PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida (September 12, 2016) – Bobby Weed Golf Design (www.bobbyweed.com) is successfully concluding its seven-year maintenance and management agreement with Palatka Golf Club, in Palatka, Fla., in collaboration with the City of Palatka. The award-winning firm, known for golf course design, renovation and repurposing, accepted the responsibility of reviving the historic Donald Ross 18-hole layout, established in 1925. Bobby Weed Golf Design restored the conditioning, playability, financial stability and natural appeal of the public-use facility through a set of initiatives, including demonstrable upgrades and changes to the course. The city was and remains in control of operating costs and operating performance.
“We are going out on a high note,” said Bobby Weed, president & CEO of Bobby Weed Golf Design. “Preserving this old Ross golf course was paramount to the community, to the heritage of north Florida and to the many loyal golfers, both local and nationwide, who enjoy playing it.
“Due to our passion for its history, we felt it was our duty to step in and help preserve this gem of a golf course.”
Weed formed a coalition of business and community leaders to support his plan. During its management of the par-70, 5,862-yard course, Bobby Weed Golf Design produced increases in rounds played, revenue and membership. Leading to these results were substantial improvements in course conditioning, operational efficiency, maintenance and agronomics, as well as revamping the clubhouse staff and enhancing customer service.
To assist with funding of the preservation project, Bobby Weed Golf Design found and negotiated an unprecedented grant from the United States Department of Agriculture for facility upgrades to the clubhouse, in the amount of $225,000. The design firm also was able to obtain a $75,000 grant from the St. John’s River Water Management District, used for overall course and facility upgrades associated with the irrigation system.
The revitalizing of Palatka Golf Club has led to greater participation in the Florida Azalea Amateur and the Florida Senior Azalea Amateur, the club’s two signature events.
Weed believes Palatka Golf Club is an example of what will be a resurgence of the public golf experience in the U.S.
About Bobby Weed Golf Design
Acclaimed golf course designer Bobby Weed specializes in design, renovation and repurposing. His work features a balance of visual appeal, sustainability and playability, all informed by an environmentally-sensitive aesthetic and an exceptional hands-on, holistic approach. Bobby Weed Golf Design is a leader in golf course repurposing – a means to update layouts through redesign and reallocation of partial acreage for higher value land uses. Repurposing helps clubs and communities preserve golf while surmounting economic and other challenges. Weed’s skill, vision and business acumen coalesce to result in successful, refined and durable golf course design.
Weed began his professional career with an extended apprenticeship with Pete Dye, launching a collaboration of over 35 years’ duration and a lifelong friendship. Hired in 1983 by the PGA Tour, Weed was the Tour’s in-house designer from 1987-1996. He was responsible for the design of many of today’s best-known TPC venues, which continue as host sites for prominent Tour events.
Weed also was able to collaborate with many of golf’s most familiar names, including Sam Snead, Gene Sarazen, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Raymond Floyd, Jerry Pate and Chi Chi Rodriguez – a rare cross section of experience.
In 1994, Weed’s career reached an apex with the formation of his own design firm, where he continues to “handcraft” golf courses. Today, Bobby Weed Golf Design has amassed an impressive list of new and renovated courses that consistently are ranked at the top of their respective categories, including The Olde Farm Golf Club, Spanish Oaks Golf Club, The Golf Course at Glen Mills, Medalist Golf Club and Timuquana Country Club.
Bobby Weed is a member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, the Historical Committee of the Donald Ross Society, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and the Florida Turfgrass Association.
For more information on Bobby Weed Golf Design, see www.bobbyweed.com.
Contact:
Sally J. Sportsman
407-248-1144
sjsport@earthlink.net
