[Mac Plumart]

Okay…here are my thoughts…

But first please ensure I’ve got the background down…

David Edel is in possession of an old Alister Mackenzie course routing that was originally planned to be built on a private estate in Argentina.  He has found suitable property in Texas, just outside of Austin, which the course could be built on.  This land is owned by a Limited Partnership.

He has decided that Mike Devries will be the architect.  And Mike has looked at things and he thinks he can do adequate justice to the plans and, essentially, build this bad boy in a way that does its Mackenzie roots proud.

The club will be old school…a modest clubhouse, no paved roads, no houses, just a private club with a few cabins for members to buy or rent, and limited outside play will be permited.

Additionally, David has the plans to a few other Mackenzie routings.

Do I have that right?

Assuming yes...

Given the slowing economy, banks are not interested in lending for this project and Metropolatin RED doesn’t have the funds to build it.

Is this right?

So, the question is...is it worth proceeding and/or how do you proceed?


I am not a golf course construction guru, but I can put two and two together and I have some experience in business.

Point #1---It is possible that if marketed correctly, it could be the next big thing.  A new Mackenzie course…the guy behind Cypress Point and Augusta.  It could be a huge home run.  IF marketed correctly!!!!!

Point #2---To make it happen you need the man power.  It sounds like you’ve got that covered.  Devries seems awesome and I am sure all the other associated with it are as well.  Do you have the marketing contacts to get the word out?

Point #3—You need money.  Banks aren’t lending and Metro RED doesn’t have the funds.  You know what I say…GREAT!!!!  Loans and borrowed money can be the beginning of the end to any business entity.  Interest carry kills!!!

How do we solve this issue?  Frankly, I don’t think getting into the specific financial points online makes any sense whatsoever.  But I will offer this up…

Dr. Mackenzie himself is on record as saying that if you don’t have enough money to build an entire golf course build as many first rate holes as you can…generate some revenue off of that…save up…then build some more.  Well…do that. 

Take personal monies of any and all interested parties, give them some type of ownership stake…then build one hole at a time.  However, I think it is vital that ONE person be the decision maker…no matter how many people contribute capital…to maximize the probability of this thing being successful one guy must make the key decisions.  Also, have Mike D. pick and choose which holes would inspire more people to join and/or contribute funds and build those holes first. 

You can give incentive offers to people contributing capital or joining first.  Lower membership rates, more perks, “founding member”status, profit share, whatever.

Next you will need to run numbers and targets need to be established for members/funds raised per holes build and the like…but you get what I am driving at, right? 

FYI…I would be happy to discuss any of this with you offline if you like.

This type of Mackenzie course being built with the Mackenzie “one hole at a time model” can be marketed to pique interest.  Essentially turning what some might consider a weakness into a strength.

Point #4---Also, if there is enough land available you can also incent people to join by trying to build the other 2 or 3 Mackenzie courses right there on site when the time is right.  OR  you could offer memberships to the other 2 or 3 Mackenzie clubs (assuming they will be built somewhere else) if members pony up $X to help build course #1.  You could use profits off of course #1 to help seed the other 2 or 3.  But if this one is successful, raising capital for the others will be a snap.

Anyway, I will stop now…but I could bore you to death.

As always, my apologies for overlooking key players and/or not mentioning the appropriate names and the like.  I am ignorant on a lot of this and just trying to maybe add a good idea here and there.

[mike_beene]

Do you plan a fall,winter,spring season and close for summer? Have you decided on grasses?

[Don_Mahaffey]

Do you plan a fall,winter,spring season and close for summer? Have you decided on grasses?

Mike,
In Central or South Texas golf is played 12 months a year. There will be days in the winter and summer when you might stay in the bar and have a drink instead, but it's a 12 month sport down here and I think the idea behind the club is to keep it simple and keep it open to members who want to tee it up.

The grassing plan is driven by environmental conditions, soil structure, water quality and availability. This part of the world is basically considered warm season grass country, at least thru the green, and the soil and water testing we did confirmed we could maintain a very high quality sward of dwarf Bermuda golfing turf. We found ample deposits of high quality top soil and located a sand source, for, greens, surrounds, tees, and capping if needed, nearby.  

The greens are huge. Nine double greens that, on paper, are between eight and nine acres in size. Our water quality is good, so we could grow bent if we wanted to…torture ourselves, but greens that size are double to triple the size you’d find on a normal course and bent would be incredibly expensive and time consuming to maintain. I think the grass on the greens will end up being one of the new improved Bermuda varieties and I believe that choice will work well. These are Mac greens after all; huge Mac greens and I pray that someday I get to watch DeVries shape ‘em up.  The new Bermudas will give the member all the challenge he could ever want and still allow us to keep them in great shape 12 months a year without exorbitant expense.

[Bill_McBride]

The slurping sound is my mouth watering!

[Mike_DeVries]

Mike, am I recalling correctly that the El Boqueron plan didn't have a ton of fairway bunkers but would use native vegetation instead?

What are you planning to do in Texas? 

The dry wash sounds very exciting and interestng and could add some George Thomas elements from Riviera and LACC as well as the Mackenzie design.  The dry wash with diagonal carries creates great strategic elements.  Both Pasatiempo and the Valley Club have barrancas and creeks in play.  This all sounds too exciting!

Bill,
Correct, only 14 bunkers total on the site and all are around the green complexes.  There will be some wide fairways and the angle of attack is going to be paramount, especially with Don having the ball bounce the way it should.  The cedars in TX are similar in size and shape to the curros, just not as thorny (curros is like a natural razor-wire, it is that nasty!), so we can use it in places to replicate the curros.  The dry wash will be a natural hazard and something that MacK would definitely use, just like you mention at Pasa and VC.
Best,
Mike

[Mike_DeVries]

Mac,

There are many things worth considering in your post and I look forward to talking with you about them sometime.

One of the things that is difficult in this situation, and day and age, is saying you are going to build one hole and then build from there.  In Texas and many other places, irrigation is critical and needs to be planned out for the entire course -- that takes money to design and implement the beginnings of an irrigation system because in most cases you will build a pumphouse, often a reservoir to pump from, and that early infrastructure is the bigger pipe coming out from the pumphouse, . . .  Not saying it can't be done in some circumstances, but the early holes would be considerably more expensive than the latter holes in almost every case.  To sell a whole course on one or two holes, you have to have a perfect product today, as the buyers are very fickle, especially when there are options out there.

That being said, we have looked at how we can phase the construction so there are 4-5 holes seeded at a time, thus giving the prospective member a glimpse of the greatness ahead.  I think that will help bring along some of the tire-kickers during construction but we will still need a good core group to start.

Many thanks for your thoughts,
Mike

[Neil_Crafter]

Mac and Mike
Mackenzie designed and built just one hole at Moortown - the famed 'Gibraltar' hole - as a sampler to try and get more people interested in committing to the project. In their case it worked. Today, for the reasons Mike elucidated, it is much more difficult. But not impossible of course.

[Bill_McBride]

Mac,

There are many things worth considering in your post and I look forward to talking with you about them sometime.

One of the things that is difficult in this situation, and day and age, is saying you are going to build one hole and then build from there.  In Texas and many other places, irrigation is critical and needs to be planned out for the entire course -- that takes money to design and implement the beginnings of an irrigation system because in most cases you will build a pumphouse, often a reservoir to pump from, and that early infrastructure is the bigger pipe coming out from the pumphouse, . . .  Not saying it can't be done in some circumstances, but the early holes would be considerably more expensive than the latter holes in almost every case.  To sell a whole course on one or two holes, you have to have a perfect product today, as the buyers are very fickle, especially when there are options out there.

That being said, we have looked at how we can phase the construction so there are 4-5 holes seeded at a time, thus giving the prospective member a glimpse of the greatness ahead.  I think that will help bring along some of the tire-kickers during construction but we will still need a good core group to start.

Many thanks for your thoughts,
Mike

This might not be the case with Joe Hancock and Don Mahaffey as the construction team, but one of the major items on construction company estimates and invoices is "MOBILIZATION."  This is the cost line item assigned to moving equipment to the site, initial set up, equipment rental and insurance.  One thing you want to avoid as general contractor (like me) or the client (like the owner of El Boqueron) is the dreaded "REMOBILIZATION."  That's what happens if the site contractor is forced to pull off and come back later.

lIf you had to do that four or five times it would be bad enough, but 18 times.  OMG!!  So that option could be expensive if not managed properly.

[George Freeman]

David, Mike, Joe et al,

This is hands down one of the most exciting projects in the pipeline...period.  Simply wishing you good luck wouldn't begin to sum up how much I hope this thing comes to fruition.  

David:

I don't know how "exotic" you're willing to go with financing/capital sources, but here is a link to a past GCA thread that I think you should at least take a quick spin through:

http://golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,33827.0/

Not everything in there is applicable (maybe not anything!), but I think there are some good "outside the box" ideas for getting a golf course off the ground.  It appears a decent chunk of start-up capital could be obtained from a relatively small group of GCA.com contributors (there was certainly a lot of interest in the thread above!) in exchange for fairly minimal national membership-like privileges, especially considering that the majority would be coming from far away.  This could provide enough gun powder to get the course built and operational so that "full" member prospects could be brought in and hopefully signed on (with higher initiation/dues to cover operating expenses and correspondingly higher member privileges).

This is probably wishful thinking, but I thought I would throw it out there!

Idea #2:  Get Mike Keiser involved.

I'll be following the progress of El Boqueron with bated breath.

Best,

George  

[Joe Hancock]

Mac,

There are many things worth considering in your post and I look forward to talking with you about them sometime.

One of the things that is difficult in this situation, and day and age, is saying you are going to build one hole and then build from there.  In Texas and many other places, irrigation is critical and needs to be planned out for the entire course -- that takes money to design and implement the beginnings of an irrigation system because in most cases you will build a pumphouse, often a reservoir to pump from, and that early infrastructure is the bigger pipe coming out from the pumphouse, . . .  Not saying it can't be done in some circumstances, but the early holes would be considerably more expensive than the latter holes in almost every case.  To sell a whole course on one or two holes, you have to have a perfect product today, as the buyers are very fickle, especially when there are options out there.

That being said, we have looked at how we can phase the construction so there are 4-5 holes seeded at a time, thus giving the prospective member a glimpse of the greatness ahead.  I think that will help bring along some of the tire-kickers during construction but we will still need a good core group to start.

Many thanks for your thoughts,
Mike

This might not be the case with Joe Hancock and Don Mahaffey as the construction team, but one of the major items on construction company estimates and invoices is "MOBILIZATION."  This is the cost line item assigned to moving equipment to the site, initial set up, equipment rental and insurance.  One thing you want to avoid as general contractor (like me) or the client (like the owner of El Boqueron) is the dreaded "REMOBILIZATION."  That's what happens if the site contractor is forced to pull off and come back later.

lIf you had to do that four or five times it would be bad enough, but 18 times.  OMG!!  So that option could be expensive if not managed properly.

Bill,

You're right, often MOBILIZATION is a sizable sum in the budget. It comes, usually, from hiring a construction company that owns and brings all the equipment, brings in the entire labor force(housing, communications, etc.), etc. Our methodology is to do the work with familiar, highly talented individuals for the critical feature and finishing and also hire from the local labor pool(a sustainability thing, if you will) for support labor positions. We train them to do things as we want it done, and many times some of that construction crew stays behind to maintain things.....they understand what we worked hard to create, so they are able to take care of the place.

We rent the machines we need(there's a lot of equipment sitting idle right now), find a way to re-fuel and do regular maintenance without the high overhead often associated with that whole MOBILIZATION line.......our goal is to make sure as much of the costs associated with the construction actually end up being a tangible part of the project, not a black hole that requires a larger line of credit at the bank.

Joe

[Bill_McBride]

Mac,

There are many things worth considering in your post and I look forward to talking with you about them sometime.

One of the things that is difficult in this situation, and day and age, is saying you are going to build one hole and then build from there.  In Texas and many other places, irrigation is critical and needs to be planned out for the entire course -- that takes money to design and implement the beginnings of an irrigation system because in most cases you will build a pumphouse, often a reservoir to pump from, and that early infrastructure is the bigger pipe coming out from the pumphouse, . . .  Not saying it can't be done in some circumstances, but the early holes would be considerably more expensive than the latter holes in almost every case.  To sell a whole course on one or two holes, you have to have a perfect product today, as the buyers are very fickle, especially when there are options out there.

That being said, we have looked at how we can phase the construction so there are 4-5 holes seeded at a time, thus giving the prospective member a glimpse of the greatness ahead.  I think that will help bring along some of the tire-kickers during construction but we will still need a good core group to start.

Many thanks for your thoughts,
Mike

This might not be the case with Joe Hancock and Don Mahaffey as the construction team, but one of the major items on construction company estimates and invoices is "MOBILIZATION."  This is the cost line item assigned to moving equipment to the site, initial set up, equipment rental and insurance.  One thing you want to avoid as general contractor (like me) or the client (like the owner of El Boqueron) is the dreaded "REMOBILIZATION."  That's what happens if the site contractor is forced to pull off and come back later.

lIf you had to do that four or five times it would be bad enough, but 18 times.  OMG!!  So that option could be expensive if not managed properly.

Bill,

You're right, often MOBILIZATION is a sizable sum in the budget. It comes, usually, from hiring a construction company that owns and brings all the equipment, brings in the entire labor force(housing, communications, etc.), etc. Our methodology is to do the work with familiar, highly talented individuals for the critical feature and finishing and also hire from the local labor pool(a sustainability thing, if you will) for support labor positions. We train them to do things as we want it done, and many times some of that construction crew stays behind to maintain things.....they understand what we worked hard to create, so they are able to take care of the place.

We rent the machines we need(there's a lot of equipment sitting idle right now), find a way to re-fuel and do regular maintenance without the high overhead often associated with that whole MOBILIZATION line.......our goal is to make sure as much of the costs associated with the construction actually end up being a tangible part of the project, not a black hole that requires a larger line of credit at the bank.

Joe

That's why I mentioned you and Don right up front! l really believe you guys are right on the cutting edge of the best way to build a course today.  I saw the proof at Wolf Point - not a hint the PROOF! 

I was mentioning "mobilization" just as it related to starting and stopping and restarting........could be a huge drain on a project.... unless it's handled your way.   

[JC Jones]

Another issue has a lot to do with education.  Members of this site are fully aware of the significance of an authentic Mackenzie plan that was never developed, but most people have little knowledge of the Good Doctor, only recognizing the fame of some of his designs.  It takes time to get people to understand who Mackenzie was and the potential value of this project. 

What does everyone think about some of the things David asks, especially the section above?  Does the general (golfing) public even have an idea of who or what MacKenzie represents?  How do we educate a broader spectrum about the importance of what this course is?  Is it as significant as finding a Picasso, Monet, or Rembrandt in the attic?

Looking forward to hearing thoughts on these subjects!
Mike

Mike,

Firstly, Merry Christmas to you and your family.  I hope we get another chance to play in 2010; though don't expect to be getting any strokes again.

I think a good number of golfers know who MacKenzie is though I think a large part of the reason why, perhaps, not as many people know about him as should is based on the fact that other than Pasa, (I think) all of his other US work is EXTREMELY private.  Also, the Alister MacKenzie Society is not open to anyone interested in his work, but rather, only those courses designed by him and their members. 

Therefore, although El Boqueron is going to be private, I think that having a library/archive dedicated to MacKenzie, coupled with a open society the likes of Ross or Tilly, etc. would do wonders to further the reputation of the good doctor and give him the widespread credit he is due.  The funds from the society could help fund the library/archive, which could be very expensive to establish. 

That all being said, if it hasn't been done, I would hope that reaching out to the Alister MacKenzie Society (and the members of the clubs) would be a great resource in developing/marketing this club.  Perhaps a presentation of the history, the routing and the project to each of the clubs (and hopefully a lot of members would show up to see it) could yield enough interest/investment to make the project happen.

I've also sent a corresponding PM.

Thanks

Jason

[Mike_DeVries]

Thanks to all for the comments and ideas, especially to George for referencing the old thread.  It would be interesting how many GCA guys would actually commit $ to the project if we developed some type of avenue for that type of membership.  Does an initiation fee of $X, with no equity, and $Y annual dues work for Z days of play?  What is reasonable for someone to spend on X and Y to get Z -- for golf lovers (GCA-types) there has to be value in such an investment, while a businessman / banker is just looking at ROI.  Do you go after both, just one type, or other alternatives?  Developing a solid business model would require enough capital to fund the project, market it, and run it to be first-rate and the organization of such a plan will crucial -- Mac brought up many of those points in his thread.

This is great stuff and keep any ideas coming!

Mike

[George Freeman]

Mike (Happy Holidays and I hope all is well!),

I wouldn't imagine many GCA.comers potentially interested in a plan like the one we're discussing would be too worried about return on investment, at least not from a fiscal perspective.  However, the cost still has to be economical enough to 1) entice a large group and 2) make it justifiable as just a cost of being part of something as special the El Boqueron project sounds like it is going to be.  There are plenty of courses around the country where you can spend $50k for initiation and $5-6k annually on dues as a "national" member and after reading through the entire "GCA.com golf course" thread, I don't think anything close to that would work.  Remember, what I was proposing is that this group would not make up the core membership group for the club (with their larger initiations and dues), but instead give the project a nice capital infusion to get it off the ground in return for limited national member-like privileges.

Instead of asking "what is reasonable for someone to spend on X and Y to get Z", it might make sense to work backwards.  By that I mean get a ball park figure of what it will take to move this project forward and what the proposed "privileges" would be for this initial group.  Once you have that, you can begin to get a much clearer picture on what the costs will be for X number of people or Y number of people, etc.  From there you can get into the specifics of the funding, etc, etc.

Like Mike said, keep the ideas coming.  There was a TON of interest in that GCA.com golf course thread and I would love to see it resurrected in a similar sense for El Boqueron.

George

[Michael Wharton-Palmer]

i would be very interested in such a project and know of of least five other guys who would be...
This project is so exciting and so original in concept...Mike at the helm makes it even more so.
Keep the ideas forthcoming so that this dream can become a reality.

[Brett Hochstein]

The grassing plan is driven by environmental conditions, soil structure, water quality and availability. This part of the world is basically considered warm season grass country, at least thru the green, and the soil and water testing we did confirmed we could maintain a very high quality sward of dwarf Bermuda golfing turf. We found ample deposits of high quality top soil and located a sand source, for, greens, surrounds, tees, and capping if needed, nearby.   

The greens are huge. Nine double greens that, on paper, are between eight and nine acres in size. Our water quality is good, so we could grow bent if we wanted to…torture ourselves, but greens that size are double to triple the size you’d find on a normal course and bent would be incredibly expensive and time consuming to maintain. I think the grass on the greens will end up being one of the new improved Bermuda varieties and I believe that choice will work well. These are Mac greens after all; huge Mac greens and I pray that someday I get to watch DeVries shape ‘em up.  The new Bermudas will give the member all the challenge he could ever want and still allow us to keep them in great shape 12 months a year without exorbitant expense.

Firstly, this is a point to be marketed.  Sure--the environment and all that--but the need for the course to move forward is money.  I am sure this is being worked at, but an critical key is emphasizing to the investors and lenders the low cost of maintenance associated with this project (the original plans with its double greens and few bunkers was driven by the estate nature of the course, i.e. no external revenue and a need for financially efficient maintenance, correct?) as well as the construction methods employed by DeVries and co., which Joe just described a few replies ago.

Some other points:

-As far as marketing goes, the need may not be as great as it would be if this were a daily fee.  This is the type of project that attracts a highly devoted niche clientele of architecture geeks.  The need to expand the thinking and education of the Good Doctor and his real value to the general public is not only impossible and impractical (within a short time frame, mind you) but also may not be necessary for this instance.  I think gca.com is a powerful tool, and these days the best way to rally a cause to a mass cause is the fastest way--the internet.  I think if we can get architectural sites and blogs informed and involved, that is great.  But what would be much greater yet is branching out to related groups and sites, say perhaps maintenance related.  A lot of greenkeepers and supers do what they do because they liked golf to start out with, and i know a few who have a good appreciation for the architectural side of things.  I think furthering the education of these types is the first step in reaching to the public as a whole, setting off a chain reaction as education and appreciation for design slowly grows.  Also, what about the magazines?  Might we be able to get any of them to write about this?  I think so.  This kind of story is just plain interesting even if you aren't a golfer.  Even my girlfriend wrote a wikipedia article about El Boqueron for a class, and her interest in the game is marginal, having only ever played a few holes.  (No, it isn't posted; it was just a hypothetical for a class)  There is a lot of potential interest and buzz that could be created for this project, and that already shown here is just the beginning. 

-I would assume a target number for the building of the complex as well as future maintenance has been established.  Next is proof that this number can be safely accounted for and returned to the investors/lenders.  The question is how much will this be a national club versus local.  More national means higher numbers but lower initiation/dues, and local means lower numbers but higher initiation/dues.  I think with this day and age especially with the internet, better awareness could be made to create a large national club with lower dues.  What about tiering the memberships, perhaps with limited play options for those coming from far away?

-In an effort to convince the lenders and investors, what about highlighting a number of successful case examples of recent projects similar to this one?  I do not know the financial background of the clubs I am thinking of, but they seem to be doing fine even considering the economic climate.  I consider this an advantage of a passionate niche like golf architecture.  You see this with the NHL.  The tv numbers are low, but attendance and revenue rarely fluctuates, even after the potentially crippling lockout.  This is because the followers of the game are few but a very passionate few. 

-Augusta National.  The conceptions of the two courses are quite similar--wide open and undistinguished playing corridors, few but meaningful bunkers, large and wildly undulating greens, a southern climate, and a focus on the ground game.  This could be a chance to create something like what Augusta was truly intended to be, and that might be a good selling point.

[Jud_T]

Mike,
I think Kingsley's national membership is an excellent model that could attract a significant national membership that could help supplement the local equity members.  It's tough to get a bunch of guys to put up a big downstroke these days but a lot of guys would probably be willing to commit a few grand a year for a non-resident membership. A couple trips a year for some events and golf with friends easily justifies that. Just my 2 cents.

[Matthew Mollica]

The MacKenzie plans have been described in a recent edition of Golf Australia magazine.
Fair to say most in Australia had no isea of MacKenzie's lost plans.

Any word on how the project is going currently?

MM

[Mike_DeVries]

The MacKenzie plans have been described in a recent edition of Golf Australia magazine.
Fair to say most in Australia had no isea of MacKenzie's lost plans.

Any word on how the project is going currently?

MM

Matthew,

The intention is to still do the project in Austin, TX on the site that was selected a year or so ago.  However, the original group that was the main financial backing has had some hiccups and so it is in a "wait" mode at the moment.  Efforts to find the right financial group, whether that is the original group or a another group, are happening at this time.  If someone has an interest or knows someone who might, please contact me or David Edel.

I haven't seen the article -- is it available online or can someone fax/email a copy of it?  Thanks.

Best,
Mike

[Matthew Mollica]

Thanks Mike.
Sad to hear that it's stalled a little.

The article was written by Rod Morri, and was featured within the latest edition of Golf Australia magazine.
I'll mail you a hard copy.

Matthew

[Bill_McBride]

To me the Austin location would make El Boqueron attractive to the crowd that treks to Bandon and Ballyneal and Kingsley and soon to Cabot Links.  Austin is a whole lot more accessible than any of those locations.

And the marketing potential for a course built by Mike DeVries from the "lost plans of Doctor Mackenzie."  Holy cow!

[Mike_DeVries]

Thanks Mike.
Sad to hear that it's stalled a little.

The article was written by Rod Morri, and was featured within the latest edition of Golf Australia magazine.
I'll mail you a hard copy.

Matthew

Matthew,

Thanks, I appreciate that.  I talked with Rod this summer by phone but hadn't heard about the article yet.  I look forward to seeing it.

Cheers,
Mike

[Mike_DeVries]

To me the Austin location would make El Boqueron attractive to the crowd that treks to Bandon and Ballyneal and Kingsley and soon to Cabot Links.  Austin is a whole lot more accessible than any of those locations.

And the marketing potential for a course built by Mike DeVries from the "lost plans of Doctor Mackenzie."  Holy cow!

Bill,

Thanks for the compliments.  El Boqueron is slated to be a private club but David also has Roberto DeVicenzo's trophies and memorabilia that will be displayed in a museum at the club, along with other MacKenzie materials and the hope is that will serve as a way to share and provide historical information on the two great men.  Bringing it all together is the connection to Argentina, where the course was to be originally and the horse and cattle culture of Argentina and Texas is a very good fit for the club.

Best,
Mike

[Bill_McBride]

To me the Austin location would make El Boqueron attractive to the crowd that treks to Bandon and Ballyneal and Kingsley and soon to Cabot Links.  Austin is a whole lot more accessible than any of those locations.

And the marketing potential for a course built by Mike DeVries from the "lost plans of Doctor Mackenzie."  Holy cow!

Bill,

Thanks for the compliments.  El Boqueron is slated to be a private club but David also has Roberto DeVicenzo's trophies and memorabilia that will be displayed in a museum at the club, along with other MacKenzie materials and the hope is that will serve as a way to share and provide historical information on the two great men.  Bringing it all together is the connection to Argentina, where the course was to be originally and the horse and cattle culture of Argentina and Texas is a very good fit for the club.

Best,
Mike

I hope David considers some limited access as the private membership builds.  It's a model that I think has worked for Kingsley and Ballyneal.

[Michael Wharton-Palmer]

Mike D and I have talked about thsi project on and off...
it seems to me as well that the location, the game , the concept and all that Texas money should have made this happen by now.

I have tried to involve some of my deep pocket golfing friends in the project..but money is even "tight" for them at this time.
The site and concept are mindboggling and with the likes of David and Mike at the forefront of the project when it happens...awesome!

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