Originally published in June 2024 Club + Resort Business Magazine 

Members of Great Hills Country Club in Austin, Texas approved replacing the 50-year-old irrigation system and established a Task Force on Golf Course Sustainability and Playability to develop a long-term plan for the golf course. Greens, bunkers and the practice facility will also be upgraded. Additionally, conceptual plans are in place to create a quiet dining space, a casual family bistro, a new outdoor bar and a children’s playscape area.

Members of Great Hills Country Club have approved a $22.3 million golf course and clubhouse enhancement project.

Having celebrated the club’s 50th anniversary in 2023 with the golf course’s original irrigation system still in place, GHCC was faced with difficult decisions to ensure the longevity of the club. The club realized that a new irrigation and drainage system was necessary to combat the increase in drought conditions.

The GHCC Board of Directors declared it essential that all planning and design be guided by experienced professionals and rooted in membership feedback. GHCC engaged Club Benchmarking to assess where it stood financially with operations, capital, cash reserves, depreciating assets, and to help model the impact of potential critical and aspirational investment items.

It also established a Taskforce on Golf Course Sustainability and Playability to develop a long-term plan for the golf course. In August of 2022, the committee recommended engaging Curtis Tyrell to be the Project Manager, as he would bring 30 years of golf course management and renovation experience to the project. Tyrell was tasked with creating a plan that would ensure water security while also addressing members’ course concerns.

Kimley-Horn, one of the nation’s premier water engineering, planning, and design consultants with offices in Austin, was also brought in to develop a water sustainability plan and to assist with the submission of necessary permitting documents, coordinating with regulatory agencies, and providing support throughout the construction process.

GHCC selected Texas-based, award-winning course designer Chet Williams as its golf course architect and irrigation design firm to collaborate with Kimley-Horn, as well as Illinois-based firm EC Design to spearhead its commercial irrigation design.

GHCC has plans to break ground on the water security project and golf course renovations in October of 2025 and have the course ready for its grand reopening in the spring of 2027. These renovations are part of a comprehensive master plan, dubbed Great Hills 2030. The project includes:
– Significant expansion of ground water capture and storage
– Installation of a modern irrigation system
– Green reconstruction and placement
– Bunker renovations
– Short-game practice area
– Improved driving range, including four to five covered bays with Trackman/TopTracer technology

“I’m so proud that our membership stepped up to make this critical investment in securing the future for our club,” GHCC Board President John Ellett said. “With the advice provided by the experts we engaged, members had the confidence that we will create a more sustainable golf course that will be even more enjoyable to play.”

As part of the strategic planning process, Club Benchmarking collected member feedback which reflected a desire for clubhouse enhancements that would result in an increase in member usage and enjoyment. As with the golf course project, proposed clubhouse changes have been advised by experienced professionals.

Following numerous meetings with club management and an advisory committee, the McMahon Group formulated conceptual plans to create a quiet dining space, a casual family bistro, a new outdoor bar and a children’s playscape area. A project manager and commercial designer will be hired to refine and complete these areas now that the plan has been approved.

Club + Resort Business reported on the club’s $12 million clubhouse renovation in February 2018, when Great Hills replaced an existing 11,000-sq. ft. clubhouse and administration building with a new two-story, 27,000-sq. ft. clubhouse, and also constructed a pool pavilion and 4,500-sq. ft. community recreation building. C+RB followed up in August 2018 with news of the groundbreaking.

GHCC’s active tennis community will also benefit from Great Hills 2030 with the addition of four tennis courts and eight dedicated pickleball courts – the largest investment in the club’s tennis program to date. These additions will provide GHCC’s tennis and pickleball programs the opportunity to grow and continue to thrive.

“This significant milestone — led by best-in-the-business Golf Course Architect Chet Williams, who has designed three of the top five golf courses in Texas — will ensure the longevity of our club for many generations to come,” Gaith Alkadi, General Manager/COO of GHCC, said. “This transformative project is going to keep Great Hills Country Club as one of the premier golf courses in Austin.”

GHCC, established in 1973 and member-owned since 1985, is an 18-hole private country club offering all-inclusive memberships ranging from social to full golf members. The club is scenic and tucked into the rolling hills of Northwest Austin, just minutes from downtown.