATIONS AND DUES FOR THE 2024 GOLF SEASON OR ELECTED NOT TO PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION. IN ALL CASES, CONTACT THE CLUBS DIRECTLY FOR THE MOST CURRENT INFORMATION.

* INITIATIONS REFLECT FULL GOLF MEMBERSHIPS FOR INDIVIDUALS. WHEN GIVEN, RANGES CAN ACCOUNT FOR INCENTIVES, PROMOTIONS, REFUNDABILITY OR MULTIPLE LEVELS (EQUITY/NON-EQUITY, ASSOCIATE, JUNIOR [USUALLY AGES 21-39], FAMILY, ETC.). SOME CLUBS MAKE FINANCING AVAILABLE.

** DUES REFLECT FULL GOLF. THEY DO NOT ACCOUNT FOR FOOD AND BEVERAGE MINIMUMS, SERVICE FEES, CAPITAL ASSESSMENTS OR OTHER SURCHARGES. RANGES REFLECT MEMBERSHIP LEVELS.

When Your Job is Golf, What Do You Do for Fun?

ByJimBebbington

Many of us face a funny question when we get into post-college or post-high-school life.

So….. what do I do with my time?

Our lives have rolled by on a school calendar in some cases since we were 5 years old. Then, we’re out – sometimes never to return. Days are now filled with work, friends, figuring out where we are, where we want to be and how do we get there.

What does that look like for an aspiring professional golfer?

By the time he was done, he was the 78th ranked amateur golfer in the world according to the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

It looks very similar to what everyone else is facing – plus some unique aspects.

For Davis Bryant, 24, he earned a Master’s Degree from Colorado State University in December where he also competed on the golf team. By the time he was done, he was the 78th ranked amateur golfer in the world according to the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

Then he moved in with his grandparents in Phoenix, and began professional golf.

Things could hardly have started better. In his first tournament as a professional, the Jan. 9 to 11 Asher Tour Talking Stick Championship northeast of Scottsdale, he went birdie-eagle on the first two holes of day one. He finished the day with a 63. He was in a position to win heading into the final nine holes on day three, but three bogeys on the back nine left him twoshots back, tied for 3rd and winning $4,300.

“It’s never always going to be that easy,” he said. “I wish it was.”

Next in Gilbert, Ariz., he played the Power Ranch Championship (finished 9th). He and Cal McCoy, who grew up in Highlands Ranch and who played college golf for the University of Denver and the University of Arizona, then both played in the pre-qualifier for the WM Phoenix Open. Each shot a respectable 3-under, but only two finishers made it out of the field – shooting 6-under and 7-under.

Then it was off to California. Bryant went 6-over for three days at the Santa Barbara Open, making the cut and finishing T-16. At the Central Coast Championship, north of Santa Barbara, Jackson Solem of Longmont won and Bryant finished 15th. Solem is another DU golf alumni. His final round shows the level of play necessary to win – he had just four pars on the final day, his scorecard crammed with birdies, an eagle and bogeys. Solem won with a three-day score of 8-under.

For Bryant, driving with friends to California, splitting costs for hotel rooms, made it better. “You are out on an island by yourself,” Bryant said. “There’s a lot of time outside of the tournament round and your mind can wander. Having buddies can help you stay mentally in the right spot – In college we frankly just didn’t have any time. If I did I was always doing my homework.” Instead of homework, Bryant took a book – Jack Carr’s The Terminal List - and went down to the beach. “I’ve been doing some more reading –crime, mystery books, self-improvement,” he said. He’s read five books so far this year.

“Then really just visiting and going through the area where we’re playing. In Santa Barbara, I got done at noon and saw the town and went to the beach, read my book and kind of vegged out. …. Not every place is going to be 10 minutes away from the beach.” At 24, Bryant says he can already see how his life is changing and so are the things he needs to do. “I enjoy getting lost in a book and staying off my phone,” he said.

THE OCEAN VIEW FROM THE SANTA BARBARA OPEN. PHOTO BY DAVIS BRYANT

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ASHER TOUR

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