Construction of Poplar Hill Golf Club Begins

Construction has begun on Poplar Hill Golf Club in Farmville, Va. The 18-hole course, designed by architect Rick Robbins, will serve as the centerpiece of a 1,060-acre master planned mixed-use residential/resort community in Prince Edward County. The property in central Virginia is located four miles from downtown Farmville and 60 miles southwest of Richmond.

The community’s master plan reveals the golf course and clubhouse, an inn and executive conference center, and between 1,000 and 1,200 residential units. The latter components include single-family homes, golf villa duplex units, townhouses, and condominiums.

Robbins and Associates International of Cary, N.C., is an experienced and respected golf architectural firm that has completed the design, renovation and opening of over 30 golf courses in the U.S., Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Japan. “We are tremendously excited about the Poplar Hill golf course because it will be built on almost perfect, rolling terrain typical of this part of Virginia,” said Robbins. “Very seldom do we get to work with a land parcel of this size that does not have any bad views, power lines, gas lines or other impediments. It is a great, natural setting for the golf course.”

Heritage Links, a Houston-based golf course builder, is serving the general contractor for the course. Heritage Links holds a "Certified Builder" designation from the Golf Course Builders Association of America. Jon P. O'Donnell, division president for Heritage Links, said, "Working with the architecture firm of Robbins and Associates International on the Poplar Hill Golf Club project will be a very enjoyable one. The site is well-suited for a championship golf course, and will be another great success to add to the Heritage Links portfolio.”

Lighthouse Golf Group of Atlanta will oversee the construction process and manage the on-going golf operations when the facility opens in spring 2006. “We are excited to be a part of the Poplar Hill development and the Farmville community. We feel the golf course and related development will be a wonderful asset to the area. The land is perfectly suited for a golf course and should be an exciting test of golf,” said Arthur Jeffords, president of Lighthouse Golf Group.