San Antonio Prepares New Home for Texas Golf Hall of Fame

After being homeless for more than a decade, the Texas Golf Hall of Fame is relocating to one of the most historic golf sites in the state: San Antonio's Brackenridge Park.

Part of a $7.5 million project in the center of downtown, the new Texas Golf Hall of Fame and Museum will be adjacent to San Antonio's famed Brackenridge Golf Course. Texas' first public course will re-emerge in December following a complete restoration of its 1915 A.W. Tillinghast design.

"When we open the doors, we will be the fourth largest golf museum in the country," said Reid Meyers, chairman of the non-profit Municipal Golf Association-San Antonio, which is overseeing the project, scheduled for completion in 2010. "Being situated next to the flagship public golf layout in the state, we will have something unique and very special that will cater to golfers, tourists and business travelers alike."

The Texas Golf Hall of Fame was housed at The Woodlands in Houston from 1978 through 1996, when it was closed. In the new setting, most artifacts and viewing areas will be in the original Brackenridge clubhouse, a 1923 Tudor that is to be restored. The adjacent stone building, built in 1885 as San Antonio's first water pump station (becoming sculptor Gutzon Borglum's art studio in the 1920s), will be converted into an events pavilion that also will showcase museum pieces. The two buildings will be connected through an open wooded area by a new Texas Golf Walk of Fame.

Fundraising for the Texas Golf Hall of Fame project continues and golfers can lend support throughout November by playing Brackenridge Golf Course, which will not be open to the public until December 1. Limited tee times are available for $250 per golfer ($200 of which is tax-deductible). Money from these "special preview" rounds will go to the Hall of Fame capital campaign fund for both the golf course and museum buildings. No more than five foursomes per day are being accepted. For tee times, call 210/475-2899 or e-mail epressley@alamocitygolftrail.com.

The Texas Golf Hall of Fame and Museum is to be chaired by Joe Black, a former president of the PGA of America. On-site supervision is in the hands of Jim Roschek, president and chief executive officer of the Alamo City Golf Trail.

Located near the center of the city, Brackenridge Park was deeded to the public trust in 1899 by George Brackenridge, who also was responsible for the design of the city's waterworks. The park begins just below the headwaters of the San Antonio River.