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Stop the presses. “The Brack” is back!

 Home to the PGA TOUR’s Texas Open from 1922 to 1959, the 1915 A.W. Tillinghast-designed Brackenridge Park Golf Course has been lovingly restored. Clipped by highway expansion, long over-loved and under-nurtured, the course has now come back to life thanks to a $3-million-plus renovation that has elevated it to a true showpiece of historic preservation.

 You can now put it on your short list of refurbished must-play municipal courses alongside other Tillinghast public diamonds in the rough like Long Island’s Bethpage and Kansas City’s Swope Memorial. Offering golf of a purity and simplicity that may come as a revelation to many, Texas’s first public course is a delight to the golfing senses and stands as an example of the classic less-is-more approach, emphasizing strategy and sensibility.

 A Historic Restoration

 The historical significance of this rescue can’t be underscored. “Brack is to Texas,” says John Colligan reverently, “what the Old Course is to St. Andrews.” The Arlington-based architect was aided in his efforts by the chance discovery of an original set of course survey plans.

Playing as a par 71, at just over 6,300 yards – Lilliputian by modern standards – the course occupies only 113 acres of urban green space just minutes from the excitement of downtown, next door to the zoo (you can hear and see the train on the opening holes) and perhaps one day connected by the famed River Walk. Two other San Antonio landmarks, the Witte Museum and Japanese Tea Garden, are within easy striking distance. Brack also once served as the working studio for Gutzon Borglum, the creator of Mount Rushmore.

Easily and preferably walked, the course is testament again to the traditional virtues of classic design, including the old adage that length never made a golf course. Fair warning: A driver will be a rueful temptation for those lacking accuracy. Bedecked with ancient oaks, pecans and even a few palms, the Brack is no patsy.

 A Classic Era Challenge

 “It’s not a course you should try and overpower,” advises Colligan. “You definitely need to consider the strategy. You need to think where you’re going to hit the ball.” With ample opportunities for heroics, the prudent golfer will always have an out if they’re willing to look and take it – a long-way-round-is-the-shortest-way-home alternative. The bunkering, consistent with Tillinghast’s original signature flourishes, will definitely give a golfer pause, especially on the long par threes. There are also several square-shaped greens, another homage to a bygone era. Professionals from Hagen to Nelson played here, and successive generations of Texas juniors (don’t miss the champion boards inside the clubhouse) also herald the Lone Star legacy. Two-time Masters Champion Ben Crenshaw’s name appears four times: three times for the Texas Junior and once for winning the Texas Open.

 Looking ahead to 2010, the stately Tudor-style clubhouse will become a centerpiece to honoring Texas golf legends. Officials expect the relocated Texas Golf Hall of Fame will serve as the game’s fourth-largest museum, and the only one located at a public golf course.