Golf Course Architecture - Issue 76, April 2024

David McLay Kidd has completed a bunker renovation at the Tributary club in Driggs, Idaho. Formerly known as Huntsman Springs, Kidd originally designed the course in 2008. Last year, he was brought back and, along with superintendent Guy Johnson, identified the bunkers as in need of improvement. “The project has been a complete renovation, including the removal of some, adding new ones in, recutting every edge and installing Profile’s Flexterra solution for erosion control,” said Kidd. “Edges leading into bunkers have been cut back, returning bunkers to their original shape and making them easier to maintain. “The course originally had around 150 bunkers, many of which had little strategic purpose other than the visual ‘ooh ah’ moment We took a couple dozen out, mainly the ones that were only penalising bad shots. And we made a few bunkers bigger… the ones that were guarding the tightest lines.” Kidd returns to Tributary to revamp bunkers Ground has broken on the first of two new courses at Rodeo Dunes, 50 miles northeast of Denver, Colorado. Rodeo Dunes will be Dream Golf’s third destination after Bandon Dunes in Oregon and Sand Valley in Wisconsin. Developers Michael and Chris Keiser announced the project last year, with Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw designing one course and their associate Jim Craig creating the other, which will be his solo design debut. The Keisers say there is the potential for six courses to be built on the 2,000-plus acre site of pure sand. “If it weren’t for the mountain range in the distance, you could very easily mistake this site for one in Ireland,” said Michael Keiser. “Sand Hills is my inspiration here, it is golf in its rawest form, stripped of everything that is unessential, that’s what Rodeo Dunes is and needs to be. Its success will be having the discipline to let go of our egos and letting it be what it wants to be.” The first course is on track to open in 2026, with some preview play available prior to the grand opening. Construction of new course begins at Rodeo Dunes TEE BOX 18

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