2018 was an exciting year at MJB Golf Design. Work continued at many existing clients and I was also able to pick up some new work. This shows the strength in the golf course renovation market, and in golf, as courses are looking to make changes to stay current with today’s marketplace.
Continued Work…
Work continued at a few courses as projects wrapped up or completed another phase. I’ve been working at Jester Park Golf Course in Des Moines since 2008 and in the spring we completed the latest work. This included an extensive irrigation pond project that resulted in adjusting the pond in order to expand the fairway on the eleventh hole. This eliminated having the water bisect the landing area and created a more playable golf hole where all golfers can now hit driver off the tee.
The next phase work continued at Countryside Golf Club in Mundelein, IL. We are in the middle of a bunker plan for the Traditional Course to bring back many of the original 1930’s bunkers, plus updating for today’s golfer. This past fall we completed the bunkers on the seventeenth hole and look to complete the sixteenth hole in the spring.
At St. Charles CC St. Charles, IL we went through the summer creating budgets that will allow them to complete all the remaining bunker work in the fall of 2019. This involved working with the Club staff and Leibold Irrigation to put a budget in place that is fiscally responsible.
New Work…
The year started out working on a new project for the Des Moines Parks and Recreation at their Blank Park Golf Course. You may have seen this in my recent email and blog regarding the adjustment of five golf holes to provide adjacent land for the zoo to expand. Budgets are being finalized with the hope to complete the work in the upcoming years.
I started an exciting project at Woodbine Bend Golf Course outside Stockton, IL in the Galena Territories of Northwest Illinois. This prairie style golf course has decided to undergo a complete makeover with new bunkers and several new greens. We will tie this with regrassing the native areas to provide an area that will attract more butterfly’s and bees and help with their population. Plans are complete and we are now working on the phasing portion of the project.
Finally, work began on a bunker plan for Chalet Hills Golf Club in Oakwood Hills, IL. This 30+ year old Ken Killian design has just become worn out. We began work on the green surround bunkers with reshaping many bunkers and installing the CapCon bunker liner and new bunker sand. Work is expected to be completed just before the golf season begins.
Tournament Golf…
This past summer the Illinois State Amateur was competed on the recently renovated Bloomington Country Club. A bunker and green surround project was completed in 2017 to update the golf course in advance of the tournament. This work included reshaping bunkers and installing the CapCon liner system and Pro Angle bunker sand. The renovation was a big success for the tournament and the membership. You can see more on Bloomington CC here, www.mjbgolfdesign.com/bloomcc
Playing Golf…
This past year I continued my goal to play more golf. This not only included everyday play but also play at many select golf courses. This year’s courses included Shore Acres, Erin Hills, The Dunes Club, and four rounds of golf in Adelaide, Australia including Royal Adelaide Golf Club. Coming up in 2019 my goal is to get up to Sand Valley, Lawsonia Links, golf in San Diego at the GIS and in Phoenix for the ASGCA meeting, and I also hope to get out to the Philadelphia area.
As I mentioned, I was blessed with a combination of working with existing clients and forging new relationships. This allows the work to continue to grow and help golf courses become current in today’s marketplace, improve maintenance, and, hopefully, become more profitable. That is the goal with every project. 2019 should be an exciting year.