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Golf Club Takes Shot At Renewed Prestige

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By DAVE SIMANOFF, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 10, 2007

PALM HARBOR - At Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club, they're not wasting any time. Nor, it seems, are they sparing any expense.

Salamander Hospitality, the Middleburg, Va.-based hotel development and management firm that purchased the resort in July, reopened the newly renovated Island golf course Friday morning, and outlined an extensive series of upgrades, improvements and new facilities designed to lure new events, new members - and renewed national attention.

Salamander CEO Sheila C. Johnson said she intends to remake Innisbrook as one of America's leading golf resorts, one that people would compare favorably with Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina, the Pebble Beach Resorts in California, and the Doral Resort and Spa in South Florida.

She thinks Innisbrook can make the cut. She also thinks it can be done quickly, in as little as two to three years.

Johnson says Innisbrook is her biggest project and her top priority. Salamander spent $35 million to acquire the 900-acre resort in July, and it has spent $1.7 million to renovate the Island course. Johnson estimates that it will cost between $21 million to $30 million to make the rest of the changes she has planned.

Several new buildings, including a new spa and fitness center, are expected to open by the end of next year. Most projects will be completed within two years.

The Island golf course, which reopened Friday, is the oldest of Innisbrook's four courses. Renovation began July 16, the day Salamander purchased the resort. Johnson said she wanted work to begin that day because "I wanted to send a message that I really mean business."

The renovated Island course, the other upgrades and new buildings are designed to help Innisbrook bring in new events.

'Battle Of The Sexes' Redux Possible

Johnson also said she's working to bring several high-profile events to Innisbrook, such as an exhibition tennis match to commemorate the 35th anniversary of Billy Jean King's victory over Bobby Riggs in the famous "Battle of the Sexes" in 1973, an exhibition game between the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association and another WNBA team, and a Ladies Professional Golf Association tournament.

Innisbrook is host of the PODS Championship, which is part of the PGA Tour. Johnson is one of the owners of the Mystics.

Johnson said Innisbrook is a good investment because as the resort improves, it will draw more members, events and sponsors.

"I'm not crazy. I'm not mad at my money," she said. "This place has potential."

Gary Koch, a golf analyst for NBC Sports, thinks Johnson and Salamander can remake Innisbrook into a nationally recognized golf resort.

With the renovation of the Island course, and the existing Copperhead course, "you have two very, very good championship-type golf courses at the same site, and that's a nice place to start with," he said. "You also have unique terrain for Florida: It's rolling terrain."

Koch said he thinks Johnson will be able to bring publicity to Innisbrook through her connections in the sports and entertainment industries.

Koch said, however, that he sees some challenges for Innisbrook. There are lots of other golf courses and resorts competing for players and events, and many places are newer and more attractive than Innisbrook, he said.

Those places offer the same amenities that Innisbrook will offer, such as luxury spas, he said.

"The bottom line is there are plenty of newer resorts that have a newer feel," he said.

Other golf resorts have bounced back from periods of neglect.

The storied Pinehurst Resort suffered in the 1970s and early 1980s when it was owned by investors that were more interested in real estate development than golf, according to Janeen Driscoll.

When Pinehurst's current owners took over in the mid-1980s, they focused their attention on the golf experience. They have since invested $100 million on renovating and expanding the resort, and plan to expand $25 million more through 2011, Driscoll said.

Travel + Leisure magazine named Pinehurst the No. 1 golf resort in the United States this year.

Golfers Like Renovated Course

Golfers said the improvements at Innisbrook sounded promising.

Paul Lokey, who had been invited by Salamander to play the Island course Friday morning, said he enjoys playing golf at Innisbrook, and is looking forward to seeing the new buildings and renovations.

"It's exciting," he said. "It makes me want to consider membership here."

Lokey, CEO at Clearwater-based Lokey Automotive Group, said he's eager to play the renovated Island course. The Copperhead course at Innisbrook is one of his favorites.

"My vision of heaven is this: I'd be coming in off of U.S. 19 every morning and playing Copperhead, and going to Doak Campbell Stadium every afternoon to see the Seminoles beat the Gators," he said.

Johnson founded Salamander in 2005. She is best known as a co-founder of Black Entertainment Television, which was sold to Viacom for $3 billion in 2001.

Johnson said there were many times in her career that she felt shut out as a black woman, and she never wants anyone to feel that way at Innisbrook.

"I want to have a resort that's inclusive, rather than exclusive. I don't want to shut out talent," she said.

Reporter Dave Simanoff can be reached at (813) 259-7762 or dsimanoff

@tampatrib.com.

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