After the Colorado Golf Association and Colorado Women’s Golf Association narrowed down their list of candidates for the job of director of golf at their new course, they sent each pro a list of four concise questions.
Dave Troyer returned 14 pages worth of answers.
“I figured they’d say either that he knows what he’s talking about, or that he’s crazy,” Troyer says with a laugh, recalling the memory.
The folks from golf associations apparently had the former impression, fortunately for Troyer.
That’s why a year ago they hired him as director of golf for the course in Aurora that would soon be named CommonGround. Roughly a year after Troyer started in his new position, CommonGround Golf Course will open to the public on May 23.
“Dave absolutely won the job based on his response to those questions,” said Ed Mate, executive director of the CGA. “The (subsequent) interview was just confirmation. He did great work with his “˜homework assignment.’ It’s not just quantity but quality that counts. A lot of people sent back thick responses, but it seemed like some were just cutting and pasting something they had done before. Dave answered questions analytically.”
Troyer was picked for the position out of about 80 applicants. It probably didn’t hurt that he’s been through similar job situations before — twice, in fact. Troyer was on staff when two other new courses came online: the Omni in Broomfield in 1999, and The Jewel Golf Club, a Hale Irwin design in Lake City, Minn., in 2005. Troyer was director of golf and general manager at The Jewel.
“I love” working at brand-new courses, Troyer said. “It’s a unique opportunity to be part of something on the ground floor where you get to make your mark on it. I’ve been fortunate to be part of three openings.”
Troyer has lived in Colorado almost all of his life. He was born in Denver on March 27, 1971, and also resided briefly in Grand Junction, but mostly he’s lived in Boulder. He played golf at Boulder High School and the University of Colorado before taking club pro jobs at Boulder Country Club and the Omni. But Troyer felt he needed to move elsewhere to take the next step in his career, and so he worked in Tucson (2003-04) and Minnesota (2004-08).
“I left the state with the intention to get experience to find a home for the long term,” said Troyer, who believes he’s found that long-term home at CommonGround. “I had a five- to seven-year plan to get back (to Colorado). I never wanted to leave the state, but by going away I’d fool people into believing I was an expert,” he said with a chuckle.
Troyer, who kept a close eye on any PGA job listings in Colorado, saw the opening at the old Mira Vista Golf Course on the site of the former Lowry Air Force Base. Suffice it to say he wasn’t overly excited — at least not initially.
“I thought, “˜I don’t really think so’ until I saw what they were doing” in starting from scratch to construct a new course, one designed by noted architect Tom Doak, Troyer said. “That really got me excited, and I gave it a full-court press to get the job. I called everybody I knew who had an in with the CGA and CWGA. Of course, I knew Ed (Mate) for many years, but so did many of the people seeking the job.”
Troyer set himself apart with the plans he outlined in the four questions he answered for the CGA and CWGA. Those questions dealt with management philosophy and how it complements the goals of the associations; plans for pricing rounds of golf; prospective programs to encourage player development; and marketing strategies for the course.
After landing the job and moving from Minnesota to Colorado last May, Troyer has spent plenty of time with the practical implementation of all the answers to those questions, and much more. For instance, it took six to eight weeks (while also attending to other duties) to work out all phases of the pricing at CommonGround, including the basics of $40 per round for CGA/CWGA members and $50 for non-members.
“We wanted to find the right balance between affordable and sustainable,” Mate said. “We have to charge enough to maintain things and put some in the till. Dave had to figure out what that number was.”
Also on Troyer’s agenda in the year leading up to the opening: promoting and marketing, booking tournaments and programs, preparing a web site (commongroundgc.com) and blogging on it, dealing with sales managers and merchandise representatives, overseeing construction of a 2,200-square-foot starter clubhouse (the old one was torn down starting March 24), and, of course, plenty of meetings.
There have been plenty of curveballs along the way — the March 8 fire that burned up to the edge of the west side of the course provided a shock that everyone involved could have lived without — but things are shaping up nicely with less than two months left before opening day.
“We’ve had some challenges, but I think it’s been a blessed project,” Troyer said. “Overall, things have gone very smoothly. The course is in excellent shape, and the interest level is off the charts. We’ve got everything going for us that you can ask for.”
Asked what the uninitiated golfer can expect when they play CommonGround for the first time, Troyer said, “They can expect a fun golf experience, friendly people and a fun course whether you’re a beginner (or advanced). You’re not going to lose a lot of balls, and there’s not two holes that are similar. The best players are going to have to challenge the features Tom Doak put in place in order to score well. (Meanwhile) there are beautiful vistas. It feels like a sanctuary in the middle of the city. “
