The golf industry has become increasingly focused on improving playability, sustainability, and pace of play. The multi-award-winning renovation of Independence Golf Club is being honored as a prime example of how to perform a targeted renovation with these specific goals in order to dramatically improve both revenue and player satisfaction.
Before the renovation by golf course architect, Lester George, Independence Golf Club housed a difficult daily-fee golf course with no teaching academy, and the property offered few non-golf recreation options. The severe course features were far too difficult for high-handicap golfers; they obstructed play and required 5 hours to complete one round of golf. Long rounds meant fewer rounds played, and the severe features produced a lofty maintenance budget. The club’s bottom line was suffering greatly.
The club’s renovation dramatically increased revenue, lowered the club’s overhead, and offer many more recreation options to the community. Lester George transformed the golf course into something much more playable, and the renovation repurposed much of the campus to allow for additional service options. The bunkers on the driving range were filled so the area could be used for concerts, fireworks, soccer tournaments, and other community activities. A new lawn area adjacent to the patio now doubles as a croquet course and is available for weddings and corporate/social events. A teaching academy and limited overnight lodging was added, as well, providing many options for corporate or educational outings. The changes reduced the average round of golf to just four hours and five minutes and have garnered quite a list of awards.
In addition to having received the ASGCA’s Design Excellence Recognition award, Independence Golf Club was named Golf Digest’s Top 10 Remodel of 2015, their #1 Place to Drink Beer and Play Golf, and one of the magazine’s Nine Most Friendly Golf Courses in America. Golf Course Superintendent, Dan Taylor, was awarded an Environmental Sustainability Award from the Virginia Golf Course Superintendents Association. Independence Golf Club and owner, Giff Breed, were honored with the National Golf Course Owners Association’s Award for Innovation and Leadership. The facility has been selected by the Golf Range Association of America as a site for a 2016 boot camp, and Independence was also used as a case study for to demonstrate success at the national USGA Pace of Play Symposium in 2014.
“One of the conundrums owners and managers of golf courses often find is that they don’t see how they can make alterations to their courses that accomplish what seem to be conflicting goals – improving play for more experienced players while also catering to beginners who are just learning the game,” said Lester George. “The paramount goal of the renovation at Independence is to create a golf course that golfers of all skill levels will enjoy. It takes a significant amount of planning and design to take everyone’s needs into account, both from a strategy standpoint and from an aesthetic one. It is a daunting task, but it is never impossible.”
To make the course more playable, George removed more than 500 trees and bushes that were cluttering the golf course and obstructing views. He also removed and redesigned dozens of bunkers to make the course more strategically viable for a wider variety of players. The fairway area was increased, thereby reducing the rough area; the remaining rough height was lowered, and 7 acres of rough was converted to mulch. Protective and saving bunkers were added, and traffic patterns for carts and waking were re-routed. The entire campus was repurposed, adding alternative facilities to the club, including the only par-3 course in the country offering both regulation golf cups and 8″ cups on every hole.
George’s renovation resulted in an average round of 4 hour and 5 minutes, yielding an average reduction of 55 minutes per round. This increase in pace of play allows 10 more prime-time groups at an average revenue of $300 per foursome, yielding a revenue increase of $3,000 per day. These changes have transformed Independence into a popular, profitable, playable facility!
About Lester George: A member of the esteemed American Society of Golf Course Architects, internationally renowned golf course architect, Lester George, has quite a versatile resume. In addition to his award-winning new course designs, has developed a niche in renovating and restoring classic golf courses designed by some of the most revered golden age architects. He has worked on everything from plains to steep, rocky terrain to brownfield and environmentally challenging sites, including a course under which thousands of unexploded bombs were discovered once excavation began – and he has become somewhat of a master at designing practice facilities that offer a realistic experience for golfers. George’s Kinloch Golf Club is the highest ranked golf course in the history of Virginia, having won countless awards. Ballyhack Golf Club is rated # 7 in the state by Golf Digest and was on several top ten Best New Course lists. The Old White Course at The Greenbrier was honored as Golf Digest’s Best New Remodel and now hosts a PGA Tour event; the James River Course at The Country Club of Virginia was the #5 Best New Remodel; and Willow Oaks Country Club was one of Golf Digests’ Best New Remodels of 2009. Most recently, Lester’s renovation of Independence Golf Club was listed as one of Golf Digest’s Top 10 Best Remodels of 2015.
Contact:
Shannon Fisher, Vice President of Communications, George Golf Design, 804-314-3268