Golf Inc's Renovations of the Year

[Steve_ Shaffer]

PRIVATE

1. TPC Sugarloaf in Duluth, GA Greg Norman Design Group
2. LaJolla CC in San Diego, CA Todd Eckenrode/Origins Design
3. Renegade@Desert Mountain in Scottsdale, AZ Nicklaus Design

PUBLIC/RESORT

1. Plantation in Sea Island, GA  Love Golf Design
2. Royal New Kent in Providence, VA In House
3. Plantation @ Kapalua in Lahania, HI  C&C

There are Honorable Mentions as well:

https://www.bluetoad.com/publication/?m=52882&i=665639&p=26&ver=html5

[Tom_Doak]

Yep, those are the courses everyone is talking about these days! /s

[Bruce Wellmon]

Mic drop.

[Jerry Kluger]

It was good to see that Strantz's Royal New Kent was renovated and reopened as it is quirky Strantz with a theme.  I recognize that it certainly isn't links golf but visually it certainly is interesting and makes for some fun golf.  So far as Sea Island, I played the course the day before it was to be redone and it certainly needed it and I really want to see it as I thought Davis Love did a really good renovation at Sea Pines.

[Ben Hollerbach]

From what I've seen from Sea Island, Davis and Mark looks to have done a great job. I appreciate they were not trying to build a course that directly competed with Seaside, but rather complemented it. Lots of half par hole and plenty of places to test the better player but yet perfectly playable for the average guy.


I'm happy to see that RNK was brought back to life, such a fun could and any time Strantz can get more recognition its a good thing.


Living in Atlanta I had no idea they were doing any work at Sugarloaf, guess that tells you how much traction that course has now.

[Tom_Doak]

It was good to see that Strantz's Royal New Kent was renovated and reopened as it is quirky Strantz with a theme.

Was it changed significantly?


EDIT:  according to the article it was restored, but I have no idea if it had been changed significantly before that, ot just allowed to run down.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Royal New Kent article:


In mid-2018, after Wingfield Golf Management purchased Royal New Kent, the Greenville, S.C.-based firm immediately began performing a total overhaul on the entire golf complex with three primary objectives: restore the course to the original Strantz design vision; make the course manageable and maintain first-class playing conditions; and provide an Irish golf experience without the overseas travel and time expenses.
During the restoration, Royal New Kent’s green complexes were converted from bentgrass to the more heat-tolerant Champion Bermuda. Wingfield Golf trucked in 2,300 tons of new sand to reconstruct the Royal New Kent bunkers, making the golf course more playable and easier to maintain. The upgrades to the irrigation system include a new pump station, and all 120 inlets were rebuilt for better drainage. Meanwhile, substantial clubhouse upgrades were also performed.

https://myspiketravel.com/2020/07/21/renovated-royal-kent-kent-golf-club-continues-to-pike-up-honors/

[Tom_Doak]

Royal New Kent article:


In mid-2018, after Wingfield Golf Management purchased Royal New Kent, the Greenville, S.C.-based firm immediately began performing a total overhaul on the entire golf complex with three primary objectives: restore the course to the original Strantz design vision; make the course manageable and maintain first-class playing conditions; and provide an Irish golf experience without the overseas travel and time expenses.
During the restoration, Royal New Kent’s green complexes were converted from bentgrass to the more heat-tolerant Champion Bermuda. Wingfield Golf trucked in 2,300 tons of new sand to reconstruct the Royal New Kent bunkers, making the golf course more playable and easier to maintain. The upgrades to the irrigation system include a new pump station, and all 120 inlets were rebuilt for better drainage. Meanwhile, substantial clubhouse upgrades were also performed.

https://myspiketravel.com/2020/07/21/renovated-royal-kent-kent-golf-club-continues-to-pike-up-honors/

So are these awards about design, or about contracting?

[Brad Tufts]

I played it in October 2019 and very much enjoyed it...it was a longtime fulfillment of a wish list course I remembered from those hole-a-day calendars when I was a teen first getting into this stuff.


It still had some way to go with the details, but I thought the variety and imagination involved was really fun, with a couple clunkers thrown in (18 is oft-cited).


I’d be interested in seeing Stonehouse (and Riverfront!) next Richmond and east visit.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I am eager to see Sea Island and RNK again. I have always enjoyed them. Glad to see RNK resurrected.

[Adam T]

Had the great privilege of playing RNK for the first time a few weeks ago. I am not sure if a course has ever left such an impression on me in just one round. Choosing a strategic route to pursue each hole is a beguiling prospect. Conditions were firm and fast which added to the overall experience. I am itching to get back!