Evansville Country Club’s golf course reopened May 26 after a 10-month, $6.5 million renovation.
Only the practice putting green awaits completion, estimated for mid-August. When Evansville Business talked with Joe Titzer of Titzer Golf Course Shaping (“Artist with a Bulldozer,” December 2022/January 2023), the project at 3810 Stringtown Road was nearing its halfway mark. The Evansville native, who brought in famed course designer Beau Welling, moved dirt around the 128-acre site to reshape the course.
“It was cool to have Welling tackle our project,” says Nick Haudek, ECC’s head golf professional. “The idea was to make the course challenging for advanced players, but still playable for higher handicappers. Mission accomplished.”
The renovation also modernized the course and will make future maintenance easier. Haudek credited Jeff Sexton, ECC’s certified golf course superintendent, for helping the project stay within its budget.
“Any time you’re digging up land that’s more than 120 years old, you never know what to expect. Luckily, we didn’t have any surprises,” Haudek says.
The renovation, which was a candidate for recognition as Golf Digest’s 2023 Best Golf Course Transformation in North America, relocated the green complex, added a state-of-the-art driving range and short-game area, built new tennis and pickleball courts, rear- ranged golf cart paths, and regreened areas of the course by building five new golf holes on the former sites of racket sports and the driving range. The course transitioned from 6,215 yards and par-71 to 6,203 yards and par-70.
“It also was about creating spaces for people to come together,” Haudek says. “The feedback has been fantastic.”
