LETS BUILD A GOLF PARK- A GOLF DOCUMENTARY

LETS BUILD A GOLF PARK- A GOLF DOCUMENTARY

was there talking about what could happen here There were various proposals and the idea came up you know what if we could raise money from individuals create a charity and do something super special that would maintain the status as a municipal golf course that was available to everybody and build a community orientation beyond anything that had ever happened here and really give back through the game [Music] [Applause] This is a story about giving back A group of citizens deciding to change their community forever with the gift of open golf [Music] Hi my name is Trey Ren I’m a Palm Beach County resident a filmmaker and above all else a golfer I’ve been given the opportunity to tell you this story These are my observations and my conversations with a few of the countless people who created the park Our story began when two Palm Beach County residents wandered this abandoned golf course on a Saturday afternoon
I’m Seth Wah and I live in North Palm Beach Florida
Seth has been a Palm Beach County resident for decades Very few people have a higher golf IQ or influence in the game than Seth Wah We’ll get back to Seth in a minute The park story began in 2020 but there’s been a public golf course on this site for decades
This this site was a municipal golf course from the 40s It was designed by probably the top architect working at that time in the late 1940s Dick Wilson
It was an important place in South Florida Golf It hosted PJ Tour events
You know this is this is special and it was chosen in the ‘ 40s to be a site for a golf course um when there were a lot of choices around here for really good reasons
I played the old municipal course several times when I was younger It was completely different It was not maintained particularly well but it was an important outlet for the community
And then there was a renovation done I I don’t know exactly when but you know it was unsuccessful This land had been deserted for several years and it really abandoned as a golf course by the city of West Palm Beach [Music] So uh it came to my attention from a PJ member who um uh came to my office and sort of said uh he said you know what do you know about the West Palm Beach Golf Course and I said well I’ve never heard of it So that uh Saturday I convinced my wife to come to West Palm for a for a lunch And then I said “By the way I need to go check something out Do you mind coming along?” And she happens to be a golfer And we pulled into the Forest Hills High School and uh parked and said “I guess this is it.” Cuz that’s where GPS took us And you could sort of see the crumbling sign and and a chainlick fence And we kind of pulled it apart and walked through you know this rubble to get inside and walked you know a hundred yards into it And it it blew me away [Applause] [Music] I mean it was just you could see golf you know it wasn’t it wasn’t a golf course anymore because it had been closed for you know 5 years or so and the there was the buildings were all cr you know down or either crumbling but you could see it’s like that when you go to Ireland or Scotland and you can just see golf courses kind of everywhere in the landscape That’s what it was And I remember turning to Jane and saying you know we got to do something with this And that that was the first moment and the colonel the idea to you know start this whole project and so from there then went and saw Dirk when when we got together and when I say we it’s you know Seth Wah and myself that was the original conversation David Sesna was there talking about what could happen here there were various proposals and the idea came up you know what if we could raise money from individuals create a charity and do something super special that would maintain the status as a municipal golf course that was available to everybody and build a community orientation beyond anything that had ever happened here and really give back through the game And my recollection is that Seth went to the mayor of West Palm Beach and asked him if that would be a possibility I had known the mayor a little bit and I went to see him and I said “Look you don’t know me that well but um you know I care about this place This is my home and I think this is a public facility that you know the town should should own.” And I said “If you want money you should probably just go to a developer and get you know whatever you’re going to get paid for it If you really want golf and you want this to be a public facility let me tell you my sort of thought about that or vision I guess.” When I first met with Seth who’s head of the PGA and he kind of shared with me what his vision it it it it directly aligned with my vision of making West Palm Beach a community of opportunity for all
We would raise the money privately And he looked at me and he said “You really think you can do this?” And I said “I do.” And he said “Well how much time do you need to figure it out?” And I said “Well can you give me 60 days?” and and so I was willing to give him the room and the time uh to raise the money
If we could get somebody like Gil H to design a new course and contribute his design fee as part of the charitable action Um that would be incredibly energizing for the project Well it all started from with a phone call from Seth Wah and and Seth said “Listen we’ve got this uh perhaps crazy vision uh for the West Palm Beach M community golf course.” So I got on a call with Seth and Dirk and they said “Listen we think you’re the you and your team are the right ones to do this project Will you take a leap of faith with us and and and jump in?” And I basically said you know look this is probably if it happens the the best opportunity to do two things One is to build a new golf course in probably the most important in terms of golf region of the country right here in Southeast Florida There won’t be a better piece of land to do what you do which is build beautiful golf courses that fit in with the natural characteristics of the landscape Um but the second thing is there won’t be a better opportunity to give back through the game Would you be interested in doing this and instead of saying um either no or maybe I’ll have to come look at it he said yes on the phone
We knew the mission was going to be special and that that ultimately it would be a great thing for a community
Wow We just went from this is a good idea to we’re probably going to actually do this And then my next phone call after discussing who the right person was with uh with Seth was to Dan Stanton Dan’s a wonderful person a great businessman a devoted golfer very charitable and also maybe the most effective fundraiser I’ve ever met in my life Somebody who in his own words has no problem asking people for dough That’s his line Well my name is Dan Stanton [Music] and uh home for me is right here in Palm Beach I had been involved in a variety of philanthropic things and so that combined with the golf I guess made me a candidate to fit into the into the group And when Dan said “I’m in with Gil on board as the architect with Seth on board driving the relationship with the golf community and with the city,” uh I knew it was going to happen I knew that we were past critical mass and we were going to get this done I just that was it When I hung up with Dan I was like “This is going to go down
Derek is going to kind of handle the golf course Dan’s going to kind of handle the money raise and and but we got all this other stuff we need to build and and we need a local.” Um and I said you know I think Tommy Frankle is the right guy I called him and in 30 seconds it was a yes
To be had the opportunity to be involved with such great people for such a great project was just like super super exciting There was no one really leading the charge as far as design permitting contractors and so bookkeeping I mean everything I just started doing that and ended up you know really enjoying it We talked about the financial needs to get this going and we thought that this project was going to cost somewhere in the $30 million plus range and we really wanted to have a $20 million endowment for any eventuality that could take place in the future We called people who were successful people who have been very privileged in their experience with the game of golf and we asked a question Have you had an opportunity to give back through a game that has given you so much we had an amazing experience in that we started in the last week or so of 2020 and by by April 1st we had pledges for almost $50 million
It was an easy raise because they believed in what this project can do Many of the people donating to this they played some of the finest courses in the world They don’t need another golf course to play But I think they believed in the mission uh of of this particular facility and what it could do particularly for our youth
You know I’m not a big fundraiser I’ve done it a few times
And I think if he were sitting here next to me he’d say that he sort of enjoyed the process unexpectedly I would say
it was kind of fun because I you know I usually hate asking people for things but I believe so much in what we were doing that I had that strong sense of I’m actually giving you an opportunity to participate in something that you’re going to be glad you did participate in And that makes the call much easier one to make It was just incredible how people wanted to support this So that gave us a strong feeling that we’re doing the right thing [Music] I’m all right today You’re going to find a way to cross and you’re going to get there Hello everybody Can I get your attention please to start the evening my name is Brad Faxton I’m the MC tonight If you want to stand in closer you might hear better with all the wind I’m just thinking how hard this ninth hole is going to be if it’s blowing here out of the southwest Gil better be a wide fairway especially for the mayor here You got to start practicing Uh it’s exciting night U the agenda tonight the mayor is going to speak
Well I have to really take my hat off and it it does bring tears to my eyes cuz I remember the very first conversation I had with with this gentleman You know we came into the conference room and then you know he he had a little idea He had a vision and he said “That golf course there I think I can help you with that.” But the more we talked the more I realized yes he did want to certainly help us with the golf course and rebuild it and and and the clubhouse and everything but his vision was much broader than that He really wanted to do something for our community for our kids and I got right with that I said I I I share that So we have really knitted um uh and bonded over this vision Uh so Seth and I know you’re going to come up later and talk but a special round of applause for Seth Wall ladies and gentlemen Seth W Everybody the founders I think the easiest way to start this is uh how do we get here everybody’s thanking me like this Life’s a team sport right like we’ve put together an incredible group which I’ll talk about in a second But the first one I got to start with is the mayor You know we had met each other a little bit through Bright Line but really didn’t know each other very well And I said I’ve got this kind of crazy idea I think but I think it I think we can pull it off And within an hour he kind of said look that’s a great idea And and I then called Dirk and and said you know Durk Ze who is an incredible entrepreneur person organizer We called Gil and said “Is this crazy?” And you said you know this is a nine or a 10 out of of property It is an amazing piece of property I mean can you You’re going to see the rest of it We’re in a corner of it There’s 190 acres behind us right you can’t believe that it exists And everybody warned me about how hard it is to work with a city Uh I I’ve had the exact opposite experience And why do we do it well because it’s here I think we can do something here that’s that’s really special And it’s happened organically It’s happened magically Everybody’s committed their sweat but their passion and and uh and their excitement about this And and this is not about you know we’re going to create an unbelievable facility He’s going to build this unbelievable golf course We’re going to have a part three course and a practice facility and a putting experience and all the great things So it’s going to be great stuff We want to create a community that’s based in golf but not just about golf right we called it a park for a reason right this is 190 acres that the residents own We don’t own it Um we’re just borrowing it so that we can do some good with it
All the pieces are in place to create this for the community the people the plan the dough Now it’s time to build it
We started to think about what kind of golf course we wanted to build And I say we because Gil did invite me into the design process which was a dream come true for me There was one word We wanted it to be fun In your mind what are the most fun golf courses you’ve played what are the most fun golf holes you’ve played and why
it came back but almost everybody circled around width They liked wide golf courses They like the ground game They liked opportunities to score and be creative around the greens It’s interesting because everyone loves a fun golf course but we had never heard of a project being guided by that principle above all others I mean golf is an intimidating sport for people who have never played So we wanted it to be enjoyable for people who are literally beginners but we also wanted it to be a great deal of fun for people who are excellent cuz there’s a lot of excellent players here and we want them to be here as well The most fun golf course we could possibly build seemed like a really worthwhile thing to do With a design principle in place construction begins I asked my friend aspiring architect and park intern Brad Gail to tell us about the stages of golf construction My name is Brad Gale Um I’m a shaper right now I guess you could consider by getting hired to work there I was probably the first charitable case that an opportunity was given to somebody that might have not else otherwise had it because I had no right working in construction You know golf construction starts obviously with coming up with a plan
You know Dirk Ze has been very involved in the design of the golf course working with us
Gil said “Look I want you to take a shot at routing the golf course as a first draft just to get the ball rolling.” you know I’ve dedicated myself best I know how on my own to learning about these things And so I’d walked the property I know how to read a topo map I knew where the clubhouse was going to be And so he gave me a couple instructions He wanted the first hole to be a par five He didn’t want the second hole to be a par three He wanted the third hole to return to the clubhouse Ninth hole back to the clubhouse And then you know the back n can be on its own So that was the instructions And I did my best to figure out a puzzle and it seemed like the best way to do it was a routing that included five par 3s and started with a par five ended with a par five Seemed to work pretty well I was happy with it as a first draft And I sent it off to him and he called me the next day received it and he said “This is actually pretty good I really love the changes of direction I really love you know the use of the property especially saving the best land for the last few holes So I love the the shorter kind of half par holes which is one of the things that our fun committee told us they liked was short par fives short par fours Um I like saving that for the end when most people who are playing matches are trying to make birdies and getting into it and um great start I gave it to my partner Jim Wagner He’s a tough grader He’ll take a look Week later Jim wasn’t able to figure out how to make it better About two or three months after I submitted that Gil called me and said “We’re throwing in the towel and we’re going to build what you drew.” And I have to be honest with you that was a a thrill It’s an absolute thrill So you know when I look around this property these are holes that I imagined sitting over a topo map you know in the summer of 2020 drawing lines and making sure that there was enough fairway corridor and making sure that it was safe and all the things you have to think about when you’re trying to plot your way around 200 acres and show people a good time with golf clubs So that’s how that’s how the routing came about
Then clearing begins
We started to actually build the golf course in June of 21 You could really see the ground emerge from underneath you know what nature had had reclaimed
It was so shocking to see the pure sand that was underneath that Well anytime you can work on sand that’s that gets us excited And uh the more we came to learn about the property through the process the more we realized that there was an opportunity not only to do something really special for the community special for the game of golf but also to build a special golf course This golf course has as much topography natural topography not created topography but natural topography as any site in the West Palm Beach area We started in the southeast corner with the uh eighth and then the seventh and sixth holes I thought of course you would start with one and then go to two and build them in sequence That’s not the way it worked at all You know we had to consider access in and out and not wanting to go over existing golf holes with equipment as you move to other golf There’s a lot of considerations that never occurred to me And so we kind of painted our way out of a corner if you will So once that rough shaping happens then certain things start to get into the final shaping and that’s when the rakes come out Drainage and irrigation get installed The pace of transformation was way beyond what I could have dreamt It was so fast The whole thing happened in about 8 or 9 months [Music] Once the water gets turned on and the grass goes down the construction side of it done from the golf perspective It’s time for the growing which in a lot of ways is maybe the most crucial part of it because you’ve got this newborn It’s very delicate you know it’s going to take a lot of care and maintenance and attention to establish really firmly establish the vision that was instilled by the architects that helped build it Um that was left up to Frank Ooric Jake and Pete
I had known uh this incredible superintendent and uh and person from uh you know previous lives and and a personal connection that was made at Seol and and then through life um named Frank Oor you know we really wanted to have um you know the the superintendent to own every bit of the grass to know where the you know not only know where the sprinklers are but put them there and understand how Gil and Jim were thinking and and what bunkers were going to be tricky and how the water was going to drain And it was you know one of the great decisions of this whole thing You know employee number one Frank Oor has killed it and he’s brought on this amazing team of people and literally his senior staff has lived in a trailer on on campus here from the beginning and loved it As we were sort of talking about the golf course and you’re realizing you know you got to you’re going to build a vertical Uh Mick Waldorf originally from Chicago Uh I went to architecture grad school years and years ago I don’t practice as an architect but um Dan and Durk has uh asked me to
what he’s going to tell asked me to be involved in the design of the vertical structures and they asked me to pair with Tom who is um going to lead the development Tom’s been there every single day for the last year and a half on property and that’s like that’s not counting all the meetings and the time that we spent before it started That guy has put his entire life on hold to do this Um and he’s a busy busy guy I don’t know what we would have done without him He’s absolutely been the MVP And by the way if he’s missed a couple days there’s other days he’s been twice It’s just amazing what he’s done And and he loves every minute of it So every time I try to thank him he thanks me for you know making that call
Now at the end of 2021 the golf course has begun to take shape and the construction of the built environment is underway The year ahead for the park will be spent under construction building the campus maintaining the golf course editing testing There will be daily progress everywhere you look [Music] dance was a tempress [Music] Can we count what you’re saying [Music] part of the final editing process was done here in March by Gil the founders and Frank They walked the golf course discussing finishes grass lines bunkers The attention to detail from this team was remarkable Is it aesthetically useful to have a little native area there [Music] [Music] by April the growin work has become maintenance on much of the course The buildings par 3 range are all making headway despite setbacks beyond the team’s control
Everyone knows this has been a much more expensive and difficult time to build than we anticipated at the beginning
It was difficult environment co inflation um made it difficult but we really had people step up designers contractors and really make it happen I think the biggest challenge we really had at the end of the day was inflation As spring comes to an end the testing of the golf course began Less than a year after breaking ground the first 18hole rounds were played at the park
So finally the grass grows and it’s time to play some golf And the 13th hole is a hole that that runs to the southwest It’s a par4 built into a sidehill with a big wide fairway It’s kind of different and kind of cool And then the green sits up in a high spot And Gilshaped this green it looked quite severe It sloped off quite steeply to the right And the wind comes mostly out of the left So I’m picturing people really struggling and and I said “Gil I think it’s too hard.” I had won a few arguments over the course of the construction of the golf course but Gil wasn’t moving on this one You’re like “No I think it’s fine Gil a lot of people think it’s too hard I think it’s fine.” And I was lucky enough to be in the first forsome and I was with my son and a guy named Brad Gail We went out and we played the round and we got to 13 and Brad hit his first bad T- shot of the day hooked it into the native area left and I hit a good T- shot and I’m standing there at my ball Brad hits his shot I watch it go up and my son is up near the green and the ball lands I can’t see it and all of a sudden everyone’s got their arms in the air I’m like what just happened he jarred it for an eagle from 140 yards I’m standing there going “That’s incredible.” So now it’s my turn and I hit the shot and the pin’s up kind of hidden and ball’s going right at it and I hear this big clank and my son starts running around like a madman on the green like this and I really I get goosebumps right now and I realized oh my god my ball just went in on top of his We both made eagle and I fell face down on the fairway and guys behind us thought I’d had cardiac arrest They didn’t know what was happening They’re like what’s going on they’re waiting on the tea Like what is happening out there and uh and we walked up and Brad and I were just in shock and we look at our balls in the hole and I reached for my phone and I called Gil and I said “I don’t think it’s too hard.” I told him what happened He said “This is the greatest thing I’ve ever heard Are you kidding me?” And you know what here’s the crazy thing It’s not too hard People love the hole He was right all along It didn’t take two eagles in the first round to prove it It took you know a few hundred people playing the golf course and we’ve not heard a peep about that hole It was this summer of 2022 when the golf course really came to life Smoke swell haze on the hill of the tendr his heart and burned him tobacco leaves How can I do this dream with me [Music] summer be [Music] the ros bend Around the earth you knew is waiting for you dear [Music] Some waves swept motives from your mouth The hazel hounds move south to meet you here [Music] Sky gone a certain shade of blue The kind that heaven’s fixing up for you [Music] boy that your fire desires drew raw hands heartbeat into the smokey hue The morning soaked in pastel tea [Music] Sulfur sofa kissed into the concrete [Music] Here in the fall of 2022 the built environment has taken shape The vision of the founders has been realized
Well we were trying to create something I think in general that was approachable uh certainly not clubby um and not private but very much like a public place So open from the moment you get there which is kind of the way we laid out the structures You come through um you don’t have to frankly you don’t have to go inside and if you don’t want to and so we created this kind of procession that was tried to link to the golf So every different space whether it’s the main dining room or the casual patio or the halfway house have some exposure to an element of the golf experience whether it’s the first tea in the first hole or coming up 18 as a little bit of um you know theater you know it just felt again not private not interior no intimidation don’t have to go through doors that was the idea hopefully you know when it’s open it just feels fun easy to be there even if you’re not you know super keen on golf just a fun place for the community to hang out
a year of growth fueled by significant effort comes to a close is ready for daily play but a decision was made early known that the park would not open until the entire campus was ready This place is more than just a golf course It’s a community center a range a restaurant a par three course an outdoor bar a putting course and a golf course I would wish for anybody the experience of working on something that’s so worthwhile where you feel like you’re doing the right thing for the right reason and you’re doing it with fantastic people Everyone’s just trying to get a good thing done here on behalf of people other than themselves And yeah it’s it’s just a a great thing to be a part of You know we’re turning it over gradually to the professionals that we’ve hired to actually run it day in day out which is what you should do It’s what we expected to do But you know as our role starts to recede and Brian Connley our general manager and the team that he’s hired which we feel great about start to take over I have to say that there’s a little sense of longing for those days when you know we were all in the trenches together
I mean it is it’s infectious It’s it’s contagious It’s it’s really true energy And that energy like I said it’s going to get amped up once we’re open the fact that we’ve taken our time and I’m I’m glad we have You can only think about so much of what we’re going to be when we’re open and you have to just kind of go with your gut You’re not going to have every answer when you open You really start to learn what you’re right about what you’re not right about what we were close to And that’s when the fun part starts
We are very close to opening the doors uh to the world and feel quite good about what we’ve created
You’re now one month away from opening day The course is waiting The buildings are complete Just before the first day of open golf a ceremony and first annual founders day was held
Tommy Frankle said this morning “It feels like Christmas morning uh only better.” And I think that says it uh perfectly This day was all about recognizing and celebrating this incredible gift of public golf and thanking the countless people that helped the project along the way The original founders donors staff and city representatives gather to cut the ribbon say a few words and play golf
Um don’t you just love it when a plan comes together i mean here we are right um it’s going to be a little hard not to get emotional but the game is the park This is exactly what we had in mind right um there’s just so many people to thank and and look I’m a big believer that life is a team sport and there’s no better sort of advertisement for that than this And uh and you know somehow we’ve raised over $55 million um because of the generosity of people but a lot of energy in recognition of of everything that the mayor has done Um he does not know this Um so I might get a little emotion here We uh with your permission would love to name uh our community center the Honorable Keith James
Wow Um we uh we have one uh more thing before we get to the golf and that is um I’ve had lucky enough to have 20 years of friendship with this man Um and like all of you sight unseen uh he said yes at hello um and uh it took 10 seconds uh to to have him become a major donor for us uh his only uh stipulation was that it would remain anonymous Um and that’s been true until right now Um and so this is very personal to him The mayor talked about growing up on beauty golf courses and that’s how he grew up Uh and so uh I’d love to invite up my great friend and partner Tiger Woods to say congratulations to everyone who’s been a part of this I’m a big believer in public golf courses cuz that’s how I started the game I would not have been a part of the game if it wasn’t for that So I just want to say thank you very much for having me be a part of uh the park Thank you Before we go we’re going to we’re going to cut the ribbon and then we’re going to hit the shot and then we’re going to play some golf by myself
One 2 3 The experience of bringing this into being uh is a life highlight for me personally in many ways and an important way is the quality and effort of the volunteer team that came together to create this uh truly world class uh outstanding You know when you’re enjoying yourself as much as we enjoyed ourselves and you have so much respect for the people you’re working with and everyone’s kind of just you know staying in their swim lane and getting their job done and you feel like a relay team that’s breaking a world record Um you know that’s that’s a beautiful thing to experience
the friendships that have come out of this thing You know some people that I knew a little bit of and people that like Mick Walorf that I I didn’t know at all I consider him one of my you know great friends now You know it’s a different level of relationship and understanding that that uh is another gift to this whole thing See them like no other on my baby color [Music] By this point in the project the excitement anticipation to open the park had been building for quite a while The local community and seemingly entire golf world knew about this place Everyone had been patiently waiting and wondering what the park would be like The team came up with a simple phrase that answers that question
I don’t know if anyone’s talked about that Has anyone talked about open golf
what does that mean
so this is this is a phrase that was recommended to us by some folks we’re working with to tell the story of the park so that people understand what it is
It it was a pretty cool presentation but when those two words in that period popped up on the screen I mean you still get it You got goosebumps Eight letters two words It says everything It’s open We’re open to everybody We’re open-minded Um we’re open late We’ve got lights We got a par 3 course that’s going to be open until 10 p.m in a driving range The phrase open golf is is going to be core to everything that we’re trying to say It literally it it applied internally It became the conversation from our leadership team developing our core values Yeah we want to open Golf up
and you know we’re going to welcome anyone who wants to come Anyone who wants to come
Just after 2 years from groundbreaking this idea has become a reality I’m the I’m the fourth I guess
Yes sir Hey nice to meet you
Hey Dylan Dylan nice to meet you You guys [Music] [Music] that adrenaline you get when you see someone using it that it was built for and you get to see it in its full array of of use It’s like game time It’s like like lights on It’s you get re-energized for sure And it gonna be super super cool [Music] Dream Really in the end I think more than anything else what will determine whether we have achieved our goals and dreams or not This is about serving the community and much more than just having a place you can come tee it up This is about you know life lessons This is about after school tutoring This is about you know welcoming all all kinds of golfers from 3 years old and up
It was always about the community about kids about making people’s lives better about you know making golf um you know not only accessible but invitational and and changing the perception of the game right um you know at the end of the day we all play golf because you know it’s fun and and we wanted this to be the happiest place in golf
So my last last question is a simple one but
who is the park for acting like this is a trick question Who is the park for
obviously every golfer but um but everyone
Yeah everyone I mean it’s everyone
you know we’re going to welcome anyone who wants to come anyone who wants to come [Music] These days it comes it comes it comes it comes it comes and goes a list of think like a rider Got easily offended Know how to let it go from a mess to the masses A list of mania grow I like a ride like a rider Not easily offended [Music] I mean the park changed my life
in a lot of ways I showed up at the park with nothing but an attitude where I was like I’ll do anything for an opportunity to start again I was really lucky that it the park provided that opportunity for me So yeah I when I go out there I I like I still get emotional about thinking where I was then and where I am now And I know that the true spirit of the park that story line of opportunity is right there in front of you Whether it’s a caddy out there for his first time whether it’s a kid getting a lesson for the first time um all of that is out there waiting to kind of be seized Earlier this year I was randomly paired with this gentleman who has played here more than anyone else
Hi my name is Shelton Hawksteadler I have walked the park about 120 maybe 122 times My favorite memory of course is hole number three where I got my third holein-one It’s lifted this community up The diversity of this course has been phenomenal I I don’t think I’ve ever met one single person that I could say “Oh gee I don’t know if I’d like to play with them again.” Always just phenomenal people We had never met but I walked off the 18th green absolutely certain that the park works
It’s brought people together on this course Now I never play anywhere else except the park
As of now November 2024 the park has been open for 18 months It has become everything the founders hoped dreamed and more [Applause] [Music] [Applause] In a short time the park has become a home for so many A place to play to practice to work
to learn often for the first time [Music] Simply put the park is a place that positively impacts the lives of those who spend their time here There is no better example of positively impacting lives than the PATH the community outreach program at the park Since opening day The Path has enrolled 82 students who attend economically challenged and underperforming elementary schools in West Palm Beach These kids are enrolled in after school and summer programming where they do physical activity make friends get academic help and of course learn the game 96% of PATH students have seen their grades go up 100% have been given an opportunity they may have never had without the park This opportunity is what the park is all about It’s open golf It’s for everyone and is just the beginning [Music] You were sickening by the notion but you’re ready for your close up now you never wanted to have and hold Anyhow you say the world is too big and you’re too small but I think you’re just my size I will understand All I wanted was some honesty I will understand Keep your stealth like the KG

This is the story of The Park in West Palm Beach, Florida. A once beloved public course fell to ruin until a group of citizens decided to rebuild it better than ever before. The Park is the gift of world class golf to the people of South Florida. This is how it happened from those who built it.