LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Valhalla will host its first PGA Championship since 2014. In that time, the bones of the course have stayed the same, but the spectators and players will notice a few upgrades.
The most visible will be the renovations to the club house.
Back in 2017 the Valhalla Golf Club wrapped up it’s $3.8 million renovation which significantly reconfigured the 15,000 square foot lobby, dining room, bar, locker rooms and meeting space.
Longtime employees say that this is what the course has needed. Valhalla General Manager Keith Reese says that they wanted the new clubhouse to exude what they view the course as, a taste of Kentucky.
"We wanted it to feel like 'My Old Kentucky Home,' like a Kentucky farmhouse when you come in,” Reese said.
“In talking to the members, they have just been blown away and the reaction from them has been so positive and so energetic. So, I really feel like the ownership group and the architects and designers, they nailed it and it turned out perfect,” he continued.
Another major upgrade came in 2021. Valhalla’s Head Golf Professional Kyle Cramer said that course underwent a major project, replacing 1,313,500 square feet of Bentgrass on the tee boxes and fairways with new Zeon Zoysia sod.
Cramer says the new grass will add a different dimension to the course for the players.
"We want to create a firm, fast, and fun golf course on a daily basis. But when it comes to a tournament week I feel like that will give the players a little bit of hesitation because the ball is going to be rolling out a lot more than it did back in 2014,” Cramer said.
Those players will get to experience the new course for the first time on Monday. Practice rounds run through Wednesday with the opening round of the tournament slated for Thursday.
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