Editor’s Note: This story was originally published in the March 14th issue of Golfweek

Here’s something you won’t typically hear a head golf professional say about his course: “Anything goes.”

But that’s what Fran Szal says about Pedernales Golf Club, 30 miles northwest of Austin. There is no dress code. Jeans, flip-flops, T-shirts, even bikinis – none will get you tossed off Pedernales. You’re welcome to play alone or with a dozen or more of your closest friends. And by all means, bring as much alcohol as you want to make it around this rocky nine-holer.

“There’s no such thing as only a foursome,” Szal told a visitor. “On every Saturday, every Sunday morning, every Tuesday, we have groups of 15 or 20 people out there, everybody in his own cart, everybody partying. It’s usually a 3½-hour round. . . . People are here to have fun.”

Pedernales, as a sign on the cart barn reads, is “Willie’s Place.” That would be Willie Nelson, the 82-year-old country music legend who owns the course and surrounding land. Szal said Nelson bought the property as a retreat for friends and family, and he splits time between here and his other homes. Szal said he’ll sometimes see celebrities such as Woody Harrelson and Billy Bob Thornton at Pedernales.

“Everybody loves Willie,” Szal said. “You see actors, actresses, famous musicians. Everybody likes to hang out with Willie.”

Another sign above the pro shop describes Pedernales as the “No. 1 tourist destination in Briarcliff.” (One senses it doesn’t have much competition in this rural region.) The attraction is not the golf – if you go, brace yourself for a bumpy cart ride, and patchy fairways and greens – but rather the chance to see Nelson or say you played his course.

Szal said visitors sometimes come around, asking, “Where’s Willie? Where’s Willie?”

He has to remind them: “Willie doesn’t work here.”