Two years ago, new owners invested in Indian Rock Golf Club, a Westside destination for more than three decades. Those owners trusted Adam Stewart, Director of Golf Operations and resident Golf Pro, to continue setting Indian Rock on a stable course for the future.
Adam earned a Bachelor’s in Human and Health Services and a Master’s in Sports Management and Administration in order to do what he’s doing today: running a golf course. Since his tenure began three years ago, memberships have increased more than 25 percent. Rounds played and revenues are up as well.
Stewart gives some of the credit to loyal members such as Maureen Stealey, President of the Ladies’ League who’s been playing the course for twelve years. She says she enjoys the community of golf at Indian Rock. Eileen Gann, an eight-year fan, and Kathy Thom with twenty years’ experience on Indian Rock fairways echoed Stealey. All three agree Indian Rock’s is a “challenging course,” one that players enjoy playing. It’s not so difficult that players cannot become better and succeed either. The women also agree that socializing after rounds in Mac’s Clubhouse Pub is part of the enjoyment.
Two years ago, new owners began investing in Indian Rock Golf Club, and those investments have paid off. Memberships and revenues are up, and extensive grounds work is having visible results.
photo by Al Griffin Photography
The Clubhouse and Pro Shop next door were renovated in the winter of 2014. Both reopened in 2015. Currently, Mac’s Clubhouse Pub serves breakfast and lunch. Dinner service is available, too, and the Clubhouse bar remains open until 9 p.m. Mac’s will cater if customers have special occasions. In April, for example, Indian Rock was the setting for a wedding with Mac’s Clubhouse on hand for food service. The Clubhouse is also a popular venue for banquets and family gatherings with catering by Mac’s.
The Clubhouse and Pro Shop next door were renovated in the winter of 2014. Both reopened in 2015. Currently, Mac’s Clubhouse Pub serves breakfast and lunch. Dinner service is available, too, and the Clubhouse bar remains open until 9 p.m. Mac’s will cater if customers have special occasions. In April, for example, Indian Rock was the setting for a wedding with Mac’s Clubhouse on hand for food service. The Clubhouse is also a popular venue for banquets and family gatherings with catering by Mac’s.
Photo by Al Griffin Photography
Stewart gives the lion’s share of credit for Indian Rock’s growth and stability to its new owners. They have recognized the Club’s potential and invested in its future.
One of their first steps was to invite the U. S. Golf Association (USGA) to Laurie, Missouri to evaluate Indian Rock. USGA assessed the course, the club’s equipment, and its budget. USGA also took water and soil samples, then provided a three to five year roadmap for growth and improvements. Indian Rock’s owners have taken that map and acted upon it.
Zoysia strips have been put on two fairways. They are taking hold and thriving. Superintendent Chris Jackson, with sixteen years’ experience overseeing Indian Rock’s fairways and greens, hopes the resilience of Zoysia will improve those fairways and please those playing them.
Trees and root networks running along fairways have been removed. All new equipment has helped the Grounds Crew complete this work.
Indian Rock is also in the process of removing old railroad tie landscaping steps. They are being replaced with concrete block steps that provide better, more stable footing from golf cart and walking paths to fairways and greens.
Two years ago, new owners began investing in Indian Rock Golf Club, and those investments have paid off. Memberships and revenues are up, and extensive grounds work is having visible results.
photo by Al Griffin Photography
Club members and guests will not be able to see a major investment underground. Indian Rock has installed new irrigation pumps to insure the course stays healthy. Not only will these pumps improve the course, they also will improve the Club’s bottom line as the new pumps are more efficient. Their cost-effectiveness is but one more investment in Indian Rock’s future.
Players will notice new signs for each hole. They are prominent, easily found and read, providing salient details about the hole. Below them and throughout the grounds are flowerbeds being rehabilitated. When Spring is fully upon the course, the views will be colorful and beautiful.
Players at Indian Rock Golf Club will notice new signs for each hole. They are prominent, easily found and read, providing salient details about the hole. Below them and throughout the grounds are flowerbeds being rehabilitated. When Spring is fully upon the course, the views will be colorful and beautiful.
Photo by Al Griffin Photography
Two more signs featuring steel lettering help people unfamiliar with the course find it. One features the name of the Club set in a stone wall constructed for that purpose. It faces Highway O. The other sign consists of just the letters I and R for Indian Rock. These sit atop boulders--smaller versions of the massive stones near Hole 17, the rocks for which the course was named.
At Indian Rock, member rates have held steady for the past two years. Homes dotting the 300-acre grounds are still selling, sites for building are available, and a new home was recently completed. The real estate is but one more symptom of a healthy golf club with an eye to its future.
A Ladies League existed before and continues through recent updates. The ladies play Tuesday mornings. Two years ago, Indian Rock developed two more leagues, one for couples at twilight on Mondays and one for men playing at the same time the ladies play on Tuesdays. Thursday evenings, this summer, Indian Rock will hold two-person Men’s scramble play at 5:00 p.m.
Members can also enjoy monthly in-house tournaments, usually on Wednesdays when other Lake of the Ozarks’ courses are not hosting golf events. Indian Rock is also open to book other tournaments. Stewart welcomes all inquiries. Both tournaments and league play are posted on the Club’s website for anyone to review and join.
Adam Stewart believes the progress and growth at Indian rock is the result of its owners who are investing in the Club’s future and its “patrons who recognize the investment and commitment” of the owners. He is happy to be among them--as happy as he was when, at the age of 16, he worked for a high-end St. Louis country club. On that course, he found congenial people who were “happy to be there.” He resolved to be a part of that atmosphere and studied to be where people “enjoy a challenging sport and good company.” He believes others will find the same at Indian Rock.
