Getting into the swing of things

MONTROSE — If Ken Brown’s first few weeks are a sign of things to come — the Black Canyon Golf Course is in good hands.

Brown, who replaced Steve Skiff as the new director of golf/head pro at Black Canyon on May 14, has not only been in constant motion keeping the course ready for its regular tournaments — he has also been working on ways to improve one of the premier courses on the Western Slope.

“Right now things are going good,” Brown said. “It has been a busy first couple of weeks, but things are settling down and we are going in cruise control.”

While Brown, 43, may be new to the Black Canyon, he isn’t new to the area. He graduated from Delta High School in 1983 and attended Western State College and Mesa State College, as well as Central Arizona University.

He started his golf career in Cedaredge before serving the past three years as the Class A pro at Devil’s Thumb Golf Course in Delta.

Now that Brown has survived his first tests at the Black Canyon, he is ready to put his niche on the course.

The first thing he wants to implement is making Mondays Family Day and he also wants to adjust the membership rates at the course. Both his ideas he said should be in affect on Monday, June 16 after he works with the rates.

“The prices are going to come down considerably,” Brown said.

Brown also received some help from Skiff, who stuck around and helped out.

“He was a big help, he showed me how everything is run,” Brown said. “Over at Delta our system was different and Steve was very helpful with everything.”

Brown’s schedule picks back up the next couple of days with the Black Canyon Ladies Invitational today and the Tri-State Company Tournament on Friday. The Black Canyon will also hold a Montrose Junior Golf Association Summer Program from June 23 to June 27.