In the renovation process, every detail is being attended to, even the means by which the course is watered. Below: Rooms have been transformed, bringing the overall look and feel to a level worthy of a first-class resort.
Enter
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More than golf buddies, Cusick and Strait still compete with one another at Tapatio, just as they did some 30 years ago.
21st century, complete with all of the amenities that a luxury traveler in 2011 has come to expect. From exterior accents to new beds and bedding, to wrought iron lamps and leather furniture, there is nothing that will be available to a guest that hasn’t been discussed by the new owners. There is a pride to the decisions made here and a touch of class in every endeavor. Mere months away from their grand opening, the signs of this new, first class way of doing things are everywhere. Course employees deliver club towels to golfers and attentive hospitality for each and every guest is not a suggestion, but a requirement. Even the name and logo have been given modern facelifts. The sun symbol, chosen to replace Tapatio’s former blue heron logo is starting to make its way through the resort, a new emblem, appropriately chosen for a resort on the rise. And the complete arrival of the newly deemed Resort At Tapatio Springs, a dream for Strait and Cusick, will be celebrated on November 11th, with both of the owners on hand to take in the fruits of their labors and what their restoration efforts have done for the resort and for the area. This fall, thanks to the dreams of a few local boys done good and their dedication to make those dreams come true, a new chapter begins. Like many of Mr. Strait’s, the revival of Tapatio Springs is a story worth telling. ALM
TOM CUSICK AND GEORGE STRAIT: GREG HARRISON; TAPATIO SPRINGS: RICHARD MUNIZ
two old friends who shared a fondness for the resort and had built decades of memories there. This is where the classic tale of redemption and the legend of “local boy makes good” meet, at long last. Strait and Cusick, reminiscing over one round of golf or another they shared on the Boerne golf course, made a decision. According to Cusick, they both arrived at the same conclusion, that Tapatio was not beyond salvation. The foundations of a good golf resort were still present. The greens, while long arid, still sloped in the right directions. Sand traps were still in the same tricky bends and limestone cliffs, trees and the majestic Texas sky still created an idyllic setting. With a little capital and a lot of work, the treasure that Tapatio is could be once again polished to a high shine. The pair looked into the future and saw the happy ending to the tale of Thunder Valley. To play a part in the arrival of that favorable finish to the tale, Strait and Cusick purchased the resort earlier this year, garnering a lot of attention, both locally and nationwide, as golf fans and country music fans alike wondered what plan George Strait and his friend were hatching in the middle of the Texas landscape and what either saw in a sandbox of a golf resort. Walking around on the renovated clubhouse patio, it is easy to see the allure. The walls are now lined with rock, from accent to column, replacing a boring stucco that may have already looked dated in the early 1980s. Rich rust-colored wood posts support a shady canopy, a fireplace has been added and the furnishings and adornments have been carefully chosen to show off an attention to detail that has been gone for some time from this place. The locker room, once only fit for a high school sports team, now feels like the executive lounge at any luxury country club. The restaurant, La Cascada, which sported a blue carpet and mottled stucco walls that had seen far better days, is in full renovation, with plans for an indoor waterfall to showcase its namesake - ‘cascada’ is Spanish for waterfall–and mirror the expanded waterfall feature that is under construction outside. Call it water to a parched land, if you will, the plans provide for exactly that. Effluent water, a water conservation mainstay, is being sought for the maintenance and keeping of the grounds. The metaphor holds true for the people of the valley, as well, as many are encouraged not only by the promise of what these successful adopted sons of Boerne can do for this neglected gem, but by how the effort is being shown in more than public promises and whispered potential. Cusick and Strait are not simply discussing a vision of how things could be. They are making their visions a reality. Take, for example, the renovations to the hotel rooms, afforded every luxury and given a makeover that brings the facilities smartly into the
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