Thursday, May 24, 2001
Golf Ranch built for instruction
By Carey Hoffman
Enquirer contributor
“Location, location, location,” may be the mantra of the real estate industry, but it applies equally well to the new Golf Ranch Tri County facility.
It may be difficult enough to picture a tract of land suitable for a golf facility in the heavily commercialized Tri-County district. But beyond that, unless you take the short trip down the Golf Ranch driveway off Tri-County Parkway, you would never believe a spot so idyllic was available.
“I first saw it three years ago, when somebody representing (Oak Hill) Cemetery told us about it,” said Ralph Landrum, whose Landrum Golf Management company operates three other facilities in Northern Kentucky. “They told me it was at Tri-County next to the cemetery and I'm like, "Come on.' But hopefully it's going to work well for us, because it is a beautiful piece of property.”
The 100 acres of land are being leased from Oak Hill Cemetery. The cemetery borders the Golf Ranch to the west; a rail line that brings about 30 trains a day forms the eastern border.
The land is heavily wooded, very green and secluded; it's impossible to guess you are about 1,000 yards away from Tri-County Mall.
Besides a full complement of practice facilities, The Golf Ranch Tri County features a nine-hole par-3 course capable of holding the interest of even quality players.
Randy Vaught, a professional course shaper who has worked with some of golf's biggest design names, took the hills and woods around the property and created the quality of hole set-ups you would expect on a quality regulation-length course.
“It's a place where a better player can work on his scoring shots,” says Golf Ranch Tri County head pro Kerry Sahms.
He pointed to the 143-yard No.4 hole as an example.
“On this hole, it's easy to think that I've just crushed my drive,” he said. “Now let's see how close I can get this for birdie.”
The course features four ponds and three sets of tees on each hole. It can play as short as 689 yards from the front tees, making it a good place to introduce young golfers to the game.
The greens average about 6,500 square feet in size, similar to what you find on a regulation course. That should give the course plenty of variety while keeping wear and tear to a minimum.
Even though the course was planted only last August, the areas around the greens and tees have been sodded, a nice touch that hides the fact this is a brand-new golf course.
The rest of the facility is devoted to practice. A driving range has 18 heated, covered stalls. An additional 23 practice stalls are out in the open behind a bent-grass practice surface that is about half the size of a football field. The Golf Ranch Tri County also has a 10,000-square-foot putting green and a short-game practice area with sand traps.
The emphasis will be on full service for the golfer, with lessons, club-fitting and a host of special-rate programs.
Still, with at least four other practice facilities nearby, it will be a bit of a gamble to see if practice makes profit.
“We're going to have to be different,” Sahms said.
“Our plan is to build bottom-line customer loyalty, rather than worry about retail efforts,” Landrum said. “This is going to be a place to practice and a place to learn the game, whether you're a kid, adult or senior (citizen).”
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Golf Ranch built for instruction
