Low Country Real Estate: Ford Plantation Golf Course Restructuring Update

According to a recent press release from The Ford Plantation things are going very well with the golf course restructuring project that is being lead by Pete Dye. The latest milestone is that the crew has begun the task of laying more than a million square feet of sod!

The project started about a 7 months ago and involves a $7 Million redevelopment of The Ford Plantation’s Pete Dye-designed golf course. Much to the delight of club members the course is schedule to re-open in October, right on schedule. Mr. Dye, the only living World Golf Hall of Fame architect, has been hands-on, spending extended time on-site and hand drawing green complex designs in the Coastal Georgia dirt.

“I looked at The Ford Plantation as a unique chance and almost a blank slate,” Dye said of a course he originally worked on nearly three decades ago. “The Ford Plantation golf course will stand among my finest Southern designs.”

Originally envisioned as a restoration necessitated by infrastructure upgrades on a course that was approaching 30 years old, the updating has become transformational in its effects. Golf course architect Tim Liddy, a longtime Dye collaborator and confidant, is helping lead the redesign.

“Pete is always passionate about his work, but it’s obvious that he feels a special connection with The Ford Plantation,” Liddy said. “It’s certainly among the largest redesigns of one his courses that he’s ever undertaken.”

The 88-year-old Dye’s strong presence is viewed as a bonus by club officials, who have been amazed to see a legend of the game at work up close.

“The amount of time Mr. Dye has spent here has surpassed all of our expectations,” said C.W. Canfield, The Ford Plantation Director of Golf. “We are fortunate that he has taken such great interest in revitalizing and reimagining his original work. His leadership of this project has been remarkable.”

Dye’s courses, including Whistling Straits and The Ocean Course at Kiawah, have hosted 26 major championships, with three more scheduled in the next few years, including the 2020 Ryder Cup.

Project Work Ninety percent of dirt moving associated with the project is now complete. And installation of the sod is being timed to protect newly created features, such as bunker faces, tee surrounds and green complexes. Celebration Bermuda, the preferred turf grass species for the region, is noted for both its quality and durability. Major grassing, or sprigging, of the course is scheduled to start mid-May.

The front nine at The Ford Plantation will retain much of its current footprint and parkland feel, though landscape changes are being introduced to widen corridors and create lake and marsh long views, a favorite technique of Dye’s. Elsewhere in the project, course infrastructure restoration work will improve drainage and include a state-of-the-art irrigation system.

The Lowcountry links-style back nine – site of a working rice paddy for much of the 1800s – will include more bunkering and natural waste areas as part of an updated “high dunes” look and feel. When the course was originally constructed, dirt from man-made lakes on the front side was used to create fairways and greens on the back.

“The scope of work that has been taking place here is extraordinary given the recent national economic climate,” said Bill Coad, The Ford Plantation Club President. “We’re proud that our members have made the commitment to ensure that The Ford Plantation continues as one of the nation’s leading residential communities and private sporting clubs.”

The Ford Plantation is on of the nations leading residential communities with 400 home site nestled on 1800 pristine waterfront acres, just 20 minutes from Savannah, GA. The community features: a very newly renovated and challenging Pete Dye golf course, an on-site day spa, a deep-water marina, world-class equestrian center, organic garden and state-of-the-art fitness center, as well as more than 10 miles of scenic horse, biking and hiking trails.

If you would like to plan a visit to The Ford Plantation and view the amazing real estate ownership opportunities give me a call and feel free to view some of the homes and homesites for sale on our website at http://www.savannahhomesnow.com/results/?hood=2004725&sort=listprice