Our History
Juniper History
[A brief summary of Juniper Golf Club's history]
Juniper Golf Club was organized on October 1, 1951 and incorporated October 11, 1951.
Incorporators were T. J. Wells, Jack Elliott, John Copenhaver, Charles Martini and Fred Sparks.
The first Board of Directors was Fred Sparks, T. J. Wells, Joe Brown, Harold Hansen, Ray Rogers, Fred Baer, P. M. Houk, Jim Short and C. P. Mahoney.
On Memorial Day, 1952, Fred Sparks had the undisputed honor of driving the first ball "on one of the most beautiful spots carved from the Central Oregon desert." With this official opening, we had a 6,002 yard, 72 par, nine hole golf course and a club house built from three barracks.
Golf Course Opens New Nine
[Reprinted from The Redmond Spokesman, Redmond, OR -- Wednesday, May 20, 1987]
Juniper Golf Club has joined the big boys.
The public course run by the private club this spring inaugurated a new front nine, bringing the Redmond layout to a full 18 holes.
Although the course is shorter than playing the old nine twice, Juniper's tree-lined fairways and porcupine rough is making golfers groan with masochistic glee already.
Golf Course Start Slated for Spring
[Reprinted from The Redmond Spokesman, Redmond, Ore. -- Wednesday, September 12, 2001]
By GARY G. NEWMAN, Spokesman staff writer
It's been a long row without much hoeing, but Juniper Golf Club plans to finally break ground on its new golf course in the spring.
Plans drawn up by Tacoma Golf Course architect John Harbottle show a 7,000-plus yard par 71 course with a high desert character as it winds its way through the landscape southwest of the fairgrounds.
Juniper Celebrates its 50th Anniversary
[Reprinted from The Redmond Spokesman, Redmond, OR -- Wednesday, May 29, 2002]
By GARY G. NEWMAN, Spokesman staff writer
While Juniper Golf Club celebrates its 50th anniversary with a tournament Sunday, the club really started 62 years ago when a scratch golfer from Portland, who was sent to Redmond to manage the Western Auto Store, found out the nearest course was a rough nine-hole layout in Bend with equally rough hospitality.
Fred Sparks, with his appropriate last name, ignited interest in the course in 1940. According to a story by Mickey Myrick in the club's 25th anniversary program, Sparks alone put in 5,500 hours of physical labor over 12 years before the course was done.
Juniper Named One of America's Best!
For Immediate Release -- December 6, 2006
AMERICA’S BEST NEW COURSES NAMED IN GOLF DIGEST
Award’s 23rd Straight Year Recognizes the Best in Golf Course Design;
23 States with Courses Included
New York, NY—For the 23rd consecutive year, Golf Digest has unveiled the results of its survey of America's Best New Courses. The latest ranking, which also includes the Best New Canadian courses, appears in the January 2007 issue (on newsstands December 12).