The Prairie Club features two 18-hole golf courses, a 10-hole par 3 course and the Prairie Club Lodge
NORTHBROOK, Ill., Dec. 13, 2011 – KemperSports, a leading golf course management company, has been selected to manage The Prairie Club, a golf resort in Valentine, Neb. Located in the Sand Hills region of western Nebraska, this 46-hole semi-private golf resort features two award-winning 18-hole courses (The Dunes Course and The Pines Course), a 10-hole par 3 course (The Horse) and a western-style Prairie Club Lodge.
Founder Paul Schock opened The Prairie Club in May 2010 and it was quickly named as “One of the Top 25 Golf Resorts in the U.S.” by Golfweek magazine. Both The Dunes Course and The Pines Courses were listed in the “Top 10 Best New Courses” by GOLF Magazine in November 2010 and Golf Digest recognized The Prairie Club as the “Best Overnight Golf Destination” in its December 2010 issue. “We are excited to have KemperSports manage The Prairie Club,” said Paul Schock, founder of The Prairie Club. “We are impressed by their expertise and proven success in the golf industry and look forward to working with KemperSports in 2012 and beyond.”
“The Prairie Club is a very special golf destination that opened to great critical acclaim,” said Steve Skinner, CEO of KemperSports. “We look forward to adding The Prairie Club to our collection of premier golf destinations.”
The Dunes Course at The Prairie Club spans across 360 acres and was designed by Tom Lehman and Chris Brands to complement the natural lay of the land in the wide open spaces of the Sand Hill region. With wind-shaped landscape, wide and firm fairways and the ever-present prairie winds forcing golfers to keep the ball low, The Dunes Course provides a true test of links golf. Described as “pure golf,” The Dunes Course offers endless views of the Sand Hills in all directions and showcases a beautiful blend of golf and nature.
The Pines Course was designed by Australian Graham Marsh and sculpted within a forest at the edge of the Snake River Canyon. A blend of both links golf and the classic tree-lined layout, the semi-protected Pines Course offers a striking difference from The Dunes Course that highlights the diverse land of The Prairie Club. The layout of The Pines Course begins in the prairie and meanders through a forest of pines where the prevailing prairie winds are blocked by trees and the western wall of the canyon.
Both courses at The Prairie Club continue to receive numerous accolades since opening in 2010. Most recently, The Dunes Course was ranked as the No. 4 course on Golfweek’s list of Best New Courses for 2011, while The Pines Course was listed as No. 11. There is an ongoing conversation between members and guests as to which course is their favorite, The Dunes Course or The Pines Course, given the dramatically different “feel,” design and playability of each 18 holes.
The Prairie Club has a growing membership of approximately 300 members and offers lodging at The Prairie Club Lodge and the Canyon Rim Cabins. The Prairie Club Lodge offers 31 lodge rooms and four separate cabins with 28 additional rooms for both members and guests. KemperSports will begin management of The Prairie Club on January 1, 2012.
For more information about The Prairie Club, visit http://www.theprairieclub.com.
About KemperSports
Northbrook, Ill.-based KemperSports operates golf facilities as well as athletic clubs, lodging venues and major sporting events, including nationally ranked courses and tournament venues such as Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, The Glen Club, Desert Willow Golf Resort and Chambers Bay, host of the 2010 U.S. Amateur and the 2015 U.S. Open. Affiliate KemperLesnik is a leading sports marketing, events and public relations agency. Ranked by Crain’s Chicago Business among Chicago’s top PR agencies, KemperLesnik produces communications programs for major brands such as Aon, PwC and Wilson Golf, and manages major national events including the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational, the McDonald’s All American High School basketball games and sponsorship activation for KitchenAid. For more information, visit www.kempersports.com.
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