Red Ledges, a premier four-season mountain golf community just minutes from Park City, continues to invest in new club amenities, as it recently broke ground on a new Jack Nicklaus Signature 12-hole Golf Park—the first 12-hole design project ever undertaken by the Golden Bear.
Responding to the growing trend of making golf more accessible and relevant to new or busy players, Red Ledges is building the first-ever Jack Nicklaus Signature 12-hole Golf Park—designed to be friendly and fun in our fast-paced world. The short layout and forgiving greens encourage family-friendly play, while still providing an enjoyable round for the seasoned player.
The course will be a par-36 and comprise 12 par-3 holes, with the total yardage ranging from 1,310 to 1,717 yards, and is due to be completed in the fall of 2015.
The Golden Bear himself was on hand to inspect the construction progress and finalize the layout and strategy of the Signature Golf Park.
“The team at Red Ledges had originally envisioned and discussed a nine-hole course that had a mix of par-3 holes and par-4 holes, so we originally started to design such a layout,” said Nicklaus, whose championship layout at Red Ledges opened in 2009 and has been named Best Golf Course in Utah by Best of State Awards for six consecutive years.
“But the more we toured the property and really started to get into the routing and strategy, it was apparent we needed to go another direction. The general concept with a short course is to give members an alternative to the larger golf course. Whether they are short on time or are just beginning the game or they simply want something different, a short course or a golf park should accomplish many things. To have a member go to the course and perhaps take a full golf bag, so they can play a couple of par 4s did not necessarily meet the goals of the short course. What we want is a layout that can be played by juniors, women, seniors and beginners. Or it is simply a fun diversion for the core golfer and member.”
So in the midst of his site visit, Nicklaus had the idea to convert the course to a 12-hole layout of all par-3 holes.
“By designing a 12-hole, par-3 course, the member can play with a small bag or just a handful of clubs,” he added. “And while it sounds simple, the course being 12 holes gives them the option of playing something a little longer than nine and shorter than 18 holes. You can also break it up in a way where the golfer can divide the layout in several ways to accomplish what they want—from playing as few as six holes to playing 18,” Nicklaus said.
The series of par-three holes will include two different cup options on the green. For the more skilled player, there will be a standard 4-inch cup. Red Ledges also plans to install an 8-inch cup for less gifted players.
“We are excited about the addition of this Golf Park to our community,” said Red Ledges COO Mitchel Burns. “We wanted to do something innovative and Jack has done a beautiful design for us. We wanted to bring fun back to the game of golf and we believe this course will open up the game to more players, whether they are beginnings, family groups, or the scratch player getting in a fast round after work.”
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