Offering one of the courses at Wild Spring Dunes.
Courtesy Wild Spring Dunes
If three golf resorts are good, four are better.
At least that’s the word from the Keizer family – the masterminds behind Bandon Dunes – this Memorial Day weekend, at the same time they announced the creation of Wild Spring Dunes, a brand new public golf course at the intersection of Dallas, Houston and Shreveport, Texas.
The new facility marks the fourth location in the family’s growing golf empire, following in the footsteps of the highly successful Bandon Dunes and Sand Valley properties. Wild Spring Dunes will be part of the Keizer family’s second “phase” of golf resorts, announced a year after the highly anticipated (and under construction) Rodeo Dunes on the outskirts of Denver.
Like other resorts in the Keizer family’s portfolio, Wild Spring Dunes will be a full-service, publicly accessible resort with upscale lodging and dining options. But as always, the golf will be the main attraction – and at Wild Spring Dunes, there’s plenty to enjoy. The Keizers already have a route from acclaimed course designer Tom Doak for one of the 18-hole courses in the area, and legends Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw are a close second. A third short course is also expected in the area, although design details for that have yet to be released. You could forgive the Keisers for being overly ambitious about the property, but they say the 2,400-acre property has echoes of Pine Valley, Pinehurst and Shoreacres (not bad company!).
“This world surprised me,” said Michael Keiser, the namesake and eldest son of the family magnate, in a statement. “I never imagined this kind of property in Texas. Pine forests. Steep canyons. Big hills surround it. You walk the site, and it’s always changing, and you can see golf holes in every part of it. Founders will be as surprised and excited by Wild Spring Dunes as I am.”
The excitement surrounding the area comes largely from the four “distinct” ecosystems that Keizer notes: forest, meadows, hills and ravines. But some of them also have to come from the place. Texas has been less fertile in golf development in the last few decades, even as course projects are booming in more remote areas of the United States, and the Keizer family’s investment represents the first true contender for the prestigious Omni Barton Creek in the state. Golf course. The new facility is about two hours away from Dallas, Houston and Shreveport, but its proximity to those cities (and their major international travel hubs) means that getting to the new site will pale in comparison to the epic journey required. of, say, Bandon Dunes.
As the Keisers have done at other resorts, a “Founder’s Membership” program will exist with Wild Spring Dunes, offering a host of benefits to those willing to contribute a $65,000 refundable deposit. Among the perks: Early access to the property, preferred selection of real estate and exclusive golf privileges such as tee times, tournaments and lodging.
However, for the rest of us, the excitement will be limited mainly to online photos and reviews via the resort’s official website and the social media accounts of its parent company, Dream Golf. An opening date for the site has yet to be announced, but it’s safe to say that Wild Spring Dunes will open well after the Keizer family’s next project, Rodeo Dunes, which is expected to break ground in early 2025.
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