SARASOTA, Fla. (June 3, 2014) – Grass replacement and an expansion that will double the size of the half-acre driving range at The Founders Club – Sarasota’s premier golf and country club community – began May 19.
The range is closed for three weeks while golf crews replace traditional Bermuda grass with sprigs of Florida-friendly Celebration, a deep blue-green Bermuda species repeatedly named the top turf for wear tolerance and recovery and drought resistance.
“Celebration is the new kid on the block,” said Chris Adams, The Founders Club’s head golf professional. “It’s more shade tolerant and a hardier grass.”
The renovation will also include expansion of the 22-tee driving range, adding as many as 15 spots to accommodate a growing membership. The full range will open in October, according to Adams.
“We’re making the range wider and deeper with more areas for our members and guests to use on the practice end and the teaching end,” he said. “We hope to add 10 to 15 more tees, and the goal is to expand to an acre. We can currently accommodate 22 and we’re often maxed out.”
The Founders Club is dedicated to a traditional golf experience, offering the area’s only caddie program and allowing members to walk the 18-hole Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed championship course. Membership is limited to 275, providing the opportunity for year-round golf with no tee time required.
The driving range expansion will enhance The Founders Club’s practice and training facilities, which also include two putting greens, a short game area and state-of-the-art TrackMan radar technology offered through the Florida Golf Performance Center.
The members-owned Founders Golf and Social Club also offers the 24,000-square-foot Golf Hall, overlooking an oak hammock and the 18th hole. The clubhouse offers a main dining room, bar and grille, outdoor verandah, and private dining room for casual and fine dining. The facility also has a professionally staffed and fully stocked award-winning golf pro shop, state-of-the-art fitness center, and men’s and women’s locker rooms and lounges.
The club offers an active social calendar and in-season reciprocal partnership with Sarasota Yacht Club.
Amenities at The Founders Club are designed to foster camaraderie and a connection with nature. Miles of winding boardwalks and paved walkways meander throughout the 700-acre community, which is punctuated by palm trees, pines and moss-covered live oaks.
Additional facilities at The Founders Club include two Har-Tru tennis courts, basketball and sand volleyball courts, and a picnic pavilion. Fitness and wellness classes, educational and instructional programs and social gatherings are coordinated by a professional staff.
Only 262 homes are planned for the community, which is conveniently located within minutes of Florida’s cultural coast, including Sarasota’s world-famous Gulf of Mexico beaches, shops, acclaimed local restaurants, and arts and cultural venues of downtown Sarasota.
London Bay Homes, named America’s Best Builder by Builder magazine in 2008, offers single-family homes, golf cottages and one-of-a-kind estate homes at The Founders Club.
Golf cottage home and homesite packages are priced from the $650,000s and offer 2,000 to more than 4,000 square feet of living space, including exterior landscape maintenance for a lock-and-leave lifestyle. Offering golf and lake views, cottage homes are conveniently located within walking distance of the clubhouse.
Reserve Collection homes, available on fairway homesites, range from 2,800 to more than 5,000 square feet of living space. These single-family homes provide a variety of design options that can be customized to a buyer’s preference. Home and homesite packages are priced from the $800,000s.
Estate home and homesite packages are priced from $1 million to more than $4 million and offer a wide range of customization and designer options. Floor plans feature dining and living rooms, studies, expansive alfresco living spaces and large master suites with walk-in closets and spa-like bathrooms.
The Founders Club Sales Center is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is located at 3001 Founders Club Drive, three miles east of I-75 on Fruitville Road, Exit 210.
For more information about The Founders Club, call 866-711-3132 or visit www.ExperienceFounders.com.