[Matt Varney]

A fellow GCA guy told me how to upload images using the IMG codees into a thread so here we go this makes it a little bit easier for you all to see progress images without having to watch the slideshow.  These images start with #1 Tee and keep going so you are getting a hole-by-hole tour of the course except for holes #12 and #13.  The Par 3 14th hole is under construction clearing rock and creating the areas for all the tees and large green complex with bunkering.

The Dye Course at Rarity Mountain

[Greg Krueger]

Matt, thank you for the pics! Looks like an amazing property. When is the scheduled opening?

[Matt Varney]

May-June 2009

I am planning to have a weekend in Mid-May to invite media and golf writers in to play the golf course and I would like to also invite GCA guys to come on down to Tennessee and play.

[Bill_McBride]

Matt, looks very interesting!  Where are you located?

[Matt Varney]

Knoxville, Tennessee

The Dye Course is located just off I-75 Exit 156 / Rarity Mountain Road in Jellico, Tennessee.  Jellico is about 4 miles into Tennessee once you crossover the KY / TN border on I-75.

[Randy Thompson]

Nice, looks dye difficult and dye expensive though. Bet their glad there not breaking ground now!

[Matt Varney]

Randy,

We are focused and we will have this course completed and ready for play by May 2009.  You go into any project like this expecting to spend money you can't build a golf course on the cheap and you always have unexpected costs.

The Honors Course is in Tennessee and it was designed by Pete Dye working with his son P.B. Dye in 1983 so now 25 years later we are working with the same team and we had a plan from the start.  This golf course will have all bent grass playing surfaces with bluegrass rough and tall ornamental fescue grasses along with wildflowers in the natural areas that border conservation lands.

Its fair and honest if you hit it straight and you have a good iron game you can score on this course the green complexes have nice movement.  If you play the wrong tees and hit it bad off the tee you better bring some balls its going to be a tough!  Regardless the setting in the mountains is killer and you will at least enjoy the vews and scenery if you play bad. 

[RBlair]

Matt

It looks like things are going well up in the mountians.  I started to come up that way earlier this week when we had an outing here all day.  I would like to come back for another visit now that you have so many holes with grass.  I guess I better hurry before it get to cold.

Ryan Blair, CGCS

[Matt Varney]

Ryan,

Give me a call 300-9660 and we can get together and go up and see the course.  It has changed a ton since you last came up when we were shaping and starting grassing on the front nine.  I played Holston Hills late last month and it was perfect tees, fairways and greens rolled amazing some of the best I played all year. 

We played 18 then kept on playing until it was dark hitting shots off the tee and into the green on #6 until you couldn't see anything.  I hated to see the day come to an end on such a nice golf course having fun with friends.

Have a nice weekend!

MDV

[Eric Smith]

Shaping up to be a beautiful mountain course Matt, Mr. Ross must be proud.  Keep up the good work.  I hope to squeek out one more hall pass from the Mrs. after the Dixie Cup this weekend and I'll save it for my trip to Jellico (man that sounds odd, doesn't it?) When I was at UT, Jellico was our beer / pit stop on the way up to play the UK 'Cats, nothing else there --until now!

June next year huh?! Hmm, looks like RM is shaping up to be very 5th Major worthy...

[Richard Hetzel]

That course looks great!!!! It looks like a mining reclamation project? I am enamored with these types of courses and would love to drive down to experience it. It's not too far from Cincinnati!

[Matt Varney]

Rich,

If you want to come down plan on coming later this month when the leaves are at full peak and we can tour the golf course and you can see it this year during final construction and grassing.

Next spring we will be focused on really getting the course ready for opening in May-June 2009.

Call me (865) 300-9660 and we can discuss what works best for you?

[herrstein]

Wow! How much is that course going to cost? Looks like a lot of rock.

[Matt Varney]

Doug,

We have really good soil and the rock that we have had to blast on holes like #4, #6, #9, #12, #14 and #17 has created some really good layers of crushed rock down below the fairways for drainage that works very well for the bent grass.  This course is built up on top of the mountains so we have run into more rock than expected.  Many of the big rock outcroppings that you see in the images like #9, #14 and #17 were uncovered by the track hoes during construction and we just keep removing dirt uncovering them so that they are exposed and it creates a unique natural look with all the green grass and native grasses.

The 14th hole that is still under construction with all the rock will be amazing when we are done.  I bet that golf hole alone will cost $500k when we are done but, it will be killer and very very  memorable during your round when you play it from 235 yards on the back tee.  The middle tee will be 180 yards with 100' of drop to the green.

[Eric Smith]

OMG!

Matt took me and 4 others up to the gates of Heaven yesterday morning to play the very first 9 hole round on the new Dye course at Rarity Mountain.  I am still in a trance....my goodness that place is UNfrigginReal!

I don't have any new pictures to post right now, (I hope Matt will post his) but let me say a few things before I head back out.

Width..width...width...at the tee you're not too sure, but it's there big time.  And lots of cool boosts out there that can turn 250 into 320 real fast.

Firm bent grass turf everywhere.  Here in TN, only Stonehenge is all bent and that place stays moist and soft.  Not up there.  Balls rolled out forever.

A perfect contrast.  The land is incredible.  The routing is an engineering marvel.  Dye's design with the dramatic shaping, the rock, those pot bunkers, sleepers...coupled with the dramatic back drop of those mountain tops, that are EVERYWHERE you look, is really inspiring.

I saw no weak holes. Matter of fact, they really did seem to get better and better. 

We drove the back nine, which is still under construction and it is even more dramatic, possibly a bit more difficult with one par 3 greensite blasted out of pure rock mountain side, really incredible. This hole was all rock and my expedition suffered as I rolled over the wrong ones and cracked the casing of my front axle, dripping oil all the way back to Knoxville.

I had no idea this was going to be THAT good.  Matt you should be very proud of the work you and your team, along with the Dyes have accomplished, and thank you very much for the day in Heaven.

Eric

[Emil Weber]

interesting thread, nice photos.
How do I add photos to a reply??? I have tried copy+paste, but it doesn't work. Can anybody help me? I'm sorry, I'm a newbie

[Eric Smith]

With the exception of the first tee shots, I ended up keeping the camera in the car.  It was just too fun playing.  The front was in mint condition, minus the sandless bunkers.

First shots fired...






These rest of these shots are from the back nine, still under construction.

Big Rocks



Matt The Enchanter...


...brings down the mountain.


Tada...a green site.


and the view back up to the tee (#14)


Think Melvyn would cut us a break(?), we didn't use golf carts!

[Matt Varney]

Eric,

I am glad you and all the guys that came up on Friday morning had a good time playing golf at Rarity Mountain.  We are coming into spring making progress working away trying to create something really special in Tennessee that golfers will really enjoy playing and having fun.

In this thread, I have included progress images that I really like that show just how much work has been done around #1 and #10 and what has been created with the great vision working with Pete and P.B. Dye on this project.  The shear volume of rock and earth that has been moved and shaped to design this stunning course has been pure joy to watch it all come together over the last couple years as you will see in these images.

#1 Back Tee Construction


#10 Tee Construction across the lake to the Fairway


Above #1 Green Construction


April 2009 Above #1 Green


#10 Lake & Fairway Construction


April 2009 Above #1 and Lake


April 2009 #10 and Lake


Above #4 Green Construction


April 2009 Above #4 Green


#14 Green Construction Begins


April 2009 #14 Tee 242 Yards


April 2009 #14 Member Tee


April 2009 #14 Low Tees (If you need to play your 3rd shot)


April 2009 #14 Green View to Tees


April 2009 #15 View to #14 Tees


Golf Carts Tennessee Style! (This was before Eric realized he cracked the casing on his front axle hitting some big damn rocks on #14)


Our superintendent and his staff have done a superb job on the course during construction and grow-in and they will be working this spring and summer to bring the back nine to life.  Once we get all the white sand in all the bunkers, I will take some more images and post them.

Matt

[Anthony Gray]

  Observations


  Great views

  I like the bunkers that gather in the ball. I hope they do not put rough around them.

  This course had to take money to build considering all the rock needed to be moved. Can't grow corn there soil's too rocky by far.

  Fairways appear to "flow" with surroundings.

  I was not invited. Matt is still scared of me.

  Can't wait to play it.

  Anthony

[Derek Dirksen]

Very nice, what is the average width of the fairways?  Looks narrow but photos can be misleading.
The green complexes look great. 

[Matt Varney]

Derek,

Width on the fairways ranges from very wide open on most holes to a couple like #2, #8 and #12 where the player has to hit a controlled tee shot.  I would say on average most fairways are at least 150' wide in the landing areas and some like #4 you could park a 737 sideways and have enough room from nose to tail.

You really need to see the course in person to understand the size and scale of the place.  The Rarity Mountain development is 5,000 acres and surrounding the property is thousands of acres of protected conservation lands that open up 20 mile views all around you while playing.

The holes and landing areas might look tight standing on the back tees but, its really just the angle and if you move up 50 yards to the middle tees you can see just how big the landing areas are and the green complexes are excellent eah one very unique with subtle contours that allow you to attack if your in a good position in the fiarway to go at the pins.

Matt
 

[Derek Dirksen]

Looks awesome, hopefully I can come play it some time in the future.

[Doug Ralston]

Matt;

I still have not understood the accessability of the course. Will it be private, resort-like, semi, or public? Fees will be ......? Projected opening date is ......?

Sure looks worth a visit. Only 3-3.5 hrs from Cincy.

Doug

[Matt Varney]

Doug,

The Dye Course at Rarity Mountain is going to have memberships as well as allow for resort play for guests.  Rarity Mountain is a big development that will have hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking, sporting clays and nature trails.

Once the course is finished and we have excellent conditioning we will open the course for limited play so that those interested will have the opportunity to enjoy the course.  The Dye Course is kind like a bag of chips you can't eat just one or play just one round.  If you play it once you will want come back again and again for more because the views, the setting and the golf course is very unique to Tennessee.

Matt

[Adam_Messix]

Does anyone have an update on whether Rarity Mountain has opened?

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