[Matt_Cohn]

Short version: Gil Hanse to renovate Champions Course (north side of property, includes front nine of old composite course mixed with nine newer holes) in 2022 with aim to become permanent host of NCAA Men's and Women's Championships.


College golf gets on 'Road to La Costa' with much bigger dreams in mind


Quick notes:

• Champions Course was last renovated 9 years ago.
• Currently rated Golfweek's #122 resort course
• Looks like tournament plan is for no Legends Course, i.e. no back nine from old composite course.

[PCCraig]

Insert *shoulder shrug* here.

[Drew Harvie]

He gets hired for a lot of jobs

[Rob Marshall]

Matt, I played the composite course maybe 15 years ago. I have the card somewhere. They had one day a month or something like that when you could play it and I just happened to be there. I played with a couple of starters. If I remember correctly I thought we played the first three holes of one course on the front and then switched to 6 holes on the other course. It wasn't the front nine on one course and the back nine on the other.

[David Wuthrich]

Seems shortsighted for the NCAA not to try to play their championships at the best courses in the country.

[Tom_Doak]

Seems shortsighted for the NCAA not to try to play their championships at the best courses in the country.

Sounds similar to the deal to move (some) USGA offices to Pinehurst . . . somewhere behind the scenes there will be tax credits and $$$ playing their siren song to both the NCAA and the resort.


I have a difficult time envisioning that getting the NCAA golf championships on prime time TV from the west coast is going to be a hot ticket in sports programming, as the article proposed, but best of luck to them!

[Matt_Cohn]

Matt, I played the composite course maybe 15 years ago. I have the card somewhere. They had one day a month or something like that when you could play it and I just happened to be there. I played with a couple of starters. If I remember correctly I thought we played the first three holes of one course on the front and then switched to 6 holes on the other course. It wasn't the front nine on one course and the back nine on the other.

Correct. 1-3 and 13-18 of Champions, then 10-18 of Legends. The middle of Champions has potential; the first 5 of Legends aren't great.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Construction has started:
Omni La Costa Resort and Spa has broken ground on the renovation of its famed Champions Course, one of its two 18-hole courses, as it prepares to host three consecutive NCAA Division I Women’s and Men’s Golf Championships beginning in May 2024.
The renovation and ensuing NCAA Championships mark the beginning of a new chapter at one of the country’s most iconic golf resorts, located in Carlsbad, California. The golf course work will be led by Hanse Golf Course Design, founded by acclaimed architect Gil Hanse, who recently designed Fields Ranch East at the soon-to-open Omni PGA Frisco Resort in Frisco, Texas.
“We are excited to officially kick off this work with Gil Hanse, Jim Wagner and the rest of their team,” says Kurt Alexander, president of Omni Hotels & Resorts. “We believe that the Champions Course will be one of the marquee courses available to the public in Southern California after this renovation, and is another example of Omni’s commitment to elevating the experience across our golf portfolio nationwide.”
Hanse and his team will implement significant design changes with the NCAA’s match-play format in mind — chief among them will be challenging players with more risk-reward decisions throughout their rounds. Further inspiration for the work will be drawn from classic Southern California courses, as aesthetics are tweaked to give the Champions Course a more proper sense of scale and place.


More details:


https://www.firstcallgolf.com/design-notes/feature/2023-02-06/gil-hanse-digs-dirt-at-omni-la-costa

[Matt_Cohn]

Anybody seen plans anywhere? I can't find any.

[Max Prokopy]

Just when you think the NCAA can't be more insufferable....


I have nothing against Hanse, don't know the course, but I hope this is capped at three years of the finals and not indefinitely.  It's a terrible idea that puts some very strong east coast programs at a genuine disadvantage.

[Matt_Cohn]

Just when you think the NCAA can't be more insufferable....


I have nothing against Hanse, don't know the course, but I hope this is capped at three years of the finals and not indefinitely.  It's a terrible idea that puts some very strong east coast programs at a genuine disadvantage.

How so?

[Robert Mercer Deruntz]

Due to California's numerous regulatory hurdles and a notoriously uncooperative California Coastal Commission, the course was probably forced to pretty much retain the current routing.  The major improvements are much better greens complexes and better strategic bunkering.  I play there regularly, and the plans are on display in a few different clubhouse locations.  The potential of La Costa is an arm chair architects dream, and I have no doubt that Hanse probably envisioned many different changes.  Unfortunately, the reality of building in California is problematic, major changes would take years and millions of dollars with no guarantee of success.  With the NCAA tournament the main goal, I have a feeling that there was not enough time to attempt dramatic changes.

[Pat Burke]

Never saw much great at Lacosta


On the North course, it always felt like the holes were on the wrong side of the valley to me


More awkward than challenging. Look forward to seeing what Gil does, it’s not a slam dunk for sure

[Robert Mercer Deruntz]

Pat, I think you are spot on about the North.  The holes across Cannon Dr. would have been really interesting if they had been routed in reverse.  And of course, it would have been great if the barranca could have come into play more frequently.  I always look up on LaCosta as a lost opportunity to have made a great course.  When originally built, it would not have had to deal with the Coastal Commission and Army Corps of Engineers.

[Jeff Schley]

  I always look up on LaCosta as a lost opportunity to have made a great course. 

Very true and agreed. If they didn't play the match play there for numerous years to hype the course, it wouldn't be nearly as popular. If u take away the resort and match play publicity it wouldn't have made it this long.  I think Pelican Hill is better.

[Max Prokopy]

Just when you think the NCAA can't be more insufferable....


I have nothing against Hanse, don't know the course, but I hope this is capped at three years of the finals and not indefinitely.  It's a terrible idea that puts some very strong east coast programs at a genuine disadvantage.

How so?

Grasses, weather, humidity to name just a couple.  The sites should be moved around.  This isn't basketball. 

[Tim Leahy]

  I always look up on LaCosta as a lost opportunity to have made a great course. 

Very true and agreed. If they didn't play the match play there for numerous years to hype the course, it wouldn't be nearly as popular. If u take away the resort and match play publicity it wouldn't have made it this long.  I think Pelican Hill is better.

Pelican Hill would have been a great choice. 2 courses, great location for TV. Could use the nationwide exposure. But, did such an expensive resort want to give up at least 2 weeks revenue for Men's and Women's NCAA?

[Matt_Cohn]

Just when you think the NCAA can't be more insufferable....


I have nothing against Hanse, don't know the course, but I hope this is capped at three years of the finals and not indefinitely.  It's a terrible idea that puts some very strong east coast programs at a genuine disadvantage.

How so?

Grasses, weather, humidity to name just a couple.  The sites should be moved around.  This isn't basketball.

You might be the first person ever to claim that San Diego weather is a disadvantage for anything.

[Matt_Cohn]

  I always look up on LaCosta as a lost opportunity to have made a great course. 

Very true and agreed. If they didn't play the match play there for numerous years to hype the course, it wouldn't be nearly as popular. If u take away the resort and match play publicity it wouldn't have made it this long.  I think Pelican Hill is better.

Pelican Hill would have been a great choice. 2 courses, great location for TV. Could use the nationwide exposure. But, did such an expensive resort want to give up at least 2 weeks revenue for Men's and Women's NCAA?

Pelican Hill might be better, although it seems unfair to compare Pelican Hill to a course that doesn't exist yet. Winged Foot is better too, but I assume there are reasons they're going to Grayhawk and La Costa instead of Winged Foot and Pine Valley.

[Tim Leahy]

  I always look up on LaCosta as a lost opportunity to have made a great course. 

Very true and agreed. If they didn't play the match play there for numerous years to hype the course, it wouldn't be nearly as popular. If u take away the resort and match play publicity it wouldn't have made it this long.  I think Pelican Hill is better.

Pelican Hill would have been a great choice. 2 courses, great location for TV. Could use the nationwide exposure. But, did such an expensive resort want to give up at least 2 weeks revenue for Men's and Women's NCAA?

Pelican Hill might be better, although it seems unfair to compare Pelican Hill to a course that doesn't exist yet. Winged Foot is better too, but I assume there are reasons they're going to Grayhawk and La Costa instead of Winged Foot and Pine Valley.

I have played both La Costa courses and no matter how good the GCA is the land there is not conducive to GREAT golf compared to Pelican Hill or even Torrey Pines. I would bet the original location was picked for privacy and access to an upscale community. I think most if us would like to see a US OPEN type venue that changes for the NCAA's since there is now TV exposure which is what I am sure La Costa is happy to receive.

[Matthew Rose]

I'm guessing the composite (original) layout is no longer a thing anymore?

[Tim Gavrich]

  I always look up on LaCosta as a lost opportunity to have made a great course. 

Very true and agreed. If they didn't play the match play there for numerous years to hype the course, it wouldn't be nearly as popular. If u take away the resort and match play publicity it wouldn't have made it this long.  I think Pelican Hill is better.

Pelican Hill would have been a great choice. 2 courses, great location for TV. Could use the nationwide exposure. But, did such an expensive resort want to give up at least 2 weeks revenue for Men's and Women's NCAA?

The visuals certainly would be attractive, but Pelican Hill's two courses are spread-out, totally unwalkable, too short and overall not demanding enough for elite college competition. The South course is less than 6,600 yards and while the North is a little longer at about 6,900 yards, that's still far too short for modern top college players, especially when you consider that most of the tee shots on both courses play a good bit downhill.

[Kalen Braley]

I just figured the advantages lie in the simple fact that colleges in the West would be able to play the course more often and get familiar with it...as opposed to East Coast colleges that may never get out that way.

[Matt_Cohn]

I just figured the advantages lie in the simple fact that colleges in the West would be able to play the course more often and get familiar with it...as opposed to East Coast colleges that may never get out that way.

Link: "Texas will officially serve as host of the men’s and women’s tournaments at Omni La Costa, which are held on consecutive weeks in May. To preserve its neutrality as a venue, college players or teams won’t be allowed on it during the regular season."

[Kalen Braley]

I just figured the advantages lie in the simple fact that colleges in the West would be able to play the course more often and get familiar with it...as opposed to East Coast colleges that may never get out that way.

Link: "Texas will officially serve as host of the men’s and women’s tournaments at Omni La Costa, which are held on consecutive weeks in May. To preserve its neutrality as a venue, college players or teams won’t be allowed on it during the regular season."

Fair enough,

But given the official NCAA "regular season" is only 4 months long, I would presume they aren't banned from accessing it otherwise the rest of the year.

I'm guessing for the best players, venue won't make much difference anyway..

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