AUSTIN, Texas -- Noted community designer and land planner Jim Bechtol has rejoined the Bechtol Golf Design team and will contribute to the ongoing success of the firm established by his older brother, renowned golf course architect Roy Bechtol.

Jim Bechtol returns to the Bechtol fold after a 10-year hiatus in which he spent time as a professional golfer on the Texas-based Lone Star Tour and established his own company as a planner and designer in the Leander, Texas area. He has spent the past five years working for the City of Leander, most recently as that burgeoning municipality’s Director of Planning and Community Development. In that position, he was responsible for the city’s parks, planning and street department, a huge task in a city that has quadrupled in size in the past decade.

Previously, Jim Bechtol was Leander’s director of parks and recreation, where he helped solidify the status of Crystal Falls Golf Course as one of the top municipal tracks in the state and marshal the improvements of one of the city’s parks and the construction of two others.
Jim Bechtol worked with Roy Bechtol in the latter’s Planned Environments, Inc., for 14 years before striking out on his own. Planned Environments specializes in environmental development through conscientious land planning,

“I am thrilled to have Jimbo back with our firm and working with me again,” Roy Bechtol said. “He is at the top of the game as far as land planning goes, and – with his knowledge of design and community development – he is a great addition to our fine staff here at Bechtol Golf Design and Planned Environments. I have always learned a lot from my brother, and it is great to have him back in the fold.”

Jim Bechtol will be responsible for land and community planning, golf course routing and course detailing and construction drawings. He will work hand in hand with Roy Bechtol and Jim Vater, Planned Environment’s and Bechtol Golf Design’s longtime vice president of planning, design and development.

“It feels great to be back with Roy and Jim Vater working on projects that I know are important and environmentally sound,” Jim Bechtol said. “I have spent more time lately on the administrative side of the planning profession, and I look forward to getting back out in the field and designing communities that will make differences in people’s lives. Building golf courses is something that I have always wanted to do, and now – with the place we are at with Bechtol Golf Design – we have a real opportunity to fashion some special tracks.”

With Jim Bechtol’s hiring, Bechtol Golf Design will open an office in and seek to establish a larger presence in the communities north and west of its Austin home base. Leander is now one of the fastest growing cities in the State of Texas. The bustling suburb (more than 90 percent its populous commutes to work) has a population estimated at close to 25,000 and has had to move quickly to try and keep pace with the ever-growing demand for the area’s communities.

“It is a pleasure to be able to work again with Jimbo and the fact that he is a great friend makes his return a situation we are all looking forward to,” Jim Vater said. “Jim’s experience will only add to the productivity of our work here and his clout and knowledge of the Northwest Austin’s suburbs makes him an ideal member of our team.”

Jim Bechtol has been on the front line of the growth in Leander and now – in his new role – has a chance to impact more of the area’s needs.

“This is a great chance to be able to bring to bear all the things I have learned about land planning and community design in the past and combine it with the talent and vision Roy and staff at Bechtol Golf and Planned Environments,” Jim Bechtol said. “Plus it is going to be great to be working with my brother again.”

Roy Bechtol, principal of Bechtol Golf Design, is flanked by his brother Jim Bechtol (left) and Jim Vater, Bechtol Golf Design’s longtime vice president of planning, design and development. Jim Bechtol has rejoined Bechtol Golf Design after a 10-year hiatus.

About Bechtol Golf Design
Bechtol Golf Design has designed more than 50 golf courses throughout the United States either as the lead architect or as a collaborator with other golf course designers. Led by its principal, Roy Bechtol, Bechtol Golf Design combines cutting-edge technology with creative, traditional design practices to determine the best possible plan for land development.
Upcoming projects include courses in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, in the mountains of Panama, in the Colorado Rocky Mountains near Vail, on the coast of Mexico, in the hills of western Virginia, in the Texas Hill Country along the upper banks of Lake Travis and on Mustang Island on the Texas coast.

Bechtol Golf Design’s completed projects, together with those via Roy’s continuing relationship with World Golf Hall of Famer Tom Kite, include:
The Waterford Club (Smithwick, Texas)
Gaillardia Country Club (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
The Club at Comanche Trace (Kerrville, Texas)
Legends on Lake LBJ (Kingsland, Texas)
Riverplace Golf Club (Austin, Texas)
The Golf Club at Somersett (Reno, Nevada)
The University of Texas Golf Club (Austin, Texas)
The Golf Club of Texas (San Antonio, Texas)
The Golf Club at Star Ranch (Hutto, Texas)
Black Bear Golf Club (Delhi, Louisiana)
ShadowGlen Golf Club (Manor, Texas)
The Ambush at Lajitas (Lajitas, Texas)
ConCan Country Club (North Uvalde County, Texas)
Saddle Creek (Copperopolis, California)

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