Jay Morrish knows few believe him. It’s pure coincidence, he insists, that his final project as a golf architect will be in his native Colorado.
Morrish, 68, plans to hang up his sketch pad after completing work on Ravenna Golf and Country Club, a private facility under construction southwest of Chatfield Reservoir.
Born and raised in Grand Junction, Morrish announced his impending retirement in the spring. Ravenna had been in the planning stages for six years before developers finally broke ground last month. When he signed on to design Ravenna in 2001, Morrish had no idea it would be his last effort.
Ravenna, which will measure about 7,350 yards, is scheduled to open for play in October 2006.
“It just worked out that way, but it’s nice that the last one will be in Colorado,” said Morrish, who is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Morrish will complete his career not far from where it began more than four decades ago. In 1964, he taught horticulture at Colorado State after receiving a degree from CSU in landscape architecture – an academic background that landed Morrish a job with Robert Trent Jones Sr.
The Western Slope boy did well for himself. Jones made Morrish the construction manager for Spyglass Hill, a prestigious project on the Monterrey Peninsula that certainly looked good on Morrish’s résumé. After completing apprenticeships with Jones and George Fazio, Morrish joined Jack Nicklaus’ design team in 1972.
He was directly involved in helping Nicklaus design Castle Pines Golf Club. He was the first golf course architect to see the site that would become home to The International. He flew in from the Nicklaus offices in Palm Beach, Fla., and surveyed the area by helicopter with Jack Vickers.
“We touched down in a few places, and I got out a pen and started taking notes,” Morrish recalled. “I brought back a couple of routing plans to Jack. And, lo and behold, one of them worked.”
Working 10 years under Nicklaus launched Morrish’s career.
“In working with Jack, I learned what a great golfer looks for in a golf course,” Morrish said.
Morrish is best known, however, for his work with Tom Weiskopf. Their 12-year partnership (1983-94) generated 23 courses, most notably Troon Golf Club (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Forest Highlands (Flagstaff, Ariz.), the Double Eagle Club (Galena, Ohio), Las Colinas Sports Club (Irving, Texas), home of the PGA Tour’s Byron Nelson Championship, and Loch Lomond near Glasgow, which hosts the Scottish Open.
Jim Engh, an award-winning golf course architect based in Castle Rock, admires Morrish’s work.
“After just playing the first hole of a Morrish or Morrish-Weiskopf course, I can always see that there was a great deal of passion and caring put into its design,” Engh said.
Reachable par 4s that challenge golfers with a risk-reward decision became a Morrish-Weiskopf trademark. At Ravenna, big hitters may try to reach the green on the 335-yard 17th.
“At the time, I didn’t think about short par 4s as being a key to our philosophy; we just thought they’d be fun for the player,” Morrish said.
Morrish’s philosophy of contouring a golf course along the natural topography complemented Weiskopf’s traditionalist tendencies.
“I don’t like to see big yellow equipment out there just for the sake of moving dirt,” Morrish said.
The Ravenna property features red rock formations, outcrop faces, deep ravines, pine and aspen groves and panoramic views. Plans call for 243 homes in the upscale development.
But the golf course will be the focal point.
Tom Kensler can be reached at 303-820-5456 or tkensler@denverpost.com.
