Trip Davis teams with Craig Stadler in Colorado

Golf Course News, Nov 2001 by Overbeck, Andrew

GRANBY, Colo. - The development boom in Colorado is continuing here with the construction of the $420 million Grand Elk Ranch and Club. The 520-acre mountain resort community will include 800 residential units, a 35-acre retail center and a variety of recreational facilities.

However, the centerpiece of the community will be an 18 hole golf course designed by Tripp Davis and Associates and PGATour fixture Craig Stadler.

Grand Elk LLC and golf course builder Joe Neibur struck the deal that paired Stadler with Davis. Neibur, who is building the course, is also a part owner in the venture.

A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT

"Stadler has been great to work with," said Davis. "It is a pretty collaborative effort."

While Stadler's schedule is still geared towards making a living as a professional golfer, he is now a resident of Denver and has visited the course site several times so far.

"He has made every effort to get up there," Davis said. "A couple of weeks ago he went up there and I told him to take some notes and send them back to me. No one was around because it was a Sunday so he sent me notes on a golf ball box that he had ripped up so he could write on it."

Construction of the course, which sits in the Frasier River Valley, is well underway with shaping completed and workers putting the finishing touches on greens and green surrounds before the winter weather hits.

HUGE MOUNTAIN BACKDROPS

"For a course in the mountains, the elevation changes are very subtle," said Davis. "At its highest point it is 8.020 feet and at its lowest it is 7,920 feet.

"It will have sort of a heathland style look to it," he contin- ued. "There are not many trees, the course plays along the valley wetlands and Ten Mile Creek and has huge mountain backdrops."

The course, which is due to open in August 2002, will feature Dominant bentgrass greens and tees, a bluegrass and ryegrass mixture in the fairways and fescue in the roughs. Native grasses and sage will frame the fairways. Tripp Davis and Associates has also broken ground at Raven Nest Golf Course in Huntsville, Texas. The City of Huntsville will operate the municipal course when it opens in fall 2002.

"This is the first project that we have done with pine trees and sandy soil," Davis said. "We got started in late summer and plan on grassing the course next summer."

The par 71, 7001-yard course is being built on 183 acres of land owned by Sam Houston State University. The layout will serve as the home facility for the university's golf teams.

Raven Nest, which is being built by Duinink Brothers Golf, will featureTifSport fairways and TifEagle greens.