Laura Layden | Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News
Golf courses dot the landscape in Collier County.
Most of them are strictly private, requiring an expensive membership or an invitation from a member to play.
The Naples metropolitan statistical area — representing the county — has more private golf holes per person than any other metro in the country, according to the National Golf Foundation.
“Collier County skews heavily private; 84% of its facilities are private clubs or communities,” said Erik Matuszewski, the foundation’s editorial director.
In neighboring Lee County, he said, it’s less so, at 56% private, “but still well above the 28% national average.”
“So, Naples is very much an outlier when it comes to golf supply,” he said, especially considering that 72% of the roughly 16,000 golf courses in the U.S. are public.
It suggests that there’s “unquestionably a gap” in Naples.
Collier is getting a new public golf course to fill the gap
Historically, Collier County hasn’t had a “muni,” or municipal course, owned by the government. Through a public-private partnership, a new community golf course and club is taking shape and set to open in December.The club’s mission: To make golf more accessible for families and players of all skill levels.
Read more on naplesnews.com.
Babcock Ranch, Southwest Florida
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