JOHN TYSON - Digital Publishing Software | Page Turning Software

out a lofted club. Those are the technicaltweaks that have come along.I don’t really talk about how much I’vespent on the course. It’s like a big gardenfor me. It’s a labor of love. … I’m happywe’ve been able to make a special place.I’ve gotten to play some other golf courses,and what I’ve learned is, the downsideof being an owner of a golf course is yousee everything that’s wrong. Sometimes Iplay a course and can see what I would dodifferent. I believe we have a really goodgolf course here.The members appreciate that it’s alabor of love. I have taken some of theblessings I’ve gotten and made some adjustmentsthat the members don’t have toworry about. My members are very supportive.They see me doing all of the work.I’ve absorbed most of the costs.Having an AJGA (American Junior GolfAssociation) regional event, the firsttournament we had, allowed us tointroduce the course to junior golfers.That meant the conversations about thecourse could be inside the junior ranks.After that first event, we had the AJGARolex here. Not too long ago, I was overin Scotland playing at St. Andrews in theDunhill Cup, it’s like the AT&T [PebbleBeach Pro-Am] here as far as amateursgo. I was playing with some young man,a professional over there. He was amongsome of the Europeans who had beenplaying amateur or college golf in the U.S.He told me, “I played in that Rolex tournament,and it was the hardest golf courseI ever played.”It got our golf course inside the conversationsof the juniors. I believe it’sbeen a shot in the arm for [Razorback golfcoaches] Shauna [Estes-Taylor] and Brad[McMakin], who are two great coachesand has helped them recruit. Last year,we had the SEC women’s championship,which we got by rotation among theschools. At the time, each school had tohold it near their campus once. Then webid on the NCAA men’s regional, whichwe’ll have in May.We did bid on the Women’s NCAA too.I want to seek some of the USGA events.We’ll put a bid out in the future for theappropriate event.I have talked to some people abouthaving a PGA event, but the first questionthey ask is, are you willing to spend thatkind of money? The question then is, areyou willing to spend the same amountof money to put your golf course backtogether after the event is over? It reallyspeaks to how much you have to spendto have an event like a PGA tournament… There is number [of dollars] to host it,then the number to put your course backtogether. You can probably imagine howmuch that would be, and that’s the numberthat stands out to me. And you have todo that on your own, the [PGA] tournamentdoesn’t help you. The course has toabsorb the cost.We do host a First Tee event here withWal-Mart vendors. Our relationship withWal-Mart and Mike Duke to help this FirstTee chapter is special. I like working withthe different eventsAs for the clubhouse, I would like tosay I was hands off , but anybody whoknows me would know that isn’t true.I looked at three or four differentdesigns. I visited with some people whospecialized in traditional clubhouses andsaw some of the visions they had for it.What I was seeing didn’t match what Iwas looking for. Marlon Blackwell, who isat the University of Arkansas and is one ofthe best architects around, had done a remodelof my house. So, it was kind of nota true competition but three or four greatarchitects put their ideas down andI became more drawn to Marlon’s.Our goal was, how do you bring theoutside into the clubhouse and when youare seeing out those windows, how do youbring the inside out to that. There was arelation of being on the outside, looking atthe vistas, the landscape of Arkansas.The entire course, I wanted it to letyou feel Arkansas. It’s a lot like walkingthrough the Arkansas woods, a manicuredcarpet. We’ve maintained the experienceof northwest Arkansas and whatthe environment is like.I’ll take lessons from my generalmanager, Tom Jones, who was an All-American golfer in college. And Brad andShauna and their assistants, they will giveme advice when I ask. But what I’m usuallytold is, “You have paralysis of analysis.”My handicap is supposed to be an 8or 9, but in truth it’s mostly toward a 14 or15. We’ve been busy a lot lately.I want to play more golf but it doesn’twork out that way. My dad’s mantra was,work two weeks a month and fish theother two.My dad didn’t play golf. He played twoholes and said it was too slow.Tyson weighed a handful of clubhouse optionsbefore he settled on Blackwell’s look, which strivesto bring the outside to the inside. Thanks to thedesign, the experience of being in northwestArkansas is incorporated into the interior.My best golfing experience has tobe getting the opportunity to playSt. Andrews on a Sunday. If you know thegame, you know that no golf is played onSunday at St. Andrews. The only time it isopen for play on Sunday is the last roundof the British Open and the final round ofthe Dunhill Cup [a pro-am]. You are oneof just a few golfers out playing St. Andrewsthat day. Playing in the Dunhill Cupand making the cut with my partner hasbeen a great experience. I’ve made the cutseveral times with my pro.I’m starting to play golf around differentplaces, and just being able to play golfanytime, anywhere is special. But probablythe best course is St. Andrews. Therehave only probably been maybe less than100 rounds of golf played at St. Andrewson a Sunday. It’s a small fraternity and Iknow I’m not going to make it in the BritishOpen or the Senior British Open.I enjoyed playing in Scotland.Carnoustie. St. Andrews. Dornoch up onthe north of Scotland. I remember playingNairn, in Scotland. Butch Davis, Clark12 ARKANSAS BUSINESS EXECUTIVE GOLFER / 2013