Featured Golf News
Tiburon Completes Its Fourth Nine Holes
The final nine holes at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Fla., are now complete, making a total of 36 holes at this exclusive North Naples residential community. There are now two Greg Norman-designed courses – the Black and the Gold – available for play by members and guests of the adjacent Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort.
Norman, a designer of more than 35 golf courses around the world, created the Tiburon course to play like a British Open links course – firm and fast, without the frustrating thatch of rough that confounds even the best golfers. Home to the Franklin Templeton Shootout, to be held this year November 20-24, Tiburon's first 27 holes opened in 1998 and had previously been played as nine-hole combinations.
"The completion of our golf experience at Tiburon only adds to the ambiance of this beautiful community," said David Fry, senior vice president of WCI's Amenities Division, the project’s developer. "Tiburon is one of Naples most enticing residential communities. We have an unbeatable combination here, with 36-holes of top-caliber golf, an annual PGA Tour event, The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort and the Rick Smith Golf Academy. It's proven to be a very popular address," Fry concluded.
The golf course was inaugurated with a special exhibition round pitting Greg Norman against four local television sportscasters. "Opening this fourth nine and thus putting the finishing touches on this now 36-hole project at Tiburon gives me lot of satisfaction, given that the golf courses have grown with the entire community," Norman said. "In an area of the country where there are many outstanding communities, Tiburon is at the top of the list and it's very rewarding to have played such a significant role in its development.
“With our Franklin Templeton Shootout and 27 Norman Estates villas on site, coupled with the golf courses, I can confidently say that the this project continues to play a significant role in my varied business interests and I'm looking forward to other successful ventures with WCI."
Among Tiburon's distinguishing characteristics are its contrasting natural elements, including stacked sod-wall bunkers and tangerine-colored coquina shell in the waste bunkers. There are no roughs on the golf courses, and the highest turf is maintained at a fairway height of one-half inch. By incorporating the natural landscape of the area, there are expansive areas of native habitat bordering the fairways, which offer players of all skill levels a picturesque and challenging course. The courses are part of the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary program.
The Black Course plays to 7,005 yards from the championship tees. The Gold Course, which will be used for November's Shootout, plays to 7,288 yards from the tips. Tiburon recently received a 4 1/2 star rating (out of five) in Fodor's Golf Digest's "Places to Play" (fifth edition).
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