MCC Master Plan 2024
To the Members of Mesa Country Club,
Having spent the better part of the last 16 months researching and analyzing your golf course and its members, I can say in no uncertain terms that the results of this study fully represent the needs of your golf course. You should be congratulated for the passion that was shown during this process. Without it, this plan would not have come to be.
Our study addresses some of the most important aspects of the course – from the putting greens and bunker strategy, playability, and visual integrity, to the irrigation system, water use, maintenance expectations, costs, and overall environmental sustainability… everything we will do places maximum emphasis on quality, financial responsibility, and maintaining the current stature as one of the finest clubs in the Valley. I believe this is a plan you can be proud of – it is one that embraces your club’s history while preparing it for the next 30 to 50 years.
-Andy Staples, Golf Course Architect
Clubhouse Highlight
The Center of Attention
A “responsible refresh” of the Clubhouse facility, which includes renovating the men’s and women’s locker room facilities, replacing all of the carpet with new flooring, upgrading the entrance foyer, providing an access corridor to the women’s locker room from the members’ grill, and improving the member’s grill area (as funding will allow).
Irrigation Systems
What is being proposed?
We are proposing a complete overhaul of the current irrigation infrastructure. This will include replacement of all piping, sprinklers, and wiring, replacement and upgrade of the existing pump house and control station, and refurbishing and fixing of our existing irrigation lakes.
Why is this necessary?
Our current irrigation system is far past its expected lifespan and is in dire need of an upgrade. The existing irrigation system has been in place since the 1950s and is running on a control system and infrastructure that is far outdated. This has caused headaches for Sergio, as well as our past superintendents, as they stretch the limits of the system in order to keep the course in top condition.
As we look towards the future, having a state-of-the-art system that can keep up with impending water restrictions will ensure we can maintain the exceptional conditions of our course. It will also greatly improve efficiency in terms of our overall water and energy usage. Finally, it will give Sergio greater control and flexibility over the entire operation, getting a precise amount of water exactly where it is needed, reducing the number of costly annual repairs, and allowing for easy expansion to accommodate any future work.
Plan Highlights:
- Upgrade the existing pump house and central control computer to a state-of-the-art, energy-efficient, and precision system.
- Renovates the existing irrigation lakes, allowing for greater storage capacity to ensure ample supply during times of water restrictions.
- Replaces all existing irrigation heads, replacing them with units featuring individual head control that can deliver precision irrigation applications to specific areas of the course.
- Allows for fast and strategic adjustments during times of water restrictions, ensuring the most pertinent areas of the course remain playable while reducing overall waste.
- The new mainline design will allow for greater manageability during annual maintenance and emergency situations.
- Redesigned to ensure “head-to-head” coverage in all key areas of play to increase distribution uniformity and improve overall turf conditions and playability.
Greens Renovation
What is being proposed?
A complete rebuilding of all greens in place to USGA recommendations. This will include removal of the existing turf, coring out of existing greens mix and substructure, replacement of existing drainage and irrigation, and reconstruction with an improved sand mix, gravel drainage layer, and TifEagle bermudagrass putting surfaces.
Why is this necessary?
Though the current greens are functioning adequately now, our core sample analysis has revealed a significantly shallow root zone and high levels of organic matter within the greens mix. Over time, will escalate into greater difficulty maintaining high-quality conditions as increased inputs of water, fertilizer, and aeration will be needed to keep the turf alive under typical traffic.
The newly constructed USGA greens will alleviate these problems by creating a growing environment conducive to deep root growth and proper drainage, holding water deeper within the substructure and reducing moisture loss to evaporation during drought while properly flushing when water is in excess. In conjunction with the improved TifEagle bermudagrass, the new greens will not only play better, but will be much more sustainable in terms of water use and maintenance inputs.
In addition to the improved infrastructure, our plan also aims to restore select sections of the greens lost over years of maintenance. Our analysis shows that our greens have shrunk roughly 10% from their original size. The rebuild will give us a chance to recover these lost sections, increasing the amount of pinnable area, while preserving the small size and character that make our greens unique.
Plan Highlights:
- Replaces our existing, degraded substrate with a build following USGA recommendations.
- Improves the quality of the root zone, promoting deep root growth that will improve turf quality while reducing build up of subsurface organic matter.
- Upgrades to TifEagle burmudagrass that will require less water and uphold better playing conditions year round.
- Recovers pin locations and putting surfaces lost over the years due to general maintenance wear.
- Preserves the unique size and character of the greens while improving playing conditions.
Bunker Renovations
What is being proposed?
Reconstruction of all greenside bunkers and select fairway bunkers. This will include the removal of the existing sand and drainage, reshaping and grading as necessary, and the installation of new drainage, liner, and sand. Further bunker renovations will be identified for the future.
Why is this necessary?
As with much of our course, our bunkers are fast approaching the useful lifespan of their key infrastructure. If left unaddressed, drainage issues will continue to worsen, resulting in poor playing quality and costly maintenance just to upkeep current conditions.
Though we will not have the funding to do a complete bunker renovation at this time, the proposed greens renovation will provide a cost-effective window for completing these necessary upgrades on our greenside bunkers, as construction disturbance and mobilization can be consolidated to these areas.
The proposed bunkers will not only have improved drainage infrastructure, but will also feature improved strategic merit better matched to the strategy of our greens. We are taking inspiration from the Sand Belt of Australia, with angles and grassed fingers that better relate to each hole’s line-of-play. Additionally, the renovated bunkers will be shaped to reduce downhill lies and improve overall playability. As we continue renovations into the future, this style will serve as the template for our overall course aesthetic.
Plan Highlights:
- Renovates all greenside bunkers, improving playability and strategy utilizing the Sand Belt philosophy.
- Implements key bunker reductions/removals aimed at maximizing strategy while placing a focus on maintenance efficiency and reduction of labor.
- Replaces key drainage infrastructure to extend bunker lifespan another 20-30 years.
- Limits cost by focusing renovations on areas already slated for a disturbance with the greatest strategic impact.
- Provides a template for future bunker renovations that will guide our overall course aesthetic.
Clubhouse Renovation
Why is this necessary?
Along with the rest of the course, there has not been any significant investment into the clubhouse for decades. This has resulted in outdated décor, but more importantly the resulting layout of the clubhouse is severely outdated and has led to service challenges, suboptimal revenue generation, and member dissatisfaction.
To be clear, the goal of this project is not to do a full tear down of the facility. The project instead represents a “responsible refresh” of the Clubhouse. We have heard for years how resources should be dedicated to the members’ grill to increase member enjoyment and overall service. We certainly know how outdated the bathroom and shower facilities are in both the ladies’ and men’s locker rooms, and we can all see how the overall décor does not approach the world class facility that we all want MCC to be. This project will address these issues and more.
What is being proposed?
A “responsible refresh” of the Clubhouse facility, which includes renovating the men’s and women’s locker room facilities, replacing all of the carpet with new flooring, upgrading the entrance foyer, providing an access corridor to the women’s locker room from the members’ grill, and improving the member’s grill area (as funding will allow).
Plan Highlights:
- Upgraded men’s and women’s locker room facilities, including new bathroom and shower fixtures, new flooring, and new paint.
- New carpet and paint throughout the entire facility.
- Upgrade the entrance foyer to improve traffic flow and aesthetics.
- Construction of a corridor that allows women to access bathroom and locker facilities from the members’ grill during events without having to exit the building.
- Upgrades to the members’ grill to improve member’s enjoyment and service (as funding will allow).
Master Plan Summary
Frequently Asked Questions
The Club had two things going for us this past season. First, we hired the right Superintendent in Sergio Padilla. He is frankly one of the best in the business and has done a remarkable job with our course given the structural limitations he faces every day. Second… we got really lucky. Sergio himself has stated that we were fortunate this past year with all the rain the Valley received this season. Without making significant upgrades to our irrigation system (that has some components that are 50+ years old!) and pump house, and repairing our irrigation lakes, we are facing an existential threat that must be addressed. Also, note that 65% of the project costs are in these three items alone.
To be clear, the only projects you are currently voting on are the ones discussed in this brochure, which will be presented in detail at our member’s informational meetings. The Long Range Planning Committee will be taking on these other potential projects and bringing recommendations to the Board for consideration. Given the complexity and cost of changes to these areas, be assured that the members will have an opportunity to vote on any proposals, but don’t expect action on these items for at least another year.
The original Master Plan included a fairly robust improvement plan that was an exciting attempt to modernize the club and would have made an already great golfing experience even better. However, the plan cost exceeded $14M, and given our debt limits set in our bylaws plus the Board’s desire to minimize the outlay by our members, this plan was a non-starter. The current project will enable us to maintain the character and layout that makes MCC great with improvements to make it even better.
As of right now, the timing of the installation of the SRP path that will impact the 4th and 5th holes is up in the air. We certainly will have to re-route those holes when that finally happens. The Board is consulting with our key partner, Staples Golf Design, and Sergio to determine the best course of action at this time.
All payments made as part of the assessment are non- refundable. However, the Board has heard this concern loud and clear from our members, and the time has come to finally address the issue. Look for communication about a vote on by-law changes that will finally clarify our stock certificate purchase process and the future of Equity Membership at MCC. This project will set our club up for future success, and we understand that you should be able to reap a benefit from that success.
The Board has consistently received feedback from our members that we provide a lot of communication and are transparent in our actions. To that end, we implore all members to attend at least one of the upcoming informational meetings so we can answer any further questions face-to-face.
MCC simply could not have assembled a better project leadership team, headed by Andy Staples at Staples Golf Design (https://www.staplesgolfdesign.com/), Marvin Mills, irrigation design, and Sergio Padilla, our Superintendent. They will be available throughout the process and at our membership meeting to answer any questions and to provide as much detail as needed per member demand. SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR PROJECT TEAM!