The host course of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, TPC Craig Ranch is widely regarded as one of the best properties in the Invited Clubs stable. The club, which is the brainchild of business mogul David Craig, opened to much acclaim in 2004, with a state-of-the-art clubhouse and the Tom Weiskopf-designed 18-hole championship course. In the years since, TPC Craig Ranch hosted the Korn Ferry Tour Championship twice (2008 and 2012) as well as other qualifiers, charity events and tournaments for its exclusive membership.
Invited purchased Craig Ranch back in 2019 with the idea that it would become one of their premier member experiences in the country. At that time, the Byron Nelson was being contested at Trinity Forest, which proved to be a short-lived, two-year run (one was scrapped by the COVID pandemic). The tournament officially relocated to McKinney in 2021, and since has seen booming attendance numbers and millions generated for the Momentous Institute, which provides mental health services, education and professional training to thousands annually in the community.
As local private clubs look to keep pace, with multiple clubs having undergone, or being in the process of, renovation projects, Invited Clubs has decided to pump $22 million into the golf course, to keep their premier DFW club experience at the top of the food chain and modernize the design and overall conditions to keep up with the current state of the game.
“We are excited about the changes at TPC Craig Ranch and the continued investment by Invited. They are great partners, and we look forward to watching the Tour’s best compete on this new layout in May,” said CJ Cup Byron Nelson Tournament Director Jon Drago, who has held that position for almost a quarter century.
Tasked with this evolution is the great Lanny Wadkins. Wadkins, who is a Dallas resident, won 21 times on the PGA Tour, and also captured a major at the 1977 PGA Championship. His reputation as a player speaks for itself, but his golf course design work has also been touted as sublime by many, and his recent work at TPC Craig Ranch will be no different.
There have not been any wholesale changes to the layout of the course. The routing and footprint is the same, with the first five holes and practice area on the south side of Collin McKinney Pkwy, and the remaining holes on the north end of the property. Many holes still offer views of Rowlett Creek, although tree removal and pruning, as well as a clean-up of the creek now offer more cinematic views of the vistas and the creek itself. The main changes are with bunkering, greens and all new turf. Greens will be vastly different, with undulations, false fronts and other new elements that will take once benign greens and make them a true challenge for even those that have mastered the flat stick. 777 Bentgrass will be installed on the greens, which is known for its density, resistance to disease and improved heat and cold tolerance. Stadium Zoysia will enhance fairways and greenside approaches, while TifTuf Bermuda will offer perfect tees and rough conditions.
Bunker changes include a great hazard to the left of the 10th fairway, offering a little tip of the cap to classic designs of architects like A.W. Tillinghast. Many other bunkers have been eliminated or moved, offering a new look to many of Weiskopf’s original holes. In the past, No. 18 has been a par 5 for the Nelson. Now, it will play as a long par 4 during the tournament. However, it will still remain a par 5 for the membership.
AG spoke to Wadkins about his involvement in the project and his thoughts on the new TPC Craig Ranch.
Tell me about your thought processes, you know, as far as renovating the golf course and just some of the changes that you’ve made.
The changes are massive because every hole has been touched. Every bunker that was out here went away. Every green complex has been redone. Tees stayed in the same place, the same quarters, for example, but some of the greens have been moved. You know, our marching orders were to do something special. Invited is spending $22 million and they’re going to want bang for their buck … and we’re going to give it to them.
Being in Dallas, you have obviously played here and seen the property a lot. Did you have ideas about what you might want to do with this course should you ever have the chance to make changes?
I had ideas, sure. I’ve been playing this property since it opened. I’ve been in Dallas the whole time. I’ve walked it when my oldest boy went through Second Stage Q school here a couple times, and you know, I always thought it was a big hard golf course until I saw him make 18 birdies and an eagle in four rounds in late September in crummy weather. I began to think maybe we could make it just a bit more difficult for the pro players.
How is managing that dance there that you have to do where, you want to make it maybe a little more difficult for the pros where they’re not just, you know, making birdie after birdie after birdie, but also keeping the integrity of the golf course fun for the membership as well.
Well, I think we’ve done it. The feedback from the members has been nothing but positive. I think they’ve got a more challenging golf course, but it’s also brand new. Tom Weiskopf was one of my best friends and kind of a mentor to me when I went on Tour. I’ve always had the utmost respect for what he’s done architecturally, when he’s done design work. But I don’t think he designed this necessarily for tournament play. It’s a very, very big piece of property and we’ve done some stuff to kind of tie it together, make it feel more intimate with waste bunkers and native grasses, things like that, that are going to bring it together a little bit more. We’ve cleaned out the creek that meanders through the property. I also think the sight lines are really, really good. My feeling is when you stand on a tee, I want to tell you where to go – you know, no guessing out there. I feel like I did that at Black Jack’s Crossing [Lajitas] and we have incorporated that philosophy here.
Have you gotten any feedback from local pros, tournament officials or members of the Salesmanship Club as of yet?
Yes. And it’s been very good. I’ve had Harrison Fraser, former Tour pro who is also with the Salesmanship Club come out. I’ve also had Kramer Hickock, another Tour pro, take a look. He and my youngest son have been best friends, since they were five, so I’ve had them out. Response was very good. Harrison and Kramer were over the top on how great it will be, and they can’t wait to play it. I would love to get Jordan [Spieth] out here sometime, maybe Scottie [Scheffler], to take a look around. I see them at Preston Trail. They practice out there a lot. Hopefully I can get them over here at some point in time.
Of all the changes that had been made, what would you say is your favorite thing that you’ve done out here?
There are a lot. We’ve changed every hole, essentially. Probably one of my favorite things that we did is the Biarritz at number four. We put a big Biarritz in the green. Seth Raynor did those on every course he did. I won the Hawaiian Open twice on a Seth Raynor course, and the fourth green there had one. That one was a seven iron to the front and three iron to the back to carry the Biarritz. This one may be a little bit more penal than that in places, so it’s good. We put the water in play on a lot of holes that it wasn’t in play before. It’s more in play at 14, so that hole will be more exciting. We also moved the green up to the water on 15. And the finish will be more fun. We moved the green at 18 up on the water. So, you either carry all the way to the putting surface or you’re down in the water. It’s a pretty steep bank, so that could provide some excitement.
What are some of the ways you kept the course playable for the membership?
We kept the greens pretty open in the front for the members to have options. They can run it up on quite a few of them. Another thing is very few forced carries. I think they are going to enjoy having options. And though 18 will be a par 4 in the tournament, it will play as a shorter par 5 for the members.
How do you think that will impact the scoring at the Nelson? Do you think it’ll be still pretty low or they.
If I had to guess, the course is going to be in really, really good shape. They’re still going to be playing off Zoysia, which is perfect fairways. The fairways are still going to be narrow to an extent. They’re still going to be 30 yards wide in most places. I’m looking 12 to 15 under range would be my guess. Of course, if we have four days where the wind is blowing 15 miles an hour, then, you know, you got some big boy finishing holes that will play into the wind. I mean, 16 and 18 are going to be really impressive par 4s coming back into the wind. 17, even at 135, 40 yards, is going to be, you know, a tricky little booger.
You can’t do a major renovation like this alone. How much of a team effort has this been?
I’ve got a great team here. Mark Reams has built more than 30 courses around the world, and Kurt Bowman was with Nicklaus Group for 15 years and did May River, Sebonack, Mayacama, and all Jack’s stuff in Mexico. I’ve got a really talented group with me, guys that have been around the block, done it all, and know what they’re doing. It’s a real good combination of guys coming in from the construction side, from the design side, and the playing side. We have all kinds of ideas. It’s not just one dimensional.
We look forward to seeing the finished product.
We do too.
The anticipated grand reopening at TPC Craig Ranch is scheduled for November. The 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson takes place May 18-24, 2026.