It wasn’t the first rodeo for Michael Keiser. But it was a first look at his latest project, on bucking-bronco land in Colorado.
If you own clubs and you like to travel, you probably know of Keiser, son of Bandon Dunes founder, Mike Keiser, and co-developer, with his brother, Chris, of Sand Valley in Wisconsin. You’ve also likely heard that he’s been busy adding to the family’s Dream Golf portfolio, in the Colorado sand hills, roughly 50 minutes northeast of Denver.
Early this week, Keiser and Co. offered a sneak peek of their destination-in-the-making with a day of preview play at Rodeo Dunes.
All 18 holes are grassed at the property’s namesake course, a Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design. But with the turf too young in places to absorb wear and tear, play was limited to 11 holes: Nos. 1-4 and 12-18. That sampling, though, was a faithful taste of what’s to come: a light-on-the-land, walking-only layout stitched through the folds of a tussled, sandy canvas. Fairways bend and sweep to the lilt of the terrain, with plenty of width but an emphasis on angles.
The par-4 1st, for instance, is a friendly opener with ample leeway right, but the best line is up the left, over sizable bunkers that shroud the landing area. Fan or block your drive and you’ll see it touch down in the short grass. What you won’t see is the green on your approach. You don’t often see other players, either, as the heaving dunes hide portions of the course, which pop into view from high points on the property along with vistas that stretch to the Rockies.
The chop hills surrounding Rodeo Dunes are reminiscent of those that ring Ballyneal, in eastern Colorado, as well as several esteemed clubs on the high plains of Nebraska, including GrayBull and Sand Hills. The most glaring difference is that those courses are private. They’re also more remote. That Rodeo Dunes will be open to the public, less than an hour’s drive of a major metropolitan area, already makes it feel like a place apart.
3 other things to know…
About those tee times
Preview play is meant to help pique public interest, but the public will still have to wait a bit. After this week’s preview play, the course shut down for the season, and in 2026, it will be open primarily for its founding members. The official public opening is scheduled for 2027. Rodeo Dunes will start accepting 2027 tee times next spring.
More golf to come
Like Bandon Dunes and Sand Valley before it, Rodeo Dunes is getting started with a single course. But there’s room for more golf, potentially six courses. A second has already been routed through the dunes by former longtime Coore & Crenshaw shaper Jim Craig, who will be stamping his name on his first solo design credit. If all goes smoothly, a Dream Golf rep told me, the second course may see preview play late next year.
