Black Mountain Golf Course gets back into the swing of things

Municipal course celebrates reopening of nine holes after Tropical Storm Helene

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
June 23, 2025

The Black Mountain Golf Course will reopen its back nine, June 24, following a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the chamber of commerce. Photo by Fred McCormick

Local golfers will get back into the swing of things, following a June 23 ribbon cutting ceremony at the Black Mountain Golf Course.

The town-owned facility, which sustained significant damage during Tropical Storm Helene, will reopen holes 10 through 18, Tuesday, June 24, for the first time in nearly nine months.

Dozens of golfers, town officials and supporters of the course filled the remodeled pro shop, as the Black Mountain Swannanoa Chamber Commerce marked the occasion.

“We are very excited to have the golf course back open,” said chamber director Cheryl Hyde. “I can’t tell you how many people come in and ask us how much longer until it reopens. Thank you guys for making this happen, because it was a big joint effort.”

Established in 1929, the front nine of the course was designed by Scottish golf course architect Donald Ross, before the Town of Black Mountain purchased the land in 1933 and completed the construction of the surrounding area, including nearby Lake Tomahawk and a clubhouse, seven years later. The addition of the back nine was completed in 1964, when Rev. Billy Graham dedicated the new course. The layout included a 747-yard 17th hole, which remained the longest in the world until 1993.

The 6,215-yard course was among multiple town properties damaged by Helene, which destroyed the maintenance building and bridges on the front nine. While the oldest section of the course remains unplayable, according to superintendent Jerry Brigman, the back nine returns in “good shape.”

“We had roughly 35 trees down after the storm, but the biggest struggle was losing our shop and all of our equipment,” he said. “We also lost our irrigation system, so we went seven months without equipment and almost eight without proper irrigation.”

Those conditions created challenges as staff worked to reopen the facility, he added.

“The greens reached about 4 inches in height, which would, in theory, take about 20 weeks to mow down,” Brigman said. “We took it down in about three weeks, but we did that in specific phases. Thankfully, we had some cooler weather come in a couple of weeks ago, and that really helped out.”

Playing conditions will be different than last summer when they were “nearly perfect,” he added.

Phil Cummings, left, and Chuck Richardson prepare to tee off, June 23, one day before the Black Mountain Golf Course reopens to the public. The municipal course, which hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony and allowed members of the Friends of Black Mountain Golf Course to play a round, will reopen to the public, June 24, nearly nine months after Tropical Storm Helene. Photo by Fred McCormick

“We had a lot of disease over the winter, because we weren’t able to spray, and right before we got the irrigation going, we had a few days of temperatures in the upper 80s, which kind of stressed the greens,” Brigman said. “They’re a little sparse, but they’re filling in. I’ve increased fertilizing this year, and hopefully, in a couple of months, we’ll have this half as perfect as I can get it.”

Reopening the course, which welcomes an average of around 150 golfers per day in the summer when fully operational, is a “great relief,” according to manager Brent Miller.

“This has been such a stressful eight months since the storm,” he said. “At times, it felt like we were floundering a little bit, but seeing it all come together is great for the community. It feels like a return to some sense of normalcy.”

Returning golfers will be greeted by a remodeled pro shop.

“We had a lot of water come through the metal roof and get down into the walls, so it was really damaged,” Miller said. “Luckily, I have some skills that allowed me to put things back the way they need to be. That turned into an opportunity to remodel the pro shop, which really needed it, and we were able to do it for significantly cheaper than if we had contracted that out.”

Staff will continue to work on reopening the front nine, according to Brigman.

“We’ve got about half of our equipment, so we’ve been able to start mowing there,” he said. “We’re still waiting on bridges for holes 3 and 5, and once those come in we’ll be closer. It’s a process, so it will take several months to get everything mowed down to where it needs to be.”

The goal is to reopen the remaining holes by next spring.

"We’re already working with FEMA to try to get the bridges repaired on the front nine,” Miller said. “But, just like anything, there are hurdles involved. It will take a little bit of time, but I think just getting this back nine open alleviates a lot of pressure. I’d like to see us have all 18 holes open as soon as possible.”