Silverado (North)

“In 1952 [Ben Harmon] was hired by Patrick Markovich to serve as his assistant professional at Richmond (California) CC” wrote Geoff Cornish and Ron Whitten in The Architects of Golf. A few years later, Markovich bought a large ranch and invited Harmon to lay out and construct a golf course on it. The result was the original Silverado CC.”

Harmon’s layout at the property opened in 1955 and lasted until the mid-1960s when Robert Trent Jones was called in modernize the original course and build a second 18-holer. In 1967 the renovated North track re-opened alongside the new South course.

The North course hosted the Kaiser International Open Invitational from 1968 to 1980; by which time the event had a new sponsor, becoming the Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic. In the event’s second year (1969) the tournament was played twice after the last two rounds were washed out by rain. Miller Barber (leader after 36 holes) was declared the winner but only received half the prize money. The event was replayed later in the year when Jack Nicklaus emerged victorious after winning a playoff.

Johnny Miller bought a condo at Silverado in the early 1970s and won the Kaiser International over the North course in 1974 and 1975. Thirty-five years later Miller and two other investors bought the resort. The two-time major champion then renovated the North prior to the partnership securing the Frys.com Open (now the Safeway Open) in 2014.