Check out the aerial photos of the renovated Cape Club of Palm City in South Florida.
The Cape Club of Palm City, located about 90 minutes north of Fort Lauderdale depending on traffic, was purchased in 2022 by an ownership group led by Massachusetts real estate developer Michael Intoccia, and the now-private facility has been hard at work on the property formerly known as Fox Club Florida.
In a South Florida market where entry fees for private golf clubs regularly climb into six figures, the Cape Club of Palm City is currently offering a comparative bargain with a $25,000 initiation fee. While that’s not loose change in every player’s pocket, it’s a relative steal in recent years for a solid, major-market course where ownership has committed to improved playing conditions and member facilities.
After five months of renovations and grow-in that are still ongoing, golfers who played the daily-fee Fox Club Florida might be hard-pressed to recognize several of the holes. Massive cleanup efforts included removal of overgrown brush and assorted native flora both in the line of play and especially on the perimeter of several holes. Turf was replaced, greens were resurfaced and sometimes recontoured, all the bunkers were overhauled and the range was renovated. Playing adjacent to Interstate 95 at the northern edge of Martin County, the layout now provides an upgraded Florida golf experience through slightly expanded corridors with water in play on almost every hole.
The Cape Club of Palm City’s course, which has been bought and sold several times, originally was designed by Roy Case and opened in 1989. It was redesigned in 2004 by Darren Clarke and Eoghan O’Connell. This most recent work was done in-house.
The new ownership also plans to install cabins along the ninth hole, which played as No. 18 before the nines were flipped in the recent renovation. All facilities including the clubhouse have seen marked improvements.
The Cape Club Collection of private facilities includes two other courses, both in Massachusetts: the Cape Club of Sharon and the Cape Club of Falmouth.
Check out several photos below of the Cape Club taken this week during an outing for Golfweek’s Best course raters.
James Rowe is leaving the Bears at the end of the season for USF, according to ESPN’s Courtney Cronin.
There is still one week to go in the regular season for the Chicago Bears, but their coaching staff is already undergoing changes. According to ESPN’s Courtney Cronin, Bears defensive backs coach James Rowe is leaving the team when the season concludes to become the passing coordinator at the University of South Florida (USF).
Per source, Bears DBs coach James Rowe is leaving Chicago after the season to become USF's defensive passing game coordinator on Alex Golesh's new staff. Rowe, a 2009 graduate of South Florida, returns to his alma mater spending the last 2 seasons coaching in the NFL.
After one year as the Indianapolis Colts cornerbacks coach, Rowe followed Matt Eberflus when he became head coach of the Bears last offseason. Prior to his stint in Indianapolis, Rowe’s experience was primarily as a college coach, but he had a stint with the Washington Commanders from 2017-2019 as their assistant defensive backs coach.
In his lone season with the Bears, Rowe was tasked with helping a young secondary develop that included rookies Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker, as well as veterans Jaylon Johnson and Eddie Jackson. Under Rowe’s tutelage, the Bears secondary notched 10 interceptions and saw growth from Gordon and Brisker, while Jackson enjoyed a renaissance season prior to his season-ending injury.
Rowe, an alumni of South Florida, will be a part of new head coach Alex Golesh’s staff.
No bull, Notre Dame lands South Florida kicker in portal.
For the second year in a row Notre Dame went fishing in the transfer portal for a new kicker and found a grad-transfer. Spencer Shrader, previously of South Florida, announced his commitment to Notre Dame on Tuesday. The Irish are getting a veteran collegiate kicker who began at South Florida as a walk-on and has overcome early struggles and developed into an asset.
After going just 4 of 9 on field goal attempts as a freshman in 2019 and 4 of 6 a year later, Shrader has been successful on 20 of 26 attempts over the last two years. He’s also never missed an extra point attempt in his career and has hit from as far out as 52 yards in a game.
In addition, Shrader handled kickoff duties at South Florida. My expectation is that he’ll enter spring as the favorite to win both placekicking and kickoff responsibilities.
Many Florida golf courses suffered in Hurricane Ian, and now comes a potential double whammy with Nicole.
ORLANDO – Tropical Storm Nicole, forecast to become a hurricane before making landfall somewhere Wednesday night or early Thursday morning in South Florida, threatens to bring potentially damaging high winds and heavy rains to hundreds – possibly thousands – of golf courses along the eastern coast of the U.S.
The storm was over the Bahamas on Wednesday morning with sustained winds of 70 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 10 a.m. report. It was forecast to reach the U.S. somewhere just north of West Palm Beach near the golf hot spot of Jupiter, home to many golf professionals. The storm is then forecast to cross Florida toward a region just north of Tampa and into the Gulf of Mexico before curving to the northeast into Georgia.
The storm’s projected path is likely to change slightly, as most tropical systems do, making it difficult to predict exactly which specific areas will be greatly impacted. And while most attention is – and should be – focused on any potential human toll and the threat of general property damage, there definitely will be impacts to a Florida golf industry that already suffered greatly from Hurricane Ian in September.
The National Hurricane Center’s 10 a.m. Wednesday projections for the path of Tropical Storm Nicole, which is forecast to become a hurricane before reaching Florida on Nov. 9 or Nov. 10 (Courtesy of the National Hurricane Center)
While Ian blasted Fort Myers and Florida’s southern Gulf Coast before crossing the state headed northeast, Nicole threatens to head northwest, crossing Ian’s path somewhere south of Orlando. While the greatest damage to golf courses is likely near landfall, there exists a serious threat where this week’s storm crosses paths with Ian’s track, making for a forbidding “X marks the spot” of potential flooding, tree damage and temporary closures in the center of the state.
In all, there are more than 1,200 courses in Florida. Except for those in the Panhandle to the northwest, few Florida course operators will escape some level of impact – ranging from a simple loss of tee time sales all the way to suffering catastrophic damage – from either Ian or Nicole. Because of Florida’s great amount of courses, more than one in 12 courses in all of the United States was impacted just by Ian.
Florida has hundreds of golf courses along Nicole’s projected path. Just among Golfweek’s Best ranking of top public-access courses in Florida, the storm’s landfall could impact PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens and its No. 8-ranked Champion Course (site of the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic each year) as well as the resort’s other courses; PGA Golf Club’s 14th-ranked Wanamaker Course and 21st-ranked Dye Course in Port St. Lucie; Trump National Doral Miami’s Blue Monster (No. 15); Turnberry Isle’s Soffer Course (No. 16) in Aventura; possibly the waterfront Crandon Park (No. 19) at Key Biscayne; and The Breakers’ Rees Jones layout (No. 22) in West Palm Beach.
Among top-ranked private courses in Florida near the projected landfall are No. 1 Seminole in Juno Beach; No. 4 John’s Island Club’s West Course in Vero Beach; No. 5 Indian Creek in Miami Beach; No. 6 The Bear’s Club in Jupiter; No. 9 McArthur in Hobe Sound; No. 10 Loblolly in Hobe Sound; No. 12 Medalist in Hobe Sound; No. 13 Pine Tree in Boynton Beach; No. 14 Trump International in West Palm Beach; No. 16 High Ridge in Lantana; and No. 19 Country Club of Florida in Village of Golf. Those are just the courses ranked in the top 20 among Florida’s private clubs – there are dozens more private courses near projected landfall.
Golf carts at Sanibel Island’s The Dunes Golf & Tennis Club caught fire Sunday, Oct. 16, 2022, several weeks after Hurricane Ian passed by. The Dunes suffered significant damage when Ian slammed in Southwest Florida on Sept. 28. (Photo by Mike Dopslaff/Special to USA Today Network)
As Nicole crosses the Florida peninsula, the projected path takes it just beyond Streamsong Resort, home to three highly ranked courses. As Nicole nears Tampa, it is likely to halt play in this week’s LPGA Pelican Women’s Championship at the private Pelican Golf Club in Belleair near the coast west of Tampa. Just down the street from Pelican is Belleair Country Club, where a major restoration is underway of that club’s Donald Ross-designed West Course. Farther north of Tampa, work is underway on a renovation to the two courses at World Woods, which recently was rebranded as Cabot Citrus Farms.
The storm’s effects already were felt with Wednesday-morning squalls north of the projected path near Orlando, where some courses are still recovering from Ian’s massive rainfall. Some courses in this area are still repairing washed-out bunkers and haven’t completely dried out more than a month after Ian passed not far to the south.
Anyone with golf travel plans this week to Florida should check with their air carrier to see if cancelations are in effect, as several airports in the Sunshine State have closed or will close Wednesday, with potential reopenings yet to be determined. Orlando International Airport announced it will close at 4 p.m. Wednesday, and several regional airports in Central Florida likewise have announced closures. Palm Beach County Airport in South Florida also announced a closure Wednesday morning. Other closures and extended delays are likely around the state.
As Nicole turns north after passing Tampa, its nearly 1,000-mile projected path will take it over central Georgia between Atlanta and Augusta, then into South Carolina and north along the Appalachian Mountains through North Carolina, Virginia, beyond Washington DC and toward New York before passing back into the Atlantic Ocean. With heavy rains likely and severe flooding possible, that projected path will hamper operations and possibly cause damage at more than a thousand golf courses along the way.
Even for golf courses that don’t suffer severe damage from floods, many layouts in year-round golf environments already have begun winterizing efforts, such as spreading rye grass that could be washed away in heavy rains. Results potentially include the expense of reseeding and a downturn in seasonal turf conditioning.
In Florida, the most likely damage will be downed trees and flooding. Many courses along Nicole’s projected path already are suffering from saturated ground in the wake of Ian, making it even more likely that root systems of trees are weakened and trees can topple. Not even counting the dozens of courses that suffered Ian’s greatest damage near Fort Myers, many others are still working to repair bunkers that were wrecked by more than a foot of rain in a 24-hour period – several courses just south of Orlando still have standing water along fairways from Ian.
Most course superintendents along the projected path will spend Wednesday and Thursday readying their courses for the rain and wind, moving loose items and even taking down signage. But there’s only so much that can be done – it’s impossible to board up a whole golf course. The days preceding a hurricane or tropical storm in Florida are always an uncomfortable period of scrambling, waiting, watching weather reports and hoping for the best.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney spoke with the media around 6 p.m. Sunday and said it wasn’t until right before then that he heard the news of Jeff Scott being fired by South Florida. Scott, of course a longtime member of Swinney’s staff at Clemson …
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney spoke with the media around 6 p.m. Sunday and said it wasn’t until right before then that he heard the news of Jeff Scott being fired by South Florida.
Scott, of course a longtime member of Swinney’s staff at Clemson before taking USF’s head coaching job ahead of the 2020 season, was relieved of his duties Sunday after going 4-26 in three seasons with the Bulls.
“I literally, like 30 seconds before I got on here, Ross (Clemson Assistant Athletic Director for Football Communications Ross Taylor) told me that,” Swinney said during his weekly Sunday Zoom conference call. “So, I literally just heard that. I hadn’t seen anything, so I didn’t know anything about it but definitely will reach out to Jeff.”
Scott’s firing comes on the heels of USF’s 54-28 loss at Temple on Saturday, which marked the Bulls’ seventh straight defeat following a win over Howard on Sept. 10 and dropped their record to 1-8 this season.
USF special teams coordinator Daniel Da Prato will serve as the interim head coach in place of Scott, who had a 1-26 record against FBS teams across his close to three full campaigns.
“I just know he gave it everything he could down there, and it just didn’t work out,” Swinney said. “But he’s a great coach and a great person and got a great family and somebody I love dearly, and I know he’ll grow from it.”
Swinney was asked Sunday if Scott, a Florida native who also played his college football for the Tigers, would be welcome back at Clemson if a spot on Swinney’s staff were to open up in the future.
“I’m not getting into any of that kind of stuff, man. I just want to beat Louisville,” Swinney said, referring to Saturday’s game at Death Valley. “That’s all I want to do. That’s the only thing I’m focusing on right now.”
–Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.
Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. Visit Dear Old Clemson to find out how you can help!
Former Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis used to be seen on gameday with his son Charlie Jr. in a head seat on the sideline. That football upbringing led the younger Weis to a career in college football where he’s served on Alabama’s staff and most recently as the offensive coordinator at South Florida.
Young Charlie, who is obviously all grown up now, is now taking a very big-boy job. He’s headed to the SEC to call the offense for Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss.
SOURCES: Ole Miss is hiring USF OC Charlie Weis Jr. as the Rebels new offensive coordinator. He worked with Lane Kiffin at FAU and on the Alabama staff. The move was first reported by @mzenitz.
The mother of one of Clemson’s transfers took to Twitter to thank the Tigers for what they did for her son during his time at Clemson. Ray Thornton’s mom thanked the Tigers for helping her son become a ‘Clemson man’. 3yrs ago @ClemsonFB made me the …
The mother of one of Clemson’s transfers took to Twitter to thank the Tigers for what they did for her son during his time at Clemson.
Ray Thornton’s mom thanked the Tigers for helping her son become a ‘Clemson man’.
3yrs ago @ClemsonFB made me the proudest Mommy ever! I’m thankful for the Clemson Man he has become and all the friendships we made along the way!Thankful and blessed to continue our journey with another Clemson Man @coach_jeffscott! Forever a Fan but Bay Bound 💚🤘🏽 pic.twitter.com/pAzOEUCQoQ
Thornton entered 2021 credited with 17 career tackles and a pass breakup in 161 snaps over 15 games (two starts).
The Columbus, Ga., native and Central High School (Phenix City, Ala.) product played in 11 games this season, posting 10 total tackles (one for loss) and one pass breakup. He played 74 total snaps on defense.
The mother of a Clemson transfer took to Twitter to thank Clemson for what they have done for her son. Katelyn McColl, Ajou Ajou’s mom, is excited about his new journey as he transfers to South Florida to play for Jeff Scott. But she also recognized …
The mother of a Clemson transfer took to Twitter to thank Clemson for what they have done for her son.
Katelyn McColl, Ajou Ajou’s mom, is excited about his new journey as he transfers to South Florida to play for Jeff Scott. But she also recognized what the Clemson experience has done for here son.
Another Clemson transfer will be headed to play for Jeff Scott at South Florida. Earlier this month Ajou Ajou entered the transfer portal. Ajou who played high school football for Clearwater Academy will return to Tampa and the coach that recruited …
Another Clemson transfer will be headed to play for Jeff Scott at South Florida.
Earlier this month Ajou Ajou entered the transfer portal. Ajou who played high school football for Clearwater Academy will return to Tampa and the coach that recruited him to Clemson.
A former Clemson defensive back announced his transfer destination Sunday night via social media. Ray Thornton announced on Instagram that he has committed to Jeff Scott and South Florida. Thornton is the second Clemson transfer to join Scott and …
A former Clemson defensive back announced his transfer destination Sunday night via social media.
Ray Thornton announced on Instagram that he has committed to Jeff Scott and South Florida.
Thornton is the second Clemson transfer to join Scott and the USF football program, joining former Tiger running back Michel Dukes.
Thornton entered the NCAA transfer portal on Dec. 2.
The Columbus, Ga., native and Central High School (Phenix City, Ala.) product played in 11 games this season, posting 10 total tackles (one for loss) and one pass breakup. He played 74 total snaps on defense.
Thornton entered 2021 credited with 17 career tackles and a pass breakup in 161 snaps over 15 games (two starts).
