Local golf: City Championships returns at Ratliff Ranch for first time since 2006

When the final putt dropped for Will Kinnaird in the 2006 Odessa City Championship golf tournament, little did anyone realize that he would be holding the crown for three years.

Everyone knew about the scheduled renovations for Ratliff Ranch Golf Links, but the changes were expected to be finished quickly enough for Kinnaird to defend his title in 2007 after his sophomore year at Odessa College.

But the changes to the links-style layout took longer than expected and the tournament wasn’t held in 2007. Nor in 2008 as the course reopened in the middle of the summer and club pro Chris McQuatters knew that there wasn’t enough time to put the tournament together the way he wanted for the players.

McQuatters, however, had plenty of time to get things ready for the 2009 tournament, and on Friday morning, a field of 90 golfers will begin the three-day battle for bragging rights through several different flights.

“The course is in great shape and I think it was the right decision not to hold the tournament right after we reopened last year,” McQuatters said. “We could have pushed the date back, but then you are getting into the middle of October and that’s too late.

“It feels great to have the tournament back on the schedule and we actually have two more players entered in the field than in 2006, which is great considering it’s been three years since we played this tournament.”

McQuatters said he never considered holding the tournament at any of the other local public courses during its forced hiatus, stating that he wanted to keep the competition at Ratliff Ranch.

Kinnaird will not be in the field this week to defend his title, which was the third straight for an Odessa College golfer  — Jeff Murray (2004), Blake Parks (2005) and Kinnaird.

Current Wranglers team member Zach Stokes, however, is entered in the field, so OC head coach Paul Chavez could see a fourth consecutive champion from his program.

“Zach’s been playing well during the summer,” Chavez said. “I think he’ll play well.”

Former champion Vance Vines (1991) is among the players entered in the championship flight, which is limited to golfers with a 2.5 index or lower. Koy Stribling, who finished fourth in 2006, is the highest returning finisher in the championship flight.

Ryan Barcena and Ciro Baeza, each with a plus-5 index, are the top-rated golfers in the tournament.

The biggest issue in the renovation was the installation of irrigation throughout the course to grow grass in areas that previously had been considered rough. There also were renovations to the 10th and 17th greens that took away some of the severity, allowing golfers a better scoring chance on each hole.

With the new irrigation and recent rains, the course is green and the greens are true, according to McQuatters.

“If we don’t get any more rain on Wednesday and Thursday, the course should be perfect,” he said. “The little bit of rain last week really helped get everything green and I think the players are going to enjoy the course.”

One entrant in the championships flight enjoyed the course during a Tuesday practice round.

Dr. Marshall Morgan, a regular on the local and Texas Golf Association tournament scene, said that he played the course for the first time in eight years on Tuesday and liked what he saw.

He feels that key to the tournament will be the way the superintendent cuts the greens.

“I’ve always liked the layout of this course; it’s as good a layout as there is,” Morgan said. “And the new ownership now seems to be very interested in doing things correctly.

“We need a city championship and now that we’ve got a consistent venue that is going to hold the tournament, along with a consistent time on the schedule at the end of July every year, I think you’ll see a lot more people allowing time on their schedule to play in the event. I’m excited and looking forward to playing the next three days.”