Coldwater developers bring affordable public golf to Iowa

Golf Course News, Nov 2002 by Rice, Derek

AMES, Iowa - At this time next year, golfers will be playing Coldwater Golf Links, which is nestled between the athletic fields at Iowa State University and the business district of Ames on 150 acres of former farmland and land leased from the university.

Routing and construction of the Tripp Davis-designed links course has been completed and seeding is under-way. Despite a string of badweather days in mid-September, the developers said the course opening would be on time next year.

Niebur Golf Construction Services took on the building and shaping of the course, which required moving 450,000 cubic yards of dirt to give the flat farmland some definition.

For developers Marvin J. Walter and Scott Randall of the Randall Corp., the experience of building a golf course was a new one. The two owned adjoining tracts of land on the site and decided to pool their resources to form Legacy Golf Associates Inc. In order to build an 18-hole course, they leased 50 acres from Iowa State. That land sits adjacent to the football overflow parking area in the shadow of Jack Trice Stadium, where Iowa State plays its home games. Under the agreement with the university, should a larger stadium be built, whichwould require more parking, the university may park cars on the golf course. But Matt Randall, vice president of the Randall Corp. said he's not worried about that.

"The stadium they have now doesn't fill up for most games," he said. "But if it happens, I'll be out here parking cars and taking money."

The search for an architect who could transform their land into an inviting golf course led them to Davis, who is based in Dallas.

"We thought we really needed to bring in a name architect. We chose Tripp Davis because of his background on projects like The Tribute," Walter said. "He was also very helpful in the search for a contractor."

The main reason Walters and Randall decided to build a golf course was to help fill the need for affordable public golf in the Ames area. According to Walter, there are some nine-hole courses that farmers have built on their land, but very few truly public 18-hole courses nearby.

"We haven't decided on a definite price range yet, but it will be competitive with the other courses in the area," Walter said. "We want this course to be competitive with higher-end golf courses with a country club feel but at a daily-fee price."

Brian Maloy, Coldwater's superintendent, said it is commendable that developers would think of affordable public golf when building a course, rather than building an upscale private club.

"Affordable golf that is available to the public is important to the success of the game," he said.

In order to build the course, a floodway needed to be moved, which required permits from the state Department of Natural Resources. Walter said the goal all along has been to keep the course in tune with the surrounding environment.

"We have made use of the considerable wetlands on the property," Walter said. "Coldwater will blend into the environment."

When it came time to hire a superintendent, the owners had to look no farther than Ames native and Iowa State graduate Maloy, who had been working as an agronomist for the USGA Green Section for the past several years. Maloy said he wanted to return home to Ames someday, so he was thrilled at the Coldwater opportunity.

"I met Matt (Randall) at a trade show and he said he was looking for a superintendent for a course he was building in Ames," Maloy said. "I thought, 'This is perfect,' so I jumped at the chance."

To complete the decision-making team, Coldwater will look to hire a business manager sometime in the near future.

"We're probably looking at around the first of the year," Randall said. "We don't want to be making too many decisions until the team is in place."

Under Maloy's employment agreement, some of his salary is based on the course achieving certain performance levels. While this could mean lower than average pay at times, Maloy said he relishes the opportunity to work under that structure.

"I am all for this kind of agreement," Maloy said. "I think more superintendents ought to work like this."

Another main draw for Maloy to return home was the opportunity to work closely with Iowa State again. Through the relationship with the university, Maloy will have access to a steady stream of employees through the university's turfgrass research department.

"We've got students working for us part-time, and it's really a winwin situation," Maloy said. "I can hire five or six turf students for less than it would cost to hire full-time staff, and they're getting the hands-- on experience they're going to need in the future."

Partly because of this arrangement, the course owners were able to get John Deere to give them a discount on equipment.

"John Deere was smart about this," Maloy said. "They want these kids to be using their equipment so that when they're working on their own courses, they'll be familiar with the company."

Walter agreed, adding, "John Deere really stepped up and we worked together to develop a unique program with them."