Heritage Golf Group, the fastest-growing owner and operator of golf and country clubs in the U.S., has acquired three semi-private golf clubs in the Denver area. Heritage purchased The Golf Club at Bear Dance, Colorado National Golf Club, and Plum Creek Golf Club from the Bruening, Bennett, and Kerr families and Southwest Green, LLC. The three clubs are Heritage Golf Group’s first locations in the Western U.S.
“The opportunity to acquire these three exceptional facilities really bolsters our continued growth strategy as we expand geographically,” said Mark Burnett, president & CEO, Heritage Golf Group. “Our future capital investment will further enhance the member and player experience at each property. We are grateful that Stuart Bruening and his partners selected Heritage Golf Group to continue the legacy of these clubs for the next generation of families and we look forward to working with him through a seamless transition.”
Bruening, a long-time member of the Colorado PGA, was the principal owner of the three courses and will continue to serve as an advisor to Heritage Golf Group during the transition period. “I am confident in the vision Heritage Golf Group has for these three clubs, and its proven experience in elevating the golf experience makes them the right steward to take over ownership and operations of these properties,” said Bruening.
The award-winning, par 72, 18-hole Bear Dance course has been ranked for the past eight years as the top daily-fee course in the Denver area. Located in Larkspur, the Golf Club at Bear Dance is set on 753 acres of mountainous terrain with mature Ponderosa pines, oak-lined ridges, and native grass valleys. With an average elevation of 6,800 feet, it offers stunning views of the Rocky Mountains’ Front Range and surrounding mountain landscape. It is the home of the Colorado PGA and its Hall of Fame. A new state-of-the-art standalone pro shop building includes an advanced indoor simulator room. Practice facilities include a full-size driving range, putting green, and chipping green with a practice bunker. The clubhouse features a casual dining room with a large, covered outdoor patio, a ballroom with seating for 175, and a casual snack bar.
Colorado National Golf Club in Erie was designed by award-winning golf course architect Jay Morrish and offers breathtaking panoramas of the Rocky Mountains’ northern Front Range. The championship par 72 course is set on over 232 acres of land within the Vista Ridge Residential Community. Colorado National Golf Club is the long-term home of the University of Colorado men’s and women’s golf teams and offers a state-of-the-art practice facility including a double-sided driving range, two large putting greens, chipping green and practice bunker, and a 7,000-square-foot performance center with an indoor putting/chipping green and four indoor hitting bays. The Masters restaurant serves lunch and dinner seven days a week, Saturday breakfast and Sunday brunch, with seating for 175. The clubhouse also has a sizeable outdoor patio with seating for 120 overlooking the putting green/driving range, and a private dining room for special events.
Plum Creek Golf Club is located in Castle Rock. The par 72, 18-hole course was designed by Pete Dye in 1984 as a Tournament Players Club course and hosted a Champions TOUR event for several years. Practice facilities include a full-size driving range, putting green, and chipping green with a practice bunker. Significant capital improvements are underway, including a new irrigation system and a brand-new clubhouse. Scheduled to open in December 2022, the new clubhouse will include a new bar and grill with indoor and outdoor patio seating and a full-service pro shop.
Heritage Golf Group has grown the company from a collection of six (6) clubs to twenty-eight (28). With their home office in Northern Virginia, just outside Washington DC, Heritage’s 28 clubs are located in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Michigan, and Wisconsin.