A California country club, notorious for its turbulent history, has faced ongoing challenges since its inception in the 1970s. Located in the picturesque hills of Bakersfield, Rio Bravo Country Club occupies land once owned by a wealthy ancestor of Tucker Carlson.
Despite the community’s persistent efforts to maintain the cherished establishment, the club has experienced a series of setbacks with a string of unsuccessful ownerships. The latest blow came in January when the club was forced to close due to a contentious and widely reported divorce between its previous owners, Jeremy and Kim Willer.
Hopes were high when the Willers took the reins in late 2023. Their acquisition followed an initiative by 13 local homeowners who had purchased the struggling club, aiming to preserve its legacy and find competent management.
The Willers had pledged to revitalize the facility, which had been neglected for years. Rio Bravo is renowned for its dramatic natural landscapes and features an eco-friendly golf course, originally designed by acclaimed architect Robert Muir Graves in 1975. The property also offers various dining options to cater to golfers throughout the grounds.
At the time, the Willers promised sweeping improvements to the long-neglected facility.
The property boasts dramatic natural topography and an eco-friendly golf course designed by renowned architect Robert Muir Graves in 1975, along with multiple food vendors serving hungry golfers throughout the grounds.
But disaster struck when a scandal broke out between the couple in a barrage of allegations that led to a divorce filing in late December, causing the club to close its doors.
The land was taken over in February by Jeremy’s father, Randy Willer, who rebranded the club as Scarlet & Gray. But the swift decision to close its doors marked yet another chapter in the troubled history of the long-struggling country club.
At Rio Bravo Country Club, a revolving door of owners has struggled to make the operation viable despite its dramatic terrain, lush hillsides, and 18-hole championship course
The most recent owners to take over the Bakersfield-based country club and fail were Jeremy and Kim Willer, who sold the property shortly after their messy divorce went public
The land the country club sits on once belonged to Henry Miller’s 800,000-acre California stronghold. At the time, he was dubbed the Cattle King of California
It all dates back to the 19th century, when land baron Henry Miller – who was known as the ‘Cattle King of California’ – owned 800,000 acres of land in the state that stretched over what would become the Rio Bravo, where the country club sits.
Both Tucker Carlson, 56, and journalist Nellie Bowles, 38, whose wife is CBS News boss Bari Weiss, are descendants of Miller.
But it was his great-grandson, George Nickel Jr, who would make Rio Bravo happen through the creation of the California Aqueduct with the help of Governor Pat Brown in the mid 1960s.
The project, which funneled water from the Sierra Nevada to irrigate the Central Valley as well as Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego, triggered rapid agricultural expansion and population growth across California.
Amid that boom, he built an upscale resort along the Kern River in 1975 to entertain prominent friends and guests.
Among them were legendary restaurateur Claude Rouas, founder of Napa Valley’s iconic Auberge du Soleil, and San Francisco socialite Frances McAteer, wife of former California State Senator Eugene McAteer who served from 1959 to 1967, according to a 1976 San Francisco Examiner story by society columnist Albert Morch.
Nickel filed for bankruptcy in 1985 after roughly $30 million in short-term loans secured against the resort failed to convert into long-term debt when banks refused to extend the financing, according to a 1985 article in The Modesto Bee.
Wells Fargo would take over to satisfy the debt, triggering decades of shifting ownerships with each consecutive buyer presenting their plans to revitalize the grounds.
Miller’s descendants are media personality Tucker Carlson and journalist Nellie Bowles, whose wife is CBS News boss Bari Weiss
Miller’s great-grandson, George Nickel Jr, built the upscale Rio Bravo Resort along the Kern River in 1975 to entertain prominent friends and guests. When he declared bankruptcy in 1985, Wells Fargo would seize the property to settle his $30million debt
Since Wells Fargo seized it, the resort has gone through multiple owners who all tried to put their own spin on it – including Konny Boyd in 1996 who attempted to transform the club into a senior community
In 1991, the resort was closed, and its golf course began operating as a private country club.
Konny Boyd was one of the resort’s subsequent owners, purchasing it in 1996 and adding an open-air pavilion with the intention of transforming the club into a senior community.
Her plans, however, were blocked by residents, and she sold the property in 2006 to Los Angeles-based investors David and Sue Lo.
The Los weren’t able to find success either and sold the resort to a Texas-based developer, who redeveloped it into 170 separate residential units.
But the golf course and clubhouse were given to a group of 13 homeowners who banded together to purchase the property in May 2017, with one representative, Randy Steinert, telling SFGATE in 2022 that they were looking for a new owner to ‘restore it’, unlike the previous owners who left their backyards ruined.
The property was listed for merely $4.9m million in July 2022, a price that included the 18-hole championship golf course, clubhouse and 22 developable lots.
While the full acquisition price paid by the Willers in late 2023 was not widely publicized, a specific parcel at the club’s address was recorded as sold for $750,000 on Realtor.com on December 15, 2023.
The property was listed for merely $4.9million in July 2022, a price that included the 18-hole championship golf course, clubhouse and 22 developable lots
The Willer’s plans to restore the property went awry when Jeremy was arrested after police responded to a domestic violence call at their home, during which Kim alleged he had given her a bloody nose and raised concerns about his drinking
In February, Jeremy’s father Randy Willer took over the country club – renaming it Scarlet & Gray
Their plans included renovations to the golf course, new structures, a clubhouse overhaul with a revamped menu that included pizzas from a new wood-fired oven, barbeque and local vendors, The Bakersfield Californian reported in 2023.
Those aspirations were abruptly halted in the spring of 2025 when the couple separated.
In March 2025, Jeremy was arrested after police responded to a domestic violence call at their home, during which Kim alleged he had given her a bloody nose and cited concerns about his drinking, according to KGET-TV in January. He was charged in April with two misdemeanor counts: battery on a spouse and battery on a person. Kim later filed for divorce on December 23.
Public records show that Jeremy is also embroiled in four legal actions pending against him, including two breach of contract lawsuits and a wrongful termination suit in which Kim is also named.
The estranged couple’s next court hearing is listed for March 17.
Meanwhile, the club’s newly rebranded Instagram shows golfers continuing to enjoy the 18-hole course, with monthly family memberships priced at $575 and regular memberships at $475.
Visitors have also sampled offerings from local vendors, including Primos Smoked BBQ and McFarland Taqueria. However, the club’s restaurant remains closed, as further renovations appear to be underway.
Jeremy and Randy Willer did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail’s request for comment – nor did Jeremy’s lawyer, David Torres.
