Weibring-Wolfard Golf Design has completed a renovation of bunkers and tees at Weibring Golf Club near Bloomington, Illinois, home to the Illinois State University golf teams.
The design firm is co-led by D.A. Weibring, a five-time winner on the PGA Tour, who graduated from ISU in 1975 and has hosted a fundraiser there for over 30 years to support the men’s and women’s golf programs.
“In 1999, we reduced the bunkers from 125,000 to 20,000 square feet,” said Weibring. “We eliminated huge bunkers that were located a good distance from the greens, by reshaping holes from approximately 50 yards and in.”
The golf club was named after Weibring in 2007, coinciding with the university’s 150th anniversary. He returned in 2012 to design and build a 25-acre practice facility.
The recent project, which was completed at the start of August, has concerned bunkers and tees. Denton has worked with course superintendent Travis Williams and his staff to complete the project in the middle of the summer, while keeping the course open.
“My partner Steve Wolfard’s experience agronomically as well as design helped this process tremendously, and also bringing in Larry Denton to do the shaping and drainage made these upgrades possible,” said Weibring.
“The bunker plan is to establish three goals – visibility, playability and maintainability. Every bunker will be reshaped and have new drainage and liner with fresh white sand.
“We lifted the greens and provided fairway cut fold off areas while putting back 20 bunkers. The final result will be 11 bunkers reduced in size, four enlarged and eight new. The new additions are all smaller pot bunkers. The total square footage will increase approximately by 7,000 to a total of 27,000.”
Bunker liner has been supplied by Polylast with sand from Pro Angle.
Seven forward and three back tees have also been added.
There are also plans to add four or five bunkers in autumn along with two more tees.
Weibring and Wolfard have also started a project at WeaverRidge Golf Club in nearby Peoria, to complete a plan for improvements that focuses on the renovation of 80 large bunker complexes.