Rancho Solano named best value

Rancho Solano named best value
By Mike Corpos | DAILY REPUBLIC | February 22, 2009

FAIRFIELD - Local golfers have known for a while now that Rancho Solano is among the best places to play golf and get your money's worth in the process.

Turns out locals aren't the only ones paying attention.

In January, greenskeeper.org, a 35,000-member online golf community, named Rancho Solano as its Best Value Worth the Green fee in all of Northern California.

The award is just part of the fruits of six years worth of reinvesting in the golf courses by the city of Fairfield under the direction of general manager Rich Cessna of KemperSports.

'Six years ago when I arrived in the city of Fairfield, I told city staff and the city council that they have very nice facilities, but they're not meeting their potential,' Cessna said. 'I said they needed to reinvest in the golf courses, and in a couple of years we've made tremendous strides.'

Cessna said the city has spent about $1 million just on drainage at Rancho Solano to make the course playable year round.

'The course sits on top of natural springs, and it stays wet,' he said. 'Early on it was unplayable in the winter, now we can play it 12 months a year.'

Now, being named best value in the region, Cessna said it shows that the efforts of the city and the golf course staff are paying off.

'It's exciting for everybody, not just those at the golf course,' he said. 'It tells our client, in this case the city of Fairfield, that we're doing everything we said we'll do. It also tells our customers that we're doing something to continue to win these kind of awards.'

Cessna said that despite the current economic recession, the city's golf courses are doing well compared to the rest of the country.

'A hundred courses closed in the United States in 2008, and the forecast is for more closures in 2009,' Cessna said. 'But In January both Rancho Solano and Paradise Valley (were) playing more rounds than we did last January. We've had better weather, but it still says that golfers could choose other courses but they are still choosing Fairfield golf.'

Reach Mike Corpos at 427-6979 or mcorpos@dailyrepublic.net.