Rockwind Community Links Makes Golfweek's Best Public Access Courses List

Hobbs, NM (April 24, 2017) - Golfweek Magazine released its annual Best Golf Course Rankings in the April issue and Rockwind Community Links in Hobbs, New Mexico, was listed at #9 in the state as one of the Best Courses You Can Play.

The Andy Staples design, which opened in May 2015, has received numerous accolades from leading industry publications including: one of Golf Digest's Best New Courses of 2015; a Top Five New Golf Development in the World by Golf Inc. Magazine; and a 2016 Best Courses You Can Play recognition by Golfweek. The United States Golf Association singled out Rockwind for breaking the mold and being more than just a golf course with a special video entitled "A Model Muni: Rockwind Community Links."

The facility is considered a trailblazer in uniting golf with the local community. "Community Links" is a concept introduced by Staples where the focus of the entire project was to link the golf course to the fabric of life in Hobbs. A special feature is a surrounding trail system complete with multiple trail heads, various outdoor seating areas, picnic spaces and scenic viewing points, including access to the site's five acre lake that overlooks the golf course.
PGA TOUR star Fred Couples, who learned to play golf on a public course and visited Rockwind during its grand opening celebrations, said "you're not going to see many public facilities like this in the country-it's just phenomenal."

About Rockwind Community Links

The main course, which offers five sets of tees with playing lengths ranging from over 7,100 yards for the accomplished player down to approximately 4,200 yards for the forward "express" tees, has been designed to embrace the flat nature of the southeastern New Mexico landscape, keeping irrigation to a minimum and the turf fast and firm. The design provides challenging features such as large elevated greens, disguised bunkers and interesting ground contours.

Architect Andy Staples has incorporated characteristics typically found on courses along the eastern seaboard of the U.S. built during the turn of the 20th century. Rock walls line fairways and a large interior lake is in play on a few holes that attractively punctuates the course routing.