SentryWorld golf course scores a hole-in-one after massive renovations
Stevens Point — After a windstorm blew down dozens of trees at SentryWorld about 10 years ago, the course contacted Robert Trent Jones Jr., who designed the central Wisconsin gem for Sentry Insurance, and asked for advice.
Jones sent one of his young associates, Jay Blasi, to look at the course and make recommendations.
"I typed up this report that said the windstorm was the best thing that ever happened to you and you should probably take out another 1,000 trees," Blasi said with a chuckle. "I think they were shocked and dumbfounded. I didn't think I'd ever be welcomed back."
Blasi not only was welcomed back, but he served as co-project architect — working in collaboration with Jones, whose firm he had left in 2012 to launch Jay Blasi Design — on a top-to-bottom renovation of SentryWorld.
It was a bold undertaking by Sentry, because the course and its clubhouse/Sports Center were the company's showpiece and the pride and joy of late CEO John Joanis. Opened in 1982, SentryWorld was the first upscale public course in Wisconsin and attracted golfers from throughout the Midwest.
"I'm born and raised in Stevens Point and I was 12 when it opened," said SentryWorld general manager Mike James. "I was in awe of this facility. Central Wisconsin hadn't seen anything like it. It had a little bit of a mystique to it."
But the course had lost some of its luster over the years and the infrastructure — drainage, irrigation, bunkers, cart paths — was falling apart. The clubhouse felt dated. SentryWorld needed an overhaul.
In came Jones, associate Bruce Charlton and Blasi, who made site visits for 28 consecutive weeks, commuting from his office in Los Gatos, Calif.
For Blasi, it was personal. A University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate, he first visited SentryWorld as a young boy when he accompanied the Sun Prairie High School golf team — coached by his father, Jac Blasi — to the course for a WIAA state tournament.
"I live in California but Wisconsin is home," Blasi said. "Everyone who knows me will joke about the fact that I'm wearing some form of Badger red at all times."
The SentryWorld renovation took two years to complete and the course was closed for the duration. Work went on behind fencing that kept out inquisitive passers-by and, inadvertently or not, heightened the suspense.
Would SentryWorld 2.0 live up to the hype?
The answer, in my opinion, is a resounding yes. The sturdy framework of the Jones design is still identifiable and its north-woodsy charm remains intact, but almost everything else is new and fresh and, in a word, spectacular.
SentryWorld was lengthened from 6,951 yards to 7,237 and toughened for the accomplished player who dares to tackle it from the back tees. At the same time, the architects made the course more playable for the recreational golfer by removing hundreds of trees and softening green complexes.
Gone are the multilevel greens surrounded by bunkers, which to the average golfer looked like impregnable castles protected by sandy moats. In their place are more subtly contoured putting surfaces with tightly mowed run-ups and collection areas spilling off to the sides.
A missed green no longer is a simple up and down for the better player, who has no fear of sand. But it's also not a terror for the higher handicapper, who can chip, pitch or even putt from 15 feet off the green.
"What makes it so exciting for the everyday player is that there a lot of bailouts and a lot more room," Blasi said. "It feels more inviting."
There are new holes that make good use of water features, but most of the original routing was left intact, including No. 16, the oft-photographed "Flower Hole."
"When I play the golf course and I compare it to back in the day, I know I'm still at SentryWorld," James said. "We were a parkland-style golf course when we opened and there's no doubt we still are. We didn't change our DNA."
SentryWorld will be closed on Mondays — a rarity for a public course — to give the turf a weekly breather.
"It goes back to that commitment to excellence," James said. "There's no doubt heavy traffic takes a toll on a golf course. So we're going to dedicate Monday every week to make sure the course has enough time to rebound from a heavy weekend. We want to make sure that those that come on Tuesday aren't disappointed."
I played the course Saturday and Sunday with 15 other golfers, the majority of whom had made many trips to Stevens Point to play in an annual Memorial Day weekend golf bash. These guys could barely contain their excitement to play SentryWorld again, and they weren't disappointed.
The fairway turf was perfect and the greens were as smooth and as true as any you'll see. James said they were rolling at 11 feet on the Stimpmeter over the weekend. The only disappointment was that the flowers weren't yet planted on No. 16.
The attentive staff went above and beyond, and we dined twice at P.J.'s in the re-imagined clubhouse. John Sather of Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Swaback Partners was the lead architect, and he used timber and stone to create something Frank Lloyd Wright might have built in the Northwoods.
"What's really neat is coming up the 18th fairway and seeing the clubhouse," James said. "That is such a great visual. Before it looked sort of like a warehouse. Now that view is spectacular and it speaks volumes to the facility and the new design."
Jones, whose portfolio includes Chambers Bay, site of the U.S. Open next month, once called SentryWorld "my Mona Lisa."
It is, once again, a masterpiece.
Reported by: JSOnline.com
Jones sent one of his young associates, Jay Blasi, to look at the course and make recommendations.
"I typed up this report that said the windstorm was the best thing that ever happened to you and you should probably take out another 1,000 trees," Blasi said with a chuckle. "I think they were shocked and dumbfounded. I didn't think I'd ever be welcomed back."
Blasi not only was welcomed back, but he served as co-project architect — working in collaboration with Jones, whose firm he had left in 2012 to launch Jay Blasi Design — on a top-to-bottom renovation of SentryWorld.
It was a bold undertaking by Sentry, because the course and its clubhouse/Sports Center were the company's showpiece and the pride and joy of late CEO John Joanis. Opened in 1982, SentryWorld was the first upscale public course in Wisconsin and attracted golfers from throughout the Midwest.
"I'm born and raised in Stevens Point and I was 12 when it opened," said SentryWorld general manager Mike James. "I was in awe of this facility. Central Wisconsin hadn't seen anything like it. It had a little bit of a mystique to it."
But the course had lost some of its luster over the years and the infrastructure — drainage, irrigation, bunkers, cart paths — was falling apart. The clubhouse felt dated. SentryWorld needed an overhaul.
In came Jones, associate Bruce Charlton and Blasi, who made site visits for 28 consecutive weeks, commuting from his office in Los Gatos, Calif.
For Blasi, it was personal. A University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate, he first visited SentryWorld as a young boy when he accompanied the Sun Prairie High School golf team — coached by his father, Jac Blasi — to the course for a WIAA state tournament.
"I live in California but Wisconsin is home," Blasi said. "Everyone who knows me will joke about the fact that I'm wearing some form of Badger red at all times."
The SentryWorld renovation took two years to complete and the course was closed for the duration. Work went on behind fencing that kept out inquisitive passers-by and, inadvertently or not, heightened the suspense.
Would SentryWorld 2.0 live up to the hype?
The answer, in my opinion, is a resounding yes. The sturdy framework of the Jones design is still identifiable and its north-woodsy charm remains intact, but almost everything else is new and fresh and, in a word, spectacular.
SentryWorld was lengthened from 6,951 yards to 7,237 and toughened for the accomplished player who dares to tackle it from the back tees. At the same time, the architects made the course more playable for the recreational golfer by removing hundreds of trees and softening green complexes.
Gone are the multilevel greens surrounded by bunkers, which to the average golfer looked like impregnable castles protected by sandy moats. In their place are more subtly contoured putting surfaces with tightly mowed run-ups and collection areas spilling off to the sides.
A missed green no longer is a simple up and down for the better player, who has no fear of sand. But it's also not a terror for the higher handicapper, who can chip, pitch or even putt from 15 feet off the green.
"What makes it so exciting for the everyday player is that there a lot of bailouts and a lot more room," Blasi said. "It feels more inviting."
There are new holes that make good use of water features, but most of the original routing was left intact, including No. 16, the oft-photographed "Flower Hole."
"When I play the golf course and I compare it to back in the day, I know I'm still at SentryWorld," James said. "We were a parkland-style golf course when we opened and there's no doubt we still are. We didn't change our DNA."
SentryWorld will be closed on Mondays — a rarity for a public course — to give the turf a weekly breather.
"It goes back to that commitment to excellence," James said. "There's no doubt heavy traffic takes a toll on a golf course. So we're going to dedicate Monday every week to make sure the course has enough time to rebound from a heavy weekend. We want to make sure that those that come on Tuesday aren't disappointed."
I played the course Saturday and Sunday with 15 other golfers, the majority of whom had made many trips to Stevens Point to play in an annual Memorial Day weekend golf bash. These guys could barely contain their excitement to play SentryWorld again, and they weren't disappointed.
The fairway turf was perfect and the greens were as smooth and as true as any you'll see. James said they were rolling at 11 feet on the Stimpmeter over the weekend. The only disappointment was that the flowers weren't yet planted on No. 16.
The attentive staff went above and beyond, and we dined twice at P.J.'s in the re-imagined clubhouse. John Sather of Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Swaback Partners was the lead architect, and he used timber and stone to create something Frank Lloyd Wright might have built in the Northwoods.
"What's really neat is coming up the 18th fairway and seeing the clubhouse," James said. "That is such a great visual. Before it looked sort of like a warehouse. Now that view is spectacular and it speaks volumes to the facility and the new design."
Jones, whose portfolio includes Chambers Bay, site of the U.S. Open next month, once called SentryWorld "my Mona Lisa."
It is, once again, a masterpiece.
Reported by: JSOnline.com
