FERNANDINA BEACH, FLORIDA | The Sea Islands chain of more than 100 tidal and barrier islands stretches along the Atlantic coast, from the mouth of the Santee River in South Carolina to the mouth of the St. Johns River in Florida. Golfers are quite familiar with many of the islands, including Kiawah, Hilton Head, Sea Island and St. Simons.
Tucked in the northernmost corner of Florida lies the southernmost of the inhabited Sea Islands: Amelia Island. It’s a destination that more golfers should get to know, with the renovated Pete Dye course (Oak Marsh) and the neighboring Tom Fazio gem (Long Point) among its main attractions.
The Omni Amelia Island Resort & Spa – an oceanfront destination located on 1,350 acres and three and a half miles of tranquil beach on the south side of the island – reopened the Oak Marsh course in May following a $7.4 million renovation by Beau Welling Design of the Dye course that first opened in 1972, shortly after the completion of the esteemed Harbor Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island.
Oak Marsh has many similar features to Harbor Town, including small green, moss-draped oaks lining the inland corridors and a distinctive capstone exposed to the salt marshes.
“We have taken great care to maintain Pete Dye’s strategy and design while enhancing the playing experience for today’s golfer,” Welling said after the course reopened to resort guests. “We hope that the overall aesthetic improvements, combined with the natural beauty of Amelia Island, will really showcase how special Oak Marsh is.”
Before the pandemic, the resort was actually reducing its golf options. In 2017, the country began demolishing the storm-damaged Ocean Links course — which included five holes on the Atlantic Ocean — before an order halted the demolition. The resort said it was “repurposing that land into green space so that all golf resources could be dedicated to enhancing the golf experience at Oak Marsh.”
Eight years later, these improvements have come to fruition. The Welling team wanted to modernize the cozy 6,471-metre Oak Marsh course.
Welling’s team rebuilt all the greens and regrassed them with TifEagle Bermudagrass. All generously wide fairways, ribbon tees and green edges feature Bimini Bermudagrass, providing short grass berths that few golfers can complain about.
In addition, all bunkers were rebuilt and repositioned to allow for more strategic choices off the tee and approach angles, presenting interesting challenges without overly burdening the resort’s golfers. Native areas were expanded to improve overall aesthetics and to improve grass growing conditions.
Oak Marsh feels intimate at first as it winds through the live oaks before breaking out along the tidal marsh on the par-5 ninth. Dye’s fingerprints are all over the par-3 12th and 16th holes that sit on the edge of the swamp, with greens supported by railroad ties. It leaves you with a dramatic finish, after the signature one-shotter on 16 turns into a daunting par-4 17th from a back tee that juts into the marsh and demands your best drive of the day. The par-5 18th offers one final risk-reward with a marshland in front of a green that requires a long carry to reach or a demanding wedge after lay-up.
Little Sandy is a daring alternative for resort guests and members of the Amelia Island Club, with 10 holes ranging from 30 to 125 yards around a central lagoon. The sixth hole, played from the right tee across the water, might even be reminiscent of the 12th at Augusta National.
“Our celebrated Oak Marsh just got better, offering one of the best golf course experiences in both Florida and the U.S.,” said Theo Schofield, general manager of the Omni Amelia Island Resort & Spa. “Beau Welling and his team [maintained] Pete Dye’s original concept, while modernizing the layout for our resort guests and club members to enjoy for decades to come.”
The project also included a bonus on a stretch of the former Ocean Links course closest to the resort’s shopping village: an original 10-hole short course and 18-hole putting course designed by Beau Welling. Little Sandy is a daring alternative for resort guests and members of the Amelia Island Club, with 10 holes ranging from 30 to 125 yards around a central lagoon. The sixth hole, played from the right tee across the water, might even be reminiscent of the 12th at Augusta National.
Little Sandy’s greens are packed with undulations and character to entertain golfers of all ages and abilities without taking up much of your day at the beach.
Long Point is the main golf course for Amelia Island Club members, but offers some lucky resort guests an extra treat – especially in September and October, before the winter residents return and the tee sheet is lighter.
First built in 1987 and updated by Fazio in 2022, Long Point meanders through diverse and scenic settings ranging from coastal forests to salt marshes overlooking the Amelia River to a pair of back-to-back par-3s nestled among the oceanfront villas and dunes right on the Atlantic Ocean, where there’s a good chance you’ll encounter a few of the resident gopher tortoises.
Long Point offers a more rigorous test of skill (it has played both USGA qualifiers and the Florida Women’s Open) with a par-72 layout that extends to nearly 6,700 yards and requires shots to carry water hazards at least eight times.
While turtles, deer, and herons will liven up your rounds on Amelia Island’s golf courses, you’re less likely to encounter Florida alligators, as the saltiness of the swamps, creeks, and ponds usually keeps these hazards in the more preferred freshwater destinations of Egans Creek or well within the mouth of the Amelia River.
Omni Amelia Island offers all the amenities for families and plenty of options for golf travelers, including 402 oceanfront rooms and suites. The villas of Amelia Island feature one, two and three bedroom villas with ocean, golf course or resort views. And for nightlife and dining, the charming village of Fernandina Beach on the north side of the island has ample options, including the lively Salty Pelican or the historic Palace Saloon, which claims to be Florida’s oldest continuously operating bar since it was converted from a haberdashery in 1903.
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