When finished, “Brough Creek National,” aka “Some Guy’s Backyard,” will be a seven-hole course built upon three acres on the Missouri River Bluffs of Kansas City, Kan. To counter the “unapproachable and expensive” nature of golf, the friends creating the course will offer free rounds for anyone who signs up for tee times online. They hope to have the full course open by this fall.
A group of friends in Kansas City, Kans. want to bring unique golf for free to anyone in their community, KCTV 5 reported. For Ben Hotaling and his new “Some Guy’s Backyard” course, golf is an escape from the daily grind.
“One or two swings, and your head is clear,” Hotaling said.
Golf became a way for Hotaling to bond with the friends he met at the University of Kansas, KCTV 5 reported. “Golf happened to be that thing that got us closer. It’s a meeting place for all of our friends,” he said.
But as the group got into playing together, they realized country clubs and expensive golf courses likely keep many people from enjoying the sport, KCTV reported.
“One of the big reasons why golf is so unapproachable and expensive is because it’s really expensive to build golf courses,” Hotaling said.
He and his friends have spent the last year trying to change that, by transforming Zach Brough’s three-acre backyard on the Missouri River Bluffs into a seven-hole course, KCTV 5 reported. With tongue firmly in cheek, they’ve named the course “Brough Creek National.”
“[Hotaling was] like, ‘Man, you’ve got a really cool shot [here, but] you have to take out one tree—that one.’ And I was like, ‘Let’s do it.’ That’s basically how this whole thing started,” Brough told KCTV 5.
“Number three is right behind me, right across the creek here. That’s going to be similar to number 12 at Augusta, [as] the ‘Golden Belt’ hole,” Hotaling told KCTV 5 as he led the station on a tour of the layout. “Really, the concept is a golfer’s playground.”
After the four friends shared how they were pursuing their dream online, members of the local golf community donated to help turn it into reality, KCTV 5 reported.
“We can offer [the course] for free for anybody that wants to come play. [The goal is to provide] ultimate approachability,” Hotaling said.
They’re still waiting on grass to grow to complete finishing touches, but soon anyone will be able to sign up for tee times online, KCTV 5 reported.
“As long as you sign up and let us know you are coming out, we are all right with it,” Brough said.
They hope to have the full course open this fall, to show golf can be fun for anyone, KCTV 5 reported—even if it’s played in “Some Guy’s Backyard.”
“I will be the first to say I’m terrible at golf—and I have a golf course in my backyard,” Brough said.
Watch the KCTV 5 report here.
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