Five years ago, the Club at Quail Ridge in Boynton Beach, Florida, invested $7.5 million in a Bobby Weed renovation of its south course. In 2022, the club hired Fry/Straka for a $21 million renovation of its north course and practice facilities.
Weed’s work in the south resulted in elevated playing surfaces, with the course becoming known for its small bunkers and crowned greens. One of the main reasons for modernizing the north is to create a stark contrast.
“The club wants something very different from anything else in the area,” says architect Jason Straka. “Even though the course is in an upscale residential community – which is all members – they wanted us to create as much vertical relief as possible. To do that, we are expanding the lakes in key areas so as not to make the game overly difficult, but to create enough fill to accommodate uphill and downhill shots.”
“We are also filling five ponds and laying pipes into a large channel that is now forced through the ground. The course will have kick plates and ground contours to guide balls into play and to hidden pin positions. This is different from the south where almost everything guides balls out of play. We will also create significant elevation changes, perimeter slopes, dramatic bunkers with lightning rods and extensive landscaping.”
NMP Golf Construction completed the first phase of work last year, which included holes one and eighteen, the short game area, practice course and new practice green. Firstly, the fairway was significantly widened by removing trees, a landscaped embankment was installed behind the green to conceal a busy road and a stepping plate was installed to the left of the green to allow golfers to avoid the bunkers on the right side of the green and still reach the green. The bunkers will be fitted with a Better Billy Bunker liner.
On the eighteenth, the lakes near the tees and green were expanded, several bunkers were removed, leaving only one, and the green was lowered by 8 feet to allow for easier recovery shots.
“Jason and Dana’s work has made the practice facilities much more user-friendly,” says Darryl Bartlett, senior project manager at NMP. “He removed the blind shots on the range and ensured golfers can practice proper distance control. We also improved the aesthetics of the range and short game area with improved landscaping and views.”
The second phase consists of holes two through seventeen, which involves some layout redirections.
“The course has been rearranged to allow for shorter transitions between holes,” says Straka. “The original back nine holes now encompass most of the front nine holes. The ninth hole ends at a new restroom station that will also serve as a community restroom.”
“The holes have also been moved to make room for vertical shots in many areas, allowing golfers to hit both uphill and downhill shots rarely seen in this area of Florida. This also allows for elements such as more dramatic looking bunkers, kick plates, false edges and long-range views.”
These views were made possible by replanting many trees and removing old landscaping. The course now features new, native landscaping, including many new river banks. “The goal was to use as much landscaping as possible to minimize water use and long-term maintenance costs of the reduced lawn areas,” says Bartlett.
Water is a big part of the North Course project, but Bartlett is confident about the task ahead. “Lake excavation can be difficult, but if you think about it carefully, the challenges can be minimized,” he says. “The discharge point for pumping water is a critical first step. Several of the lakes connect to leveling pipes, and those pipes need to be plugged to prevent pumped water from flowing back into the lakes we are excavating. Then we will create a depression in the lake about two to three feet below the lake bottom to lower the surrounding water level below the excavation level. Ultimately, we want to remove the material as dry as possible so it can be used to shape features.”
The results of the lake and landscaping are already promising. “The elevation changes this place now has and the cozy feel of the landscaped embankments make for a very private atmosphere that is very different from the previous layout,” says Bartlett. “And as a long-time shaper, I can already tell people that this golf course is going to be hot!”
This article first appeared in July 2024 issue of Golf Course Architecture. For a print subscription or a free digital edition, please visit our Subscription page.
