The results of a $3 million renovation of the club’s golf course was previewed on April 1, culminating the recovery from trees lost from a chemical used for broadleaf weed control three years earlier. A clubhouse renovation and new pool area are also expected to be completed this season for the 300-member club.
The opening of its revisioned golf course in April is only the start of a big 2017 for the Stevens Point (Wis.) Country Club, the Stevens Point Journal reported.
Players who grabbed their clubs and headed out for the first time this year when the course held a soft opening on April 1, with only 10 holes available for play and no carts, got an up-close look at major work on the property, including a renovated clubhouse and new pool area, that is expected to be complete this season, the Journal reported.
A $3 million facelift for the course was announced last August, the Journal reported, following the loss of over 2,000 trees from a chemical used for broadleaf weed control about three years earlier. The removal of the trees was eventually completed in 2015, and led to the first major work on the course in decades.
(After receiving its state charter in 1925, a nine-hole course was completed at the club in 1927, the Journal reported, followed by the expansion to an 18-hole course in 1965.)
C&RB reported on the course-recovery plan last August (http://clubandresortbusiness.com/2016/08/stevens-point-wis-cc-gets-3m-facelift/).
Major work on the course that has been completed includes new bunkers, widening of fairways, new tees, a new irrigation system and some minor adjustment of greens, the Journal reported.
“Everything came together really well, and we think people will enjoy the course,” said Craig Haltom, who is serving as architect for project. “We got a break with the weather last fall, and that helped us get the work done on a schedule where we didn’t lose a year.”
Haltorn is co-founder of Oliphant Haltom Golf Management, which oversees the country club along with a number of regional golf courses including Bull’s Eye Country Club in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., and Lake Arrowhead Golf Course in Nekoosa, Wis., the Journal reported.
But the work on the Stevens Point CC course—which also offers new practice facilities, including multiple short-game areas—is just the beginning for the 300-member club, the Journal reported. A renovated clubhouse will have updated restaurant and banquet facilities, a new pub in the basement, and a new outdoor patio space with fire pits. An addition for the pro shop, previously located near the pool, will move all golf operations to the clubhouse.
C&RB reported on Oliphant Haltom’s long-range plans for the property in 2014 (http://clubandresortbusiness.com/2014/03/stevens-point-wis-cc-works-toward-reinvention/).
Pursuant to those plans, the pool and connected building have all been demolished, and a new pool with lap swimming and a splash pad for children is expected to open Memorial Day weekend, the Journal reported. A new family activity center and outdoor bar will include new outdoor furniture. The tennis courts will have a new hard-court surface that will also be marked for other activities like pickleball and basketball.
The layout of the club will also be different. with a new entrance road, parking lots and landscaping, the Journal reported.
“It’s an exciting time, and there’s been a lot of positive reaction from our membership about the changes they are seeing,” said the club’s General Manager, JT Thompson, PGA. A community day may be planned in the future for members of the public to look at all of the changes that have taken place at the club, Thompson told the Journal.
The club also has a new Head Golf Professional, Mack Wallace, who most recently served as an assistant pro at The Golf Courses of Lawsonia in Green Lake, Wis. and Big Foot Country Club in Lake Geneva, Wis., the Journal reported.
“He’s one of the very best teachers for junior golfers that we’ve ever encountered,” said Haltom. “We’re excited about what he will bring here.”
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