La Cantera (Resort Course)
San Antonio, TX
GolfChannel.com/TravelGolf.com, 4/11
Tom Weiskopf and Jay Moorish
'02 Fees: $115-$130
La Cantera assumes new identity with Tour's move to TPC
By BRANDON TUCKER
TravelGolf.com
Posted: April 13, 2011
SAN ANTONIO – This week the PGA Tour Valero Texas Open returns for the second year to the new TPC San Antonio AT&T Oaks Course.
For the nearby Westin La Cantera Resort, seeing it staged up the road is bittersweet.
"We miss it," said Greg Haugland, director of sales & marketing at Westin La Cantera. "The first year without it stung a little bit. But we're proud of what we did with it for 15 years."
The PGA Tour can move events as they please, but history will prove kind to La Cantera. The Texas Open wouldn't be thriving like it is today without it. In fact, it might not have a pulse. The Open, which began in 1922 at Brackenridge Park Golf Course, amassed an impressive list of champions, including Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Ben Crenshaw.
But it ran into a speed bump in 1993 when H.E.B. dropped its title sponsorship. Following a sponsor-less 1994 staging at Oak Hills Country Club, the new La Cantera Resort picked it up and sponsored the event until Valero assumed the title role in 2002. Between then and the course's final staging in 2009, it went from a spot buried on the Tour's Fall Series to kicking off the coveted "Texas Swing."
Finding a new niche in San Antonio
Westin La Cantera now co-exists with the TPC San Antonio and on-site 1,001-room JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort.
Westin hasn't cowered in the shadow of the sparkling new, mega-sized JW Marriott. In 2008-2009, the property underwent a multi-million-dollar renovation, with upgrades to guest rooms and public areas. With just half the rooms of the JW Marriott, it's smaller size has turned out to be a selling point to group functions.
"A lot of groups we speak to like the idea they can come in and take over the whole place while they're here," Haugland said.
For golfers, both the Palmer Course and Resort Course are competitively priced (often as low as $79-89 for morning times on GolfNow.com). It means they can attract a fair share of local play as well as guests from the resort or other area hotels.
In contrast to the demanding AT&T Oaks Course and AT&T Canyons Course at TPC San Antonio, La Cantera's Resort Course is kind to amateurs. As the name implies, this Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish collaboration can be as tough as you want with five sets of tees. It's only brutal if you're playing the wrong box.
"You don't have to put the ball in the air," said Steve Shields, director of golf. "You can bump-and-run it all the way around."
The Troon Golf-managed club has also seized the opportunity in its new role as a "former" tour stop. Through the month of April, golfers in town have the chance to play the Resort Course in the same setup it was for the Texas Open. Greens are fast, the rough is penal, and some pin positions are unmerciful.
The experience is completed with a fully detailed, pro-style caddie book, to offer a glimpse of just how precise tour players are.
And on the Monday when the PGA Tour ships out, La Cantera's Resort and Palmer courses remain a key host in the Benefit for Children's Golf Classic, a fundraiser staged on 11 area courses that has generated $35 million since 2002.
Celebrating Texas history and Hill Country flavor
Stop and look around a little at La Cantera, and its setting on the former "King Ranch" atop a limestone bluff, which looks out 20 miles from its perch in every direction, comes alive with history. This piece of quarry has been a coveted spot in central Texas for centuries. Nearly every room of the resort, like Emily Rose's Court, Tio's Lobby Bar or Esperanza Library, pay homage to legends.
The Hill Country spirit is omnipresent when the resort's golf is combined with its culinary offerings. Executive Chef John Armstrong oversees a handful of restaurants that highlight the tastes of the area. At Francesca's at Sunset, the resort's signature restaurant, they've created a colorful, farm-to-table menu full with standouts like a chili-rubbed filet of beef. Or, try a double rack of wild boar from Broken Arrow Ranch just west of San Antonio. Most of the produce you eat on this ever-evolving menu comes from "Farmer Bob" Mishler at his 17-acre Uncertain Farms just 11 miles away.
To go with the meal you can choose from a selection of Texas' emerging wine selection. Not sure where to start? Sommelier Paul Krueger offers daily tastings in Steinheimers Pub.
La Cantera is committed to sustainable, Hill Country fare to go with a property that oozes Texas history on its walls and the stone beneath your feet.
As Texas celebrates its Open this week, we can all toast that.
Golf Digest Review: The Resort Course rather famously overlooks the roller coasters at Six Flags Fiesta Texas. It's also the venue of the PGA's Valero Texas Open, a favorite of 3-time winner Justin Leonard. A track blessed with a great piece of ground (a former rock quarry), the holes along the old quarry cliffs offer grand views of the wooden Rattler or the Superman Krypton coasters.
PGA Tour.com Review: La Cantera Golf Club underwent a complete bunker renovation during the summer of 1999. The signature holes at La Cantera are Nos. 7 and 12. The seventh hole requires a tee shot from a cliff dropping down to the fairway while overlooking Fiesta, Texas, which houses Six Flags amusement park. The 12th hole has a ravine that runs along the front of the green. La Cantera means "the rock" in Spanish. The golf course was built upon an old rock quarry.
The course's design includes natural water hazards, such as swift running streams and waterfalls, which come into play on several holes. Six holes offer panoramic views of the San Antonio area. Several oak trees line the fairways, and the greens are large, fast and undulating. Over 70 white-sand bunkers are spread throughout the course. The course offers a variety of other holes, including each of the par 3s playing to a different yardage and direction, all requiring a variety of club selections. Also, each of the par 5s play in a different direction, bringing a variety of wind conditions, varying scenic views, and an assortment of different strategies.
The PGA TOUR moved the Valero Texas Open from its October date in the schedule to May, giving Kadlec the agronomic challenges of getting the golf course to peak in a different season and for the second time in seven months.
Fat Guy Note: My buddy Jeff played here and really enjoyed the elevation changes. He was surprised that it had a few more desert elements than he was expecting.
Best Bars, San Antonio: Travel Channel recommends Far West Rodeo Bar, complete with a huge dance floor for two-steppin' and line dancin', the obilgatory mechanical bull, and a real-live rodeo ring right in the bar! Up to 3,000 cowpokes visit here on any given weekend. Golf Digest says break a leg to get to Liberty Bar (210-227-1187). Legend has it the Liberty was once a brothel, but it's now a cigar-friendly tavern where the cooks make everything from scratch. If the walls begin to look plumb, you've been there too long. Swig (210-476-0005) is THE martini and cigar bar on the Riverwalk, directly beneath Howl At The Moon (210-212-4695), which should require no explanation. Golf Magazine likes Carlsbad Tavern and Casbeer's Center Bar & Grill for good burgers and fresh jazz, blues, and roots music (whatever that is). OR, hit Laboratory Brewing Company for cervezas, tamales, and tunes. Try Gruene Hall for well-known TX acts. Check local alternative weekly paper The Current or www.SanAntonioCVB.com for who's playing where when. A British pub might be the last place you'd think to hit in San Antone, but my buddy Jeff said the Mad Dog Tavern was a decent spot.
Where To Grub: Golf Digest says head for the San Antone Riverwalk, the heart of a downtown on the come, and a great place to relax at a cafe. The Riverwalk's best eatery is Boudro's (210-224-8484), or try Zinc (210-224-2900), a classy wine bar owned by the same folks. For Mexican, hit Mi Tierra (210-225-1262) on Market Square, near San Antone's best art gallery, Galeria Ortiz. OR, try the chimichangas at Tomatillos. Golf Magazine likes the upscale El Mirador (yo quiero lobster tacos); the earthier La Calesa for interior-Mex; or local fave Los Barrios. Tired of the Tex-Mex theme? For fine Northern Italian, Golf Magazine recommends Aldino; Koi Kawa for sushi; creative Pacific Rim delights at Craig's Saute & Grill; Cantonese at Gin's; or for dressy French, splurge at Le Reve. Travel Channel loves the BBQ at Rudy's in Leon, TX (www.rudys.com/index.html, advertising the worst BBQ in TX). Served sauceless to prove how tender the meat is, sauce choice is up to you. Fat Guy has sampled and mail-ordered BBQ sauces from all over the country, and Rudy's tangy/spicy sauce is one of Fat Guy's personal favorites. Take a couple bottles of their famed dry rub and sauce home for grillin'. About 40 miles NE of San Antone is Kreuz Market in Lockhart, TX, one of the first BBQ stands in the country, serving simple dry-rubbed BBQ seasoned only with salt & pepper, and the only side is bread. Food Network says the best breakfast tacos in America, made from all fresh ingredients (including made-to-order flour and corn tortillas), are at Taco Taco Cafe.
Further Diversions: Remember The Alamo, which is where "Don't mess with Texas" got it's venom. Brought the kids? Travel Channel rated New Braunfeld,TX's Schlitterbahn water park as America's best in 2006. A German castle theme and a roller-coaster-like raft slide make this a hot place to cool off. Or hit Six Flags or SeaWorld.
Where To Stay: Staying at a boutique hotel on the RiverWalk will give you the most local flavor, but for those who'd rather be stumbling distance to the course, Westin La Cantera Resort (210-558-6500) has stay-n-play golf packages. Hit breakfast at Brannon's. OR, Travel Channel loves Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort (800-233-1234, www.sanantonio.hyatt.com ), which also has stay-n-play packages. My buddy Jeff says the Hyatt's on-site Arthur Hills course is one of his favorites in Houston. Check out "Texas upscale" dining at the on-site Antlers, or relax at the Windflower Spa. Kids can play in a 4 acre water complex complete with waterfalls, sandy beach, and lazy river, or parents can get some quality time after dropping off the little ones at Camp Hill Country. Midscalers should head for chain hotels such as La Quinta or Hampton Inn near Six Flags.