Prestonwood Country Club Redesigns Highlands Course

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(CARY, NC) -- Prestonwood Country Club unveiled its newly redesigned Highlands Course over Labor Day weekend, just in time for the upcoming Champions Tour's annual SAS Championship. This was a culmination of three years of renovation work by architect Rick Robbins on Prestonwood's trio of 18-hole layouts.

A variety of competitive PGA Tour events have been played at Prestonwood during the past 18 years, including the Champions Tour's annual SAS Championship for more than a decade. Given that nine holes of the Highlands Course and nine from the Meadows are combined to test SAS Championship participants, careful consideration was required to keep the courses compatible in style of play for both the world's best -- and everyday Prestonwood member play.

"I couldn't get too radically different with the design styles," said Robbins. "The greens designs were done in such a way as to give both open and accessible hole locations for typical play and to also provide more protected spots for tournament play. Prestonwood's superintendent, David Dalton, and I worked closely with the PGA Tour on the project and their agronomist, Bland Cooper, had a great deal to say."

The third and final piece of Robbins' handiwork at Prestonwood features rebuilt green complexes featuring A-1 Bentgrass, select bunkers replaced by collection areas and grass hollows, and numerous additional playability enhancements. An added benefit: With play spread out over three courses versus two for the first time in three years, Prestonwood's overall playing conditions will be consistently immaculate.

Now, with the club's brand-new, state-of-the-art Golf Learning Center having also recently opened, Prestonwood CC General Manager Matt Massei said three years of patient anticipation shown by its members is ready to be repaid.

"Our membership has been without one course for three years, so we are thrilled to have all three back open," said Massei. "The entire golf experience at Prestonwood has been enhanced. We are celebrating three great golf courses that we have brought up to current standards. They were great before, now they are even better."

For Robbins, who honed his design craft under the tutelage of Bob vonHagge and Bruce Devlin, and later Jack Nicklaus, before starting his own company in 1991, there was an additional interest in the final result. Robbins lives with his family on the 14th fairway of Prestonwood's Fairways Course and plays a regular Saturday morning game with his men's group.

"I knew if I didn't do the renovation really nice," said Robbins, "I was going to hear about it."

Since its establishment in 1987, Prestonwood Country Club has forged a reputation as the premier place "where Cary comes to play," providing members and accompanied guests the Triangle's finest dining, golf, tennis, swimming and fitness amenities, along with spacious corporate meeting space and a grand ballroom that can accommodate up to 400 people.

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