subject: Wes Mickle sees his legacy through in Canyon West Golf Club [print this page] Wes Mickle sees his legacy through in Canyon West Golf Club
Wes Mickle, the father of Stan Mickle, acquired Canyon West ranch in Texas in the mid-1970s with a dream. The purchase was partly driven by the wish to get away from the rampant development taking place in his native Arizona.
Wes Mickle and Stan eventually set out to create a golf course and equestrian ranch on the land, and after many years of hard work, the father-and-son duo was able to see their dream to fruition.
Wes Mickle, an avid golfer, designed, built, and maintained the golf course and ran all of the operations, and then passed on the torch to his son. Stan Mickle has been integral in helping his father plan and develop of every aspect of the golf course, club, and the surrounding residential development. He is now in charge of overseeing the expanded development, as well as the on-site operations.
For many, Canyon West is more of an equestrian facility than a golf club. There, many members prefer to experience the joy that is horse riding. With a firmly established reputation as a breeder of champion horses, Wes Mickle has also been winning golf tournaments in his native state of Arizona since he was 13 years old. It was only natural that his talented son, Stan Mickle, would follow in his father's footsteps. At the age of eight, Stan won his first tournament, and he and his father have been playing golf together ever since.
After moving to Weatherford, Texas in the mid-1960s, the two worked side-by-side to transform their ranch into a world-class equestrian breeding facility of international fame.
In their free time, they play golf and have more than 80 years of golf playing between them. But playing golf at other clubs just wasn't enough. It was then that Wes Mickle and his son decided to design and build Canyon West Golf Club and the equestrian operation. It has evolved into the high-end, resort-style semi-private course that people know today.
"l love being outdoors," Wes Mickle says. "And then there's the architectural process where you put something on paper and then see golfers out there enjoying what you've built."
