Spanish Trail Completes Renovation of Canyon Course

On the 4th of July the members of Spanish Trail Golf and Country Club in Las Vegas enjoyed the unveiling of the newly renovated Canyon Course. The nine-hole course began renovations in 2007 under the direction of Houston-based Baxter Spann of Finger, Dye, Spann, Inc. Spann provided the club a master plan that kept the layout true to the original Robert Trent Jones, Jr. design but provided additional enhancements.

The renovations included new greens built to USGA specs; improved fairways, tees, bunkers and water features; an extensive renovation of the course's infrastructure to help deal with the issues related to water quality, water restrictions, and the hard caleche earth of Las Vegas Valley. Also involved were upgrades to the drainage system; a new irrigation system; over 13,000 tons of fairway plating material; new cart paths and all-new sodded fairways. More than 13 acres of turf were removed and replaced with a garden landscape that feature lower water-use plant materials and mulch, giving more definition and contrast to the holes.

Upgrades to Canyon are part of the first phase of what will be a multi-year renovation program that will occur on the other eighteen holes at Spanish Trail, keeping the course up with current technology and market demands.

The club's general manager, Dominic Guzzo, said of the work: "Our members seem very pleased with the results of this meticulous renovation. It has been a long year, but they are overjoyed to have their beloved Canyon Course back in rotation at the club. The unique aspect of having 27 holes of golf not only provides members with three different 18-hole courses to play and easy access, but provides the club the unique ability to do maintenance and improvements while still providing a quality 18-hole golf course for members."

Spann commented: "Spanish Trail is an excellent example of the positive benefits that a long range master plan can bring to a club. Our task was really to blow everything up from tee to green and put it back as close as possible to its original form. We wanted the members to recognize their course but enhance it with new drainage, irrigation, turf, bunker construction, greens and additional full cart paths that will help reduce long term compaction in the fairways. We are very pleased with the results on the first nine and look forward to completing the remainder of the work in the next few years."

The work was handled by another Houston company, Heritage Links. "It was a pleasure and an honor to work on such a 'masterpiece originally designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr., and to have the dedicated crew in place to assist the Club in the upgrading of the course," said Jon O'Donnell, Heritage Links' division president.

Greg Maddux, a Major League pitcher and member at Spanish Trail said of the work, "As an avid golfer and member at Spanish Trail, I have watched this renovation progress in my own backyard and I am so eager to play the Canyon Course again. I know it will match the caliber of everything the Club does - first class all the way."

Added Maddux, who will host his Maddux-Harmon Celebrity Invitational, an annual fundraiser for the Maddux Foundation, at the course: "It was a simple decision when the opportunity presented itself to move the 2008 Maddux-Harmon Celebrity Invitational to Spanish Trail. The quality of Spanish Trail enhanced by the recent improvements to the golf course and clubhouse makes me proud to host my tournament on my home course."