Imagine building 26 golf courses at the height of the golf development bubble, with nine figures in public pension money — in an effort that now loses money year after year. Welcome to the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.
In theory, 12-hole designs should be cheaper to play, build, and maintain. But in the staid industry of golf course development, there’s been no rush to test the theory. The minds behind Sweetens Cove are ready to change that.
Lincoln Duff explains that, with a variety spanning cutting-edge 21st century designs and Golden Age layouts, not many American cities can match the depth of golf options in Chattanooga, Tenn., both public and private.
The course is not perfect. It’s not even a perfect representation of what its masterminds were trying to achieve. But Bobby Jones is miles closer to what urban public golf must look like 20 years from now to stay relevant.
Twenty years after hosting the Women’s U.S. Open, Old Waverly Golf Club in Mississippi is proving its claim as a worthy venue with its third USGA event.