JOHNSTOWN — It’s not every day you can turn your family’s passion for golf into a reality in your own backyard.

The Podtburg family of Johnstown is doing just that, and they’ve taken almost a decade to transform their longstanding dairy farm into what they hope will be a family-friendly, fun golf course for all levels by the end of next summer.

“We used to hit golf balls off the property,” said Stephanie Podtburg, who shares her husband’s and his family’s passion for golf. “We always thought it would make a great golf course.”

About eight years ago, they decided to turn that whim into the real thing and found a golf course architect to put their dreams to paper. Two years ago, they tore down the dairy and moved the cows to other facilities, transforming their dairy farm into the Bella Ridge Golf Course on the southern end of town, just a half mile out from Interstate 25. Passersby can see the beginnings of it now.

“We want to make sure we provide a top-notch golf experience,” Podtburg said. “That’s our focus. We want people to have a great game of golf and enjoy the course.”

Golf course architect Art Schaupeter made use of the natural topography to run an 18-hole course along Weld County roads 13 and 44. Grass started growing this past summer, and they will seed their practice facility (which is much more than a driving range) as they move into spring 2025.

For Schaupeter, who designed TPC Colorado in Berthoud and Highland Meadows in Windsor, this was a unique challenge to turn a 200+-acre farm of rolling hills into a course that could challenge even the most experienced players, yet provide enough flexibility for the novice. 

Compared with other courses, Schaupeter said, Bella Ridge will be very distinguishable by nature of its topography alone.

“One, it’s probably the most dramatic piece of ground in terms of ground movement,” he said. “At Bella Ridge, you have 180 feet of elevation change from one end to the other. It creates a whole bunch of drama within the course, and the holes, and getting into a tee box and having a wonderful distant view of the mountains. It’s a really neat, dramatic setting for golfers to appreciate.”

Schaupeter said the course is designed for daily play, not large tournaments that bring out the PGA tour. He’s thoughtful about his design.

“I want to put the golf in the golfer’s hands,” he said. “By that, I mean I want to create a bunch of ways the golf holes can be played. A good golf course doesn’t unveil its secrets the first time you play it. You have to play it a few times.”

Shaupeter made use of the natural features of the land with 12 of the 18 holes being unique to that topography, Podtburg said. Additionally, if players don’t want to play a full 18 holes, there will be additional teeing areas from which to start.

Schaupter’s challenge also is to design the course that isn’t overwhelmed with hazards that make players spend more time than necessary hunting for their lost golf balls. “Making a golf course hard is easy, because golf starts from the standpoint of being difficult,” Schaupeter said. “To me, it’s a much bigger challenge to make it fun and enjoyable for a full range of golfers. I’m always walking through the course to experience it from the eyes of different players. Looking at the angle of the greens, where [are] they going to miss? What kind of shot are they left with?”

The playable area of Bella Ridge is about 100 acres, which is all seeded and was green as of the end of October. The remainder of the land will remain in the native grasses to the area. The Podtburgs next will create their practice area, which they say is an area that players can access immediately, to practice their chipping, putting, driving or bunker shots, without having to go through the entire course to get there. ​​The practice area will be 500 feet across and will be capable of supporting 50 golfers at one time.

The course will have a temporary clubhouse, where players can have some food and drink. “Our initial plan is to have a food truck style area, with a temporary facility,” Podtburg said. “We eventually hope to build a full clubhouse with a restaurant and bar, all the works, and potentially in the future we may even have some sort of event facility.”

While the course will serve the family and feed its need for a ready, challenging course, they also want the public to enjoy it. They’d like to see the game grow, with perhaps the golf team from Roosevelt High School making use of it. 

As a business, the location of the golf course is ideal, Schaupter said. “I tell people all the time, just take Interstate 25, take exit 250, drive west a half mile, and you run right into it.”

“It will be extremely easy for people to get to, and will have the best practice facility in Northern Colorado,” Schaupter said.

Once the course opens next year, the Podtburgs will keep play open as long as Colorado’s weather allows it.

The golf course, however, is just the beginning. Another 200+ acres of Podtburg land is planned for residential and commercial development. Those pieces will be developed and planned at later times, and will be reviewed by Johnstown planners and the Town Board.

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