Nicklaus Design signs off on Bayside

Fenwick Island, Del. – Bayside Resort Golf Club, with its land planning and golf course design, ushered in a new era of golf in Southern Delaware.

Jack Nicklaus Design completed work on the Bayside Resort Golf Club in Delaware.

Jack Nicklaus welcomed the challenge to create a course on a piece of property that would reflect the natural setting of nearby Assawoman Bay. The finished product, a Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course, is a waterfront links layout with a natural composition of salt marshes, meadows and woodlands. It is the centerpiece of a resort golf community on 867 acres that have been enhanced by four resort villages and private residences, along with markets, restaurants, boutiques and plaza.

“Today we see the fruit of the work,” says Nicklaus, on hand for the grand opening celebration and to play an 18-hole exhibition, which attracted a gathering of nearly 1,000 people.

Bayside’s challenging scale (7,545 from the Signature Tees) may be deceptive. The golf course was never intended to be intimidating, or to overwhelm even average players. The par-72 layout has five sets of tees, tapered to as short as 5,168 yards, without losing of its aesthetic or strategic value.

“What you will find here,” Nicklaus says, “is that you will walk off the golf course and say, ‘I enjoyed that today. What time can I get on tomorrow?’”

The resort/semi-private course is accessible to members and guests of Bayside Resort. Opening green fee is $160 per player in season, which includes a mandatory cart. Public play also is available, starting in September.

“We are so excited and honored to have Jack Nicklaus with us,” says Joshua M. Freeman, president and c.e.o. of The Carl M. Freeman Companies. “His focus and determination to create excellence is why we are so honored to have him. By having Jack sign his name to this course, we partly are being caretaker for his legacy. Hopefully we will be great caretakers of that legacy, as well as this being something we are proud of in our organization.”

For more information, call 877-436-9998, visit www.golfbayside.com or e-mail membership@golfbayside.com.