New Course, Sand Hills article

[Jason Hines]

This is relation to an earlier thread and is from tonight's Omaha World Herald.  I will copy and paste as well as post the link.  Hope its true.

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_np=0&u_pg=38&u_sid=936160



Published Thursday
December 4, 2003

Group looking to construct more golf near Sand Hills GC

BY STU POSPISIL
   

 
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER  

A Denver attorney and three of his golfing buddies would like to put another golf course - or two - near highly regarded Sand Hills Golf Club.

"We love this part of the country and have the highest regard for Sand Hills," Bill Martin said. "We're not presuming we can re-create Sand Hills, but we have a great piece of land and the opportunity is there for a great course."

The land for the possible development is south and west of Mullen, Neb., the nearest town to the Sand Hills course designed by Bill Coore and pro golfer Ben Crenshaw that opened in 1995. Sand Hills is ranked by one golf publication as the best golf course built in the U.S. since 1960.

After Martin's group received approval from the Hooker County planning commission Monday for a temporary use permit, the county commissioners will hold a public hearing Dec. 18 in Mullen.

Martin said the project, which has yet to select a course architect, would be similar to Sand Hills in scope and intensity of use. It would be for members only, he said, with on-site lodging, food service and perhaps a few more amenities than Sand Hills offers.

If the project gets the go-ahead, Martin said an architect will be hired and construction started in the spring. The group is talking with several people "we regard as the very best in golf course architecture," he said.

Martin said it was his visits to Sand Hills that got him thinking about the possibilities.

"It's a lower-cost enterprise," he said. "The land was God-made for high quality golf and the infrastructure and land costs are more reasonable."

[A_Clay_Man]

Thanx Jason. The only issues that jumped out at me were the attorney aspect.  

The additional amenities! (Probably that guy that wanted hot tubs and massages.)

ANd of course the line about who they think are the best in GCA.

Can anybody smell it? I'm getting a whif of ... of... second handers.

I sure hope they get my psychic messaging and try to come up with one original idea.

[Gary_Smith]

You guys better get in what golf you want at Sand Hills before the super volcano under Yellowstone blows.   (a volcano supposedly 10,000 times the strength of Mt. St. Helens)  I'm hearing that Nebraska will be covered with three feet of ash. The volcano has been showing some real signs of life this past summer. Geologists say it's 40,000 years overdue.

Maybe they can call it Ash Hills one of these days.

[RJ_Daley]

Gary, I predict you east coasters will have a pretty long winter the year old faithfull's ugly old volcanic uncle blows his top...like maybe 10years of subzero.

But, this whole boom times coming to the Sand Hills territory has me feeling...'uneasy'.   I will have to ruminate some to figure out just what bugs me about it.

[Jay Carstens]

Paging Tom Doak.  
Paging Tom Doak.
Please come to Nebraska immediately.
 

 

[ForkaB]

shivas

I doubt if Mullen could ever achieve the sleaze factor that makes Myrtle Beach so great.  Somehow the words "Spring Break!" and "Nebraska" don't roll off the tongue so well, at least together.......

[A_Clay_Man]

Nebraska has limitations on it's lure. The extreme weather is a big one. But, I'd be all for the exploitation, if were a state law that any house visible from any course be a sod or burm house. Besides the protection from the heat and cold, the tornados will just pass right on over.

[Jason Hines]

I think over time we are going to see a mish-mosh of courses developed in the Sand Hills for all different types of clientele.  You really would have to try hard not to develop a good course and any one who has ever been there knows there is plenty of room for more.  I have been waiting and wanting this to happen for several years now.  However, I am with Dick on this one that I cannot exactly put my finger on why I raise an eyebrow.  

To me, building a resort as we know them (I.E. Phoenician, Omni Resorts, etc.) in the Nebraska Sand Hills would be like wanting to have your birthday on Christmas day.   Overkill.  If you are more worried about the single malt, cigars and what type of television is in your room, then you have missed the whole point of being there.  To me, the place is very special and pure.

[RJ_Daley]

I'm still not comfortable with the idea of so many developments of the described nature springing up in the Sand Hills.  Probably my biggest reservation is the nature of too many of these projects have "members only" concepts rather than public facilities.  Doak and now Hanse's projects are also to be private as I understand it.  I wonder if there isn't a sort of finite national market and that a few of these "members only clubs" comprised of membership from throughout the country won't actually over shoot the market.  I wonder as it is now, with just Sand Hills, if most of the people that really crave to play the game out there haven't already attained access through invitation of one of the Sand Hills members.  On one hand, it is relatively comfortable to know that two more sand hills developments are in good hands with Doak and Hanse.  I assume the developer that had the good sense to hire them also have the good sense to not do something as noted above, "Myrtle Beach like".  

But, I also believe very strongly that what really will make a treasure for golfers would be a stronger "Nebraska Trail" comprised of well done courses with a shared vision, and open to everyone.  Wild Horse, Bayside and a couple of lesser designs are in place.  One hopes that a fellow like Paul Hermsmeyer can add to that because his property is very good to do something pure and natural without a lot of unneccesary pretense.  Affordability is key to making the concept appealing.

But, the market is fragile.  I don't think too many more courses can make it out there if they rely on any serious local support to augment there appeal as a golf destination - national golf trail.  They are sort of caught in the middle.  Not a real golf trail yet, and not popular enough with many more locals, who ironically on a widespread popular local market basis, don't yet get the amazing natural unique resource they have.  Locals are still balking at $35 and want to have their carts stored on site.

Don't forget there is a place called Prairie Sands about 10 miles north of Sutherland that has 9 holes roughed out, and is now a blowing sand barrens from a year and a half sitting unfinished and unseeded and is as lonely and abandoned as a wild west ghost town.  The area and its golf boom ideal is much like that which created the old wild west boom-bust towns where gold or some such created a false start of boom development - then petered out - and was abandoned as it yielded to the overwhelming emptiness for lack of "anything else" to allow the opportunists to plant roots.  And, in the case of Prairie Sands - a grandiose kitsh like concept - was completely incompatible to the reality of securing any serious investors, and became the failed pie in the sky project of an "idealist" (to use a term to be kind).

[Gene Greco]

Its  great to want to see more great golf courses in this area for the obvious off the charts terrain.

However, all developers ought to understand that this area is VERY sparsely populated. Manpower is at a premium in this neck of the woods and bodies are whats needed to accomodate the membership and maintain the club.

There are many people who log on here who live in metro areas who haven't played SH and have no idea how desolate parts of this great country really are.

The Sand Hills region is still the most outerwordly place I've ever seen.

The people of Mullen, Seneca and Thedford (the latter two towns being a 45 minute drive from SH) ought to reassure whatever developer comes to town that there will be enough support for them to pursue their endeavor.