With affordable grazing land hard to find, Travis and Marissa Hake purchased an abandoned golf course.
by Amber Friedrichsen
W
HILE I have stepped onto many pastures before, I have only ever set foot on a golf course once. Yet, there I was, adding another tally to both experiences at the same time as I followed Travis and Marissa Hake through the gate of Black Label Farms near Edon, Ohio. At first glance, I envisioned the activities that once took place on the abandoned course: golfers walking up and down the rolling hills, golf carts cruising pieces of sidewalk that still remain, and a golf ball hitting its peak in the air and then descending into a pond at its owner’s dismay. At second glance, though, I was awakened from my daydream and brought back to reality as I found myself nose-to-nose with some of the most docile cattle I’ve ever encountered. Located in the heart of western
Ohio’s corn and soybean breadbasket, the Hakes struggled to find affordable land to purchase for pasture. That is, until a 100-acre golf course was put up for sale practically in the Hake family farm’s backyard. Now, tee time is all the time for the couple, but they are not practicing their putt or strengthening their swing. Instead, they are working to transform what was once 18 holes of fairways and greens into a home for their grazing herd of British White Park beef cattle.
A links makeover A few years ago, the golf course went up for sale and was sold at an auction. The man who purchased it had intentions of flipping it to sell at a higher price, but unfortunately for him, no such thing happened before he passed away. His estate closed and the course was back on the market. This time, the
All photos: Mike Rankin
TAKING A SHOT AT THE GRAZING GAME Hakes had the highest bid. “It’s tough around here because we are in heavy row-crop country,” Marissa said. “This property came up, and we farm on three sides of it, so it was almost the perfect situation for us when looking for pasture because we don’t have to compete against row-crop land prices.” Although obtaining the patch of land seemed on par — pun intended — the condition it was in was double bogey quality. The land had become overgrown with mature, dead grass during the time it sat idle. Nonetheless, the Hakes played through. “The first thing we did was mow it all and bale the grass to get all the old residue off,” Travis said. “Next, we started researching the species of what we had, what we wanted, and the steps to get there.” What they had was a lot of tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass. The Hakes
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