PERHAPS THE MOST FAMOUS PUTT in Ryder Cup history was one that wasn’t even struck. It was a two-footer that Jack Nicklaus conceded to Tony Jacklin in 1969 at Royal Birkdale to halve their match. Nicklaus’ gracious gesture, which became known as “the concession,” led to the first tie in the history of the biennial Matches that started in 1927. It was also the beginning of an enduring friendship between the two men that culminated in The Concession Golf Club, near Sarasota, Florida, a Nicklaus Signature Golf Course designed in association with Jacklin. The same competitive atmosphere and social spirit that infuses the Ryder Cup is the foundation of The Concession.
“We’ve really decided to embrace that,” says new owner Bruce Cassidy, who has been a member since the club opened in 2006. “After I took over, one of the first things we did was host a Ryder Cup event with Medinah Country Club. We’re also going to have a couple clubs from the U.K. come over in the next year for Ryder Cup-style matches. It’s all about camaraderie and being able to have a club that’s not stuffy. The Ryder Cup is very competitive, but it’s one of those events where the guys let their hair down a little, families get involved and the fans are a little more active. That’s the kind of club we want to have. We have rules, but they aren’t so stringent that people can’t relax.”
The course is without a doubt one of Nicklaus’ best, which is really saying something considering he’s the premier designer in the game with more than 275 courses. Routed over 520 acres, The Concession is a core course full of thought-provoking strategic challenges while it meanders around wetlands, 200-year-old oaks and 150-foot pines with nary a home in site. Says Cassidy: “You just feel like you’re out there alone with your group. There could be other people on the course, but you rarely see them. Each hole is designed to make you feel like it’s just you and that hole.”
Members are proud that The Concession boasts one of the highest Course and Slope Ratings in the country, 77.6 and 155, respectively. “Take your handicap, double it and add six,” members like to say. The tips top out at 7,470 yards, but there are plenty of other tees from which to choose, starting at 5,028 yards. But even then the course can jump up and bite you at any time, particularly due to the raised, undulating green complexes that fall off into tightly mown collection areas.
“Every day is like playing a major championship course during a major championship,” says Membership Director Steve Dirks. “But members love the challenge. You would think that most of them would be single-digit handicaps, but the member who played the most rounds last year was a 27.”
Of course, not everyone wants to play the U.S. Open or the Masters every day. Nicklaus recently played the course with Cassidy and Jacklin, who’s a member, to fine-tune the layout and make a great course even better. The plan is to open it up a little more by widening fairways and removing clumps of ball-eating palmettos and native grasses.
“The difficulty won’t change from the back tees but the user-friendly aspect from the front tees will,” says Nicklaus. “There’s definitely a need for an additional members tee on a few holes. We can add these tees and still maintain the integrity of the course. The idea is to match the course with the improvements in equipment and make the course more playable without conceding any of the challenge.”
One thing they can’t really improve upon is the conditioning, thanks to Terry Kennelly, one of the country’s most highly regarded superintendents who came from Congressional Country Club. He’s assisted by a subterranean climate control wireless computer system that manages irrigation, drainage and pH balance beneath all the greens—one of about 20 courses in the U.S. that use Advanced Aer sensor technology.
The Concession also has one of the world's elite golf instructors in Jonathan Yarwood, formerly with the David Leadbetter Academy, and one of the nation’s top 75 practice facilities spanning 23 acres complete with Pro V1 range balls. And it just opened an elegant and stately 33,000-square-foot clubhouse, featuring food by Sean Murphy, the owner of Anna Maria Island’s Beach Bistro, which boasts Zagat’s highest rating for food and service in the state.
“Many avid golfers who play the best courses in the world have told me that The Concession was on their ‘bucket list,’ and that once they played it, they were not disappointed,” says Cassidy, whose goal is to increase membership from 100 to 300. “It’s kind of like Field of Dreams: ‘If you build it, they will come.’ Well, if people come, they will join. I’m pretty confident of that.”
The Concession offers a variety of membership plans including corporate and international. Fully refundable memberships start at $75,000. Please visit TheConcession.com for more information.
