Pete Dye, a seminal figure in golf course design, was also something of a missing link: an innovator whose modern touches drew on ancient traditions. The railway sleepers, for example, which became one of his hallmarks, were inspired by Dye’s tours at Prestwick and other courses in the UK, where wooden sleepers were used to shore up bunker walls. In this and many other ways, his work served as a bridge between what was and what became.
It’s fitting, then, that one of Dye’s best courses is a freshly updated one that gestures toward the past while embracing the future.
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Think about Oak Marsh, then and now.
Completed in 1972, the development of Omni Amelia Island Hotel Release Dye into a vast salt marsh on a barrier island just south of the Georgia border, where heritage oaks dotted the landscape, draped in moody Spanish moss. The course opened just three years later Harbor Town Golf Linksand it bears echoes of that revolutionary design: deceptively intimidating tee shots that yield to landing zones more generous than they appear; angles that matter; and strategically placed bunkers and water hazards, many of which are framed by these iconic links.
From the start, Oak Marsh struck a balance between challenge and fun. A popular outlet for station gaming, it was also strong enough for serious competition. In 1988, it hosted the United States Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. If you chose the right tees, the course met you at a fair place.
Like Dye himself, Oak Marsh endured, staying in play long enough for the game to evolve around him. Recent updates aimed to honor its roots while adapting to today’s advanced technological gaming.
An aerial view of Oak Marsh, which recently completed a massive renovation. Courtesy photo
Beau Welling Design managed the $7.4 million renovation, with a mandate to modernize the layout and refine its aesthetic and packaging without compromising its Dye DNA. The 18 greens were rebuilt and the tees, roughs and green collars were covered with high-performance drought-resistant turf. Each bunker has been renovated – some repositioned to better defend against today’s high-flying assaults – and drainage improvements have been made throughout the course. The starting areas have been reimagined in a new “ribbon-tee” configuration, continuous expanses of turf that allow for almost endless configuration options.
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Beyond the play lanes, native areas were cleared of excessive vegetation and expanded to refine the aesthetic. The driving range has seen improvements to its tees and landing area. The cart paths have also been refined.
With the renovation completed late last year, a reborn Oak Marsh joined a growing list of golfers at Omni Amelia Island. It now sits alongside Little Sandy, a 10-hole par 3 course and an 18-hole putting course – both Welling creations – which wind through a lowland marshy environment and offer resort members and guests an inviting counterpoint to a short course.
All of this takes place on 1,350 acres of coastal terrain surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, lush marshes and the Intracoastal Waterway. It’s home to 402 oceanfront rooms and a range of resort amenities from an adults-only infinity pool to a family splash pool, a wide range of dining options and three and a half miles of uncrowded beach.
Oak Marsh is also part of a broader Omni golf portfolio that includes 28 courses and multiple short course offerings at 12 resorts across the United States. Omni-operated layouts have been modified by some of gaming’s most esteemed designers, from Golden Age greats like Donald Ross, AW Tillinghast and William Flynn to contemporary masters such as Tom Fazio, Bill Coore and Gil Hanse.
And along that lineage is Pete Dye, his imprint at Oak Marsh still very much alive.
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