American Course at Bobby Jones to Close for Updates

Sarasota, FL – One of the tracks at Sarasota’s historic municipal golf course will close down for the summer for some much needed repairs.

The American Course at Bobby Jones Golf Club will temporarily close beginning Friday, July 1, while all 18 greens are revitalized with new turf. The course is scheduled to reopen to the public in early October with new, lush greens.

Diamond zoysiagrass, the same turf used to revitalize the 18 greens on the British Course and two practice greens last year, will be installed. Diamond zoysiagrass is known for its tolerance for high traffic and shady conditions. It also maintains a vibrant green color, a key consideration for many of golf club’s visitors.

“With the success of the new greens on the British Course, it’s time to turn our attention to our other 18-hole course, the American,” said Sue Martin, manager of the Bobby Jones Golf Club.

Martin said the American Course greens are deteriorated to the point where improvements must be made.

“When the new greens were installed on the British Course last fall, we immediately saw a renewed interest in the course and received a lot of positive feedback from players,” Martin said. “We expect there will be similar excitement with new greens on the American.”

Removing the greens involves ensuring the old and invasive turf cannot grow back, stripping it, tilling and sterilizing the soil and then rolling out the new sod.

The course improvements were scheduled to coincide with the slowest time of the year at Bobby Jones Golf Club. Golfers will be accommodated on the 18-hole British Course or the 9-hole Gillespie Executive Course while the American is closed for the summer.

The new greens are a stop-gap measure while a master plan for capital improvements at Bobby Jones Golf Club, located at 1000 Circus Blvd. in Sarasota, is developed.

The original 18 holes of the Bobby Jones Golf Club were designed in 1925 by the famed course architect Donald Ross. Bobby Jones, the only golfer to achieve the sport’s Grand Slam when it consisted of the British Amateur and Open plus the U.S. Amateur and Open, personally dedicated the facility on Feb. 13, 1927. Nine more holes were added in 1952 and another nine in 1967. The executive track was completed in 1977.

For more information about the new American greens, contact Martin at (941) 365-2200 ext. 5800. For more information about the Bobby Jones Golf Course or to book a tee time, visit www.BobbyJonesGolfClub.com.

Image via Shutterstock

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