 COURSE
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The Golf Club at Bear Dance: Preserving History Major Role In Scenic New LayoutBy David R. Holland,
There's history in the land, history in the golf course name and there will be history in the clubhouse -- a place where archives and keepsakes of the Colorado PGA will be preserved. The name Bear Dance comes from a sacred Native American ritual, and after of years of searching for the right situation, the Colorado PGA chose it as a permanent home. Next spring, when the 14,000-square foot clubhouse is finished, the 750-member Colorado Section will have the second floor and 2,700-square feet for its offices.
That space will also include a 1,000-square foot memorabilia area showcasing such members as Dow Finsterwald, captain of the 1977 Ryder Cup and 1957 Vardon Trophy winner, and Paul Runyan, a two-time PGA Champion. Bear Dance also chose a historic area in Colorado history. Although there are no visible remains, the area was a defensive point for the entire West Plum Creek Valley during the Indian Wars of 1868. It was called Fort Washington, a log stockade that enclosed a homestead cabin and a large well. Traditions of the game are also honored. One only has to look at the names of each hole to take in more golf lore -- Old Tom Morris, Harry Vardon, The Babe, Payne Stewart, The Bear, Bobby Jones, The Slammer, Iron Byron, Francis Ouimet, Tom Watson and The King are some of the celebrated names.. The dream of this golf course started with Gene Taylor, a retired Frontier Airlines pilot, who learned persistence as a Depression-era youngster. Like his peers of the day, school was secondary to working and keeping his family fed. Taylor first visited the land known as Douglas Park in 1982. He was financially unable to buy all the acreage he wanted, but finally in 1994 he bought 671 acres. Just north of the 11th tee is his home, a spot where he and his wife Joan enjoyed the view for 12 years, sipped coffee and dreamed of someday building a golf course. Taylor Mountain Ranch is offering only 47 home sites, keeping the area as natural as possible, and all the homes you see on the course now are Taylor's children's. Ask Taylor who the architect was and he points toward the heavens. "But a few of us mortals had a small hand in it," he says. The other mortals are golf pros, construction workers and the owners of Bear Dance -- Dennis Hogan, Corey Aurand, Phil Currie and Stuart Bruening (design consultation from Brian Whitcomb). The company is Southwest Greens of Colorado, L.L.C., and they also designed Club West, in Phoenix; The 500 Club, Phoenix; Mountain Brook, Mesa, AZ; Western Skies, Chandler, AZ; and Lost Tracks, Bend, OR.
"No hard money was exchanged," Hogan said. Just hard work. Taylor actually created an original routing with help from Rick Phelps and parts of that design were incorporated into the final Bear Dance layout, which includes 62 bunkers and fairways lined with Ponderosa pines and gambel oaks. The quartet of golf-pro owners did everything -- they paved the parking lot, drove the bulldozers, loaders and scrapers. "The other guys already had the construction experience," said Hogan, a past president of the Southwest PGA Section. "I was doing the marketing for the company, but these guys had already done eight other courses so I learned the construction end of it from them." High-handicappers might squirm when they see the length of Bear Dance's stunning par-72 layout. The Pro Tees measure 7,661 yards and the Black is a healthy 7,279 yards. Even the Blue Tees are 6,814 yards, but Hogan, the Director of Golf, reminds you that many holes play downhill and with an average altitude of 6,800 feet, you will get that additional light-air carry.
"Still, No. 1, a 502-yard par 4, requires a solid tee shot, even if it is downhill," Hogan said. "But the hole that everyone is talking about is No. 9. Make a tiny mistake here and you will pay for it on the scorecard." The ninth, Iron Byron, also a 502-yard par 4, plays uphill through a chute of trees and over a huge native ravine. The tee shot demands power and accuracy, missing a huge Ponderosa pine guarding the right fairway boundary. Bogey 5 will be the norm here. Interestingly, the first hole-in-one recorded at Bear Dance was on the downhill par-4, 315-yard No. 6, that features a minefield bunker complex. From the tee you can't miss the vision of a bear paw in sand.
Be precise on the 100-foot drop, downhill tee shot and approach at No. 16, keep your mind off the tumbling, rock-strewn creek bordering the par-3 17th, and stay left-center on your No. 18 drive, away from those pot bunkers positioned right. From the back tees the finale is 655 yards. Another meaningful detail -- Hogan says by all means don't be distracted with your approaches. The greens slope from back to front and average 7,000-square feet. "Keep the ball below the hole," he injects. "If you don't, you will have some three-putts. The greens are rolling eight on the Stimp Meter now, but toward the end of the summer they will be at 10." With "keep the ball below the hole" constantly in your head, sometimes many golfers think that is impossible when the pin is up front and the greens are firm.
If you can pull off this shot at Bear Dance, you definitely will be rewarded.
The Golf Club at Bear Dance Internet: www.thegolfclubatbeardance.com. Directions: From Denver take I-25, Exit 181 south of Castle Rock and proceed south on the west frontage road to Tomah Road. Turn right, cross the railroad tracks, take the first left and follow the signs. From the south, take Exit 176 and proceed north on the frontage road to Tomah Road. Director of Instruction: Danny Harvanek, a Master PGA Pro, is the Director of Instruction at Bear Dance. He arrives from Englewood Municipal Golf Course where he was teaching pro from 1998-2002. He formerly served as head pro at Cherry Hills and Bear Creek. Bear Dance Schedule: The Colorado Cup Matches were played on June 11. The Colorado PGA Section Foundation Pro-Am is June 24 and Colorado Section Championship is Sept. 9-11. You will find junior programs here along with foundation functions, PGA section business meetings and educational seminars. Where to StayThe brand-new Best Western Inn & Suites of Castle Rock is a short walk away from the Prime Outlets and numerous restaurants just 30 miles from Denver International Airport and 40 miles from the Colorado Springs Airport. Take the I-25, exit 184 to find the hotel. Aside from golf at Bear Dance, two award-winners -- Red Hawk Ridge and The Ridge at Castle Pines North -- are minutes away. The hotel offers a free continental breakfast, an indoor heated pool with a spa, Jacuzzi suites and balconies facing the mountains with views. All rooms have king or queen beds with a 27-inch television, microwave, refrigerator, dataports, iron, ironing board, free local calls, HBO, hairdryer and coffee maker. Airport shuttle service to DIA Best Western Inn & Suites of Castle Rock David R. Holland, an award-winning Senior Writer for TravelGolf.com, travels and plays all over the globe. Watch for his series on British Columbia's Vancouver and Whistler coming soon in RockiesGolf.com. Comment on this story on our reader feedback page. |
When Taylor didn't have luck giving the land to Douglas County for a
public-use golf course, the four golf pros found him. Hogan had been
eye-balling the property for years, but it had no access. When the two
factions came together, a deal was struck. Taylor exchanged the land
for the pros' expertise to build the dream. 
Elevation varies 600 feet throughout the layout with a slope of 141
as you dodge a gauntlet of flashed bunkers with white sand, fly muscular
mounds, negotiate twisty fairways that turn left and right and elude
eight ponds.
The views could be distracting and include Pikes Peak, Raspberry Butte,
Devil's Head, Dawson Butte, Larkspur Butte and the snow-capped Continental
Divide as your round concludes with imaginative, thought-required shotmaking
on the finishing holes of 16 through 18.
And then you face this scenario: Your approach is just short of the
elevated, mesa-placed green. The pin is up front and there is a ridge
or mound between you and the putting surface. If the ridge or mound
is cut cleanly and tight, pros will tell you one way to play the shot
is a bump into the mound. Playing the ball back in your stance, if struck
correctly, the ball will hit the mound and pop up in the air, losing
most of its forward momentum and sit softly by the pin. 
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