Westheimer to be first off as restored Dornick Hills reopens

Doak, right man for the job

Doak donates time, talent for Dornick Hills

Jerome Max “Bruzzy” Westheimer, the man who funded the bulk of the restoration of historic Dornick Hills Country Club in Ardmore, will be in the first group at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday when the course reopens to its members.

Westheimer is excited for the soft opening during which members will be allowed to play once per week in order to protect the tender greens, some of which are still growing in from the restoration this summer by world famous architect Tom Doak, who donated his services for the opportunity to help Dornick Hills.

Westheimer, who has played the course since boyhood, is the grandson of Dean Woods, who was course architect Perry Maxwell’s shaper, and a great nephew of Maxwell himself. He donated $2.5 million through his foundation toward the restoration and has been eager to play the finished product.

“When you look at the greens and the surrounds, I’m very pleased with what Tom did,” Westheimer said Tuesday. “That’s where the difficulty of the course is and when these greens are filled in and reach their top speeds, you’ll see balls rolling a long ways. They will be difficult to attack if you’re not properly positioned in the fairways.”

Doak plans to return for an official grand reopening in May of 2022.

“The bunkers are awesome and the greens are coming along really well,” said head professional Derek Claborn. “We will keep traffic pretty limited this fall and give the greens a chance to grow in. They are still babies.”