GET TO KNOW THE CORDILLERA RANCH REALTY TEAM

In each issue, we spotlight a member of the Realty team to learn what motivates them, personally and professionally.

BARRY DENTON

Recently celebrating 10 years with the CR Realty Team, Barry Denton couldn’t imagine a better place to live, play and work than at Cordillera Ranch. Combining his careers as a golf professional and instructor with his passion for real estate development landed him in the place he was meant to be.

WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY?

I was born in Iowa City, Iowa where I lived my first 12 years. My family visited a relative in the Kerrville area one winter when it was sub-zero temperatures in Iowa and 70 degrees in Texas. We went back to Iowa, put the house on the market and were back in Texas by June of that year. Kerrville was a great place to grow up, and being around home construction and land development in a golf community piqued my interest for what I might like to do when I grew up.

WHEN DID YOU BEGIN PLAYING GOLF AND WHEN DID YOU GET YOUR PGA CARD?

I started playing golf when I was about 10 years old. Education took me to The University of Texas, and I worked at Onion Creek Club while going to school. The golf pro discussed becoming a PGA Professional with me and worked around my classes to help me accomplish my goal of finishing school on schedule while working down a parallel path of getting my PGA card. I graduated UT in 1987 and got my card in 1988.

HOW DID YOUR GOLF PROFESSIONAL AND TEACHING CAREER EVOLVE?

As I was working in golf, teaching interested me the most and led me to seek out the best teachers to learn from. I was fortunate to work at Austin Country Club in the late-80’s and spent time with Harvey Penick. I then moved to Dallas and was able to observe and learn from Hank Haney. He was also gracious with his time, sharing of information and knowledge, and made it easy to understand the mechanics of the golf swing. It was great learning from two legends who, in my opinion, were on opposite ends of the spectrum in how they taught, but both got world-class results. Teaching is about communicating. I learned a lot about that and the golf swing from both.

WHAT DID YOU DO BEFORE JOINING THE CR REALTY TEAM?

Golf led me back to the San Antonio in 1991. I was a golf professional at Oak Hills Country Club where I focused on teaching. In 1994 I also became the Men’s Golf Coach at UTSA and conducted golf schools for Nike. I got my Real Estate license in the early 90’s in hopes of one day combining my golf experience with my long-held interest in real estate and developing. Through a friend, I was introduced to a real estate development sales opportunity in 1999. I worked for that development company from 2000 to 2011 before joining Cordillera Ranch.

ANY BRUSHES WITH GOLF GREATNESS?

I had the pleasure of having lunch and spending the afternoon with Byron Nelson through a long-time golf mentor of mine. He talked (I listened) about golf, teaching, tournament play, golf history, designing golf clubs, playing, etc. etc. What a day! I was at Oak Hill Country Club (Rochester, NY) soon thereafter for the 1995 Ryder Cup and was able to see Mr. Nelson accept his plaque on a tree dedicated in his name.

WHAT INTRIGUED YOU TO JOIN THE CR REALTY TEAM?

Kathy and I bought property and joined the Clubs in 2006. Over the years, I got to know the Hills and the Northingtons. An opportunity to join the development and sales team presented itself in late 2010 and I started working for Cordillera Ranch in 2011. Living, working and being a member of the premier golf community in Texas is a blessing.

WHAT DO YOU ATTRIBUTE TO YOUR SUCCESS AT CR?

The ownership and developer have created world-class amenities and living. Having one owner-developer since inception is rare. Most important are the people. The success of Cordillera Ranch emanates from the high standards set by our owners and developer to our sales team and support associates, residents, members and employees of the Clubs. My success is a byproduct of the efforts of many great people.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO IN YOUR SPARE TIME?

Golf. Kathy and I typically play once a week and sometimes I find time to practice or play in the evenings now that we have more daylight at the end of the day. We also like to travel and that usually involves golf as well. We’ve found that some of the prettiest places on the planet have great golf, so we enjoy taking in both.