Top-Rated Forest Dunes Golf Club Gets New Owner

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(ROSSCOMMON, MI) -- Forest Dunes, one of the nation's most critically acclaimed but under-utilized golf clubs, is poised for a bright new future thanks to energetic new ownership group determined to turn Forest Dunes into a national golfing destination.

After 10 years of collecting coveted awards as one of America's best golf courses with little growth to show for its lofty billing, the 1,300 acre club and its 7,141-yard course designed by Tom Weiskopf, was recently purchased by Lew Thompson, a trucking company magnate from Huntsville, Ark.

The new owner is wasting no time implementing plans to make Forest Dunes more hospitable and attractive to daily golfers, its current members, as well as potential members who might buy property there.

An architect has already designed a 22-room hotel with four luxury suites and building plans will be submitted in January to township and county authorities for approval. The building will be attached to the 23,000-square-foot clubhouse, a spectacular facility designed to invoke the style of a great Adirondack style lodge.

"A lot of our members live out of state so when they come in they will have a nicer place to stay than a hotel room," Thompson said. "From the research I've done, a lot of our golfers play there on their way north or on their way south to play somewhere else because we had no place to house them. We decided to build the hotel so they now will have a place to stay."

The building site has been staked off and covered with straw to mitigate the ground freezing to give construction crews a fast start when the winter breaks in the north. Thompson said he is planning to have the facility open by the end of June or early July.

Thompson is not a stranger to the golf industry. He is the managing member of a partnership that owns and operates The Bridges Golf & Country Club with a Jack Nicklaus course in Montrose, on Colorado's Western Slope, halfway between Grand Junction and Telluride.

Members of The Bridges club will have reciprocal privileges to stay and play at Forest Dunes. Thompson's purchase includes the seven luxurious appointed model homes on the property, as well as the 27-acre Lake AuSable for fishing, canoeing, and beach activities. The clubhouse has a spa, an exercise area, member's locker rooms and a full service restaurant and a separate bar and lounge.

Acknowledging Forest Dunes' reputation as one of the best conditioned public courses, Thompson said that Jim Bluck, the superintendent of grounds and Donny Fisher, the Head Golf Professional are remaining on staff.

Weiskopf, a former British Open champion who has earned an international reputation for world-class course designs, has described Forest Dunes as one of his three best efforts.

The course is set within the 40,000-acre Huron National Forest where Weiskopf found rolling, white inland sand dunes and extensive tracts of sand that he incorporated into memorable golf holes. Complementing the golf course is a huge practice facility that features a two-and-a-half acre putting course.

The course is located in an environmentally sensitive area near the Au Sable River, one of the nation's finest fly fishing venues. Forest Dunes' effort to protect the river earned it a coveted Gold Signature Certification from the Audoban International organization. It is the highest level of certification a golf course can receive, and Forest Dunes is the only course in Michigan to achieve that distinction. There are only 21 other golf properties in the world with that gold certification.

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Vaquero Club Members Approve $4.5 Million Capital Improvement Plan

(WESTLAKE, TX) -- Members of the high-end Vaquero Club community voted overwhelmingly in favor of a $4.5 million capital improvement plan to further enhance services and amenities already provided at this premier private country club and luxury real estate development. The approved plan, announced Jan. 5, includes enhancements to the golf course and clubhouse facilities.

Beginning in early 2011, Vaquero, working with the Tom Fazio Design Team, created a long-term master plan for the golf course. From that comprehensive plan, phase one improvements were selected, presented to the membership and approved golf course phase 1 improvements include complete renovation of all greenside and native bunkering, several strategic hole changes and the planting of hundreds of trees. Tree planting will begin in early 2012, with golf course construction scheduled to start around June 1, 2012.

Expected completion of the project is mid-September 2012, with an additional 4-6 week grow-in period. During the entire construction process, impact to golf course daily operations will be minimized to the extent possible.

A similar master planning process for the clubhouse began in the spring of 2011 with assistance from the architectural team at Parkway Construction. Long-term objectives and concepts were determined and the team identified phase one improvements for presentation to the membership. Phase one will enable Vaquero to expand its very popular food and beverage operations, by increasing dining space approximately 2,000 square feet. Some additional areas of the clubhouse will also be addressed and improved during this period. Construction is estimated to start in the spring of 2012, with services continuing during construction.

The Vaquero Club, originally developed by Discovery Land Company in 2001, was turned over to the membership in September of 2009. Situated on approximately 525 acres, Vaquero features a world-class Tom Fazio-designed golf course, an elegant clubhouse, spa and fitness center, multiple tennis courts, community pool, fishing ponds, fish camp and kids club. A unique assortment of personal concierge and member services complement the physical amenities.