MASSIVE 100-day renovation at Caves Valley | BMW Championship

MASSIVE 100-day renovation at Caves Valley | BMW Championship

[Music] I’m extremely proud of the execution what Kyle and his team have done post construction. We had 120 people on this golf course for a 100 days in a row. Different vendors, different disciplines. Just the fact that everybody pulled in the same direction is really rewarding. When you see 130 people scattered throughout a property, it can get pretty overwhelming. And I think at that point, you can go one of two ways, right? You could sit back and think, “Wow, there’s a lot going on.” Or put your chin down and get to work. It’s a very fulfilling feeling seeing start to finish. You can’t wait to show somebody what’s been accomplished. The original renovation started back in around 2020 when we were anticipating getting the uh BMW championship in 21. The second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs at the BMW Championship. K’s Valley Golf Club just outside Baltimore for the very first time. Kantley putting on a show. The course was great theater. It was a birdief fest out there. And another one. Patrick Kley, the BMW champion in incredible dramatic style. We didn’t have enough time to really do some of the stuff we wanted to do. And a lot of this stuff was on the drawing board for a number of years. We sat down with Tom Fazio and we really examined what worked well, what didn’t work well. Met with Kyle about the aggronomics which were challenging in 21. And working with Tom and Kyle, we were able to come up with a plan that you see today. It was October of 22 that the board had decided that we’re going to move forward with a fullcale renovation including greens, regrassing the fairways, installing all the drainage, installing the technology and the precision airs. We understood the timeline was going to be tight. It’s very difficult for a place like Caves to shut down for an entire year. So, we decided that on July 31st of 2023, we were going to shut down with a target date of just before Thanksgiving. It was roughly a 100 days that we knew we had ahead of us to get it done. What was the overall goal with the renovation? I think first and foremost the overall goal is to enhance the experience for the membership and then every so often if we have a championship to be able to have great playing surfaces and a great challenge for the best players in the world. Majority of the work we did is in the ground. all the green complexes totally rebuilt, precision air, heating, cooling. And then we had looked at design features that we had been contemplating for a number of years. And because we were awarded the championship in 25 again, we decided to bring those design features forward. Number one very significant change lengthening the whole what was that process like actually moving all that ground and changing everything. At any one time, it almost looked like a bomb went off. Not even dead grass. It was just dirt. We had several bulldozers for days on end just pushing dirt. It was 45,000 cubic yards of dirt we had to move. And that’s a number that think it’s a lot, but to actually see it is something else. Before the hole was about 360 yards with the green, as you can notice, down toward that fairway bunker. We decided to add a little length to the hole and we went down. Players left some hundred yards and we built a brand new green down to the left. Now the players will drive toward that fairway bunker. Landing areas right around that bunker about 300 yards off the tea and we’ll have a downhill, you know, 175 180 yard shot into a new green which sits kind of down and toward those trees you see down there. So, what you’ll notice is the significant elevation change from the first T to the first green. For several weeks, we had multiple bulldozers just consistently pushing dirt, pushing dirt. I think we we lowered the fairway consistently 5 ft and produced over 45,000 cubic yards of dirt, which allowed us to build the green in this place. as you can see, is is a very beautiful backdrop with the tree line tucked just beyond the green here. We also took part of that 45,000 cubic yards of dirt and widened the landing area on the second golf hole. We’re now on the second T, which for the championship will play as a par4. In the 21 championship, this was a par five. This hole is now 525 yards. The players will walk players right off the new first screen and drive the ball just to the left of these fairway bunkers that you see out there. There’s a brand new landing area we created for them so that they have ample space on which to drive the ball. And then from there, they will have a pretty substantial second shot, probably about a 215 to 220 yard shot up to an elevated green. The farther you hit the ball off the tea, the narrower the fairway gets. So, it’ll be a choice the player will have to make. [Music] Now, considering that it is now a par4, this is one scenario with the green where we’ve actually softened the contours to be a little bit more receptive to the ball flight. We’ve slightly moved the green over to the left. As you can see, there’s a little bit of a drop off, so there’s some danger as you’re coming in off the fairway, but largely try to make it a better playable par4. Here we are on the fifth hole, which is completely different than it was for the 21 championship. In 21, the teeing ground was over here to players right, and the green location was over these trees and perched up on top of a hill. The idea back then was that the players would lay down into the middle of the fairway and then hit a short shot up to the green. What ended up happening is because there really wasn’t much of a penalty for going for the green, the majority of the players tried to drive the ball over the trees and many were very successful. So when the championship was over, the club had been thinking about what they could do to make this hole a little bit more challenging. So we got with Mr. Fazio and what you see in front of you is the result of those collaborations. We’ve moved the T players left and lengthened the hole and moved the green down off the hill back into what you see as a penalty area, which is a marsh land. Now we have a hole that plays 370 yards downhill to a triple tiered green. Ideally, the players will either challenge this and try to drive it, or they’ll lay up and then hit a short pitch to a very, very narrow undelating green. It’ll be interesting to see how many try to drive this green because this time there’ll be a real penalty for missing it, especially if they miss it to the left. What was that process like creating this tiered green? A lot of fun. It was a lot of fun, you know, to see the green move from the top of the hill down to the 16 ground. That in itself was a cool sight to see again with the bulldozers moving the dirt and and all the different pieces that went along with it to get it to where it was and then to sit there and dissect the green. It was fun to watch the conversations between Mr. Maruchcci and Mr. Fazio there back and forth on how it would play and then me sitting here raising my hand. We just make sure this works, right? A lot of fun. It was a very cool experience. I just think it’s a really memorable hole that we’ve put together. And given that it’s a short par for what was a relatively easy hole, what we’ve turned it into today is really what makes me most proud of it. So, here we are on number 11. A slight change from 2021. As you look down, you could see the water feature on the right hand side. that’s been enhanced about 10% to the player’s right as you get up near the green. In addition to that, there used to be a big bunker in front of this green. That bunker has been removed and the green has been lowered about 4 feet to get it closer to the penalty area to the water. And slightly to the right, we have about 10 or 12 more feet on the right side of that green to kind of give the effect of wrapping the green around that water feature. There’s quite a number of contours on this green for this short par4. The players, if they decide to try to drive this green, you can see it’s a very narrow opening. If by chance they pull a little bit, they have a green side bunker. Bunker shot hitting downhill toward the water. They happen to push it, they have the water that comes into play on the right side and the green slopes toward the water over there. If they decide to play conservatively into the fairway, you can see the angle of the green and the way in which the grain rolls from left to right pretty severely. So, the water is definitely in play even if they’re hitting a wedge. [Music] Here we are in the 17th hole. A 240 yard downhill par three. Be quite a challenge here downhill to a new green. The water feature down there has been enhanced 30% to the left. Consequently, we were able to take the green complex and wrap it around the water feature and increase it by about 30% as well. So now we have many hole locations that will challenge the players back here. Prevailing wind is what we’re feeling today into us from the right. So even for the long hitters, this will be a long iron to maybe a hybrid. What do you think makes this hole a good part three? Certainly the challenge of the water feature is number one. Secondly, the green is very contoured toward the water. So if a player misses by a little bit, they’re going to be challenged by the water. You’ve got to hit a really good golf shot here. Three is a great number here. [Music] What are you most proud of with this project? Wow, that’s a good one. Well, first of all, I’m I’m proud of Caves Valley, the leadership, Steve Feder, our chairman, the effort of Tom Fazio, his continued interest in Caves, the membership. This wasn’t inexpensive. Everyone chipped in. Not only did they chip in financially, they chipped in with their ability to let us take the golf course for a period of time, their enthusiasm about hosting the championship. This membership here, they’re so supportive and you know, they don’t all live around the corner. This is a national membership and they come in and and they love the place and I’m very proud of that. It’s incredible to come into this place as my first superintendent’s job and really have a vision of what I saw this place becoming and then being able to mesh that vision with the management or the leadership here at Caves and the Fazio group has truly been a blessing. We couldn’t have done any of it without the staff. I mean for them to put in the sacrifices not only with the hours but the time away from their families and understand 100 days is a big feat in itself you know not just from a management standpoint but you know being a part of it and in the field so I can’t commend the staff enough for stepping up to the plate and really knocking this one out of the park. [Music]

In 2021, Caves Valley Golf Club hosted their first PGA TOUR event for the BMW Championship. After an exciting tournament debut, the golf club was awarded the 2025 BMW Championship. In preparation for the event, Caves Valley underwent an extensive renovation in 2023 in just over 100 days. Consultant Buddy Marucci and Superintendent Kyle Steidel walk through the agronomical advancements while explaining how key holes were changed.

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