Blaska family owns The Oaks in Cottage Grove. A new fleet of golf carts and new mowers are in the plans. There will also be some infrastructure changes, such as improving the clubhouse deck and transforming the course’s shed into a vintage Wisconsin barn.
Jessica Blaska-Grady is excited to bring her family’s vision to Kestrel Ridge Golf Course in Columbus, Wis., the Columbus Journal reported. Blaska-Grady and her family completed the purchase of Kestrel Ridge on February 21 and the group has exciting plans for the course. The family, which owns The Oaks Golf Course in Cottage Grove, bought the property from Columbus businessman Mike Eisenga for $740,000.
Eisenga bought the 18-hole course in 2006, made improvements in management and course drainage, and decided it was time to sell, according to the Journal report. He felt The Oaks’ owners were the ideal fit to run Kestrel Ridge.
“The golf course today is a much viable business than when I bought it,” Eisenga said. “I really wanted to make it one of the nicest venues in the Columbus area, which I feel we succeeded at the past several years.”
Eisenga praised the hard work of the course’s staff, including manager Lori Brown, the Journal reported. Blaska-Grady said Brown will continue to be an important part of the venue’s operations, but her duties will be scaled back so she can focus on running the clubhouse.
“She was doing just about everything, from mowing greens to making a burger to booking a wedding,” Blaska-Grady said. “That’s a lot for one person so she’s excited to work with a team.”
Eisenga believes Blaska-Grady’s experience with The Oaks will help her succeed in Columbus, the Journal reported.
“They have some great synergies; they have another course not too far away,” Eisenga said. “They can use equipment from the other course, along with personnel and management skill so they can operate it more efficiently. It’s a win-win for everybody.”
Blaska-Grady said her family wasn’t really searching for another course, but when Kestrel Ridge became available, they decided to make an offer, the Journal reported. She said the proximity to The Oaks was a major drawing point.
“It’s the same age as The Oaks, so the infrastructure is up to date,” Blaska-Grady said. “The clubhouse is beautiful … there was just a lot about it that was attractive to us.”
Blaska-Grady said the course’s location also made it appealing, the Journal reported. She said Columbus is growing with an active community. In addition, the course is a short drive from the east side of Madison, Sun Prairie and Beaver Dam.
Along with Columbus Country Club, the area boasts 27 holes of golf. Blaska-Grady doesn’t feel pressure from competing with the country club, mentioning that The Oaks has shared golfers with other clubs near Cottage Grove, the Journal reported.
“We’ve been able to work well together,” she said. “We offer some things they don’t and it’s vice-versa. We have golfers who like to use both courses and we hope that will be the same here.”
The Blaska family turned farm land off Interstate 94 into one of the region’s best golf courses, the Journal reported. Jessica’s grandfather, Greg Blaska, purchased the land in the 1990s, running a family dairy farm for several years. Blaska envisioned the farm’s landscape, complete with rolling hills, trees and natural waterways, would look great as a golf course.
In 2003, the family did just that, transforming the farm into The Oaks, according to the Journal report. Through the years the course has hosted state PGA events, fundraisers, company outings, and has served as the home course for the Monona Grove boys’ golf team. Conference and regional meets have been played there, including a UW-Whitewater tournament.
“It wasn’t great farm land; it was much more suitable for a golf course,” Blaska-Grady said. “That was his dream. Unfortunately, he passed away the year before we opened. He didn’t get to see it totally done, but did get to play a few holes as it was being seeded. He would be astonished that we now have another course.”
In the coming years, Blaska-Grady plans to bring more events to Kestrel Ridge, the Journal reported. She’s hired a PGA club professional and would like to attract larger tournaments to Columbus. The new owners don’t plan on many course changes, but will reevaluate after the snow melts. Looking at equipment, Blaska-Grady wants to bring in a new fleet of golf carts, along with new mowers.
There will also be some infrastructure changes, such as improving the clubhouse deck, and transforming the course’s shed into a vintage Wisconsin barn. Depending on the weather, the course should be open in a few weeks, the Journal reported. Blaska-Grady said the staff will be monitoring the course’s drainage issues with rain and spring thaws on the horizon. Once the course opens, she said pricing will continue to be affordable.
“With a club professional, he will teach lessons, he knows the equipment and will bring in some really great merchandise,” Blaska-Grady said. “He’ll be the contact person for outings and memberships to pull that off of Lori’s plate.”
At the clubhouse, Blaska-Grady wants to focus on customer service, which she said has been an emphasis at The Oaks, the Journal reported. She said having quality, homemade food is vital.
“We want golfers to come in and have a cold beer after their round from a bartender who’s excited to serve them,” Blaska-Grady said. “It’s the same service you’d expect at The Oaks.”
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