Golf

Today it is estimated that there are over ninety golf courses in Manatee and Sarasota counties and is considered one of the main attractions to our area. John Hamilton Gillespie built Sarasota’s first golf course in 1905 – a nine-hole course located in what is considered downtown today. It served as Sarasota’s only course until the 1920s.

The first 18-hole course built was Whitfield Estates Country Club. To help promote the new course, famed golfer Bobby Jones came to Whitfield Estates at the request of the developers of Whitfield, his friends and the George Adair family of Atlanta, Georgia. A promotional brochure of Whitfield Estates stated that the “golf course was designed by Donald Ross, master of all golf engineers and was built under his personal supervision.” Donald Ross was the foremost golf course architect of the first half of the 1900s. Ross was originally from Dornoch, Scotland. He first arrived in the United States in 1899, and was hired as the pro for the Oakley Country Club in Boston. He redesigned the course while continuing to teach and make clubs.

Donald Ross designed over 400 golf courses during his lifetime. There are four Ross-designed courses in Manatee and Sarasota County – Bobby Jones Golf Complex, Bradenton Country Club, Palma Sola Golf Course, Sara Bay Country Club (Whitfield Estates). Although some of Ross’s courses have been altered over the years, golfers continue to enjoy the challenges of his designs.