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golF
GOLF Golf
Happy New Year! I wanted to take an opportunity to share with you some of the exciting things we have planned for 2015.
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There were a number of successful events last year that we hope to build on this year and a few new things planned for next year. The Bear Trap Friday afternoon game will be in its third year and I hope you will come out and participate. It is a great way to get to know other players or just play in the weekly game with your own group. The format is a running quota with skins. We will be trying a few new things with our Men’s Night Out program during the summer months so stay tuned.
The MGA Staff Kick-Off Scramble will take place on Saturday, January 31st. We will once again have key Cordillera Ranch staff personnel joining each group. This is a great way for so many of us to get to know our members and a chance for you to maybe play with someone that you have not yet played golf with. I think everyone that participated last year enjoyed the day so hope you will help us get the year started off right and play in the tournament.
Cordillera Ranch will be hosting the Golf Course Superintendent’s Association of America National Championship on February 22nd-23rd. Take a look at the feature article on this event in this issue for details. I know Director of Agronomy Mark Semm and his team are excited to be showcasing the golf course and we are looking forward to a special event.
On February 28th, we will be hosting the Second Annual Cordillera Ranch Putting Championship. We have an awesome day planned as we hope to identify the best putters here at the Club. Breakfast and Bloody Marys begins at 7:30am before heading out for a 9:00am shotgun. The format is BB of the twosome and there will be two flights based on combined handicap. Team entry fee is $80 and we will have an optional skins game, as well as pari-mutuel wagering for those who would like to make it a little interesting. I hope you will join us as we look forward to a fun day on the course.
Finally, thanks for your support of Gevin Allen in his first year as our Director of Instruction. He had an outstanding year and will continue working this year toward developing an instructional program that will benefit all of our members. He will have new programs developed specifically for golfers of all varying abilities. Gevin is now a TPI Certified Level 3 Golf Professional which affords our members an opportunity to gain insight into the latest trends in teaching and golf fitness.
We are always looking for ways to grow and improve our golf operation so please let me know if you have any suggestions that will help us improve the member golf experience here at Cordillera Ranch.
See you on the course,
marc deWall, PGa
Director of Golf, The Clubs of Cordillera Ranch mdewall@cordilleraranch.com | 830.336.4653
GOLF
THE CLUBS
by Robert Rodriguez
The 2018 Final Four and its potential economic impact may have absorbed most of the local headlines recently, but there’s another national championship headed to the San Antonio area in late February that is sure to bring a lot of green.
Green thumbs, that is.
The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) will conduct its 2015 golf championships February 21-23 at several area golf courses, including The Clubs of Cordillera Ranch. The club’s Jack Nicklaus Signature Design will be the site of the championships’ marquee event, the National Championship, a 36-hole stroke play event featuring 100 of the top superintendents with a verified handicap index of 5.0 or below. An overall champion, as well as a senior champion (age 50 and over), will be crowned.
“Having our national championship at a place like Cordillera Ranch adds even more energy to this event,” said Keith A. Ihms, President of the GCSAA. “We are extremely honored to have such an elite club host our most prestigious tournament.”
Executives from the GCSAA, Cordillera Ranch and The Toro Company, the event’s presenting sponsor for the past 21 years, attended a November 18 press conference to introduce the club, as well as superintendents from different area golf clubs and select media. Following the news conference, many toured the club and played the course. They all came away awestruck.
“The course is simply amazing,” said Jonathan Wall, Equipment Editor for PGATOUR.com. “There is so much character and the conditions were flawless. And the par-3 16th, it’s as good as advertised.”
The Golf Championships are held in conjunction with the 2015 Golf Industry Show (GIS), the GCSAA’s annual industry gathering. The GIS will take place February 21-26, 2015 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in downtown San Antonio.
“People are eagerly anticipating coming to San Antonio,” Ihms said, “and having the national championship here adds to that excitement.”
A year ago, Deron Zendt won the GCSAA National Championship, shooting 5-under over two rounds at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla. While 2014 U.S. Ryder Cupper and Cordillera Ranch member Jimmy Walker’s course record 63 should be safe, what participants might find most attractive about the club (besides the par-3 16th) is the wonderful hospitality and the friendly membership.
“We look forward to hosting the GCSAA National Championship,” said Monty Becton, Cordillera Ranch general manager. “Mark Semm and his staff do an incredible job of getting the course ready for the membership and their guests on a daily basis.”
Semm was honored that Cordillera Ranch would host the GCSAA National Championship. After all, it’s not every day that he gets a chance to showcase his work to his peers.
“We have the opportunity to hear feedback from some of the best [superintendents] in the industry,” Semm said. “It will be a great learning opportunity.” One would think Semm would be stressed since he has to prime the course for his cohorts. Yet, as Becton attested, Semm and his staff approach every day like it’s the club championship or the C-Star member-guest.
However, those events occur when the weather is typically warm and sunny. The GCSAA National Championship will occur in late February, when the weather could be unpredictable.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if Sunday it’s 75 degrees with a 15 mph south wind and Monday it’s 40 degrees with a 25 mph north wind,” Semm said. “The pressure will be on the players [to play well].”
No matter what Mother Nature throws at Semm and his peers, the GCSAA National Championship promises to kick-start a wonderful and exciting week for not only Cordillera Ranch, but the 2015 Golf Industry Show.
“This [national championship] is like an icebreaker for a weeklong show,” Ihms said. “It’s away from work, gives them some time to loosen up and relax, and gets them ready for a full week in San Antonio and at the convention center.
“As a Texas native, I can confidently proclaim Cordillera Ranch is Hill Country golf at its finest. The players are really going to enjoy this venue.”
GOLF
The Callaway Alpha 815 is the predecessor of the original Alpha launched last year. When Callaway designed the 815’s they listened to tour players and average golfers, hence the Alpha 815 has two versions with the other being called the Alpha 815 Double Black Diamond (DD).
The size of both of the drivers is 460 CC, however the Double Black Diamond has a deeper face with a more compact look when addressing the ball (much like a persimmon driver). The Alpha 815, on the other hand, looks larger and wider because of its shallow face. Both drivers feature a new technology called RMOTO, which is a redistribution of weight inside the club head to increase Moment of Inertia (it keeps you in the short grass).
All of the drivers in the market have a very thin face to produce maximum distance, however both of the Alpha 815 has more adjustability than any driver made with 16 different face angle/lie combinations, 2 interchangeable weight ports and a gravity core located vertically inside the head to produce various spin rates. This is where the flexibility of the adjustability will produce more distance.
The driver is available with lofts of 9, 10.5 and 12 degrees while the Double Black Diamond is available in lofts of 9 and 10.5 degrees. Each driver head can be adjusted by adding up to 2 degrees or reducing by 1 degree in lofts, in reality you will receive four drivers with the price of one. The lie angle of each head can also be adjusted to a more upright setting, which favors a draw ball flight. The upright setting is also useful for the taller players who are fitted with upright irons. The look of the driver will be similar to their irons.
The two weight ports contain two interchangeable weights. These weights will influence the face angle at impact. When the heavier weight is toward the toe, the club will have a tendency to stay open at impact and vice versa. The weight ports can also be used for swing weight purposes. The weights can be changed with lighter or heavier weights depending upon the player.
The gravity core technology is what makes the Callaway 815 unique compared to other drivers on the market. The gravity core is a steel stick with one side of the stick heavier than the other (similar to a tee). The stick is inserted from underneath the club head. The spin rate will increase when the heavy side of the stick is inserted on the top of the driver and vice versa when the heavy side is inserted towards the sole driver. With this feature the spin rate can be manipulated independent of the loft and hence change the shape and trajectory of the shot. The difference in spin rate can be as much as 500 rpm, which is significant.
The most important benefit to the Callaway 815 is the flexibility of changing the performance of the driver to your advantage. For example, your swing may change with time and now you can adjust your driver to liking. A slicer may need a driver with a higher loft, weight towards the heel and an upright lie angle. Another advantage to the gravity core is the adjustment of spin rate to accommodate certain conditions. When it is windy, the gravity core can be changed to lower the spin rate. On the other hand, when the fairway is wet, the gravity core can be adjusted for maximum carry by setting it to favor more spin.
Please contact us if you have any questions or want to get fit. We can further explain the benefits of each setting and how it will enhance your game.
CALLAWAY ALPHA 815
PLAYING THE COURSE
Hole #1 – 493 yards Par 4 – Handicap #9
The journey begins! Like the Par 4 #10 hole at Cordillera Ranch, the opening hole offers stunning views of the Texas Hill Country and the Twins Sisters peaks. It is the #9 handicap hole on the course and serves as an excellent opening hole that is very fair yet challenging.
The hole from the very back Bear tees is extremely long but typically plays a little shorter with a prevailing SE wind and it is down valley. The tee-shot favors a draw on this dog-leg left Par 4 as the fairway slopes from right to left. A tee-shot hit at the fairway bunkers on the right-hand side will often end up in the middle of the fairway. It is better to favor the right side as there is trouble left where an errant tee-shot can bound into a hazard full of native grass on the left side of the hole. The fairway is fairly wide and hitting it will leave a short to mid-iron.
The second shot requires the right club selection as the green is large but well protected on the left-hand side by two bunkers. When the flagstick is located on the back-left corner it is important to take enough club to carry the bunkers. There is a bail-out area to the right of the green that is the safe shot but this area requires a deft touch with your chip shot as the green runs away from you in that direction and gauging speed is very difficult.
Trying to figure out green speeds at the beginning of the round can be challenging. A putt toward the back of the green on this hole runs down valley and down grain so will usually be very fast. A putt moving the other direction is just the opposite. Understanding this and how it affects putting will go a long way in determining how many putts are holed that day as it is not easy to see.
Hole #1 at Cordillera Ranch can be considered a birdie hole. It is very fair and by getting your tee-shot in the fairway players have a chance at accomplishing that. The hole is a great beginning as it showcases a little of everything the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course has to offer. Get ready, the experience is just beginning!
BEYOND
the DIAMOND
by michael mancha :: photography by west Vita
Driving onto the Beckett’s Hill Country ranch, you get a deep sense of Texas country living. The sprawling 115 acres are picturesque with distant hills splashed against rich blue sky. From the moment you enter you are greeted with beautiful trees peppered across the property, all changing colors in the crisp fall air.
The porch of their beautiful ranch home is covered with Christmas décor seemingly in mid-design. Wreaths, trees, green, red and gold create an inviting Texas Christmas vibe. Josh stands towering in the front door and welcomes us in.
For Beckett, a Spring native, Texas has always been home. As a former Major League Baseball pitcher, Josh has seen a lot of the country. After his brilliant high school career, Josh was drafted by the Florida Marlins in the 1999 draft. After 4 years in sunny Miami, Josh was traded on Thanksgiving Day in 2006 to the Boston Red Sox. Josh would spend another 6 years on the East coast before moving teams once again in 2012, this time to sunny Los Angeles where he would spend his last two years with the Dodgers.
But some where in all that, going from south to east to west, and traveling across the country in between, Texas never left Josh’s heart.
“There is something weird about Texas guys,” Beckett said. “I met a lot of them through the years playing, and it seemed like none of us ever moved. A lot of guys would adopt the city where they were playing and stay there. I never did that.” Despite spending months away from home, at the end of every season, Josh would make his way back.
“I always foresaw myself coming back, and I did, every year in the off season,” he said. “I never spent an off season away from Texas.”
So much of what makes Beckett who he is, has to do with where he makes his home. Josh and his wife, Holly bought their Hill Country home three years ago and have since settled into the life out here.
“I’m not a slow person,” Beckett said. “I like to stay busy. I like to be going and getting stuff done. I’m not a guy who just has somebody come and do everything for me.”
But, in spite of his admittedly active nature, he has found that they enjoy the slowness of the Hill Country.
“When we want to slow down, that’s the way the Hill Country is. That’s the way Boerne is,” he said. “It’s nice to live back here away from the hustle and bustle.”
GoLF and CoRdiLLeRa RanCh
Having lived in central Texas for a few years now, Josh has lived in a couple different spots and played around the area, but there was something special about Cordillera Ranch that led him to become a member.
“A lot of friends who are members there, talked to me about it,” he said. “I went out there enough times with them and I got to meet more guys, meet more of the people. Holly got to meet the wives of a lot of the guys I played golf with.”
For the Beckett’s, finding a community they loved didn’t require a big city. It was just about finding people they could actually connect with.
“That’s what Cordillera Ranch is all about,” he said. “The golf course is obviously awesome, but it’s about the people more than anything.”
Josh start playing golf not too long after he was drafted. A fellow minor leaguers told him to get some clubs and 16 years later, he’s never looked back. And getting to play at Cordillera Ranch is a huge benefit to living in the Hill Country. “Golf, to me, is about that competitiveness with yourself but I enjoy playing golf with other people,” he said. “I like the s**t -talking, the banter. I like everything that comes with golf.”
Josh says that when he started, he found that it was a lot like pitching.
“I’m a competitive guy, and it’s one of those sports where you’re not just playing against the guys you are with, but you’re playing against the golf course, you’re playing against the game itself, and I don’t think it’s something you ever really master.”
Playing golf became a regular thing for Beckett, he says it was something he could do between starts. Eventually, fate would bring the two games together like he never expected. Earlier this year, on Memorial Day weekend, Beckett and the Dodgers were in Philadelphia to play the Phillies. On his day off, just like he’d done many times before, Josh went to play golf. But not just any course. That day, Josh was invited to play at Pine Valley Golf Club, the number one rated course in the US. An opportunity that could only be matched by what would happen that Sunday. As the starting pitcher for Sunday’s game, Josh would go on to do what most Major League pitchers never accomplish - he pitched a no-hitter, the first of his career. It was a weekend he wouldn’t forget - two rare events happening so closely together.
Josh has played his share of great courses, Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania, LA Country Club, Bel-Air Country Club, The Cal Club in San Francisco, and Pine Valley. But when he’s home, Cordillera Ranch is were you’ll find him. “Every year going to spring training in February, I’d have that one last round at Cordillera and I’d ask myself, ‘Why am I leaving?’” he said.
on the RanCh
Just 28 miles southeast of Cotulla, Texas, is a place you’ll find Beckett if you don’t find him in the Hill Country. A 7,000-acre spread of the finest South Texas land called Herradura Ranch. Beckett’s ranch is very much his second home. Even though they offer commercial hunting, the ranch is a family place. Since he was young, Josh says that his dad was into hunting and anything outdoors. It’s a lifestyle that has never left.
“Anytime I’m at the ranch my family is with me. We have our own little place out there,” he said.
Whether it’s fishing, hunting or mending fences, the South Texas life is a big part of his. Josh says he isn’t one to just let other people do things for him. If he’s out there, he’s working and if he’s not working, he’s hunting.
Unlike pitching or golf, hunting is a change of pace. It’s slower and quieter. It’s brings a kind of balance to the things he loves to do.
“I love being out there at five in the morning - you can see but the sun’s not up yet. Just being by yourself in a blind and respecting God’s creation,” he said. Hunting and living life on the ranch is in his blood, it’s very much of part of who he is.
“Whenever I’m leaving the gate, I already know when I’m coming back,” he said.
FoR a CaUSe
It’s clear that off of the pitchers mound, Beckett loves two things, hunting and golf. A few years ago, he decided to take those two passions and use them for a good cause which is when Beckett and his friend radio host, Rusty Baker, began a celebrity charity event.
“It started out at the ranch, we did a doe hunt,” Beckett said. “We donated all
the meat to Hunters for the Hungry. We had a bunch of celebrities there, comedians and country music artists, playing guitar and telling jokes.”
For four years they held the event at the ranch, and despite people excitement every year, they didn’t seem to be raising the kind of funds they wanted.
“I think the first year we raised $5000,” he said. “The next couple years it was four then six.
Three years ago, Beckett and Baker decided to move the celebrity charity event to Tapatio Springs Resort in the Hill Country and to change it from a hunt to a golf tournament and that’s when it really took off.
“It just exploded,” Beckett said. “Since we turned it into a golf tournament... we’ve gone over $2 million that we’ve donated.”
The money that the event raises is donated to Show of Support, a non-profit started by Terry Johnson, takes wounded warriors on hunting trips. While they are off hunting, they also take their spouses and children and treat them as well.
“Whether it’s a man or woman, coming back from war, they are trying to get back to some kind of normalcy,” Beckett said. “Sometimes just going deer hunting gets them back to what they’re used to. They do stuff for the whole family and it’s just awesome.”
Josh says the celebrity event attracts everyone from professional golfers, baseball players and football players to many musicians, especially Texas country artists.
QUite a CaReeR
This past season with the Dodgers would be Beckett’s last. Battling several different injuries he officially retired in October after 13 amazing seasons in the majors.
Josh’s career was one that many major leaguers never accomplish. He won the 2003 World Series with the Florida Marlins, a team that was never expected to do.
“I don’t think any of us would have believed if you had told us at the beginning of the year that we would win the World Series,” he said. “I’ll never be a part of anything that was that tight-knitted.”
Beckett won the World Series MVP that year. He would play a couple more seasons with Florida before being traded to the Boston Red Sox in 2006. Once again,
Josh would join a team that was making history. A year after Florida had won the series, Boston would make a run in 2004 and end an 86 year “curse”. In 2007, with Beckett on board, Boston would make another run at the championship winning the World Series. That year, Josh won the American League Championship Most Valuable Player (MVP). Aside from his World Series wins and MVP awards, Beckett is a three-time MLB All-Star and had his no-hitter with LA in 2014.
“When it’s all said and done, you end up with memorabilia from three different teams and you don’t know which one to hang up,” he said.
Looking back at where his career had taken him, Beckett has a great perspective. He speaks with no regret, no lack of closure. He has worked hard to put himself in a place where he can continue to do the things he loves and he wears it proudly.
“Where I started was a perfect place for me to start and were I finished was a perfect place for me to end.”
