{"id":3723,"date":"2023-01-11T19:24:50","date_gmt":"2023-01-11T19:24:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/?p=3723"},"modified":"2023-01-12T21:07:34","modified_gmt":"2023-01-12T21:07:34","slug":"have-you-heard-the-news-about-kalamazoo-cc-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/golf\/personalities\/3723\/have-you-heard-the-news-about-kalamazoo-cc-part-2","title":{"rendered":"Have You Heard the News About Kalamazoo CC, Part 2?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AAF1E51C-DE79-4E78-8949-5B4F60ABF6E7_4_5005_c\"<\/a>More than a year ago, I wrote about Kalamazoo Country Club (KCC) and the news it\u2019s undergoing a major transformation that will rival, if not exceed, any club in the country. That story was my most widely read column of the year. Long overdue, here\u2019s an update.<\/p>\n

Currently, the priority is addressing the new clubhouse and infrastructure which will be relocated on the \u201clakeside\u201d property southwest of the existing facility. This 50-acre property, purchased by the club in 2021, will accommodate a 100,000 square foot clubhouse with extensive indoor and outdoor member amenities. As much as for environmental reasons as aesthetics, there will be underground parking for members and guests.<\/p>\n

In a recent communique to KCC members, owner Bill Johnston described these amenities to include a \u201cnew\u00a0family activity center that will be the host location for golf development through our golf\u00a0performance center\u2026 and comprehensive fitness and wellness training in our new state of the art\u00a0fitness center and year-round racquet equipment and development in our indoor racquet\u00a0center.\u201d In addition, he mentioned \u201cthe resort like waterfront center and our new short game training and short course.\u201d<\/p>\n

Excuse me while I clear my throat and say, \u201cWow!\u201d<\/p>\n

If all goes as planned, this aspect of the transformation will be complete by \u201clate summer or early fall of 2025.\u201d Until then, all club programming remains in the current Whites Road entrance location.<\/p>\n

\"Andrew<\/a>

Andrew Green<\/p><\/div>\n

And the course? Equally exciting and world-class. The noted and still rising golf architect Andrew Green was retained and he has now completed his routing plan for the new course. He\u2019s the architect of the acclaimed renovations at Inverness, Congressional, and Oak Hill.\u00a0 <\/span>Pretty good pettigree.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

John Fulling, the grounds and facilities manager\u00a0KCC, said Green\u2019s layout is a \u201cnew canvas\u201d\u00a0<\/span>for the storied club, now 123-years-old. In fact, KCC will be Green\u2019s first signature design.<\/p>\n

When asked to share his thoughts on the style of Green\u2019s design, Fulling described it as \u201cclean, classic, and minimalist in terms of nothing being unnatural and manufactured.\u201d With a par-71 and a max yardage of 7,200, multiple tees will fit both casual and competitive play. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be fun and challenging, but not so challenging that players won\u2019t want to come back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"John<\/a>

John Fulling<\/p><\/div>\n

Incidentally, Fulling is coming off a year as the outgoing President of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) after capping off eight years of service on its national Board of Directors. Those national contacts will surely come in handy in the years ahead. Right now, the plan for the new course is to be completed by 2026.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As I reported a year ago, the aspirations for KCC go far beyond golf. At the time, I compared it favorably with the \u201cKalamazoo Promise,\u201d that philanthropic initiative started in 2005 which provides a 100% scholarship program for each Kalamazoo Public School\u2019s resident graduate. That program has resulted in a 16% increase in KPS enrollment since its inception.<\/p>\n

As Fulling said, \u201cWhat\u2019s being done at KCC is for its members but also for the community. It enhances the desirability of Kalamazoo to attract and keep talent and families.\u201d<\/p>\n

Along with being family-centric in keeping with the goals of Johnston and his spouse Ronda Stryker, the club will adhere to state-of-the-art sustainability. Fulling has been particularly impressed with the plans for geothermal heating and cooling. \u201cEssentially, any heat generated by the clubhouse will not be released into the atmosphere but rather remain inside and be transferred to other parts of the facility.\u201d<\/p>\n

When learning of these developments for KCC, I contacted two long time friends, well known to the club. One was John Allen, a long time member, a respected USGA rules official and a veteran Governor of the GAM.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the most exciting news in the history of the club,\u201d said Allen. \u201cIt\u2019s life-changing in terms of its impact for members and their families. And all of the anticipation is due not to any dread or reservation but to the prospect of great things happening in the next few years.\u201d<\/p>\n

I also called Dick Stewart, the retired head PGA golf professional and General Manager at KCC where he served with distinction for over 40 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen this project is completed, it will be written up and reported by every major golf media outlet in country. It\u2019ll create a new standard for excellence for a club,\u201d said Stewart, a member of the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n

Always known for his sense of humor, Stewart invoked Gary Player by saying in a South African accent, \u201cIt\u2019ll be finest of its kind in America.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unlike Player, he meant it without hyperbole.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Images courtesy in order of KCC, Andrew Green and the GCSAA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

More than a year ago, I wrote about Kalamazoo Country Club (KCC) and the news it\u2019s undergoing a major transformation… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":3725,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,17,7],"tags":[2832,3252,957426,1034088,1034093,1036531,1036532,1036533],"class_list":["post-3723","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf","category-courses-and-travel","category-personalities","tag-terry-moore","tag-gcssa","tag-kalamazoo-country-club","tag-bill-johnston","tag-kalamazoo-promise","tag-andrew-green","tag-john-fulling","tag-rhonda-stryker"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2023\/01\/john-fulling-cgcs-e1673557603728.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3723","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3723"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3723\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3731,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3723\/revisions\/3731"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3723"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3723"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3723"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}