Flying in the face of a fragile economy and a shrinking golf industry, the idea of a new Florida golf resort seems silly. But after a recent tour of Streamsong, and hearing the business strategy, I’m willing to bet this is going to be a success. The people in management are making decisions that make sense. They had the land, the sand, and they hired the right designers who build courses that are playable, walkable, accessible and easy on the eyes. (Hopefully they stay relatively affordable.) Other than some decent-size gators patrolling small lakes, you’d never know you were in Florida. Unique isn't always a good thing, but in this case, and as it relates to this plan, it is. There are no houses, and other than the Polk County Power Station in the distance, you can’t see another man-made structure. Think Wisconsin without the cows. Birds and the occasional train are the only breaks in silence.
More to come, but for now, here are the answers to 18 pressing questions:
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Results for May 2012
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Ambush update: The Ponce is going across The Pond
The Ponce was, and always will be, the first Ambush. It was 16 guys colliding with the courses of Sea Island, boyish camaraderie, enjoying the comforts of the Lodge, shoulder-season specials and a few bottles of wine on behalf of Golf Digest. Now I can see why Geoff Shackelford made fun of my Ambush videos:
Anyway, I've kept in contact with both planners of The Ponce, Michael Palmore and Neil Thomson, and as they prep for their 10th annual buddies trip, I received this email from Thomson:
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Bill Coore's latest: Pinehurst No. 9
The current state of golf courses in America can be summarized by a closer look at Pit Golf Links, a scrappy set of 18 holes five miles south of Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina. In February 2011, Bob Dedman, Pinehurst’s owner, bought Pit, and then closed it. As the fight for the avid golfer’s dollar got tough, Pit was one of many to tap out.
This was another case of capital is king, and guys like Dedman, Donald Trump, Herb Kohler, Mike Keiser and Wayne Huizenga have been the snakes in the grass-for a lack of a better analogy-striking when the time has been right. More than anything, they’re buying up prime real estate, growing their stakes in golf. And as natural selection continues to play out across the country of courses with broken business models, inept management, horrific designs and bad timing, it’s the guys with deep pockets who are maximizing the returns on their investments by hiring minimalist architects.
As colleague Peter Finch and I continue our phone tour of some of the best resorts in the U.S., I spoke to Don Padgett Jr., president of Pinehurst Resort since 2004. Not only is Padgett an accomplished golfer who has played in six PGA Championships and three U.S. Opens, his father, Don Padgett Sr., was the former director of golf at Pinehurst and was the past president of the Professional Golfers Association.
Padgett shared the news of Pit becoming a Bill Coore-designed Pinehurst No. 9. He also said that as long as he has been in and around the business of golf, he has never seen anything as successful as the restoration of No. 2, which will host the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open in 2014.
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This was another case of capital is king, and guys like Dedman, Donald Trump, Herb Kohler, Mike Keiser and Wayne Huizenga have been the snakes in the grass-for a lack of a better analogy-striking when the time has been right. More than anything, they’re buying up prime real estate, growing their stakes in golf. And as natural selection continues to play out across the country of courses with broken business models, inept management, horrific designs and bad timing, it’s the guys with deep pockets who are maximizing the returns on their investments by hiring minimalist architects.
As colleague Peter Finch and I continue our phone tour of some of the best resorts in the U.S., I spoke to Don Padgett Jr., president of Pinehurst Resort since 2004. Not only is Padgett an accomplished golfer who has played in six PGA Championships and three U.S. Opens, his father, Don Padgett Sr., was the former director of golf at Pinehurst and was the past president of the Professional Golfers Association.
Padgett shared the news of Pit becoming a Bill Coore-designed Pinehurst No. 9. He also said that as long as he has been in and around the business of golf, he has never seen anything as successful as the restoration of No. 2, which will host the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open in 2014.
Read more
Q and A: Jim Justice, owner of the Greenbrier
As we tour some of the best golf resorts in the country, this is Pete Finch's recent conversation with Jim Justice, owner of the Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.
Until 2009, James C. Justice III was little known outside the industries where he made his fortune -- coal and farming. But the 61-year-old multimillionaire jumped straight into the golf spotlight with his purchase of the foundering Greenbrier Resort & Spa, which had fallen into bankruptcy. On the three-year anniversary of that bold move, we caught up with Jim Justice to see how things have changed for both him and the West Virginia resort Golf Digest calls the 5th best in North America.
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Until 2009, James C. Justice III was little known outside the industries where he made his fortune -- coal and farming. But the 61-year-old multimillionaire jumped straight into the golf spotlight with his purchase of the foundering Greenbrier Resort & Spa, which had fallen into bankruptcy. On the three-year anniversary of that bold move, we caught up with Jim Justice to see how things have changed for both him and the West Virginia resort Golf Digest calls the 5th best in North America.Read more
This winner of the Major Championship Challenge is going to Ireland
If there’s an easier way to win a $9,000 all-expenses-paid golf trip to Ireland, we haven’t heard about it.
“I was in shock!”
That was Brendan Fehr’s reaction when he found out he was the winner of an all-expenses-paid golf trip for two to Ireland thanks to his entry in Golf Digest’s Major Championship Challenge.
“I’ve subscribed to Golf Digest long enough to know that it’s owned by Conde Nast, so when Conde Nast came up on my caller ID, I answered the phone.”
Fehr, 35, of West Valley, Ariz., picked Bubba Watson to win the Masters.
“I love Bubba,” says Fehr. “He’s an amazing person. He has such
imagination around the golf course, and that’s the reason he won.”
Fehr was one of 953 who entered the first leg of Golf Digest’s Major Championship Challenge, a fantasy golf competition based on the “five majors.” (We’re counting the Players Championship as the fifth major.)
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“I was in shock!”
That was Brendan Fehr’s reaction when he found out he was the winner of an all-expenses-paid golf trip for two to Ireland thanks to his entry in Golf Digest’s Major Championship Challenge.
“I’ve subscribed to Golf Digest long enough to know that it’s owned by Conde Nast, so when Conde Nast came up on my caller ID, I answered the phone.”
Fehr, 35, of West Valley, Ariz., picked Bubba Watson to win the Masters.
“I love Bubba,” says Fehr. “He’s an amazing person. He has such
imagination around the golf course, and that’s the reason he won.”Fehr was one of 953 who entered the first leg of Golf Digest’s Major Championship Challenge, a fantasy golf competition based on the “five majors.” (We’re counting the Players Championship as the fifth major.)
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Next Stop: Golf in New York
With sticks out, golfers in New York stick out. In the 16 years of living in Manhattan and Brooklyn, I've jumped shuttles, caught the subway and hailed cabs while carrying clubs. It's not easy, it's not cheap, and yet it's also not unusual to see a golfer navigating all that is Manhattan. I saw this golfer last Friday, waiting for the N train going from Times Square to Union Square:
He was listening to music, and I was in a hurry, so with not much more than a nod of appreciation for his dedication, we went our separate ways.
There are roughly eight million people living in New York City, so it was more than a ridiculously crazy coincidence to see my avid golfing friend again on Monday:
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He was listening to music, and I was in a hurry, so with not much more than a nod of appreciation for his dedication, we went our separate ways.There are roughly eight million people living in New York City, so it was more than a ridiculously crazy coincidence to see my avid golfing friend again on Monday:
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