golf club 

Duran Golf Club celebrates anniversary with specials

Golf Course
A week from Saturday marks Duran Golf Club's first birthday, and the celebration for that milestone will be held on July 29.

Anyone who plays the Viera course on the 29th will be treated to a free lunch and free range balls. There also will be a skills contests on the course and various giveaways.

Specials, in fact, will be offered every day this month and can be found on Duran's Web site (www.durangolf.com).

If the folks at Duran are feeling a little generous, that is because the past year has been a very good one for the course that has already established itself as one of the premier destinations on the Space Coast.

Duran has hosted a number of events, including The Players Tour Pro-Am Invitational, a long-drive tournament that brought some of the top names in the sport to the area, as well as the Space Coast Amateur.

The latter attracted a strong field for its championship flight and should join the Brevard County Amateur, Platinum Coast Invitational and Nisbet-Wuesth-

off as top amateur tournaments in the area.

"I am extremely pleased with what we accomplished our first year," Duran general manager Dave Tomczak said.

What is most exciting to Tomczak is Duran, like any newborn, has plenty of growing to do.

The par-3 course and driving range that is now open will offer everything from club fittings to refreshments and will be lit during the evening before the end of the year.

The lights for the range and par-3 course are already up, Tomczak said, and they will be turned on once the building for the development center is completed. That, Tomczak said, should happen by the start of November.

"You'll be able to play golf or practice golf until 10 o clock at night," Tomczak said.

Construction of the main clubhouse should be finished some time in January, he said.

The hurricanes that belted Brevard County in 2004 forced Duran to open three months later than originally planned. That delay didn't stop Duran from establishing itself as a well-regarded place.

A qualifier for a Florida State Golf Association event (men's 4-ball) was recently held at Duran, and Tomczak hopes to attract state and United States Golf Association qualifiers to the club. He said the club's long-term goal is to host events like the state amateur championship and even USGA ones (the FSGA is a branch of the USGA).

"If we're ever going to get (the Space Coast) recognized as a golf destination we need to get these events here," Tomczak said.

Two local long-drive competitors advanced to the state championship during a qualifier held last week at The Majors Golf Club in Palm Bay.

Jeff Gentile, a teaching golf professional at Manatee Cove Golf Club on Patrick Air Force Base, won the men's open division with a drive of 337 yards. Merritt Island resident Lloyd Chamberlain also advanced past the local qualifier with a drive of 331 yards on a soggy day that didn't yield much roll to the golf balls.

The two will try to move on to the RE/Max World Long Drive Championship at the state qualifier, which will be held in late August at The Majors.

One more local qualifier will be staged before the Florida State Championship. It will be held July 8 at Duran.

Boys and girls ages 9-19 will have two opportunities to play in the Space Coast Junior Competition.

Both tournaments will be held at The Savannahs on Merritt Island (July 25 and Aug. 1) starting at 11 a.m. and preceded by 10 a.m. registration.

The cost is $15 a player, and that includes golf, prizes and a snack. Flights will be determined by how many people register for each tournament.

Titusville High School and Brevard Community College graduate Marc France placed third in the Florida State Amateur Championship, which was held recently in Boynton Beach.

France shot 285 (71-68-72-74) at Pine Tree Golf Club, finishing five shots behind winner Jeff Dennis. France actually got to 5-under par during the final round and tied Dennis for the lead.

Dennis, however, made a birdie on the ninth hole while France took a bogey and went on to win the tournament.

France will be a senior at Florida Southern College in the fall.

Tiger Point Golf Club not for sale

Golf Course

Amid rumors that Meadowbrook Golf Group, owners of Tiger Point Golf and Country Club, are selling its 36hole facility, officials for the company say although work to restore the facility is slow going, but is being done.

"We've heard the rumors that we're selling Tiger Point, but I can assure you that Meadowbrook has no intention of doing so," said V.P. of Operations Gary Leathers. The Orlando area-based company manages nine golf courses in the state, four being in Northwest Florida.

According to Leathers, $6 million has been spent restoring Tiger Point along with Hidden Creek and Scenic Hills to prehurricane status. He explains that with work going on with the company's five Central Florida courses that were also damaged from recent active hurricane seasons, Meadowbrook is not leaving members and residents in the dark.

"We have actively been in communication with all members of the club, many of those who are part of the Tiger Point Homeowners' Association," said Leathers. "Our plan is to fully restore both golf courses."

Leathers said the plans to fully rebuild, enhance and enlarge the country club are in the final stages and work should begin soon.

"I suspect by this time next year, Tiger Point Country Club will be completely renovated and improved," said Leathers.

Tiger Point, which originally opened up in the 1960s and named Santa Rosa Shores County Club added a Championship course in the early 1980s, thus creating two courses that served the needs of both the members as well as those who played more competitively. Hurricane Ivan heavily damaged the West Course in 2004 just after being redesigned by local golf designer Jerry Pate.

"It was back to the drawing board with our architects," said Tiger Point general manager Aaron Williams. According to Williams, a redesign like that for a course is a once-in-a-lifetime event, so it was frustrating having to assess the damage just several years after the redesign was completed.

The Tiger Point clubhouse which boasted a number of amenities including a full-service restaurant for members, banquet area and pro shop is feeling the blow of its closing.

"I get two to five phone calls a day for wedding receptions," said Williams. However, Williams assures those who utilize the facility that the wait will be worth it.

"The view of the water and the course from the clubhouse are incredible. Having the clubhouse open will also be a service to the community so they won't have to drive all the way to Pensacola or Destin for a wedding reception," said Williams.

Residents of Tiger Point are showing concern with the overall progress made to the course.

"The overall sense of everything is that the condition of the course has been on a gradual decline," said Gerald Seely. Seely, who has been living in Tiger Point since 1988, said his view of the course and clubhouse are some of his favorite amenities.

"I'm happy to be living there. I guess the bottom line is I used to come home in the evening and sit on the pool deck and look over the course. I would occasionally walk up to the clubhouse to watch the sunset. My hope is that is they are looking at continuing cleaning things up."