While Cypress Links Golf Course in St. Petersburg, Fla. closes for upgrades to the clubhouse, resurfaced putting greens and new grass on the tee boxes, Streamsong in Bowling Green, Fla. will soon offer a new short course with a six- and 12-hole loop, and a large putting green. Also, Jupiter, Fla.-based PopStroke opened a location in Sarasota with plans for another location in Lutz.
Tampa Sports Authority CEO Eric Hart, who manages three city of Tampa, Fla. golf courses, has noticed people are now more likely to play golf in the middle of the typical workday due to the pandemic, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reported. Whether or not that changes going forward remains to be seen.
“I know everybody’s talking about the return to work,” Hart said. “That’s the part we’re monitoring right now, because we’ve seen a significant amount of people that now play golf at two o’clock in the afternoon,” Hart said. “We never had that kind of demand. We’re attributing some of that to at-home work. A lot of people get in the office at 6 a.m. and they’re done by 1 p.m. and they’re going to go play in the afternoon.”
The return to the office marks just one possible change coming to Tampa Bay’s golf scene, the Business Journal reported. As the rainy season approaches, golfers seeking to connect with clients may have to move their tee times earlier. By the time fall arrives, expect some new offerings.
A change in habits isn’t the only thing happening in the Tampa-area golf scene, the Business Journal reported. Cypress Links Golf Course, one of three courses owned by the city of St. Petersburg, Fla., temporarily closed this week for renovations. It is scheduled to reopen in October.
Changes include upgrades to the clubhouse, 10 newly resurfaced putting greens, and new grass on all of the tee boxes, the Business Journal reported.
“This will be the first major renovation of Cypress Links Golf Course since it opened about 25 years ago,” said Golf Director Ken Betz. “We are excited to reopen in fall 2022 with refreshed greens and an improved clubhouse.”
Leagues scheduled to be played at Cypress Links will be moved to Twin Brooks Golf Course, the Business Journal reported.
Jupiter-based PopStroke, an entertainment complex under Tiger Woods’s business umbrella, opened its newest putting facility in Sarasota last week, the Business Journal reported.
“I have spent countless hours visiting Sarasota with my children for youth sporting events over the years and have long recognized the attributes that make Sarasota such a vibrant and thriving community,” said Greg Bartoli, founder of PopStroke. “With an abundance of young families, working professionals and retirees, Sarasota is the perfect fit for all that PopStroke has to offer in bringing people together across generations to enjoy the game of golf in an affordable, fun and competitive environment.”
This fall, PopStroke will add another location in Lutz, Fla., the Business Journal reported.
Bartoli, Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore, TGR Design President Bryon Bell and Stevens Construction President Mark Stevens broke ground on the facility in February, the Business Journal reported. The 18-hole putting courses at PopStroke will incorporate fairways, bunkers and roughs. The Tiger Course is supposed to challenge customers with strategically placed hole locations, while the Cub Course is for kids or new families.
Drinking and eating are also a part of the strategy, similar to Topgolf, the Business Journal reported. Callaway bought Topgolf in an all-stock deal in 2020 at a valuation of about $2 billion.
Streamsong will soon offer a new short course with a six- and 12-hole loop, and a large putting green at its renowned location in Polk County, the Business Journal reported. Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw will design the course. They also designed the Streamsong Red Course, which opened in 2012 and has ranked among the top 30 courses in the U.S. by multiple media outlets.
An estimated construction date isn’t currently known, the Business Journal reported. Streamsong had a total economic impact of $40 million in 2021.
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