LITCHFIELD PARK, AZ – When some of the nation’s top collegiate golfers arrive at The Wigwam resort after Christmas for the annual Patriot All-American Golf Tournament, they are going to see a redesigned closing hole on the famed Gold Course.
The decision to remake No. 18 wasn’t made by the ownership group, JDM Partners, or by Director of Golf Leo Simonetta. Instead, it was Mother Nature who made the call. On a cold January day this year, she permanently altered the popular Robert Trent Jones Sr. design with one quick swipe of her powerful hand.
A rare microburst touched down in the Phoenix area in January, damaging a portion of one of the three outstanding courses at Wigwam. A microburst is a column of sinking air within a thunderstorm, and like tornadoes, they can cause extensive damage at the surface.
It was on the ground for less than a minute, but in that blink of the eye it changed the playability of two holes, including the famous finishing hole on the Gold Course. So the two companies that collaborated on the course’s 2015 redesign – Pro Turf International and Tom Lehman Design Group – were brought back to restore the strategic integrity of those two holes.
“We never get those storms outside of summer, but for some reason we had one in the winter,” said Wigwam Director of Golf Leo Simonetta. “It took out 65 trees, either uprooting them or snapping them in half. Some of those trees were integral to the design, especially on No. 18.
“Planting new trees wasn’t a great option. It’s very expensive and it would be a generation before they would come into play. So we went a different direction.”
PTI is a golf course maintenance, construction and landscaping company based in Las Vegas. Simonetta has utilized the Pro Turf team many times in the past, including the 2015 Gold Course renovation. In that project, PTI worked directly with Open champion Tom Lehman, focusing on modernizing the bunkering and layout of the 50-year-old course while still keeping Robert Trent Jones Sr.’s original strategic-intent in place. Bunkers were more strategically placed for today’s game, while fairway target lines now move left and right off the tee, thus eliminating the straight “bowling-alley feel” the course once had.
And as with the 2015 project, bunkers were again the key players in this 2021 effort.
“Basically we decided to use bunkers to replace the lost trees and bring strategy and challenge back to the holes,” said Simonetta.
PTI Principal Kip Wolfe took a lead role in the project, as he had in 2015.
“We constructed two new fairway bunkers on the Gold #18, and we enlarged and raised the tee box for better visibility to the landing area,” said Wolfe. “We worked very closely with Tom Lehman on the layout and design of the work. The bunkers were lined using Capillary Concrete, and bunker surrounds and tees were sodded using a new draught tolerant hybrid Bermuda called TifTuff.” Very similar work was done on No. 8 as well.
The bunkers weren’t simply constructed where the fallen trees had once stood. Much thought was given to the placement, based on making the holes more challenging for the better players.
“We followed Tom’s lead there,” said Simonetta. “We always want to make sure we provide a great challenge for the better player without affecting the higher handicapper. The Gold Course is tough enough as it is.”
The changes have passed the test for management and players alike.
“We’re very happy with the work,” said Simonetta. “I think the new bunkers serve the hole well. It makes the better players have to think about the tee shot a little more now. They may not like it if they hit it into the bunker, but if they do that, it’s because they misplayed the shot. The bunkers really play a key role in the hole.”
Simonetta is not shy when it comes to praising his partners on this project.
“I have worked with the team from Pro Turf many times going back to my days in Las Vegas 30 years ago,” said Simonetta. “They have always been great to work with. Kip and Mark (Doble, co-founders) are really good people. There is always good back and forth with them. You give them your ideas and they come back with various scenarios. With all the golf courses they have worked on over the years, they have seen just about everything you can see, so they are prepared to react to any situation. Pro Turf is a great resource as well as a great partner.”
Simonetta and his team are currently preparing for the Patriot All-American, which is set for Dec. 27-31. The 54-hole championship will have a women’s division for the first time this year. Each player will honor a fallen soldier from one of the six military branches by carrying a custom PING golf bag with the individual’s name and rank embroidered onto it.
Top players in the field so far include current U.S. Amateur champion James Piot of Michigan State and Ryan Hall of the University of South Carolina on the men’s side, and Rina Tatematsu of Oklahoma State and Ashley Lau from Michigan in the women’s lineup.
ABOUT PRO TURF INTERNATIONAL
Pro Turf International is a family owned construction, landscape and golf maintenance company with over 30 years of hands-on experience in the Southwest. They proudly serve the golf, sports and landscape industry to enhance quality and improve conditions in a safe, environmentally friendly manner. For more information call (702) 315-5121, or visit www.ptigolf.com.
ABOUT THE WIGWAM
Located just outside Phoenix, AZ, the Wigwam is equipped with a century’s worth of experience in providing the best luxury and comfort to travelers from around the world. The Wigwam started as a small lodge during the rise of cotton ranching in the early 1900s, officially opening its doors as a resort in 1929. With steady expansions for over 90 years, the resort currently features 331 elegant rooms and suites, three Championship golf-courses (including the Gold & Blue Courses designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr.), nine tennis courts, three swimming pools (one with a 25-feet dual water slide), a fitness center, award winning restaurants and 100,000 sq. ft. of indoor-outdoor event spaces. The original lodge (also called The Organizational House) still adorns the resort complex with its heritage southwestern charm.
Contact:
Mike Jamison
Jamison Golf Group
(407-474-0531)
mike@jamisongolf.com
