Another new destination golf resort is slated to open in Colorado in 2027 and, by all accounts, it’s going to be terrific.
It is called Dunes Rodeo and is the work of Michael Keizer and Dream Golf. If these names sound familiar, they should. They are the people behind Bandon Dunes and Sand Valley which are ranked among the best golf destinations in the world.
The Rodeo Dunes property is 35 minutes northeast of Denver International Airport and spans 4,000 acres where the high plains meet the Rocky Mountain foothills. The Coore & Crenshaw design is being built on ranch land owned by the Cervi family, operators of the largest rodeo stock supplier and rodeo competition manufacturer in the United States.
The story of how Keizer and the Cervi family came together is fascinating. However, the question remains whether another high-end destination golf resort is a good thing for the future of golf course development.
History of the Dunes Rodeo
The 50,000-acre Cervi Ranch is located in a section of transitional land characterized by rolling dunes and open rangeland. To the west are the Denver foothills and the Rocky Mountains. To the east are the Great Plains that eventually descend to the Mississippi River. The farm has been in the Cervi family for more than 150 years and serves as the base for the Cervi Championship Rodeo. Hundreds of horses roam freely across the open landscape.
Michael Keizer found it almost by accident.
“That was Michael playing on Google Earth,” Dream Golf Communications VP Tom Ferrell tells MyGolfSpy. “He just found it. It was hiding in plain sight.”
In the most Keiser-like thing imaginable, the golf developer flew to Colorado, drove to the site, put up a fence and started looking around. It wasn’t long before he was captured by a farm.
“He said, ‘What the hell are you doing here?'” says Ferrell. “They sent Michael to pack the bags over the fence, but he finally arranged a meeting with the owner.”
Keizer and Michael Cervi spent the next four years negotiating. At first, Cervi couldn’t understand why Keizer wanted the land. To Keizer’s eye, the towering dunes and rolling terrain screamed “inland connections.”
“From the farmer’s point of view, the land wasn’t perfect for anything,” says Ferrell. “From Michael’s point of view, it was perfect for golf.”
Michael Cervi passed away last April, but his two sons are active and enthusiastic partners Dunes Rodeo.
“We will have what we call a ‘showdeo’ arena as part of the resort,” says Ferrell. “Guests will be able to take roping lessons and we’ll have riding demonstrations and things like that.
“Are we going to have a PRCA-sanctioned rodeo every year? I don’t know, but we’re a lot closer to that being a reality.” (PRCA is the acronym for Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association.)
Will rodeo and golf mix?
That’s what Dream Golf and the Cervi family are banking on. Of Keizer’s developments, Rodeo Dunes is by far the least remote, and Keizer has enough space to build up to six golf courses on his portion of the property.
“We have three 18-hole courses planned right now,” says Ferrell. “The second, designed by Jimmy Craig (a former Coore & Crenshaw associate), has already been skidded and mowed. Heavy construction begins in 2027.”
The third site has been identified and put into play, but Dream Golf has yet to select an architect.
As with most destination golf developments, the project will also have a lodge as well as private residences.
“We’ve had great success with private residences that double as hotel rooms,” Ferrel explains. “That seems to be the way the golf trip is going. It’s small groups that like to stick together.”
That said, you won’t have to stay at the resort to play Dunes Rodeo. Ferrell says Dream Golf remains committed to public access golf.
“There will never be a private Rodeo course. At most, it could be something like the Lido at Sand Valley, where there’s a mechanism for public access. That’s important to us.”
Public access, however, does not mean free. Rodeo Dunes will begin taking reservations for 2027 early next year. You can expect green fees to be in the same neighborhood as Bandon Dunes and Sand Valley.
Is this a good thing for golf and, more importantly, golfers?
High-end destination resorts certainly have their appeal. The golf, accommodations and amenities at locations such as Pinehurst, Pebble Beach, Bandon Dunes and Sand Valley are all world class. What it costs to enjoy the golf, accommodations and amenities are also world class.
It is important to note, however, that the addition of a world-class golf destination does not mean that a more modestly priced alternative is being removed. Golf is not a zero sum game.
“It’s like skiing,” says Ferrell. “You can go to your local hill and ski, but maybe once a year or every two years, you can go to Colorado or Utah and ski a world-class mountain.”
This may or may not be of any consolation to golfers, but some context is required. From 2022 to 2025, the US golf market experienced a net gain of 17 golf courses and six facilities. This actually represents a reversal of a two-decade trend of closures.
However, while 25 new golf courses have either opened or will open in the US this year, only nine can be categorized as affordable and public access. A 2025 report from the National Golf Foundation asserts that affordable public courses remain underrepresented in new developments.
Additionally, industry sources estimate that 100 to 150 public golf courses are at risk of closure and redevelopment as residential complexes, commercial uses or solar farms. Such a situation involves the public Cape Cod Country Club in Falmouth, Massachusetts. Falmouth Town Meeting members this week voted to accept a land donation from golf course owners. The city will then lease just over half the land to a company called PureSky Energy for a solar power field. The balance of the land will become walking trails and public open space.
The Cape Cod Country Club is a century-old facility and is considered one of the few remaining affordable public courses on the Cape. The Friel family has owned the course since 1985, but cited mounting financial challenges and declining interest in maintaining the property as a golf course as its reasons for donating the land to the city.
What does this have to do with Rodeo Dunes?
In short, not a blessed thing.
Although it’s happening simultaneously, new destination golf resorts aren’t forcing affordable local courses to close. What’s happening with Cape Cod Country Club and other public courses at risk has more to do with land value, environmental issues (water use, runoff) and the prohibitive cost of upgrading aging course infrastructure.
When you combine these issues with investors making course owners the proverbial “offer they can’t refuse,” the trend becomes more understandable.
On the other hand, we are also seeing a trend to revamp public courses to improve their long-term sustainability. For example, the city-owned Forest Park Golf Course in St. Louis has seen improvements to improve conditions and access. Florida’s Winter Park underwent a complete redesign recently and remains one of the best affordable golf experiences in the country. Jekyll Island in Georgia reopened earlier this month after a major revitalization, with maximum greens fees in the $100 range.
“We’re getting ready to see a wave of renovation and restoration of public courses,” says Ferrell. “As outfitters like Coore & Crenshaw come out on their own, these things shake out. I think the local, public players are going to find a much better product over the next five to 10 years.”
It is a matter of values
Enjoyable golf doesn’t have to cost a lot.
On a recent trip to Seattle, I had my sights set on a rematch with Chambers Bay, but the stars were not in my favor. Instead, I found a charming little course in Tukwila called Foster Golf Links. It wasn’t Chambers Bay, but for $35 to go 18 holes, I had a great time and missed a lot fewer balls.
“People are retooling the way they approach the game,” says Ferrell. “I got a note from a guy recently who gave up his membership at a mid-level private club and now plays public courses. He uses the money he saved from club fees to take two big golf trips a year. He’s managing his golf resources.”
Each of us has our own definition of affordable. However, affordability and value can be two different animals. Pebble Beach will cost $675 for 18, but for that once-in-a-lifetime round, it might be worth the savings. TPC Sawgrass for $900? Count me in, but it’s just me. For others, it’s a must-play.
Value does not mean cheap. Value means worth it.
“Places like Sand Valley, Streamsong, Pinehurst, they’re the best in the world,” Ferrell says. “They are difficult to build and difficult to use, and the price will be higher. However, we believe that our players are adventurous. They are not looking for extreme luxury. That’s when you get into really stupid prices.”
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