Dunedin Golf Club Is Rich in History
Published on July 04, 2023
Donald Ross was born in Dornoch, Scotland in 1872 and grew up working as a grounds-keeper at the Royal Dornoch Golf Club. He also became a professional player and club maker. He moved to America in 1899 to build and manage the Oakley Golf Club in the Boston area and then took an assignment and relocated to North Carolina the following year.
According to the Donald Ross Society “he revolutionized southern greenkeeping practices when he oversaw the transition of the putting surfaces from oiled sand to Bermuda grass.”
Eventually, Donald Ross became world-renowned for his work and designed or re-designed roughly 400 courses in North America between 1900 and 1948. It is estimated that approximately 365 of those courses are still in existence today. One such course is our very own Dunedin Golf Club. Originally known as Dunedin Isles Golf Club Golf Course, the course opened on January 1, 1927. It was also the home of PGA of America from 1944 to 1956 and was the site of 18 consecutive Senior PGA Championships.
Donald Ross was known for custom designing his courses to showcase and utilize each individual site’s best features. He was a genius at routing courses and creating memorable holes. Ross created playability for beginners while still challenging the skilled player. He is often quoted with his motto that “golf could be a pleasure, not a penance.”
Luckily, the routing and the features of the Dunedin Golf Club, originally designed by Donald Ross almost 100 years ago, are still in tact today. Some of those features, however have been “buried” over time. As the greens have been renovated over the years and materials placed on top, the height of the greens has increased, however the total surface areas have shrunk. Many of the bunkers have disappeared as well. In addition, the irrigation system is failing and the tees are undersized and need replacement.
In December of 2022, the City of Dunedin hired architects Stantec and Spence Golf Design to restore this historic community asset. The architects working on the design are encouraged and believe they can uncover the original greens like an archeological dig.
The project is estimated at approximately $4.5 million and will include restoring the greens, restoring bunkers and adding new bunker forms, new and expanded tee boxes,
fairway renovations, a new irrigation system, and addressing drainage issues around the course. $2 million of the project is being funded from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) from the federal government with the remaining monies from the Dunedin Golf Club Enterprise Fund.
Construction on the course is estimated to start at the beginning of March 2024 and should take approximately 8 months to complete. While the course is closed for the restoration, the City of Dunedin will also perform renovations to the Clubhouse facilities including the restrooms, locker rooms and interior furnishings. Stay tuned as we plan for a major celebration when the course reopens in the Fall of 2024!
This restoration will bring new life to the historic course by attracting golfers from near and far.