WACO, Texas — In its hay day, Bear Ridge Golf Club in Waco was one of the state's premier golf courses, making the Woodway-McGregor area a golf destination of sorts.
After years of disrepair, the course unveiled its first step on the journey back to that status Friday.
"We invested heavily in the irrigation system and then began the bunker renovations and the greens renovations and we're seeing the fruits of that labor, now," superintendent Andrew Moore said. "We're excited to announce the greens are back open."
Tommy Tompkins bought the course in November and immediately went to work trying to fix the course.
He said the day he bought the course, it was tough to tell where the green started, fairway ended and rough took over.
The work on the greens and bunkers took five months and finished ahead of schedule, Tompkins said.
"The good thing is this is the starting point," Moore said.
McLennan Community College will begin practicing at Bear Ridge, again, in addition to Cottonwood in Waco after leaving Bear Ridge several years ago.
Moore said within a year, they expect to be in good enough condition to be back in the running to host major tournaments, including the Big 12 tournament.
In that time, they'll re-work fairways, clean up the rough and clean up the edges of the course and driving range.
"In addition to being a great golf course, this could be a great practice facility," Moore said.
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