GOLF COURSE CONSTRUCTION · SINCE 1982
Replacing Four Holes and Protecting a Trout Stream With Expert Golf Course Construction
When a real estate development took four holes out of play at Wisp Resort’s Fantasy Valley Golf Course, Aspen built four new ones to take their place — integrating them seamlessly into the existing 18-hole layout while protecting Hoyes Run, one of Maryland’s most sensitive trout streams, just steps away. See how we turned the challenge into a fantasy come true at Fantasy Valley.
44 Years +
GCBAA
2009
PROJECT SNAPSHOT
Fantasy Valley Golf Course · McHenry, Maryland
TYPE OF PROJECT
PROJECT VALUE
TIMELINE
GOLF ARCHITECT
BUILDER
COURSE SUPERINTENDENT
OWNER REPRESENTATIVE
RECOGNITION
THE PROJECT
At Wisp Resort, Aspen constructed four brand-new holes and wove them into the existing 18-hole Fantasy Valley Golf Course — replacing four holes taken out of play for a real estate development, without the course ever losing its rhythm.
The site required an extensive erosion and sediment control plan, approved by the Maryland Department of the Environment, to protect Hoyes Run — one of Maryland’s few Class Tier II trout streams and one of the most sensitive waterways in the state. Aspen and Design Workshop architect Todd Schoeder built in additional protections beyond what was required.
This was the first golf course work ever permitted in Garrett County with the Department of the Environment, and the unfamiliar process brought delays. Aspen built more than 22 sediment basins across the four new holes and installed extensive super silt fencing, adjusting grades on some basins multiple times to keep them functioning as both erosion control and finished sub-grade.
The property had previously been developed as a theme town called “German Village at Fantasy Valley.” Before construction could begin, Aspen coordinated the removal of dozens of cottages and structures, overhead utilities, and existing infrastructure — including septic tanks discovered mid-construction that required proper pumping and disposal.
Utilities crossed almost every hole, and some properties on site needed to keep service until it could be extended elsewhere, so Aspen worked closely with the developer and subcontractors to sequence removals without disrupting anyone still connected. Record rainfall — as much as 4 to 5 inches in 20 minutes — repeatedly tested the site’s erosion controls during construction and grow-in.
Rather than demolish a spring house built to protect a natural spring on the property, Aspen and the design team incorporated it into the strategy for the new hole — reshaping it to read as an old, abandoned farm structure rather than removing it outright. The spring still flows today with the same water quality it always had.
PROJECT GOALS
- Construct four new holes and integrate them seamlessly into the existing 18-hole layout.
- Protect Hoyes Run, a Class Tier II trout stream and one of Maryland’s most sensitive waterways.
- Coordinate removal of a former theme-town development’s cottages, utilities, and infrastructure before construction.
- Deliver a course ready for its grand opening despite a first-of-its-kind permitting process in Garrett County.
THE CHALLENGES
- The first golf course work ever permitted in Garrett County with the Department of the Environment — an unfamiliar process that caused delays.
- Sediment basins were required to function as finished sub-grade before earthwork was complete, creating conflicts between compliance and construction.
- Record rainfall — up to 4-5 inches in 20 minutes — repeatedly hammered the site’s erosion and sediment controls.
- Dozens of cottages, overhead utilities, and undocumented septic systems from a former theme-town development had to be removed before work could begin.
THE RESULTS
- Every deadline met — the course opened on schedule in June 2008, in great condition for the grand opening.
- A vegetative buffer strip along Hoyes Run keeps stormwater runoff reaching the trout stream clean.
- A historic spring house was preserved and reimagined as a scenic feature of the new hole, with the spring’s water quality unchanged.
- Winner, 2009 Golf Course Industry Affinity Award.
PROJECT GALLERY
Four new holes built from raw ground to championship turf — before and after.
Cutting a new fairway bunker into Hole #10 — before construction
Hole #10, fully grown in and ready for play — after construction
Sand-capping a new green complex — before construction
A finished green and bunker complex, lush and manicured — after construction
Rebuilding the old Spring House foundation stone by stone — before construction
The preserved stone structure, now part of the new hole’s landscape — after construction
Solid granite unearthed while building Hole #11 — before construction
A finished bunker complex, grass grown in around the sand — after construction
A freshly seeded fairway, still tracked by the seeder — before construction
A finished green catching the morning light — after construction
Crews shaping Hole #12’s green complex — before construction
Hole #12, fully grown in — after construction
New bunkers freshly cut and sand-capped on Hole #12 — before construction
A finished fairway, tightly mown and ready for play — after construction
Bunker shaping in progress on Hole #12 — before construction
A finished green and bunker complex framed by trees — after construction
Crews hand-shaping a greenside bunker on Hole #13 — before construction
A finished bunker complex with deep green rough — after construction
Excavating and draining a new bunker on Hole #13 — before construction
The finished hole, bunker and fairway grown in at dusk — after construction
Drainage work below Hole #13’s green — before construction
An aerial view of the finished green and water feature — after construction
Record rainfall flooded the site during construction — before
The finished course on a calm day, pond and bunkers in view — after
A new pond under construction, liner and sod stacked at the edge — before
The finished pond, fully settled and landscaped — after
Pouring a new cart path through the property — before construction
A finished cart path winding through mature trees — after construction
Championship Golf Course Construction, Built On Time and On Budget
WHAT THE CLUB SAID
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