Links at St. Anne’s GC Opening Under New Ownership Team

Construction of the golf course at the Middletown, Del. property started about 12 years ago but was never finished. Now Buddy Reed and Frank Horton, who are involved with two other Delaware courses, are finishing the process and hope to have 16 holes open for play by the end of July. The property also has a pool, clubhouse and event center.

A new ownership group is bringing the abandoned, never completed golf course back to life in the St. Anne’s neighborhood in Middletown, Del., the Middletown Transcript reported.

C+RB reported on the project in March 2019.

In November, Buddy Reed, one of the founding partners of Fieldstone Golf Club in Greenville, Del., and more recently the man behind the resurrection of Middletown’s Back Creek Golf Club, acquired the company that controls the golf course formerly referred to as St. Anne’s or The Levels, the Transcript reported.

Projects over the last six months have included construction to shape fairways, installation of irrigation systems and grass seeding, with most holes scheduled to be finished this summer.

“We want to bring the same, high level of facilities and service to St. Anne’s as we’ve brought to Back Creek,” said Reed. “Back Creek is thriving—the golf course and the restaurant. We have three high school teams that play at the golf course, along with leagues for men, women, couples and seniors.”

Frank Horton, managing partner of Golf Back Creek, LLC, the group that has operated Back Creek since 2015, will also be managing the Links at St. Anne’s, the Transcript reported.

“I used to oversee 30 different golf clubs for Century Golf Partners and Arnold Palmer Golf Management,” said Horton, “But it’s safe to say, there’s nothing in the entire region like this combination of a links-style course with water features.”

The Links at St. Anne’s is an Alan Liddicoat original design, and Liddicoat has been assisting Reed in finishing the course along with Joseph Lee, Back Creek’s Superintendent, and Matt Richter, owner and operator of MDR Golf, the Transcript reported. The course will be a par 71, measuring approximately 7,250 yards from the championship tees.

“What makes this course special are the undulations,” said Reed. “It’s a links-style course with eight water features. It’s similar to what you’d see in a seaside course with dunes. The course has great vistas.”

Those undulations, Reed added, are similar to the rolling hills found in Scotland’s legendary golf courses, the Transcript reported. Plans are to finish 12 holes by the end of June.

“We’re rapidly completing the seeding process,” said Reed. “We should have 16 holes ready for play by the end of July, and we’ll continue on the last two holes.”

Developers started construction on the course about 12 years ago, Reed said, but never finished, the Transcript reported. Irrigation systems were only installed on 10 holes, so the  process of installing pipes, pumps and sprinklers on the remaining holes is now being completed.

Reed and Horton told the Transcript they can see the dream getting closer to a reality.

“We think St. Anne’s has huge potential,” said Reed. “It has the potential to be a world-class golf course and event center.”

Added Horton: “We are a public golf course, so we will have daily-fee golf as well.”

The clubhouse/event center at the Links of St. Anne’s is preparing to host weddings, birthday parties, holiday parties, corporate outings and charity events, the Transcript reported. Upstairs, the facility features two large rooms for conferences or banquets overlooking the golf course.

“We can accommodate weddings with over 200 guests,” said Horton. “We’ll be hosting the YMCA gala this fall. We have one of the largest event centers in Middletown.”

Downstairs, two more rooms can each host events for up to 60 people, the Transcript reported. The 4,000-sq. ft. pool at St. Anne’s opened in 2018 under different management, and Reed and Horton are planning for a reopening during Memorial Day weekend.

“We’ve already exceeded last year’s membership, but there are still spots available,” said Horton.

Pool memberships are open to the community, the Transcript reported. The poolhouse restaurant will be opening in mid-June and will be available for poolside parties.

The Links at St. Anne’s hosted an open house on March 30 and 31, the Transcript reported.

“We had a tremendous response,” said Horton. “More than 400 people visited throughout the weekend to see what’s been done. Obviously with the neighbors, this is something they’re starving for. They’ve watched it start and fail several times, but now they can see this is finally happening.”