It takes a group of brave men to stare at an empty field in the dictionary definition of "The Middle of No Where" and dream of golf greatness in the midst of a recession. For Paul Shock and Cleve Trimble, the principal founders of The Prairie Club in Valentine, Nebraska, another adjective came to mind ...

Crazy.

But as the son of a life long entrepreneur, Paul Shock knew following popular opinion was not his style. "I believe that it's very consistent throughout history that many of the great things in the world have been created by those who others thought were crazy. If it made sense and was easy then everybody would be doing it, so I just had that ethic in me and felt so strongly about this land from the moment I first saw it in 1997," explained former Venture Capitalist Shock.

Now 13 years and 46 holes later, The Prairie Club in Valentine, Nebraska has conquered the buzz factor as the "Next Big Thing" in golf course design and has quickly vaulted into the conversation as one of America's most distinctive golf destinations. From the beginning, Paul Shock used the property's remote location to his advantage, dreaming big in hopes of giving the discerning golfer multiple courses on a canvas they've never seen before. Hence, The Prairie Club celebrated its grand opening on Memorial Day, 2010 with three diametrically opposed courses in its arsenal, The Pines Course, The Dunes Course, and the 10 hole par-3 Horse Course.

"Here's another one where all the common sense folks said I was crazy as they all wanted me to build one course at a time," said Shock with a glint in his eye. "But I've always felt that it isn't easy to get here so I wanted to offer golfers the variety that the land has to offer. From the start, the land just said build multiple courses," concluded Shock, a native of Sioux Falls, SD and the winner of the 2002 Nebraska State Match Play Championship.

When asked about the reasons he feels so comfortable with his beautiful gamble, the 52 year-old spoke to the founding principles of the Prairie Club. "I am convinced that the key to our business is that if you get a group of avid golfers together within minutes they are talking about which of the great courses they've had the chance to play," regaled Shock. "But the fact is most of the great courses are not available to most golfers. So in that statement is our business model, 'Make great golf available' through reasonably priced memberships and being open to the public on a limited basis. The key in that phrase is great, it has to be great, it needs to be a bucket list place," described Shock.

I learned a long time ago that writing in absolutes is never a prudent move. But after spending 48 magical hours in Paul's halcyon paradise and experiencing what I call "Shock Value," an exception must be made. So here it is - if you only play one new property in 2010, it must be The Prairie Club. Simply stated, The Prairie Club never has to worry about falling victim to identity theft, as it's impossible to replicate what this instant classic has to offer.

Co-designed by PGA Tour Professional Tom Lehman and Chris Brands, The Dunes 18 is characterized by rugged dunes and fairway moguls set against a backdrop of the big Nebraska sky. The par 73 (five par-5's) behemoth can be pushed back to 7583 yards from the tips, but is perfectly challenging from the 6838 yard Blue Tees. The harder of the two courses comes out of the gates quickly, featuring the best opening three holes I've seen in quite some time. After the incredible uphill 458 yard par-4 1st, hole number two on the Dunes Course presents an exemplary challenge with an even cooler story behind it. Down the entire right side of the 478 yard par-4 fairway is a simple white picket fence, reminiscent of the Road Hole at St. Andrews. A fence so peculiarly out of place I needed to get the behind the scenes story from the designer himself.

"From the very beginning we loved the 2nd hole and felt that it was so strong that it needed to be one of the final 18," explained Tom Lehman. A big part of the reason for it was the fence that ran alongside the right edge of the fairway. It created something unique: a hard edge straight line in an area without anything remotely like that. It is quirky in a St Georges Golf Club in England kind of way. It isn't Mickey Mouse and it isn't goofy: it is unexpected. The fence, which is not out of bounds, is something that would need to be challenged in order to get the best angle to left pin locations. The big debate was that we felt having 30 more feet of playable area right would make the hole even better, and if Paul bought the land we could get that accomplished," stated the 2010 U.S. Senior PGA Champion.

The key part of that quote is the last sentence. Yes, Tom asked Paul Shock to buy more land to create the fence line. An interesting antidote to say the least considering that Paul's land mass for the Prairie Club is equal to state of Rhode Island. In reality, The Prairie Club sits on over 3000 acres of magnificent glory, or the equivalent of just under five square miles.

The walking only Dunes Course is defined by sculpted bunkers so rugged they look like they were made by animals seeking shelter from the wind. Wickedly sweeping wind battered holes skillfully lead to green complexes so fiendish they might have been concocted by the Devil himself. When discussing the quality of the land at The Prairie Club, it's a two-fold conversation. Not only is the land made for golf, it's also made for growing grass and maintaining immaculate conditions. Tyler Swedberg, General Manager of The Prairie Club, discusses the major factors that allowed his team to create 46 holes in only six months, quite possibly a record in golf course construction. "The topography of the land and the sandy characteristics allowed us to hardly fertilize at all which is different from most courses in the United States. Plus we barely had to move any material as many holes were simply "there." It is mostly "mow and go" so to speak," concluded Swedberg.

Tom Lehman, who was enamored with the land from the start, provides a Mission Statement that he clearly followed when creating the Dunes 18. "More than anything, golf is supposed to be fun. It is supposed to be a nice walk and a stimulating experience that does not beat you up but at the same times challenges you to be your best. And when you are not your best, you don't want to be beat up so badly that you don't want to do it again. Just the opposite, you want to be lured back to do it again because you feel that you can do it the next time: it looks appealing and immensely doable and even if you couldn't pull it off today, tomorrow is a new day and you can't wait to be challenged again because this time you are going to win! That, to me, is the beauty of great golf and I believe that is the allure of the Dunes course," concluded Lehman.

The Graham Marsh designed Pines Course also plays to a par of 73 and whisks golfers away on a four hour journey though land that I thought only existed in a Wi game. Over half the holes play along The Snake River canyon rim that's laced with a towering gallery of Ponderosa pines. Holes #10-12 follow this path and gets my vote as the finest par-3, par-5, par-4 combination in the nation.

While playing the 7403 yard tract I couldn't stop thinking about their introductory guide that speaks to the doctrine of golf, or in other words the feelings the game stirs in the soul and the grandiose nature of golf when it's experienced on a higher playing field. Tim Jennings, Golf Experience Manager at the Prairie Club expands upon that theory. "The mission of the Prairie Club is to provide an unforgettable experience that touches the soul of all who journey here. Aside from the golf itself, this land and the area allow many opportunities to touch your soul in other ways. The Prairie Club can act as a central hub for our members and guests so they can enjoy the other area attractions. So whether it's an hour at one of our points of solitude on the canyon rim, canoeing the Niobrara River, hunting for pheasants, fishing the Merritt Reservoir or watching the migration of the Sandhill crane in late October, there are many things to do in and around the Prairie Club," stated the Kansas State Alum.

Head Golf Professional Joseph Goar also has ties to the Midwest, as up until last year he held the same position at St Charles CC in St Charles, Illinois. I'm sure many times he's said to himself, I'm definitely not in The Land of Lincoln anymore. "In my experience a place like the Prairie Club is unheard of. If you look at all the resorts across the country, they all have great golf and for the most part nice amenities. But all of them have golf courses that are very similar.

Fortunately for us The Dunes and Pines present a uniquely different playing experience. The best thing that is happening here is that both courses are equal in ranking among most players. We really want people to have a hard time choosing which course to play, because that means they are both great," explained Goar.

Both courses feed into a rustic edifice known as "The Lodge." With 26 rooms designed with the ultimate "buddy trip" in mind, The Lodge also features a down home menu of heartland classics and such unique amenities as a game room and multiple sitting areas.

However the flagship amenity of The Prairie Club has to be The Horse Course, the brainchild of Geoff Shackelford and Gil Hanse. Quite simply it's the coolest way to spend an hour playing golf . . . period. "The Horse Course sits just 50 yards away from our front door. It's a fun 10-hole Par-3 course designed around the basketball game of Horse, where the players can literally call their shots and play to any green they choose. There is a designed routing but there are really no tee boxes, only fairways and greens. Many of the guests that have played it have come back saying 'that is the most fun they have had on a golf course in their life.' I'm sure they were the ones that won all the money," smiled Jennings.

Tim was also kind enough to offer me a behind the scenes glimpse at the future of The Prairie Club - a third championship course dubbed Old School. Many of the great architects that have surveyed the land have indicated that it might be the best piece of property they have ever seen. Where the Old School Course is laid out, the land changes even more to a softer links prairie and then the Snake River begins to meander in and out of that prairie allowing us to design a more "heroic" golf course. You'll be faced with shots that literally carry the canyon and fairways and green sites sitting right on cliff tops overlooking the Snake River some 300 feet below," said Jennings. Construction on The Old School Course is expected to begin within the next three years.

To follow the genesis of Old School make sure to visit their bold website at www.theprairieclub.com. In fact, I could have probably written this feature from my couch by perusing their flip book scorecards on the site. But thank the publisher for MGM's robust travel budget so I didn't have to. Writing on a course you've never played before is like watching a concert on DVD - it's fun for awhile, but there's no substitute for being there in person.

After an incredible journey to the heartland of America I am convinced the most indelible golf properties are the ones that are found, not built. Or as the humble Paul Shock explained, "I wanted the courses to be complementary of the land, not offensive and I think maybe we've done that. The reaction has been it fits!" Paul, The Prairie Club fits in Nebraska as well as corn stalks and Husker football.