Acclaimed golf course designer, 1973 Open Champion (at Royal Troon), and longtime friend of Troon, Tom Weiskopf passed away in August 2022. But he will long be remembered for his stellar course designs, including his work at Troon North, where the Monument and Pinnacle layouts helped launch Troon as a management company.

Among his final design efforts is the brand new Black Desert Resort Golf Course, scheduled to open nine holes this November in Ivins, Utah, a suburb of St. George, with the second nine holes planned to open in spring 2023. Set amid ancient black lava fields, the 18-hole resort/daily fee facility is currently in the final phase of construction, with grassing underway. Troon® will manage the golf operations, golf course agronomy, food and beverage, and marketing for the golf facility, the centerpiece of the 600-acre resort community.

Weiskopf, the designer/co-designer of 70-plus courses around the world, and architect Phil Smith have designed the par-72 Black Desert Resort Golf Course with playability in mind, with most fairways 70 to 100 yards wide. The property’s distinct black lava rock, called basalt, originated as lava that intermittently flowed from small local volcanoes approximately 2.3 million to 20,000 years ago.
No stranger to working in an ancient lava landscape, Weiskopf also designed the award-winning Ke‘olu Golf Course at Hualalai Resort on the island of Hawaii, which is set in the dramatic lava fields of Ka‘upulehu.

“Black Desert Resort is located at the convergence of three unique landscapes — jet-black lava beds, towering red rock cliffs of Zion National Park, and Utah’s beautiful Mohave Desert,” said Jared Lucero, CEO of Reef Capital Partners, developer of the property. “The emerald fairways and greens laced among the lava fields are set against the red rock backdrop, making for an awe-inspiring golf setting.”
In true Weiskopf style, Black Desert will feature two drivable par-4 holes (Nos. 5 and 14) bringing both strategy and the risk/reward element into play.

“The course at Black Desert is a rewarding course. Truly a spectacular place with many photographs taken. Great backdrops with the red mountains that remind me of Sedona (Arizona),” Weiskopf said of the setting.
In addition to the 18-hole, Weiskopf-designed golf course, guests of Black Desert will enjoy a 36-hole illuminated putting course for day or night play. The resort’s 19th Hole, an amphitheater-style lakeside gathering place terraced into the black lava, will be the ultimate venue for winding down after a day of golf.

Upon buildout, the property will offer 150 hotel rooms; 1,050 residences; miles of nearby trails; a wellness spa; and 46,160 square feet of retail and restaurant space. The property will also feature 32 single-family estate lots and approximately 214,000 square feet of commercial space, with the amenities of the resort center available for full-time residents. The golf course will serve as the home course of the Utah Tech University golf teams.