Highlands club eyed as potential replacement for UM golf course

The University of Montana has been discussing the possibility of purchasing the Highlands Golf Club in the South Hills neighborhood, UM President George Dennison said Monday.
No agreement has been reached between UM and Highlands, Dennison said, and UM officials declined to discuss any specifics about the ongoing discussions.

When asked if the course had been sold to UM, said Bob Duringer, vice president for administration and finance, “That’s not the case so far.”
At some point, UM’s nine-hole golf course on the south campus will probably be removed to make room for new athletic and academic buildings, Dennison told the Kaimin last week.
In addition to the University itself, there is also the possibility that the UM Foundation, which invests private donations to UM, could purchase the course, Dennison said. Keith Kuhn, chief financial and operations officer for the UM Foundation declined to comment on any discussions between the Highlands and the foundation.
Dianne Pickens, president of the Mount Sentinel Women’s Golf Association, said she understands the need for more academic buildings, but worries that any deal with Highlands could fall through and leave her group without a place to play.
“I’ve got mixed feelings about it, to be honest,” Pickens said. She added that the Highlands course is less user-friendly for golfers who enjoy walking the links because the Highlands course is hillier.
But the south campus golf course won’t disappear any time soon. Duringer said any negotiations with Highlands would take several months to finalize. UM also has no master plan for construction projects on the south campus, something that also takes time to complete.
And even if any deals are finalized or a construction plan is developed, the act of actually removing a golf course from an area is a chore in itself, partially because of a course’s extensive irrigation system, said UM course superintendent Tom Burt.
“It’s going to be a two- to five-year process,” Burt said.