The dozens of Sunday morning regulars at Mangrove Bay Golf Course in St. Petersburg found their weekly round looking better than ever.
- Mangrove Bay Golf Course completes upgrades
- Renovation project cost $650,000
- Upgrades included regrassing greens, replacing sand
"It's a brand new golf course," said Dennis Monahan, a longtime golfer. "It's perfect."
For the last four months, the course has been under renovation, the first major set of upgrades in nearly 20 years.
The renovations cost a total of $650,000 and focused on regrassing the greens, sodding the collars, replacing the sand in traps and paving over six miles of cart path.
"You get used to certain courses so we were a little anxious about getting new greens in, and there's some subtle changes, some of the breaks aren't quite like what they were," said Les Robinson, who has been playing the course since it opened in 1978.
The course is owned and operated by the city of St. Petersburg. The money for the upgrades came from Weeki Wachee Funds approved by the city council.
"We're probably the most popular golf course in the area and in the state," said Jeff Hollis, golf course director. "We're in the top two or three, more than 100,000 golfers use this golf course each year, both residents and visitors."
Some of the revenue from the course is given back to the city's general fund.
The course is open seven days a week.