Dubbed the “Modern Home of American Golf,” the facility in the city north of Dallas will be home to the PGA of America’s headquarters and a pair of championship courses that are already scheduled to host six major tournaments, plus a 10-hole short course and practice areas. An education center is also being designed for both the professional development of PGA Golf Professionals and player development. The city of Frisco expects more than $2.5 billion in economic development to stem from the project over the next two decades.

PGA Frisco lead architects Gil Hanse and Beau Welling gave a preview October 18 of the championship golf courses that are being designed and built at the PGA of America’s future home in Frisco, Texas.

“These courses will be the heartbeat of PGA Frisco,” said PGA President Suzy Whaley. “This is where the best players in the world will compete in men’s and women’s major championships, and also where newcomers will learn this great game from the best coaches – PGA Professionals. Our vision is for PGA Frisco to become much more than our headquarters. It was incredibly important to us that the community benefit from PGA Frisco, including as a wonderful home course for Frisco Independent School District boys and girls’ high school teams and as a gathering place where all are welcome, no matter where they are on their personal golf journey.”

In December 2018, the PGA of America announced plans to move its headquarters from Palm Beach County, Florida, to Frisco, Texas, where it will anchor a 660-acre mixed-use development with a public-private investment worth more than half a billion dollars. Two championship golf courses are being built at PGA Frisco, as well as a short course and practice areas. The new PGA of America headquarters will become home to national player development and coaching programs.

This public-private partnership teams PGA of America with Omni Stillwater Woods (OSW), the City of Frisco, as well as its Economic and Community Development Corporations, and the Frisco Independent School District. The City of Frisco and its development corporations (each funded by a half-cent of Frisco’s sales tax) and FISD are contributing no more than $35 million toward development of the public facilities. The golf courses, clubhouse, practice areas and associated public facilities will be owned by the city.

“With these world class courses as the centerpiece, PGA Frisco will become the modern home of American golf,” said PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh. “Gil Hanse and Beau Welling are accomplished architects who are uniquely talented. On the East Course where major championships will be contested, Gil’s design creatively takes advantage of the natural terrain and elevations to create a fair-but-tough test for the world’s best players. He has also designed finishing holes built for drama and a stadium setting at 18 that will be one of the loudest settings in championship golf. Beau has designed the West Course with a sense of community gathering, where players of varying skill levels can have a positive experience in a remarkable, naturalistic setting. These courses are going to be incredibly special.”

PGA Frisco will be home to an unprecedented cadence of championships, with 23 already scheduled over a 13-year span, including six majors across the PGA, LPGA and Champions Tours: PGA Championship (2027, 2034), Women’s PGA Championship (2025, 2031) and Senior PGA Championship (2023, 2029).

Construction of the golf courses is taking place somewhat concurrently, with construction expected to be finished in the fall of 2021, which allows for a grow-in period prior to beginning play in the spring of 2022. The grand opening for the overall development is currently scheduled for June 2022.

Members of the media got their first look at the courses, which began light construction about three months ago, on October 18, the Dallas Morning News reported. Waugh and PGA of America Chief Operating Officer Darrell Crall both call it “the future home of American golf.” Frisco mayor Jeff Cheney prefers to go with “the Silicon Valley of golf.”

No matter which description is used, the landscape of golf in the DFW area (and beyond) is going to change when construction of PGA Frisco completes in 2022, which organizers say is still on track to happen, the Morning News reported.

The entire project will sit on a 660-acre plot of land that was part of a larger 2,500-acre plot that belonged to the Estate of Bert Fields Jr., a prominent Texas oilman, banker and rancher, the Morning News reported. That means it’s larger than both the TPC Four Seasons and Trinity Forest courses in the Dallas Metroplex area.

Sixty acres of the PGA Frisco site will be dedicated to a commercial zone, the Morning News reported, while the other 600 will center around the golf course and its amenities.

“Each and every time that I am in Frisco, my excitement for the potential of PGA Frisco only continues to grow,” said Beau Welling, Founder/CEO, Beau Welling Design. “The opportunity to create a course that can challenge the best players in the world yet remain a fun and special experience for beginners, amateurs, professionals, and families alike is very unique. There is no doubt that PGA Frisco will make a major impact on our wonderful game not only here in Texas but across the country.”

Added Gil Hanse, owner, Hanse Golf Course Design, “We are fortunate to be working on some wonderful golf course sites with amazing natural potential. At PGA Frisco we have some terrific natural attributes that we will seek to capitalize on in our design of the East Course. The rolling terrain, and Panther Creek are the highlights of the site, and provide elements that can be woven into the strategy of the course. We will also be using the native grasses and indigenous vegetation to create a rustic setting characteristic of the surrounding natural North Texas landscape.”

The project is progressing on schedule with construction of both championship golf courses, the West Course and the East Course, underway. A Short Course is also under construction, which will offer a welcoming option to introduce new golfers to the great game. The 10-hole Short Course will create a unique, multigenerational experience at PGA Frisco. Infrastructure and vertical construction will follow this winter and spring, respectively. The project includes an Omni Resort, which is scheduled to begin construction next year.

“Our brand is known for its service and amenities, including golf, and Omni PGA Frisco Resort
– the new home for modern golf in America – promises to be a first-class development that will attract visitors from around the world,” said Rowling, president of TRT Holdings, Inc., parent company of Omni Hotels & Resorts. “Partnering with the PGA of America and City of Frisco to build this new, luxurious golf destination in north Texas is an unprecedented move in the strategic growth of our company.”

An education center is also being designed for both the professional development of PGA Golf Professionals and player development. The center will feature state-of-the-art classrooms and teaching facilities.

“It’s exciting to see the vision taking shape and how it’s changing our northern landscape,” said Mayor Jeff Cheney, City of Frisco. “This public-private partnership is poised to transform the entire sport of golf. It’s already bringing global exposure to Frisco. The project is estimated to have an economic impact of more than $2.5 billion over the next 20 years. That’s a tremendous benefit to our residents, students and visitors who will not only enjoy playing the courses but be thrilled to see championship golf. We couldn’t be prouder to be the future home of the PGA of America.”

Frisco ISD will have access to all three courses, as well as practice areas, for high school golf practice and tournaments. The school district will pay a discounted student rate for tee times.

According to an economic impact study the city of Frisco commissioned, the city expects more than $2.5 billion in economic development over the next two decades, the Morning News reported.