New Mexico’s top rated golf course changed hands in March, according to newmexicogolfnews.com. Paa-Ko Ridge Golf Club in Sandia Park, was acquired by Alvarez & Marsal, a New York investment group that specializes in turnarounds.
Roger Cox & Associates developed the course in 2000, and it was named by Golf Digest as the best new course to open that year. Designed by Finger Dye Spann, it has been ranked as the top golf course in New Mexico. It currently ranks 46th on Golf Digest’s “Top 100 You Can Play” list.
The course has 27 holes, practice facilities, and sits on 105 acres. The new owners, Tony Alvarez and Bryan Marsal, plan to build a 62-room lodge and 18 guest cottages to attract tourists to the golf course.
“We looked at this situation and, with the right accommodations, we believe we can make something special,” Marsal told New Mexico Golf News. “Whatever we do will be first class.”
The golf course was built to help attract home buyers to the adjacent community, and recorded 28,000 to 30,000 rounds a year until 2008. Since then rounds have hovered between 22,000 to 23,000 a year, New Mexico Golf News reported.