Much has been written this week about Greg Norman’s acrimonious split from Medalist Golf Club, the private golf treasure in southern Florida he co-founded in the mid-1990s.
Earlier this week, however, there was joy in the Shark’s voice as he talked with Golfweek about the course he designed and built with Pete Dye in Hobe Sound, Florida, a sweeping stage that is home to Sunday’s The Match: Champions of Charity. The charity event pits Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady and will raise more than $10 million for COVID-19 relief efforts.
“I just admired Pete,” said Norman, whose architect arm has produced 106 courses in 34 countries on six continents – four in collaboration with Dye, who passed away at age 94 in January. “He was just one of those gentlemen who was so connected to golf. He was a genius below the surface just as much as he was above the surface. That’s where I learned most of my knowledge.
“He took me under his wing.”
The two-time major champion and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame said part of the Medalist’s mission statement at the outset was simple – build one of the hardest courses in the area that would attract low handicap golfers.
So Norman and Dye went to work. On hands and knees, the two primitively designed the course on the flat land that featured fresh marshlands and plenty of sand, their creative architectural instincts instead of blueprints leading the way.
“Pete and I were tasked to build a difficult course and that’s what we went out and did,” said Norman, who lives 15 minutes from the club. “We didn’t use a set of plans. We did it by sticks in the sand and just drawing and saying this is where we should go and this is what we should do. We’d get down on the ground and draw away. It truly was a hand-built golf course by both of us.
[jwplayer Q2wM2Gan-vgFm21H3]
“I used to joke with Pete that his golf shots were a little low, flat hook golf shots instead of a high fade like mine. So we had this constant battle about how holes should be played and not played and we loved it.
“We just joked with each other all the time.”
Seven years ago, however, Dye nor Norman, who tweaked the design over the years with new bunkers and tees, was asked for approval when the Medalist hired Bobby Weed to renovate the course. This led to the unpleasant split between the club and Norman (although he remains a member and visits from time to time).
In his restoration, Weed beefed up the revetted-stacked bunkers, widened a few fairways, touched on the greens and added six Tiger Tees in honor of Woods, which can stretch the par-72 layout to a big-boy 7,515 yards.
“The layout of the golf course is what Pete and I did originally,” Norman said. “The variety of the golf course is so good. There are long holes and drivable short holes depending on the wind conditions. I used to be able to drive the 10th hole and the 11th hole. Risky shots but you can try them. You can drive No. 14.
“The combination of the holes and the different shots that are required – that’s what Pete and I wanted to do, to challenge you to be able to hit all 14 clubs in your bag, not just a few of them.”
Especially when hitting into the greens.
“Where to hit the greens and how to hit the greens is important,” Norman said. “The greens aren’t overly big and there is a lot of runoff. The ball gets repelled away from the flagstick. Hole No. 4, with a big pushup green, is one of the classic par-3s. Very severe if you miss the green. Even for Mickelson and Woods, it will test their short games if they have to get up and down.
“But the great players like Mickelson and Woods won’t have much problem with it because the fairways are much wider now. A lot of the underbrush has been removed. It looks less intimidating today. Having said that, with Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, if you stray offline you are going to pay the price big time.”
[vertical-gallery id=778045483]
Norman was approached to be a part of the broadcast team for the match but things didn’t work out. But Norman will hit the airwaves May 26 on SiriusXM radio for his second live call-in show named Attack Life Radio at 3 p.m. ET.
For an hour Norman takes calls, answers questions, reminisces and has a blast.
“If people want to ask me a question, I’ve always enjoyed giving them my honest answer. So on the show I engage with them and they engage with me. It’s truly a 360 view on my life,” Norman said. “Most of the questions are about golf, but there are questions about life. And I’ve had broad experiences traveling the world and meeting and seeing and understanding and hearing a lot of things that are etched into my mind. I think it’s very valuable if I can hand that information on to people who are willing to ask questions about it.”
The broadcast team for Match II will feature Justin Thomas, one of many PGA Tour stars who are Medalist members; others include Woods, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler. Thomas has logged more than 100 rounds at the Medalist and recently played 18-hole matches against Fowler when both played left-handed and another time when both played using persimmon woods, old irons and balata golf balls.
This week he’s played a few rounds with Woods and on Friday went 18 with Mickelson and Brady. Like Norman, Thomas, who will be making his on-course analyst debut, said the Medalist won’t present too many problems for Woods and Mickelson. Now, for Brady and Manning, that’s a different story.
“It’s generous off the tee in terms of fairway size but if you get off the fairway it’s trouble. It’s a lost ball type of situation,” Thomas said. “Given the setup and the wind direction, I think it’s one of the hardest courses in this area just because of the length. I hit more long irons out there than any course down here. It’s a great test for the times we get a course a little bit longer on the PGA Tour because I can go out there and hit a lot of long and mid-irons.
“It plays tough along the greens because of the lies – they can be tight and grainy. It can be a very difficult course. Phil and Tiger, they’ll be OK. But Tom and Peyton might get a little exposed.”
[lawrence-related id=778045548,778045235]
