Local Paper Tidbits 03/20/2025

[Ryan Book]

A few stories you may have missed over the past week, and at least one that you guys definitely did not miss at the very end.

The Bogart (The Villages, FL): This week in The Villages, The Bogart executive course is closing this month for a $2.2 million renovation. https://www.villages-news.com/2025/03/15/executive-golf-course-to-close-this-month-for-renovation/


Fort Walton Beach (Fort Walton Beach, FL): The Pines course at the Fort Walton municipal is resodding its 18 greens with TifEagle. Considering this project costs a hair over $600k and the above project is $2.2 million, it shows little I know about renovation budgeting. https://www.nwfdailynews.com/story/news/local/2025/03/14/fort-walton-beach-golf-club-begins-renovation-to-pines-course-greens/82312894007/


Mere Lake (Brunswick, ME): A test at this course found that there are five-times the recommended level of perfluorooctane sulfonate in its wells. The cause is either a fire-fighting foam spill last year, or activity at a Navy facility upstream. The good news for the course is that it can install a filtration system prior to the season opening. Local residents? Eh… https://www.pressherald.com/2025/03/17/unsafe-levels-of-forever-chemicals-found-at-brunswick-golf-course/


Keystone Heights (Keystone Heights, FL): The course’s owner has announced the club will close in March, due to the club’s inability to pay leases on golf carts. The nine-holer was allegedly a Donald Ross originally prior to a 1959 redesign but the land remains. The town council has declined the option to purchase the land and the owner suggests homes will be next. I don’t know if this is more Ross than any given Florida “Ross” but if it closes FOR LACK OF GOLF CARTS, that would be a lightning rod. https://www.wcjb.com/2025/03/14/keystone-heights-golf-course-owner-announces-reason-behind-closing/


Atlanta Athletic (Johns Creek, GA): The club announced that Andrew Green would renovate the Highlands Course, a RTJ / Joe Finger combination. https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2025/03/18/atlanta-athletic-club-highlands-course-renovation.html


Carnoustie (Carnoustie, Scotland): A bit of a shock that Angus County has agreed to turn over operations to a private investment group. Personally, I was a little surprised that it wasn’t Cabot. I’m not pie-in-the-sky enough to imagine Carnoustie was not already a relative tourist attraction among Scottish local clubs, however the chance of a Trump-type destination is worrisome. https://www.todays-golfer.com/news-and-events/course-news/open-venue-carnoustie-golf-links-taken-over-by-private-firm/


Cedar Glen (New Baltimore): New Baltimore has approved a plan for a subdivision to be built over Cedar Glen, a ‘60s Jerry Matthews course. https://www.voicenews.com/2025/03/18/subdivision-planned-for-new-baltimore-golf-course-site/


Auburn Valley (Auburn, CA): This course has been shuttered since 2021 however the new ownership seems to be making some moves toward bringing it back. Permits for a new clubhouse have approved. https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2025/03/17/closed-auburn-golf-course-tenant-improvements.html


Tri-Mountain (Ridgefield, WA): The Cowlitz Tribe has backed out of a bid to purchase the club, with the stipulation that it remain a public property cited as the likely reason why. Clark County will keep it open for the time being while new buyers are sought. https://tdn.com/news/state-regional/business/article_693aa0e6-0029-11f0-bc6e-6bb6166c13bf.html


Carrabassett Valley, ME: The town’s residents approved the borrowing of up to $6 million to build a nine-hole golf course on 37 acres received from the Sugarloaf resort. When I first heard about this project way back when I had assumed it would be part of the resort but perhaps not. https://www.sunjournal.com/2025/03/13/carrabassett-valley-voters-accept-sugarloaf-land-ok-bond-for-9-hole-golf-course/


Black Brook (Mentor, Ohio): The course, by local golf celebrity Bert Way, is accepting bids to provide a new irrigation system. https://cityofmentor.com/legal-notice-phase-2-blackbrook-golf-course-irrigation-system-installation/


Blackstone Creek (Germantown, WI): The Heimat group would like to develop a mixed-use plan on top of this north Milwaukee course. https://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/news/2025/03/13/blackstone-creek-golf-course-heimat-redevelopment.html


River Club (Garden City, ID): A development group wants to build townhomes / mixed-use on a portion of Idaho’s second-oldest golf course; the plan would entail keeping 18 holes open, however significant redesign would be involved. Although I’d guess it’s far too early to have a potential GCA involved, interesting to note the hip double-fairway on their presentation. https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/business/article302028899.html


Hawk’s Tail (Greenfield, IN): The owner would like to build 130 homes at the West end of the golf course. City council is considering his rezoning pitch. https://www.greenfieldreporter.com/2025/03/14/from-the-rough-greenfield-council-considers-annexing-hawks-tail-golf-course/


Hampton, VA: Consultants for the city of Hampton have suggested closing one of its two municipal golf courses, both in the red, to focus improvements on one. Specifically, closing the Woodlands (a one-time Ross that was redesigned due to a highway project) for Hamptons (a Hurdzan). Only a suggestion at this point. https://www.pilotonline.com/2025/03/14/does-the-city-of-hampton-need-2-public-golf-courses-analysts-pitch-investing-in-just-1/


New York City: Mayoral hopeful Brad Lander has proposed building homes on four of the city’s municipal golf courses (but not which). Considering he’s a long-shot candidate and looks like Tim Robinson, this should mostly be considered a joke. https://nypost.com/2025/03/13/us-news/lefty-mayoral-hopeful-brad-lander-pushes-paving-over-nyc-golf-courses-in-desperate-bid-to-solve-housing-crisis/

[Sam Morrow]

Didn't Tripp Davis recently do work at Atlanta Athletic?

[Ryan Book]

Correct...he handled renovations on the Riverside course. Although Davis certainly added his own spin to at least a quartet of holes (if I recall), I would wager Green will be a bit more liberal in his approach to the Highland course.

Didn't Tripp Davis recently do work at Atlanta Athletic?

[Andrew Harvie]

There's an undeniable market to renovate/restore RTJ, Pete Dye, Dick Wilson, and in the coming decades, Tom Fazio's golf courses (among other mid-modern golf architects), but I really hope we don't completely remove every little bit of the era between WWII & Sand Hills. That's more of a concern with RTJ and Wilson IMO, but their best works should be preserved like we do with Tillinghast, Ross, etc. Atlanta Athletic is not that for RTJ, and Rees has already messed around with it, but it's becoming more and more of a theme to nuke a RTJ and I hope places like The Dunes Club or some of his really upstate New York golf courses can live a long life. Long way to say I'm curious to see what Andrew Green does there, it's a decent plot of land.

[Sam Morrow]

Green redid Fazio's Vaquero and it's fantastic work, I find it much better than the previous iteration.

[Ryan Book]

How do you propose the next generation of architects put food on the table if they're not restoring the architects who were renovated during this era?     ; )

There's an undeniable market to renovate/restore RTJ, Pete Dye, Dick Wilson, and in the coming decades, Tom Fazio's golf courses (among other mid-modern golf architects), but I really hope we don't completely remove every little bit of the era between WWII & Sand Hills. That's more of a concern with RTJ and Wilson IMO, but their best works should be preserved like we do with Tillinghast, Ross, etc. Atlanta Athletic is not that for RTJ, and Rees has already messed around with it, but it's becoming more and more of a theme to nuke a RTJ and I hope places like The Dunes Club or some of his really upstate New York golf courses can live a long life. Long way to say I'm curious to see what Andrew Green does there, it's a decent plot of land.

[Kyle Harris]

I venture in 100 or so years golfers will lament the treatment of Dick Wilson courses (RTJ, Sr. a close second) as we now lament the treatment of some Donald Ross.

Lone Palm in Lakeland, FL is a candidate for a closer look. It's been improved signficantly recently, but I'm not sure how much of it is restorative.

[Tom_Doak]

There's an undeniable market to renovate/restore RTJ, Pete Dye, Dick Wilson, and in the coming decades, Tom Fazio's golf courses (among other mid-modern golf architects), but I really hope we don't completely remove every little bit of the era between WWII & Sand Hills. That's more of a concern with RTJ and Wilson IMO, but their best works should be preserved like we do with Tillinghast, Ross, etc.

Very few Tillinghast or Ross courses have been PRESERVED, they are being "RESTORED" [including changes] at a breakneck pace.  It would be ironic if we then went the preservation route for RTJ and Dick Wilson.


I hope these restorations don't alter all of Pete Dye's work, too, just because some of his former associates "have to eat".


I do agree that The Dunes Club [and probably Peachtree, though I'm not its biggest fan] are the RTJ courses that ought to be carefully preserved, although I know Rees did some work to The Dunes since I last played it.

[David_Tepper]

Speaking of "well preserved" RTJ courses, my guess is the Pauma Valley course north of San Diego is pretty close to its original version.

https://www.paumavalleycc.com/ 


Let me know if I am mistaken.

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