Medinah No. 1 A Possible BMW Championship Host Some Day?
/Teddy Greenstein says Conway Farms was a big hit and is likely to host again in 2015 after Cherry Hills hosts the BMW next year--assuming Colorado hasn't washed away by then.
But a couple of intriguing venue names have come up for the long term, including the newly renovated Medinah No. 1 that sports a camel bunker in Tom Doak's first ever homage to the later work of Desmond Muirhead.
Beyond 2015, the tour and Western Golf Association will consider other Chicago venues, though few present a rigorous enough challenge, can handle 40,000 spectators and have an open membership policy.
A new option that Kaczkowski called "intriguing" will open for play next summer, when the renovation of Medinah No. 1 is completed at a cost of $6.4 million.
Architect Tom Doak, who designed such celebrated courses as Lost Dunes, Pacific Dunes and Ballyneal, is vying to give Medinah's members a worthy partner to the famed No. 3 course, which hosted the 2012 Ryder Cup.
The par-71 layout will be roughly 6,900 yards with deep-faced bunkers and a par-3 finish. If it lands an event of the BMW Championship's caliber, length could be added and the nines could be flipped to create a 600-yard finishing hole.
"Any time you are talking about a championship opportunity, our membership has demonstrated excitement," said Medinah official Mike Crance. "We will see how it plays out."