RICHMOND HILL, Ga., Nov. 16, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A year-long $7.2-million dollar redesign led by Pete Dye is paying dividends at The Ford Plantation, which this month debuted at No. 28 in Golfweek's annual ranking of Top 100 Residential Courses.
And that's just the latest good news on the manicured fairways at Ford, one of the nation's premier sporting clubs. Among other recent recognitions, The Ford Plantation course was rated the sixth best redesign of 2015 by Golf Digest and the third best renovation nationally by industry publication Golf Inc.
The 7,409-yard Low Country layout also received praise from GOLF magazine and was named 2014's Best Renovation (Private) by Links earlier this year.
"Our members could not be more pleased with what Mr. Dye delivered," said Marc Ray, The Ford Plantation General Manager. "The course has all of the classic Dye elements – strategic bunkering, switchback fairways and firm, fast greens. The highly customizable tee boxes and shot making required from tee to green combine to offer a fantastic test for golfers of every skill level."
The Ford course was Golfweek's highest rated in scenic coastal Georgia, and the second highest rated Georgia course on the list
"I looked at The Ford Plantation as a unique chance and almost a blank slate," Dye said when the course reopened last fall. "We wanted to come back and make the course better, and we've done that. The Ford Plantation golf course will stand among my finest Southern designs.
Originally envisioned as a restoration necessitated by infrastructure upgrades, the updating became transformational in its effects.
More than 1.7 million square feet of Celebration Bermuda sod were laid during the project, as was a combined 58 miles of drainage and irrigation pipe. Green size grew by 20 percent and 16,000 gallons of water per minute can be moved into surrounding freshwater lakes via a new high-powered storm water pump system.
The front nine at The Ford Plantation retained much of its former footprint and parkland feel though landscape changes were introduced to widen corridors and create long views, a favorite technique of Dye's.
The Lowcountry links-style back nine — site of a working rice fields for much of the 1800s — now includes bunkering and natural waste areas as part of an updated "high dunes" look and feel. Some 94,000 cubic yards of soil were moved during the project to achieve that result.
ABOUT THE FORD PLANTATION
One of the nation's leading residential communities and private sporting clubs, The Ford Plantation is nestled on 1,800 breathtaking acres near Savannah, Ga. Located on the site of a former antebellum rice plantation, this majestic waterfront location once captivated the imagination of automobile magnate Henry Ford, who built a historic winter retreat on the property in the 1930s.Today, the community featuresa challenging Pete Dye golf course, an on-site day spa, a deep-watermarina, access to top-class shooting facilities, world-class equestrian center, organic garden and state-of-the-art fitness center, as well as more than 10 miles of scenic horse, biking and hiking trails. For more information, visit www.fordplantation.com.
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