Marygrove College is partnering with
Midnight Golf and world-renowned golf course designer
Tom Doak to build a golf practice center for urban youth on its campus. The facility is being designed with state-of-the-art sustainability practices such as minimal site-impact, water conservation and environmentally conscious fertilization and maintenance procedures. It will feature a practice putting green, a sand bunker, two practice tee areas to accommodate up to 26 hitting bays and a four-hole short course.
Doak has designed over 30 courses worldwide, four of which are rated in the top 100 courses in the world. He is providing the design and construction oversight free of charge because "he is enamored with the idea and...is very committed to putting together something innovative and unique," says Marygrove president David Fike. "On a compact urban tract of land, we'll have a world-class facility that allows any golfer, whether novice or professional, to practice any kind of shot except for a long tee shot."
The project stems from Marygrove's existing partnership with Midnight Golf -- an empowerment and mentoring program for young adults that leverages golf instruction into personal development and educational preparedness -- as well as its expanding athletics program. The course will be built on the east side of campus along with a soccer field, which is designed to accommodate a track in the future. Construction will begin on the soccer field in April and on the golf facility in the summer; both should be complete in the fall.
Source: David Fike, Marygrove College
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh
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