Tribe Celebrates Five Years of California Club Ownership

The Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians recently marked its fifth anniversary of owning the Teleli Golf Club in Sonora, Calif. The June 26 event started with a Tribal Blessing, followed by an 18-hole, four-player scramble golf tournament, and awards banquet. The name Teleli is from the Me-Wuk language and translates to Black Oak.

The Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians recently celebrated the five-year anniversary of owning the Teleli Golf Club in Sonora, Calif. The anniversary celebration took place on June 26 and included Tribal Elders, members, community representatives, corporate partners, friends, and families. The event began with a Tribal Blessing, followed by an 18-hole, four-player scramble golf tournament, and awards banquet.

Club + Resort Business previously shared a story in March 2023 about the Tribe hiring Indigo Sports, a Troon company, to oversee golf operations, agronomy, and sales and marketing for the daily-fee golf facility. A story was shared in May 2019 about the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians purchasing the club and in December 2022 about the Tuolumne Utilities District seeking a grant to construct a roughly 1.1-mile pipeline from the Quartz Reservoir.

Located on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range in the historic gold rush town of Sonora, Teleli Golf Club opened for play in 1990 and was designed by Robert Muir Graves. In 2019, The Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians purchased the property as a resort amenity to the Black Oak Casino as well as an amenity for the community. The name Teleli is from the Me-Wuk language and translates to Black Oak.

Played on the 6,559-yard, par-72 course, “The Back Nine Bandits” consisting of Dalton Day, Dylan Day, Greg Day and Ryan Emerald won the anniversary golf tournament with a score of 61.

Since assuming ownership of the course, the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians have made numerous improvements to Teleli Golf Club, including full remodels of the golf shop and restaurant, as well as complete renovations of all 52 bunkers on the course.

“Our partnership with Troon has been very productive,” said Darryl Tinkle of the Tuolumne Economic Development Authority, Inc. “We are excited to see what the future brings.”