CASTLE ROCK – When Jack Nicklaus talks about golf, all seems right with the world.

After a breathtaking flyover to inaugurate the BMW Championship, Nicklaus sat in a golf cart and told us a lot about Castle Pines Golf Club, the course he designed in 1981 and renovated over the last decade.

I was on the driving range reliving old times with former Rockies third baseman Garrett Atkins when the PR people asked me if I wanted to spend a few minutes with Nicklaus.

Except for my wedding, I’ve never said “I do” faster. Talking golf with Nicklaus is like going through Shakespeare’s sonnets or McCartney’s song lyrics.

In a sport known for Ben Hogan’s strokeplay, Arnold Palmer’s ruthlessness and Tiger Woods’ brilliance, no one has done it better than The Golden Bear. He holds the record with 18 major titles, 16 more than current world number one Scottie Scheffler, who shot 1-under-par 71 on Thursday.

Nicklaus is as much a part of this course as the pines. But his passion is more for his blueprints than the greens. At the height of his powers, Nicklaus dominated the 1960s and 1970s and one glorious day at the Masters in 1986.

It was often said that Nicklaus thought he would make a birdie on every hole.

“But honestly, I never played that well here. I didn’t win. I don’t know why I didn’t play well on the course, but there are really a lot of golf courses that I didn’t play well on,” Nicklaus said of Castle Pines. “But I didn’t design this golf course for me. I designed it for what the land gave me. And that’s what the land gave us here. I think the guys are really going to enjoy it.”

George Solich, president of the club, and his brother Duffy, the tournament chairman, were the driving forces behind the effort to bring the PGA Tour back to Colorado for the first time since 2014 and to Castle Pines for the first time since 2006. Ideally, the tour would return to the venue every year.

But traffic problems, accommodation logistics and the question of whether members want to have intruders every year make things more complicated.

“It depends on the club. I think George would love to have an event again, maybe the BMW every two years or something like that. That’s a nice thing,” Nicklaus said. “Denver has always been a great golf town. Bring people here for an event and let them see it.”

Castle Pines is considered one of Nicklaus’ best courses. As the golfers were introduced on the first tee above us, Nicklaus went through the fine-tuning he had overseen, hole by hole. A common theme emerged. He was looking for a course that would test the pros, but would not frighten the wealthy members with its level of difficulty.

Nicklaus, 84, displayed a photographic memory as he explained how he had “got some things sorted out” after 40 years. The highlights, like those of his career, were numerous.

The tee shot on the first hole dropped a little, a “chef’s kiss” for a “hole that was always a short par 5, 600 yards or so,” laughed Nicklaus.

The fairway of the second hole was oriented to the left “so that the average golfer could hit the ball upwards.”

The third hole was a problem for Nicklaus because it was between the fairways. He closed his eyes, added a lake and widened the green to make it more accessible.

The sixth hole had a habit of stealing souls, as misjudged shots would roll 100 yards back down the fairway. “So we built a bunker just before the green,” Nicklaus explained.

The next three holes featured set-back tees, a bunker here and there, and a change in the slope of the fairway. I felt like I was listening to Ted Williams lecture on hitting.

“That’s quite a lot for the first nine holes. I assume you’re recording that?”

“Yes, sir,” I replied.

Nicklaus nodded and began his turn on the back nine holes. I could practically see his eyes widen behind his sunglasses as he talked about three holes in particular, the 12th, 14th and 16th.

The 12th hole was opened on the right side to give members hope by moving the green closer to the hazard. “I think it’s one of the best holes on the golf course.”

But he has reserved one adjective for the 14th and 16th: “stunning.”

“At hole 14, we kept going until we realized we were off property,” Nicklaus joked. “It’s a long way back. But the hole needed it because it was short and downhill.” And just to be extra safe, he changed the direction of the creek so that from the second shot on you get an Instagram view with heart hands.

The original design of the 16th hole had incorrect information about the elevations, so they corrected the calculations, moved the tee up a little and lowered the green a little, and “now it’s a beautiful golf hole,” Nicklaus said.

Adam Scott made his professional debut at The International in 2000. He missed the cut, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t like the course.

“There are so many similarities between here and Muirfield Village (in Ohio),” Scott said. “It has Jack Nicklaus’ fingerprints all over it, and that goes for this place, too.”

Alex Noren, who took third place, marveled at the beauty of the course and the atmosphere.

“They like having us around,” Noren said. “It was like a major out there.”

Jack Vickers spared no expense when he created Castle Pines. He wanted his version of the Masters, so naturally he teamed up with the man who had won it six times.

On Thursday, professional golf returned to Colorado. And I’ll tell you one thing: It was never as authentic as from Nicklaus’ perspective.

“I think the course will play well, especially if it doesn’t rain,” Nicklaus concluded. “You can throw the ball on the green and it will go flat. And nobody likes that. These guys certainly don’t. They like it a little more challenging when the ball bounces like that. The next few days should be a lot of fun.”

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Originally published: 22 August 2024 at 17:30