Byron Casper is the new corporate golf director at Pacific Hospitality Group Inc., which includes the renovated Warner Springs Ranch Golf Club, due to open this summer, and Salt Creek Golf Club. The son of the late Billy Casper will also be head professional at both courses, the latter located in Chula Vista.
Casper started his career in San Diego in the early 1990s at the San Diego Golf Academy. His career spans nearly two decades, including a stint in Scotland where he relocated in the mid-1990s to continue his professional golf career. While there, Casper played professionally, worked for the International PGA and became a teaching pro and club fitter for Heritage Golf of St. Andrews and the St. Andrews Golf Company.
Casper, 47, returned to the U.S. in 2007 and started a golf academy at a club in Utah in addition to partnering with his father to create the Billy Casper Golf Academy. He has also written and published two golf books.
“Byron is a local legend in his own right,” said William H. McWethy Jr., managing member for Warner Springs Ranch Resort. “He is both a talented player and a respected coach and knows this business from the inside out. We’re lucky to have him.”
Warner Springs Ranch Golf Club is a 6,850-yard, par-72 course surrounded by old oak trees, natural vegetation and mountain views. The course has hosted several top tournaments, including qualifying rounds for the U.S. Amateur Championship for the USGA.
“Our goal is to make Warner Springs Ranch the Greenbrier of the West,” Casper said in reference to the renowned golf course and resort in West Virginia. “More importantly, we strive to bring back the history and the status it had years ago as a wonderful golf and family destination. The course is beautiful and more challenging than ever, as is Salt Creek Golf Club.”
In addition to the course, workers are remodeling the golf clubhouse and restaurant and adding amenities such as a bar, two-way fireplace and outdoor seating. The old Bing Crosby cottage will be turned into a hospitality suite for the resort and pay homage to Crosby and San Diego golfing legends such as Billy Casper.
“Byron Casper’s involvement with Warner Springs Ranch Golf Club is truly significant,” said Fred Grand, president of Warner Springs Ranch Resort LLC. “It links a legendary golf course with a World Golf Hall of Fame golfer and San Diego native, Billy Casper, and keeps his legacy alive through his son, Byron.”
