TGR Design’s slate of tracks feature a mix of short courses and 18-hole championship venues.
If you’re a fan of golf and mountain sports, Tiger Woods and his TGR Design company have a new spot in the works that’ll be right up your alley.
After making his highly anticipated return to play last week at the 2023 Hero World Challenge – an unofficial event that benefits Tiger’s TGR Foundation – Woods announced the first phase of development was underway at Marcella Club, TGR Design’s 18-hole championship golf course project in Park City, Utah.
Marcella Club is the 13th course on TGR Design’s list of tracks that include a mix of short courses and 18-hole championship venues and will be the first mountain design. According to the website, the club will be private with amenities located on the slopes of Deer Valley, Historic Main Street Park City and Jordanelle Ridge, which will be the site of a new TGR Design golf facility with 360-degree views of the Uinta Mountains, Jordanelle Reservoir, Deer Valley Resort and the Heber Valley with Mount Timpanogos also visible from a distance.
I am excited to share that we have begun the first phase of developing Marcella Club, @tgrdesignbytw’s 18-hole championship golf course project in Park City, Utah. pic.twitter.com/59ul4zayI5
Tiger Woods and baseball star Mike Trout announced in March they were partnering to build a new private golf course, Trout National – The Reserve, in New Jersey about 45 minutes south of Philadelphia.
The routing, perhaps the most important part of the design puzzle, is now complete. The group released a map of the routing Friday in a media release, timed with a new social media video of Woods and Trout at Trout National. The course – par 72 at 7,455 yards – is slated to open in 2025.
With the course designed by Woods’ TGR Design, the club will also feature a “cutting-edge” practice range, short-game area, clubhouse, restaurant, “five-star” lodging, a wedding chapel and more.
The planned routing for Trout National – The Reserve in Vineland, New Jersey, includes a former silica sand mine and rambling farmland. (Courtesy of Trout National – The Reserve)
Trout recently spoke on Bleacher Report’s “On Base With Mookie Betts,” about what inspired him to build a course and his love of working with Woods.
Here’s the full release on how the routing came together:
The wait is over. Excited to share the latest from Trout National – The Reserve. We've finalized course routing and are continuing to make progress on this unique and exciting project with @TigerWoods and @tgrdesignbytw. pic.twitter.com/rpu2on1KUg
(VINELAND, N.J.) – Trout National – The Reserve, a world-class golf club collaboration between Mike Trout, the three-time American League MVP and 10-time Major League Baseball All-Star, and local partner and businessman John Ruga, announce the course routing by golf icon Tiger Woods’ TGR Design.
The 18-hole, par-72 golf course, which is slated to complete construction in 2025, is routed through two unique natural landscapes giving distinct character to the course. A former silica sand mine and rambling farmland offers ample playable sandy waste areas as well as sprawling fairways offering multiple routes from tee to green. Large and undulating greens with low-cut surrounds emphasize the challenging, yet fun design where risk-reward opportunities create the ideal environment.
“Some of my favorite golf experiences have been ones that have challenged my game while still having fun and that’s what we wanted to create at Trout National – The Reserve,” said Trout. “Tiger, John and I walked hole by hole and this course will do just that. Our vision and his design is creating something special here in my hometown.”
“Mike and John found a site with a lot of character to make some outstanding golf holes,” says Tiger. “The sandy and diverse terrain has so many great natural features that have given us a lot of options on how to create a world-class golf course.”
“The land that is home to Trout National – The Reserve has great history here in the city of Vineland,” said Ruga. “Tiger and his team were able to incorporate the history and let the land shine through in this championship golf course. It will truly be a memorable experience on the course.”
Accompanying the 18-hole championship golf course, the golf offerings at Trout National – The Reserve will also include a flexible short course and expansive putting course along with world-class practice facilities and performance center. Other club highlights include a modern state-of-the-art clubhouse, five-star lodging, innovative amenities, a chapel and more.
Major League Baseball star Mike Trout has risen to fame with the Los Angeles Angels, but the superstar hails from New Jersey and that’s where he’s building a golf resort with Tiger Woods’ architectural firm.
In a recent episode of Bleacher Report’s “On Base With Mookie Betts,” Trout talked at length about his love for the game and what led him to build his course, Trout National — The Reserve.
The original plan for the 11-time All-Star and three-time American League Most Valuable Player was to purchase an existing course that was for sale, but after COVID hit in 2020, he said things “fell through.”
We promised you all a big announcement and here it is! We are so excited to be able to make a longtime dream of mine a reality, with none other than @tigerwoods and @tgrdesignbytw. We can't wait to share more updates with you as we create Trout National – The Reserve. pic.twitter.com/V8eMGEUYdS
Trout also said that his own experience with golf, which he’s been playing seriously since he was 16, allowed him to figure out just what sort of course he wanted to bring to South Jersey.
During the off-season from his time wowing the crowd as an Angel, Trout says he’s involved a lot with the project and the meetings that are necessary, but it was harder to schedule when he was back out killing it in center field.
Recently, the city’s Planning board OK’d a construction application for more than 27,000 square feet of buildings and facilities, including an administration building, an outpost building and an equipment building.Woods and his architecture firm, TGR Design, is also creating a new short course as part of Cobbs Creek Golf Club in Philadelphia.
The course complex will also have a practice range, short-game area, clubhouse, restaurant, five-star lodging, a wedding chapel and more.
Golf fanatics can look forward to the luxury-style private course’s 2025 opening date.
VINELAND, N.J. — A complete development plan for Trout National – The Reserve is expected to arrive at City Hall in about six months, and developers of the championship-style golf course are forecasting construction work starting in 2024.
The project design for local government review and approval purposes is happening in two parts. The public now is able to look over the relatively simple details for creating the outlying features of the course, which is going into an approximately 280-acre corner of East Vineland.
At its July 12 meeting, the Planning Board heard from representatives of the project team working for landowner NEP Real Estate of Vineland NJ Urban Renewal LLC. The goal at present is to have the course in use in 2025.
Trout National will be hidden by miles of walls, landscaping
Board members unanimously approved the design for a four-building maintenance area and about 4.5 miles of perimeter walls. The walls, mostly textured concrete panels, and extensive landscaping are promised to seal off the course from view and to a great extent from sound.
“We anticipate being back before the board in about six months or so with the overall site plan for the entirety of the project,” project attorney Michael Fralinger said at the hearing Wednesday night. “You can imagine, with 281 acres, with the perimeter fencing and the walls that are being constructed, it’s going to take a while.”
The 280 acres approximately are off Hance Bridge and Mays Landing roads, sections mostly zoned for agricultural uses and woodlands. One small area is designated a redevelopment area.
The Vineland Planning Board on Wednesday night reviewed and approved a first phase site plan for Trout National _ The Reserve, a golf course proposed for East Vineland. Project attorney Michael Fralinger (left) and engineer Tim Ruga testified on features of a maintenance facility and the extensive perimeter wall system. The exhibit next to them is the site plan map. The next plan to be submitted will be for the golf course proper in about six months. Photo: Joseph P. Smith/Courier Post/USA Today Network)
The property does have an industrial past as a sand mine and an industrial present as home to Northeast Precast and its related private business park. The property is near Route 55, and beyond that Millville.
“We have about 99.8 percent of what we need for the overall site plan,” Fralinger said. “But it’s just being properly positioned. We have some of the best experts — I’m just going to say it — in the world who are working on this project.”
TGR Design, a company owned by golfer Tiger Woods, is designing the course. Architectural work is by Marsh & Associates Inc., a specialist firm. The project was disclosed in March.
One planning hurdle for the approval was the massive use of walls in an area where traditional fencing is the rule.
Chain link fencing is to be used inside some wooded sections to avoid large scale removal of trees. Stamped concrete walls varying in height from 6 feet to 8 feet to 14 feet will range most of the perimeter, however.
Security guarantee for golfers, entourages a design priority
Engineer Steven Filippone is consulting on the design. His background includes designing golf courses in the state. The use of walls provides security as well as aesthetics and is not really an option, he said.
“When we talk about world-class golfers coming to a location like this, it’s not just the golfers,” Filippone said. “They need to be safe and secure. It’s not just the golfers who come. It’s their family. It’s their trainer. It’s their sports management team.
“These are world-class people,” the engineer said. “If you turn on the Golf Channel or turn on any golf tournament, they have an entire contingent that come along with them. They won’t come to this site if it’s not safe and secure.”
Filippone said the walls, made to look as if assembled by stacking slate, will have landscaping weaving along both sides on a scale rarely seen on any other kind of development.
Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.
The new championship layout is expected to cost around $20 million to build and will sit on the thin island of Eleuthera.
As if Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods haven’t already shared enough sacred ground, now the two names will be forever linked in one of the prettiest places on the planet.
Nicklaus Design announced this week that the company’s first Nicklaus Heritage course will be located at Jack’s Bay in the Bahamas. The new championship layout is expected to cost in the neighborhood of $20 million to build and will sit on the thin island of Eleuthera, which is known for stunning white and pink sand beaches.
A short course already sits on the property, one designed by Tiger Woods and TGR Designs. “The Playgound” was completed in March 2020 and has holes ranging from 71 to 163 yards.
As for the new Nicklaus endeavor, it’s the first under a new moniker, one that, according to the company, will showcase “the senior designers from Nicklaus Design who have been personally trained by Jack Nicklaus over several decades. Nicklaus Heritage designs incorporate the design philosophies and values imparted to Nicklaus designers over their careers working with Jack on world-famous golf courses under Nicklaus Design’s Jack Nicklaus Signature brand.”
This project will be led by Chad Goetz, who has a portfolio of high-profile Spanish properties under his belt as well as redesigns or renovations projects at Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club in Boca Raton, Florida, and the Great Waters course at Lake Oconee, Georgia.
“It’s going to be spectacular,” Goetz said. “A number of holes stretch directly along on the ocean and even the land off the ocean has remarkable topography, featuring a rolling terrain of elevation changes, lakes, deep water ‘blue holes’ to the ocean, and caves. What Mother Nature has provided us is rare and we plan to preserve the natural integrity and enhance the beauty of the island.”
The project is expected to be completed in 2025. Here’s a look at the stunning property:
Tiger Woods, Mike Trout partner up to build upscale private course in New Jersey.
Baseball star Mike Trout has partnered with Tiger Woods to build a private golf course in Vineland, New Jersey. Named Trout National – The Reserve, the 18-hole layout will be about 45 minutes south of Philadelphia and is slated to open in 2025.
“I’m so excited to finally officially announce that we’re doing this project, and doing it in a community that means so much to me,” Trout, a three-time American League Most Valuable Player who plays for the Los Angeles Angels, said in a press release. “I was born in Vineland and raised in Millville. I met my wife, Jessica, in Millville, and my parents and siblings and in-laws still live in the area. I could put down roots anywhere in the country, but Jessica and I make South Jersey our offseason home and always cherish the time we get to spend there.”
Construction on Trout National – The Reserve will begin this year.
We promised you all a big announcement and here it is! We are so excited to be able to make a longtime dream of mine a reality, with none other than @tigerwoods and @tgrdesignbytw. We can't wait to share more updates with you as we create Trout National – The Reserve. pic.twitter.com/V8eMGEUYdS
The club, which is being developed with John and Lorie Ruga, owners of Northeast Precast of Vineland, is being constructed between Sheridan Avenue and Route 55.
“I love South Jersey and I love golf, so creating Trout National – The Reserve is a dream come true,” Trout said. “And then to add to that we’ll have a golf course designed by Tiger? It’s just incredible to think that this project has grown to where we’re going to be working with someone many consider the greatest and most influential golfer of all time.”
Woods and his archeticture firm, TGR Design, is also creating a new short course as part of Cobbs Creek Golf Club in Philadelphia.
“I’ve always watched Mike on the diamond, so when an opportunity arose to work with him on Trout National – The Reserve, I couldn’t pass it up,” Woods said in the press release. “It’s a great site for golf, and our team’s looking forward to creating a special course for Mike, Jessica, John and Lorie (Ruga).”
The will also have a “cutting-edge” practice range, short-game area, clubhouse, restaurant, “five-star” lodging, a wedding chapel and more.
“We’re going to be doing some really cool things from a service and offering standpoint,” Trout said. “Although plans aren’t finalized quite yet, I’ll put it to you this way – this will not be your grandparents’ country club.”
The release said the course will leverage the site’s topography, including deciduous and evergreen forest in places and rolling farmland in others. The sandy site was once home to a silica sand mine, so drainage and turf conditions should be excellent, according to the release. As TGR Design becomes more immersed in the project, additional details will be released.
“Mike’s a great guy and we both care deeply about our community,” John Ruga said in the release. “Like Mike, I always dreamed about the possibility of opening a truly one-of-a-kind golf club. When we met and started talking about our individual visions, it became clear that we were on the same page. Trout National – The Reserve is going to be the place where members gather to enjoy an unforgettable club experience. Equally as important, we’re focused on making the club a catalyst for job creation and economic development in our area, while also exploring ways for non-members to enjoy it.”
The Black and Red courses at PopStroke Glendale are now open in Arizona.
GLENDALE, Ariz. — PopStroke Entertainment Group, which famously has Tiger Woods as the face of the brand, opened its Glendale, Arizona, location Thursday, its first in the Grand Canyon State.
PopStroke bills itself as a one-of-a-kind golf experience with two 18-hole putting courses, a Black and a Red, which is designed to be more challenging.
It’s way more than putt putt golf, though. It’s an outdoor dining area with a food, craft beer, wine and signature cocktails as well as an ice cream parlor, an outdoor game area and even a playground for the little ones.
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The Glendale venue opened at noon local time on Thursday, March 2, in the Westgate area, just north of State Farm Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals and recent host of Super Bowl 57.
The Glendale location is the seventh in PopStroke’s lineup. A second Arizona PopStroke is on track to open in about six months in the Talking Stick area in Scottsdale.
Operating hours for the Glendale location will be Sunday to Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Thursday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to midnight.
Tiger Woods announced Tuesday that he and his golf course design firm, TGR Design, would construct a golf course in Park City, Utah, at Marcella Club. It’s the first mountain design for Woods and will be the fourth golf course to bear his name, including Bluejack National in Houston, El Cardonal at Diamante in Cabo and Payne’s Valley in Hollister, Missouri.
There will be two 18-hole courses at Marcella Club, but the second will open after Tiger’s design is completed. His course is slated to be more than 8,000 yards from the tips.
Tiger Woods built a par-3 Playground course at Jack’s Bay in the Bahamas and is slated to build a full 18-hole course.
Tiger Woods’ 10-hole Playground has opened at Jack’s Bay in Eleuthera, Bahamas, with the 10-hole par-3 course joining a growing trend of premium short courses at destinations around the world.
The Playground sits atop a bluff overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, and the holes range from 55 to 170 yards and can be played in multiple configurations. The Blue Bar snack shop sits off the fourth tee.
“It is great to be part of this spectacular project in paradise,” Woods said in a press release. “The natural terrain and coastline are incredibly beautiful and call for an equally spectacular golf experience. The golf course complements the true spirit of the Jack’s Bay development because it’s designed for golfers to have fun, foster friendships and create memories within an unforgettable setting.”
Tiger Woods designed the par-3 Playground course at Jack’s Bay in the Bahamas. (Courtesy of Jack’s Bay Company)
The private Jack’s Bay is a 964-acre property with 2 ½ miles of Atlantic Ocean frontage 10 minutes from Rock Sound International Airport. Woods’ TGR Design also is slated to build an 18-hole course at the property that will include approximately 500 residences, bluffs that reach 80 feet above the ocean and a pink sand beach. The Playground was the first major recreational amenity to open at the community.
“Bringing Tiger to this private membership community opportunity in the Bahamas is nothing short of remarkable,” Franklyn Wilson, chairman of Jack’s Bay Company, said in the release. “Uniting the rich Bahamian cultural heritage and Eleuthera’s unmatched beauty with the skill and attention to detail brought to the table by Tiger Woods and TGR Design, makes this an exceptional opportunity.”
The welcome sign for the par-3 Playground course at Jack’s Bay in the Bahamas. (Courtesy of Jack’s Bay Company)
Adding short courses is a growing trend for operators of premium golf destinations, with the 13-hole, par-3 Preserve at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon and the nine-hole, par-3 Cradle at Pinehurst in North Carolina serving as prime examples.
The shorter courses can attract families and novices as well as serve as a fun break from larger, traditional courses for traveling groups of players looking to fill an evening with a few cocktails and laughs.
Tiger Woods and TGR Design to build short par-3 course at Pebble Beach Golf Resorts to replace Peter Hay Golf Course
Tiger Woods and his TGR Design firm on Thursday released plans to transform the Peter Hay Golf Course at Pebble Beach Resorts in California.
Woods and his team will build a nine-hole par-3 course with holes ranging in length from 47 to 106 yards. The total length will be 670 yards. They also will build a 20,000-square-foot putting green and plans include a new food and beverage venue with a large outdoor seating area.
The short course will be between the Pebble Beach Pro Shop and the Golf Academy, just a few hundred yards from the famed 18th green of Pebble Beach Golf Links.
The plans for Tiger Woods’ redesign of the Peter Hay Golf Course at Pebble Beach Resorts. Photo courtesy of Pebble Beach Company
Woods said his design philosophy for the short course will focus on playability, creativity and fun for any golfer, including families and those new to the game. The result will feature dramatic movement with the terrain, plus four holes playing directly toward Carmel Bay to capitalize on the long views of the water. Each hole will be distinct from the previous course.
“Everyone who plays this golf course is going to enjoy the playability of it,” Woods said in the press release. “Golfers will have the choice to play nearly any club off most tees and around the greens, which will make them think and channel their creativity. It will also play differently from day to day depending on the tee and hole locations and wind direction. It’s going to be a lot of fun. I can’t wait to play it.”
With one exception, the length of each hole will correspond with a significant year in Pebble Beach’s history, and plaques on tee boxes will tell those stories. The exception will be the second hole, a replica of the stellar, seaside par-3 seventh hole on Pebble Beach Golf Links.
“Pebble Beach is such an iconic golf destination, we want guests to feel the entirety of that spirit when they play this course,” Woods said in the press release. “We also know not everyone who comes to Pebble Beach will have a chance to play the U.S. Open course, so we wanted to create the opportunity for all visitors to experience one of its most famous holes.”
The course is scheduled to open in the spring of 2021.
“We are thrilled to elevate the quality of our short course to a level consistent with our other world-class golf courses,” Bill Perocchi, CEO of Pebble Beach Company, said in the release. “You can see the genius of Tiger Woods and TGR Design come to life when you walk the site, the way it all fits together. I expect all aspects of this new facility will be very popular for junior golf events, resort golfers, outings, resident hang-outs and everything in between.”
Woods and his firm have built several courses including Bluejack National in Texas, which ranks No. 47 on Golfweek’s Best list of modern courses in the United States, and El Cardonal at Diamante in Mexico, which ranks No. 25 on Golfweek’s Best list of courses in Mexico and the Caribbean. He also is building Payne’s Valley at Big Cedar Lodge in Missouri, 13 holes of which are currently open for preview play.
