CONTENTS FOREWORD BY PETE DYE AND JOE WEBSTER PETE & ALICE: A GOLFING PARTNERSHIP THE SETTING
10
THE CLUBHOUSE
16
THE MEMBERSHIP THE COURSE
28 32
DYE ON DYE: HOLE BY HOLE A FRATERNAL SPIRIT ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
34
70 72
4 6
FO R EWO R D
W
replicate, their home clubs, somewhere to play the game where the
dozens of new golf clubs in south Florida in recent years, the ques-
overall “feel” was right.
ith the explosion in popularity of golf and the building of
tion inevitably arises: “Who needs another one?”
With the need identified, we were faced with the chal-
Having worked together on other golf clubs and been
lenge: “Could we create a golf club here that would give those
good friends for thirty-five years, we thought carefully about that
golfers the same sense of all-round comfort—sporting, physical
and decided there was a special kind of need. We knew many
and social—that characterized their other clubs?”
golfers who were looking for a traditional style of club that would be similar to their home clubs where they had played the game
Those clubs had invariably been founded by groups of like-minded people getting together, raising money, building the
most of their lives. We think of these people as “ardent” golfers, players steeped in the
golf club, inviting their friends to join and then letting those friends invite other friends to
traditions, history and camaraderie of the game, and whose golfing antecedents often go
do the same. And that is how it happened—and is still happening—at The Dye Preserve,
back generations.
for the Club remains a work in progress. We have built what we believe is a fine golf
These golfers are used to playing regularly on great courses, socializing in
course; our members and their guests can rest and refresh themselves in a pleasant and
comfortable but unostentatious clubhouses and enjoying a strong fraternal spirit among
comfortable clubhouse; and our membership has evolved as friends invited other friends.
their memberships. Many of them had acquired second homes in south Florida but not yet
It is, of course, far too early to judge whether the reality matches the dream.
a satisfactory golf club. They were used to going to their clubs from their homes and thus
Success in ventures of this kind ultimately depends not so much on the grasses and the
were not enamored of the housing development, gated-community style of golf club. In
greens of the golf course, or on the bricks, mortar and furnishings of the clubhouse, but
short, they were looking for a golfing environment that would approximate, if not exactly
on the human quality of the golfers who use them.
PETE DYE
JOE WEBSTER
5
PETE AND ALICE A
I
G O L F I N G
P A R T N E R S H I P
t would have taken a psychic with special powers to predict
that you and Pete have built a golf course,’ he began. ‘But don’t
that Pete Dye would become one of America’s most famous
you think crossing a creek thirteen times on a 9-hole course is
golf course designers. A Second World War paratrooper, a
a bit much!’ ”
successful insurance salesman, a fine amateur golfer, a skilled greenskeeper and happily married, Pete had reached his early thirties and seemed settled and content. “In those days, I never had the urge to design a golf course,” he said. “But I have always been interested in golf course maintenance.” He grew up with golf literally in his backyard. His father, a devotee of the game,
Pete’s travels across the water notwithstanding, he was selected to design the University of Michigan’s golf course shortly afterwards and has never looked back. “I have built about 100 courses in a little over forty years,” he said without a trace of irony or hubris, “and each time I made a few sketches and some notes to show the owner where the course was going. Then I’d bring
built a 9-hole golf course on his wife’s farm in Urbana, Ohio, and that was where Pete
in the crew and we’d start building and hitting balls. If I had to be what they call a ‘golf
learned to play and look after a golf course. Then things changed quite dramatically.
course architect’ and make plans and all that, I would still be peddling insurance.”
“One day in 1960 when I was selling insurance,” he recalled, “a farmer asked if
Pete is a simple man. He has lived in the same house in Delray Beach in Florida
my wife, Alice, and I would build him a 9-hole golf course in his housing development.
for forty years. He doesn’t have an office or a letterhead. He is not a believer in contracts—
We agreed and were so proud of it that Alice made a Christmas card showing the routing
a handshake will do—and he doesn’t own a car. (When working, he rents a modest com-
and sent it to our friends. She had won the North and South Championship at Pinehurst
pact.) But he is a man with a vision—and a mission—about building golf courses.
and had become friendly with Richard Tufts, owner of the club and a former president of
Whatever you call him—designer, builder, architect—his list of credits is
the USGA. So she put him on the mailing list. A very nice letter came back: ‘It’s wonderful
extraordinary. They include such classics as the TPC Stadium Course at Sawgrass in
left: Pete and his constant companion Sixty. inset: Alice and Pete Dye; photo taken by Ken May 7
Florida; the PGA West Stadium Course in California; the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island,
Amateur titles. She also was on the 1970 Curtis Cup team and captained the 1992 U.S.
Harbor Town Golf Links and Long Cove Club in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina;
Women’s World Cup team.
Brickyard Crossing and Crooked Stick in Indiana; the Honors Course in Tennessee; the
As a golf administrator, she was the first woman to serve as an independent
Teeth of the Dog in the Dominican Republic; and Whistling Straits in Wisconsin. Along
director of the PGA of America, the first woman president of the American Society of Golf
with several others, these feature regularly in Golf Digest’s top-100 golf courses.
Course Architects and a past member of the USGA Women’s Committee and LPGA
Dye courses have attracted many top-flight competitions, from the Ryder Cup at the Ocean Course in 1991 to the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in 2004. The 2007
Lady of Golf Award in 2004.
Senior PGA Championship and the 2012 PGA Championship will be held at the Ocean
The Dyes also have given back to the game by funding a pilot program at Purdue
Course, while Whistling Straits is booked years ahead with the 2007 U.S. Senior Open, the
University: Golf for Business & Life. The program is taught by PGA professionals who
2010 and 2015 PGA Championships and the 2020 Ryder Cup.
instruct college students in the basic skills, etiquette and terminology of golf. Pete built the
Pete Dye, a self-described “digger” who gets his hands dirty with mud and sand rather than blueprint ink, has remained true to his love of golf course maintenance by
8
Advisory Council. It was no surprise that she was chosen as the recipient of the PGA First
university’s golf course—his fee was one dollar—and the Dyes have raised money for the golf course and golf program.
keeping it in mind when he is designing and building courses. This concern for the men
Pete Dye always has seen himself as a traditionalist in golf course design.
and women on the grounds who have to maintain what he has created, won him the Golf
Donald Ross, whom he knew during the Second World War when he was posted close
Course Superintendents Association of America’s Old Tom Morris Award in 2003, an
to Pinehurst, was an important influence. Pete is also a great admirer of Seth Raynor’s
unusual accolade for a golf course architect.
work. He and Alice spent time studying the classic golf courses of Scotland and England
The Dyes always have been a design team, and Alice’s input has focused on mak-
when they visited in 1963, the year that Pete played in the British Amateur. From the old
ing each course manageable for the lady golfers. (She has been called the “patron saint of
country, he absorbed some of the elements that became features of many of his courses:
forward tees.”) Alice’s golfing credentials cover all aspects of the game. She was a superb
Railroad ties shoring up bunkers, smallish greens with considerable movement, rolling
amateur player winning fifty amateur titles, including two USGA Senior Women’s
well-guarded fairways, and pot bunkers. (His engaging autobiography is called Bury Me
Amateur Championships, nine Indiana Women’s Amateurs and three Florida Women’s
in a Pot Bunker).
Controversy is no stranger to the designer. Ben Crenshaw described the Stadium Course at TPC as, “Star Wars golf… this place was designed by Darth Vader.” PGA Magazine described Pete as: “The most loved, hated and imitated golf-course architect of
COUR SES TO DYE FOR
the pasty fifty years.” He has often been called, “The man golfers love to hate,” and his toughest courses “Dye-abolical.” Pete defends himself against the charge that many of his courses beat the average golfer to death by saying that his sights are always set on the large number of golfers who play the great courses regularly—courses like Seminole, Pine Valley, Shinnecock, Royal St. Georges and St. Andrew’s. “You’ll never hear me call that kind of golfer average,” he said. “He is the ardent golfer and that’s who I build for.”
Crooked Stick Golf Club (1964) Carmel, Indiana 1982 U.S. Junior Amateur 1983 U.S. Senior Amateur 1989 U.S. Mid-Amateur 1991 PGA Championship 1993 U.S. Women’s Open 2005 Solheim Cup 2007 U.S. Women’s Amateur 2009 U.S. Senior Open
The Honors Course (1983) Ooltewah, Tennessee 1991 U.S. Amateur 1994 Curtis Cup 2005 U.S. Mid-Amateur
The Golf Club (1967) New Albany, Ohio
The Ocean Course (1991) Kiawah Island, South Carolina 1991 Ryder Cup 1997 World Cup of Golf 2001 UBS Warburg Cup 2003 World Cup of Golf 2007 Senior PGA Championship 2012 PGA Championship
Pete Dye, like his hero Donald Ross, believes that a golf course is never finished. He constantly revisits his creations, walks all over them and tweaks them where necessary. “A golf course is a living event,” he often has said. How would he like to be remembered? In his autobiography’s epilogue, he evokes Donald Ross’s dictum, “My work will tell my story.” He hopes that his courses also will tell his story, that golfers, no matter how much they “kick and curse,” will always find a trip around a Pete Dye golf course a “memorable” experience. Given the abundant
Harbour Town Golf Links (1969) Hilton Head Island, South Carolina 1969 – 2005 MCI Heritage Classic (PGA Tour) 1989 THE TOUR Championship (PGA Tour)
evidence (and The Dye Preserve is now part of the legacy), there is no reason to suppose they will be disappointed.
Teeth of the Dog (1971) Casa de Campo, La Romana, Dominican Republic Oak Tree Golf Club (1975) Edmund, Oklahoma 1988 PGA Championship (First Pete Dye course to host a major championship) 2006 Senior PGA Championship TPC Sawgrass (1981) Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida 1982 – 2005 The Player’s Championship (PGA Tour) 1994 U.S. Amateur Long Cove Club (1981) Hilton Head Island, South Carolina 1991 U.S. Mid-Amateur 2003 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur
Blackwolf Run (1990) Kohler, Wisconsin 1998 U.S. Women’s Open 2012 U.S. Women’s Open
Pete Dye Golf Club (1994) Bridgeport, West Virginia 2004 – 2005 National Mining Association Pete Dye Classic Bulle Rock Golf Course (1997) Havre de Grace, Maryland Whistling Straits (1998) Haven, Wisconsin 1999 PGA Club Professional Championship 2004 PGA Championship 2007 U.S. Senior Open 2010 PGA Championship 2015 PGA Championship 2020 Ryder Cup TPC of Louisiana (2004) Avondale, Louisiana 2005 Zurich Classic (PGA Tour)
above: Pete Dye with Sixty.
9
THE SETTING
T
he Dye Preserve covers 175 pristine acres where native flora and
The golf course has been designed to fit snugly into this magi-
fauna flourish, encouraged rather than deterred by the presence of a golf
cal piece of land. Trees have been thinned, but not obliterated, and are
course that seems as if it has been there for decades. Entering the Dye,
there for a purpose. They either frame a hole or guide the eye along the
you feel as if you have crossed an invisible frontier into another country,
sweeping vistas of the golf course. Pathways are made from coquina, the
yet it is only half an hour’s drive from Palm Beach and Stuart, and ten
pale, crushed seashell that turns dove gray with the weather. The
minutes from Jupiter.
bridges, with their signature low wooden railings, are never straight but
Cypress hammocks, diaphanously veiled in Spanish moss, pine trees, live and laurel oaks, sable and cabbage palms, saw palmettos and forty varieties of
curve sinuously, an invitation to explore this green kingdom on foot. At one level, the Dye is a golf course; at another, it is a walk in the country.
bromeliads suggest the Carolinas rather than south Florida. Ponds and lakes, teeming
The land earns its designation, “Preserve,” because that is what it is: A nature
with fish, four kinds of turtles and alligators, punctuate the property. Wading birds—ibis,
preserve fortunate enough to be surrounded by thousands of acres of wood and
heron, egrets and sand hill cranes—grace it with their long-legged hauteur. Red-tailed
grassland. The only sounds at The Dye Preserve are those of the natural world and of
hawks, eagles and proud ospreys fly in and out. Golfers have become used to seeing fox,
the game of golf—birdsong, club driving ball, golf shoes crunching gravel, the wind in
raccoon, wild pigs, and even deer with their young fawns.
the trees.
left: Twilight falling, eighteenth green
11
12
above: The Clubhouse, as seen from the fourth green.
13
The Lagoon between the sixteenth and seventeenth holes.
14
15
THE CLUBHOUSE
I
t all began around Joe and Mary Webster’s dining room table with
Morgan Wheelock, a well-known landscape architect and
a rough sketch on the back of an envelope. The couple had been
friend of the Websters, was invited to present a proposal of what he
thinking about the Clubhouse’s design, its furnishings and its land-
would do with the grounds surrounding the Clubhouse. His portfolio
scaping for a long time. Their basic philosophy was to create a build-
was as impressive as it was wide-ranging with award-winning work
ing that was spacious and casually elegant, equipped with the com-
on private homes in the United States, and landscaping projects
forts of modern life, yet unobtrusive and in harmony with the natural
involving the American ambassador’s residence in London, a military
world around it.
museum in France and resorts in Italy and the Caribbean. After the
They wanted it to look as though it had once been a private
first meeting, the Websters were confident that he could work with
residence. “We didn’t want it to glow in the dark,” said Mary Webster.
the native flora and would introduce nothing that would conflict with
“We wanted people to drive up and ask how long it had been there.”
its natural beauty.
The first task was to assemble a team, one that could work
The search for an interior designer took a bit longer. “We had
together seamlessly. This team would consist primarily of an archi-
been collecting pictures of houses and rooms we loved for years, so
tect, a landscape architect, a contractor and an interior designer. Choosing an architect to design a golf clubhouse seems like a simple enough task, but, as
we knew exactly what we wanted,” said Mary Webster. “But having a vision and communicating it successfully to someone sitting on the other side of the table
the Websters knew, there were pitfalls. “Designing a workable clubhouse is not rocket
are two different things. We didn’t want it to look too new, but we weren’t going for shabby
science. There is a basic formula: Make sure you can see the first tee and the ninth and
either. It had to have a sense of permanence, a weightiness that says: ‘We’re here to stay.’ ”
eighteenth greens from the golf shop,” said Joe Webster. “But it’s amazing how many clubs out there don’t allow you to do that.”
Unable to find exactly the right firm, Mary feared she might have to go it alone, and that was giving her nightmares. Desperate to find someone with the skill and good
They interviewed several architects, one of whom was Wade Setliff of
taste to get the job done, on a whim, she called Edward Lobrano, a college friend who had
Architectural Design Group in Lakeland, Fla. Wade had built clubhouses for three golf
been working in San Francisco but had recently moved back to the East Coast. After work-
clubs on Sea Island, Georgia (the Cloister, the Lodge and Ocean Forest), and designed
ing for several large interior design firms, Lobrano established his own boutique business
the Kauri Cliffs Lodge in Matauri Bay, New Zealand, just to name a few. After listening
with offices on both coasts and had his work featured in Architectural Digest, Interior
to their goals and ideas for the Clubhouse, he invited them to take a look at a small golf
Design Magazine, Quest Magazine and California Homes, among others.
club he had designed outside of Jacksonville, Fla. The clubhouse was not too big, the
“I called to get Ed’s advice on how to tackle this project,” Mary Webster
scale was good, and it was very close to what they wanted. Wade Setliff was immediately
recalled. “After listening to me carry on in near-hysterics for almost an hour, he said:
brought on board.
‘I think I’d better come down there.’ He was interested in doing something like this in
left: The Dye Room
17
above: The Entrance Hall and Gallery
18
above: The Gallery leading into the Mixed Grill
19
above: The Ladies’ Locker Room
20
top: The Ladies’ Sitting Room bottom: The Ladies’ Vanity
above: The sitting area of the Ladies' Locker Room.
21
Florida so, after meeting with Joe, who also knew him, and the architect, Ed agreed to do it. I flew to New York with a box of photographs the size of a suitcase and dumped them on Lobrano’s desk. He knew immediately what we wanted; he got it.” “The next time I went up there,” she continued, “he had this huge pile of fabrics lying on the floor of his office, and I loved them all. We narrowed them down to a precious few, and those are the ones he used in the Clubhouse. Ed is a stickler for detail, right down to the color of the nail heads on the dining room chairs. Most of the furniture is handmade and the finishes are exquisite. Ed never let us settle; he wanted nothing but the best. He could almost read our minds.” From day one, muralist Marcia Wendel was going to paint a mural for the Entrance Hall—that was a given as far as the team was concerned. A native Floridian, Marcia had developed a great passion for the flowers, trees and wildlife of her home state. She had done several murals for clubs in St. Louis, Missouri, and the Library Bar at the Everglades Club in Palm Beach. Her clients are from all over the United States. “The first time I popped into her studio during the painting of our mural, I burst into tears… and it was barely finished,” said Mary Webster. “Marcia must have painted one bird five or six times before she was happy with it. Like Ed, she has this extraordinary attention to detail.” Kevin Butler, a Founding Member of the Dye and a friend of Punch Martyn, one of the Club’s principle partners, was selected to be the general contractor. After a few permit glitches, not to mention two dangerously close hurricanes in September of 2004, the Clubhouse opened in April 2005. From outside, the Dye’s Clubhouse is so understated that it is easy to miss its low profile and raw bronze name plate. But inside, it is spacious, opulent without being flashy, settled and inviting. On a single floor, its design reflects the bungalow style popular in the above: The Men’s Card Room
22
above: The porch overlooking the ninth hole and eighteenth greens.
23
above: The Men's Locker Room
24
25
1920s and 1930s with wide verandahs back and front, a comfortable, residential lodge rather than a glitzy, look-at-me mansion. The lavish use of wood—hand-rubbed Costa Rican cedar for the walls, pine for the floors—gives one the feeling that the place has been around for years. The furnishings add warmth and, with their soft colors, are easy on the eye. There is a lot of air and space in the building and its purpose is clear: To accommodate the physical, social and esthetic needs of the members. The Entrance Hall is wide, high-ceilinged, and its walls are decorated with the muted but gorgeously painted Marcia Wendel mural. Her depiction of the watery wilderness with its wildlife around the Clubhouse is a convincing and elegant transition from raw nature to snug haven. The Dye Room, to the right of the entry, serves as a library and reading room with paneled walls, deep sofas, a generous fireplace and bookshelves displaying the Club’s trophies, a few old photos of Pete Dye, as many books on golf as any library around and a portrait of Dye. A long, arched gallery, adorned with Audubons, sporting prints, and the Club’s championship boards, leads into the Mixed Grill, the largest room in the Clubhouse, which has an exposed ceiling supported by massive trusses. A communal table sits center stage with a supporting cast of smaller individual tables around it. Floorto-ceiling doors, which open out to a comfortable porch, grass terrace and the course beyond, flood the room with natural light. The Men’s Card Room, with its bar, card tables and smoking porch, was designed to take the member a little nearer to the action, granting him excellent views of the ninth and eighteenth holes. The Clubhouse faces due east ensuring guaranteed shade in the afternoon, time to sink into one of the well-cushioned wicker chairs and round off the day’s play with a cocktail and a cigar. The Men’s Locker Room is spacious with large, polished-pine lockers, powerful showers and an alert and helpful attendant. The ladies’ equivalent is a bit fancier, cozier, more intimate. It has a casually elegant sitting room with comfortable armchairs around the fireplace and unusually refined lockers made from Costa Rican teak glazed the color of pale celery. The Golf Shop is at the north end of the Gallery, next to the Men’s Locker Room, and the administrative offices are tucked away just off the main entrance. It is not often that the finished piece fulfills the promise of the design or the dreams of the designer. But here the gap between plan (on that long-lost envelope) and product appears to be infinitesimally narrow. “The Dye Clubhouse is second to none,” concluded a member familiar with many of them. “The attention to detail here is remarkable and it is perfect for this golfing environment.”
26
above: The Mixed Grill
27
THE MEMBERSHIP
T
he Dye Preserve, although young in comparison to other golf
holes at Amelia Island, Long Cove Club, Cypress Links Golf Club and
clubs, nevertheless has a history. Joe Webster, the current Club
The Dye Preserve. The land in Jupiter, they knew, was special, but it
president, and three partners bought the land in 1988. An existing
would still be a mighty undertaking, physically and financially, for the
golf course had fallen into disrepair, so Webster decided to call
golf course to fulfill its promise. What they had going for them was a
his old friend Pete Dye and ask him to design a new course. The
mutual passion for building golf courses and a shared vision for the
architect agreed, bulldozed the old course and laid out a new one. A clubhouse was built,
new venture. “We had this loose plan about Pete building a completely new Pete Dye golf
members signed up and Cypress Links, as the new club was called, opened its doors and
course,” Joe Webster recalled. “Then 9/11 happened and things were put on hold.”
ran successfully for more than a decade.
But not for long.
By 2001, however, the rapidly changing world of golf persuaded the owners that it
“We knew we had to tear the old golf course apart and rebuild it,” he went on.
was time to upgrade the golf course and the club. Cypress Links was dissolved—the mem-
“We shut it down on April 1, 2002. Acting as our own contractor, we rented the equipment
bers had their financial stakes returned in full—and the clubhouse was demolished.
and Pete’s guys came pouring in from all over the country. It was exciting—and scary! We
Pondering the next step, Joe Webster picked up the telephone one day and called Pete Dye.
worked 100-plus hour weeks through the summer and most weeks we paid out more in
“How would you like to rebuild that golf course of yours down here in Jupiter, Pete?”
overtime than we did regular time.”
“You know I love rebuilding my own golf courses, Joe,” Dye said with a laugh.
Pete Dye always has worked to his own rhythm. “With Pete you get
“That’s what I call my estate play. I’ll use up all your money so that when I’m gone, you
no plans,” continued Joe Webster. “But he has a complete understanding of the golf
can’t change a damn thing!”
course in his head, and he was here nearly every day building it by hand. When we
Pete Dye and Joe Webster first met when Pete was building Harbor Town back in 1968. Over the years they continued to collaborate, building the first twenty-seven
opened six months after we had started, it was clear that he had built a remarkable golf course.”
29
Meanwhile, a membership was forming with, at its core, thirty-two Founding Members, prominent people in their different professions, veteran golfers from many states. Their common desire was to have a club in south Florida where they could bring their friends to play on a great golf course in the traditional way and among congenial people. “Our typical member,” said Joe Webster, “is also a member of other great clubs in the United States and overseas. The mix is a fairly even balance between professional people who live and work here and people who come down for the season.” Membership is by invitation only. Homogeneity is guaranteed through the process of selection, handled by a membership committee, with friends inviting friends who invite further friends. The spread is wide with members coming from twenty different states and five foreign countries, and an unusual feature is the comparative youthfulness of the membership, the average age being 57 years old. The Dye is a pure golf club. There are no real estate developments, no swimming, no tennis, no paddleball, no dinners—food service is limited to breakfast, lunch and cocktails. Everything revolves around the game of golf, but it is not a golf boot camp. Memberships are family memberships, where members are encouraged to bring their sons and daughters to learn the game, including its history and its etiquette.
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THE COURSE H O L E
P
D E S C R I P T I O N S
ete Dye spent part of his youth at Pinehurst where he became a lifelong admirer of Donald Ross, and Pinehurst was clearly on his mind when he set out to design this golf course. “We aimed at making a different kind of golf course down here,” he said. What he built was in effect a non-Floridian golf course in Florida, a task inspired and helped by the quality of the soil, the grasses and the trees. “I tried to give the course a clean, well-defined look using the natural features and materials,” the designer explained. “South Florida is dead flat so the golfer needs some help to see the shape of every hole from the tee. The rough is St. Augustine grass, which Donald Ross used on the old Gulfstream course in 1923, and gives the fairways great definition and a kind of Northern feel. The fairways themselves are Bermuda, and the greens Tifeagle. The tees are paspalum, which is a salt-water resistant grass. The bunkers have grass faces that help define them, and there is mulch under the trees that gives color and makes it easier to find your ball. You’ve got to work on it to lose your ball out here.” Pete Dye’s reputation for building punishing golf courses still occasionally haunts him like the albatross in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner. But he may have laid it to rest at the Dye. If there is one word to describe Pete Dye’s creation, it is “playable.” There is plenty of room to drive the ball, there are no forced carries, the green speed is consistent and the course is always in perfect condition. It is a golf course that requires strategy: It doesn’t wear the golfer out, yet it doesn’t yield par easily. There is room for error. Poor—as opposed to bad—shots are not savagely penalized, while good shots are rewarded. The golf course is both competitive and fun to play. In the opinion of many golfers, it has a definite “Pinehurst” quality. The course measures 5,161 yards from the front tees; 6,165 yards from the middle tees; the back tees measure 6,623 yards, which most low handicappers are happy to play; and from all the way back it is 7,083 yards. “When you stand on the 150-yard marker and look in, every hole is perfectly framed,” said Joe Webster. “You see exactly what Pete’s asking you to do on each shot. He wants people to be able finish the hole with a wide variety of shots around the greens. He is not trying to dictate every shot, and he leaves a great deal up to the skills of the golfer.
B Y
P E T E
D Y E
“The same number of holes play right to left as left to right, and the same number of holes are bunkered left as bunkered right,” he continued. “There are no concessions to those who fade or draw the ball. The four par threes go into four different points of the compass, all playing differently according to the wind. Pete makes you use every club in the bag.” The Dye always has had a strong appeal for lady golfers. “Alice came here a lot when we were building the course,” said her husband. “She was always thinking about the ladies and the fine line between ‘too easy’ and ‘too difficult.’ ” As a result, the placement of the forward tees—Alice Dye’s preferred term for them—makes the golf course an eminently manageable one for the lady golfer. There are no tee times at the Dye, and it was never intended to be a club where members had to bring their own game. Members call in to put their names down, following the practice in some of the older British and Irish golf clubs. Competitions include Club championships for the men and ladies, and annual member-guest and member-member tournaments. The Club also hosts the National SeniorJunior Team Championship. The silver perpetual trophies for the Club competitions were acquired from the silversmith who crafted several of the championship trophies for the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, enhancing the sense of golf tradition at the Dye. The Dye Preserve golf course was built in one hundred-and-twenty-nine fifteen hour days during a torrid summer in 2002 and opened the day after Thanksgiving the same year. During the construction, its designer was there every step of the way. “Pete would come out at eight o’clock in the morning with his dog, Sixty,” Joe Webster recalled. “He’d be wearing short pants and Nike shoes. He’d put a bottle of water in each back pocket and walk for eight to ten hours. He was seventy-seven years old and he walked every thirty-year-old on the job into the dirt.” “When Joe asked me if he could name the Club the Dye Preserve,” said Pete, perhaps with his own albatross on his mind, “my wife Alice said, quick as a flash: ‘Does Joe Webster have any idea how many people hate your golf courses, Pete?’ ” Pete laughed. “But I was honored and any golfer, man or woman, can play this course because there are no tricks. What you see is what you get.”
left: Fourth tee, third green
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HOLE ONE Par 5 Championship 559 Back 538, Middle 480, Front 406
You start to get a glimpse of the character of this course
34
first hole, hang left—it’s your best chance to get a good
on the first hole, which opens off the tee a little left
shot at the green. From any place in the fairway, you’re
to right. The cypress trees on either side of the fairway
going to be all right, but you’ll be much better off
and the variety of grasses—TifEagle, paspalum and St.
staying left.
Augustine—provide definition. St. Augustine, a grass
Once you’re in the landing area, you’ll see that the
that Donald Ross used on the old Gulfstream golf course
green sits a little opposite of your tee shot. The hole sets
in 1923, frames every hole, and, in my opinion, is a grass
off right to left, but there’s a lot of room for your second
that has been overlooked on many south Florida golf
shot, especially to the right of the green, which opens that
courses for a long time.
way. So hang right on your second shot. There’s a little la-
There’s a lot of mulch scattered on either side of the
goon on the left, but it should be out of play as long as
fairway, so if your ball gets in there, don’t worry; it will
you keep your ball right. This green is large for a par five,
roll. The whole philosophy of this course is to get you
but as this is the opening hole: The object is to get you up
around without losing a bunch of golf balls, but on this
and running.
H O L E T WO Par 4 Championship 366 Back 342, Middle 330, Front 284
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After playing a par five, this hole is a short par four.
is wide open. We’ve done everything humanly possible to
Where the first hole went left to right, this one is almost
keep openings in front of all of the greens. This one rolls
dead straight; if it has any movement to it at all, it’s a bit
around a little bit here and there, opening left to right, so
right to left off the tee, but you’re better off hanging on
if you have a little fade, you ought to be okay. But keep
the right side of the fairway.
your approach towards the left side of the green; it kicks
There are a couple of small bunkers if you get too far
in that way. And the bunker on the right side—stay out of
right; however, it’s still more open on the right than it is
it. You can get a bad lie in there, costing you a few extra
on the left. The backdrop to this golf hole is truly superb,
shots, but if you hang left, you’ll be okay. From the green,
and the St. Augustine grass makes it look like it’s going
you can see all the way down the sixth hole, giving you
right to left off the tee. If you get a good drive, the green
yet another glimpse of the unique character of this course.
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HOLE THREE Par 3 Championship 170 Back 163, Middle 154, Front 131
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If you play this hole from the proper tee, you shouldn’t
Normally, you’ve got a little breeze in your nose, but
have too much of a shot to the green, which is big. It
it’s usually off on your right side. Notice the variety of
opens on the front right, and it’s got a little roll to it, but
runoff around the green. But with all the natural beauty
it’s fair. There is plenty of room to play golf on this hole,
of the place, not to mention the wildlife, it’s hard to
and there’s a lot variation. It plays 131 yards from the
decide whether to play golf or just stand there and take
front tee to 170 yards from the championship tee.
it all in.
HOLE FOUR Par 4 Championship 467 Back 432, Middle 407, Front 319
I always try to come up with at least one par four that’s got some real length to it, and, believe me, this one does. It plays southwest—the prevailing wind being with you in the winter and against you in the summer. There is a big difference of 60 yards between the middle tee and the championship tee. The hole turns left to right off the tee, but there is plenty of room out there to get your ball in the fairway. The green is wide open in front—the opening here must be at least 60 to 70 feet wide right in front of the green. You’ve got a few hungry-looking bunkers right and left, so just take that three or four wood, hit your ball on up in there and it should slide right on in. But if you hit it short and it doesn’t bounce on in, just let that fade slide on in a little left to right and you’ll be okay. But look again: There is water on the right, but it should be out of play. On your second shot, notice the great background— the bunker, the green and a magnificent view of the Clubhouse, which is tucked away to the right and not directly behind the green.
HOLE FIVE Par 4 Championship 292 Back 281, Middle 261, Front 249
This hole, in my opinion, is an interesting challenge for all skill levels and is the epitome of a risk-reward golf hole. If you’re brave enough to go for the green from the tee, your shot must not only avoid the water, but you’ve also got to negotiate three fairway bunkers and one greenside bunker. You may miss the water, but par will be hard to obtain. The short, straight hitter should play to the fairway, wedge to the green, and will most likely leave with more pars than his longer-hitting opponent. The left side of the green rolls off towards the water, but a small shelf at the water’s edge will hold a shot that has gently rolled off the green. This green is relatively flat and should enable the player to make a good putt.
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HOLE SIX Par 5 Championship 559 Back 529, Middle 481, Front 427 This hole is a great par five that runs in the opposite direction of hole number one. It is a straight-off-the-tee hole and much wider than it appears. Even if you let it fade off to the right, you can still play golf. Everyone can use their driver on this par five, so depending on the wind, you can get pretty close to the hole in two if you play from the proper tee. On your second shot, watch that bunker a 100 yards or so short of the green. There’s plenty of room to bail out on the right side, so, you have an open shot, and it will give you a much better view of the green. There’s no water around the green, so the good player can gamble, but there are a few bunkers up there that might challenge him. But I love this green: It’s got a lot of size to it for a par five, the rolls are very subtle and there’s plenty of room to play golf.
HOLE SEVEN Par 3 Championship 196 Back 175, Middle 164, Front 137
46
There’s a bit of a walk from the sixth green to the seventh
a good tee shot. I wish I could tell you that on this hole
tee, but the beautiful cypress hammock on your right
you’ve got a lot of room for error, but you don’t. So, pull
makes the walk worthwhile—don’t fail to notice it. This
out one of your better iron shots. The mulching around
par three goes from 137 to 196 yards and runs a little right
the seventh hole, off the tee and around the green, helps
to left. The bunkers on the left side have some beef to
you not to lose your ball and requires a different kind of
them, but I love the way this hole sets in there, and it’s got
shot, one unfamiliar to most golfers, but you can bounce
a great backdrop. For playability, number seven requires
it out of there one way or another and get it on the green.
HOLE EIGHT Par 4 Championship 387 Back 358, Middle 335, Front 285
When you stand on the back tee here on the eighth hole, it seems as if you have no place to go, but as you move towards the forward tee, you’ll notice that the hole looks much wider and there’s plenty of room out there. It sets up a little left to right. After you’ve played this hole three or four times, it will begin to look more open. Hang on the left side and you’ll be okay. Moving towards the green, notice how well the St. Augustine frames the hole. The cypress hammock on the right has been cleaned out considerably, so if you let one fly off to the right, you’ve got a good chance of finding your ball. You ought to have a short second shot on this hole, because the green is wide open in the front. There are a couple of bunkers on the left that guard the green and water behind, so stay right and you’ll be fine.
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HOLE NINE Par 4 Championship 474 Back 418, Middle 408, Front 312
This long par four offers a lot of variety from the front to back tees—everybody’s got a shot. It sets up right to left off the tees giving you plenty of room on the right even if you give it a little cut. Then it turns around and goes left to right balancing the hole nicely. As you approach the green, you’ll notice that the Clubhouse sits off to your left. You can sit in the Clubhouse and see the ninth green, yet when you play this hole, you’re not looking directly at the Clubhouse, which is a real bonus. The little mounds on both sides of the front and back tees are all planted in St. Augustine, which, like elsewhere on the course, gives them great definition. One thing you can say about this golf course, the fairways are plenty wide. And here on the ninth hole, the fairway is between a 100 to 150 feet wide. There is plenty of room on the right, but you’re better off playing straight down the middle of the road, because even though the green is wide open in front, the contouring is really good and the ball bounces around one way or another. You don’t have to carry it in there, because you’ve got a good chance of rolling her in right onto the green, especially if you’re coming in a little left to right. Just stay away from the little bunker on the front right and you’ll be okay. But as I stand in the fairway of this hole, I can see three bunkers and not one of them is the same. You get a variety of different little shots here, especially if your ball rolls off the green, because the runoff around this green is excellent. It goes down the hill, then comes back up a little knoll, which gives you several different shots.You might have a little downhill pitch, but if you roll it up on the green, you’ll be okay.
51
HOLE TEN Par 5 Championship 514 Back 478, Middle 478, Front 415
52
From the back tee on this hole, you feel like you’re com-
In order to hit a good second shot, watch the water
ing out of a tunnel. If you think it’s too narrow, you
on the right side and just pop it down the middle.
shouldn’t be playing from back there. This hole offers a
Another 40 yards or so is not going to help you a lot,
great variety from the front to the back tees. It’s a great
because you’ve got a good shot to the green on this par
starting hole to the back nine—setting up left to right—
five. The green’s a pretty good size and opens right to
the opposite of the first hole. There’s a great view of the
left: It’s got more depth to it than it appears, and there’s
tees from the Clubhouse, and folks can see you teeing off,
plenty of room in the back. You’ve got a nice run off
so hit a good one. From the championship tee it’s a bit
behind the green, and it’s not nearly as severe as it looks
tighter, because 230 to 240 yards off the tee, there is a
from your pitch shot. But after you play this hole a
bunker on the left that comes into play. But from the
couple of times, you’ll realize that you’ve got plenty of
back tee you’ve got a clear shot.
room to hit your third shot to the green.
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HOLE ELEVEN Par 4 Championship 468 Back 434, Middle 408, Front 335
Number eleven is a good, long par four. Years ago, Donald
54
the fairways here in south Florida great definition.
hole. The runoff on the right side is good, backed by the
Ross would have a short par five followed by a long par
You need a long second shot into the green here on
St. Augustine on the mound. I don’t believe that you can
four or vice versa, but here on the back tee on number
number eleven, but I want to emphasize that the green is
get a better long par four than this. You can bump it in
eleven, it sets up right to left, but from the front tee, it’s just
wide open in front. You can see the water and all the
from the front and there is just enough of a little kick that
the opposite. So if you play this hole from the front tees,
bunkering on the left, so keep your ball to the right. If you
your ball is going to run. I love this green. The front is
you’ve got plenty of room on the left side. The fairway
hit to the right, it’s going to kick in a little bit, so it’s not a
wide open and it sets off right to left, and the contour
kicks back left to right, giving you a fighting chance. The
bad shot from over there. There is as much nature as
around it falls in the same direction. This is a large green
pine and cypress area on the right has been cleaned up and
you’ll ever see on this hole, making it hard to concentrate
for a long par four, and it’s one of the few holes on the
mulched down, so if you slip a little off to the right, you can
on your game, so don’t fail to notice it.
course I could lengthen if I had to, but I have yet to have
find your ball. The definition provided by the mulch and
The fairway on this hole has a good roll to it. The
anyone make such a request. As you walk off the green,
the St. Augustine—both of which are special features of
bunkering on the left side of the green is shallow, but the
you can’t help but notice the beauty behind it—the lagoon
the course—sets up this hole. On Northern golf courses,
faces are pretty severe. There’s plenty of room between the
and the cypress trees—they are truly wonderful. So even
the fescue defines the fairways, but the St. Augustine gives
green and the water, but you’ve got to stay right on this
if you didn’t score well, I hope you enjoyed the scenery.
H O L E T W E LV E Par 4 Championship 426 Back 400, Middle 382, Front 307
As opposed to number eleven, this hole sits a little right to left. Looking at it, you’ll notice the bunkers down by the green and the bunkering that frames the landing area also sets up the hole right to left. Here you’ve got a long, shallow bunker framing the left side of the fairway. Look at the difference between that bunker and the ones up by the green. The fairway bunker on the right is out of play for most of us mortals, but a long hitter might reach the bunker on the right and wish he never had. There’s a mound on the right side that will kick your ball back into the fairway, so you want to stay as much on the left side as you can. The green is wide open in the front and sets up a little bit left to right, and there is a variety of good runoff behind the green. You have two options here: You can either carry it right onto the green or run it in. But stay out of those bunkers if you can, because they aren’t too kind, especially the one on the front right of the green. Ideally, you want to slide your ball in between them.
57
HOLE THIRTEEN Par 3 Championship 208 Back 198, Middle 182, Front 119
58
This green is a semi-redan green of about 7,000 square feet,
This is as close to a true redan green as you will find
with an elevation change from bunker to green of 8 feet.
in south Florida. With sand completely around the left and
The right side of a redan green that sets up right to left
rear of the green and a bunker beyond a shelf of closely
would normally be 2 feet higher than the left. However,
mown grass on the right, this green reads as a pseudo-
with the speed of today’s greens, the slope on this green
island green. The tees are elevated for a clear view of the
drops about 8 to 9 inches. Redan greens were first intro-
green. The back tees, however, are a bit lower, offering a
duced in America during the 1920s by such great golf
slightly obstructed view of the green with an uphill carry
course architects as Donald Ross and Seth Raynor.
of over 200 yards. This is truly a classic golf hole.
HOLE FOURTEEN Par 4 Championship 376 Back 364, Middle 332, Front 293
There is not a lot of length to this hole, and while I hate to brag, it sure has got a lot of character. It sets up left to right and the bunkering directs you down the left side of the fairway. The pine trees on your right are stately and define the hole beautifully. You know right off the bat that you want to hit your ball towards that bunker on the left side, which will give you a good shot to the green. The more your ball kind of sneaks off to the right, the better opening you’ll have. The hole sets up left to right off the tee, then right to left to the green. That’s an old Donald Ross trait. From the tee, looking down at the first and second bunkers on the fairway and then those down by the green, you will notice that they all have a different look to them. The bunker on the left is severe enough to make you want to stay away from that side and indicates that the green sits right to left. It’s got plenty of severity to it. The cypress trees in this area have all been trimmed and mulched down, so you can find your ball should you whip it off over there to the left, but it is best to stay right. It’s not going to be the easiest shot in the world from the right side, but the variety of runoff is good. What we tried to do with the runoff on many of these holes is to give you a wide range of shots. This way you can run off the hill and back up again, giving you a real challenge.
HOLE FIFTEEN Par 5 Championship 543 Back 503, Middle 503, Front 410
There is a nice walk from the green on number fourteen to this fifteenth tee. Here again, the St. Augustine grass really defines the tee and gives it a great look. When you stand on the tee of this hole, you know you’ve got to drive your ball towards the bunkers on the left. The definition of the fairway bunker on the left really turns this hole left to right going into the green. There are some bunkers up there short of the green that just keep on turning the hole to the right. I think this hole sets up really well. But keep your ball on the left a bit because there’s more trouble on the right than there is on the left. There’s the little lagoon that goes down the right side, but you’ve got plenty of fairway if you just stay left. When you get up to the landing area on this hole, you’ve got plenty of room and should get a flat lie. So rip it down there—give it a good shot—and go straight at the green. The bunker on the front left is pretty severe, so slide your ball in on the right side just a little. The green has nice contours, which are a little smaller than some, but the runoff on both sides is very playable.
63
HOLE SIXTEEN Par 4 Championship 384 Back 366, Middle 322, Front 303
This relatively short par four demands accuracy from
64
between the bunkers to a narrow fairway only 20 yards
not only your tee shot but your approach to the green as
wide, leaving 130 to 150 yards in. Third, drive over the cross
well. It’s sort of a backward hole, running right to left
bunker and beyond the bunkers on the left between the
from the tee, then you get the feeling that the green sits
lagoon on the right and the cypress trees on the left, leaving
left to right, when actually it sits back to the left. A long
a rewarding approach of only 100 to 120 yards to the green.
bunker stretches from the tee, down the left side of the
The bunkers around this green are severe, but most are
fairway, to within 200 yards of the green. A smaller
18 to 20 feet away from the putting surface. The elevated
bunker—also on the left and just beyond the long
green, with its closely mown chipping areas, can kick an
bunker—guards the fairway along with a cross bunker on
errant shot into one of the three deep bunkers that
the right. With plenty of sand left and water on the right,
surround this green. There’s a small pot bunker on the
this tee shot is visually intimidating.
front right that is highly visible from the fairway. This
You’ve got three options off the tee. First, you can play
hole is in a secluded area with many open views—the
back to the widest part of the fairway short of the bunker
long view behind the twelfth to the thirteenth hole just to
on the right, leaving about 165 yards. Second, you can drive
name one. This is an intimidating hole from tee to green.
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HOLE SEVENTEEN Par 3 Championship 240 Back 223, Middle 161, Front 124
Everybody says that there should never be two hard par threes on any golf course; however, this is not the case on the back nine here. As you look from tee to green, the scenery is breath-taking—the lake, the bulkheading, the cypress trees—all are truly spectacular. You’ve got all the length in the world here—probably more than you need. The tee area must be 10,000-square feet—I mean it’s enormous! So whomever you’re playing with, don’t let him put you on the wrong tee. If you want to lose a ball, just go on back to the championship tee, but from the back or middle tees, it is truly a wonderful shot. It sets in there left to right, so if you get over that little pot bunker in front of the green, you’ll be okay. And then there’s the bunkering on the left side, which really sets off the green. If you get in the one midway on the left side of the green, it’s got enough bank to give you a little test, especially if you’re shooting back towards the water. The green is big for this long par three, and there will be a few bogeys on this hole—maybe even a couple of doubles, but after a while you’re going to roll one up there and get a deuce.
HOLE EIGHTEEN Par 4 Championship 454 Back 421, Middle 377, Front 305
68
Setting up right to left, this is a great par four finishing
There is a variety of the bunkering on the front right
hole. If you’re going to err, err a bit to the right. The front
about a 100 yards short of the green. But there’s at least a
tee is far enough forward to give the ladies a fighting
60-foot opening in front of the green, so I don’t know how
chance. And whether you drive or walk over the bridge
it can get much better. If possible, try to stay out of the
onto the eighteenth fairway, you will get another sensa-
bunkers on the right, especially that little 3 footer up there;
tional view of the Clubhouse. Here again, the hole sets
if your ball lands in that one, it can really ruin your day.
upslightly right to left off the front and back tees. But
There’s plenty of room to bounce around on the left side of
when you get to the green, it sets up left to right.
the green, so if you hit a good one, you should make par.
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A FR ATER NAL SPIRIT
W
hen the legendary golf clubs of America and the British Isles
go about that? “The goal is to have a really good golf course, an at-
were founded over a century ago they had much in com-
tractive clubhouse and then fill it up with a bunch of highly compat-
mon: Visionary founders, great tracts of land sculpted into chal-
ible people who really enjoy playing golf with each other here and
lenging and intriguing golf courses, and homogenous, convivial
do it as often as they can,” said Joe Webster. “If you can achieve that,
memberships that honored the rules of the game on the fairways
you can probably stack up with the best golf clubs in the country.”
and its fraternal spirit in the clubhouse. Trying to build a new golf club in the image of places like
While the golf course and the Clubhouse were built in double time, the Dye deliberately slowed its pace in building up
St. Andrews, Muirfield, Royal St. Georges, The Country Club, Shinnecock and Seminole
the membership. The old fear of a rotten apple ruining the rest in the barrel—of bad driv-
might seem an act of folly tinged with hubris. Yet, if the essential elements are available
ing out good, it rarely happens the other way around—affects most human organizations,
and the golfing inspiration remains pure, there is no reason not to believe that a golf club,
and golf clubs are no exception. That is one of the reasons for the Dye opting to move
cast in the traditional mold, can be created and then, like an exceptional wine, aspire to
slowly towards achieving its full membership target of 300.
greatness with care and time. Such is the ambition of The Dye Preserve Golf Club—to evoke the best traditions of the game but provide its members with all the prerequisites of modern life. How do you
“We promised our members that we would not rush out and make a mess of this thing,” said Joe Webster. “They then had the responsibility of inviting compatible golfers to join them. We planted the tree; now we have to let it grow.”
left: The end of a perfect day
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ACK NOWLEDGEMENTS
A
s with any endeavor, the end result is a reflection of the dedication of
many individuals. This was certainly the case with the formation of this
Lobrano, working with Mary Webster, created the extraordinary colors and interiors of the Clubhouse.
club and this book. Both exist due to the support of the partners of the Dye
This book is an accumulation of the artistic talents of many indi-
who have been together since 1988 and who “stepped up” after 9/11 to
viduals. The original impetus evolved from the genius of Jeff Lewis of
support and create The Dye Preserve Golf Club. To Charles Bradshaw,
Cobalt Design. Larry Hasak, James Garvin and the entire staff of Hasak
Charles P. Martyn III and William S. Rose, thank you. Thanks also to David
Publishing assembled and designed the book, and John de St. Jorre wrote
Jackson, who joined this group in 2002.
the majority of it. Three brilliant photographers contributed their pictures
The membership of The Dye Preserve is a manifestation of the character and
which grace each page: Anthony Edgeworth, a member of the club, captured the essence
friendship of the thirty-two Founding Members of the club who believed in the project.
of the setting, the membership and Pete Dye, and Tony provided the model for the book
The golf course was built by Pete Dye and his disciples who, along with Jim Kilgore and
with his many published works on golf; Kim Sargent’s thoughtful eye produced the flaw-
his maintenance staff, have created a magnificent golf experience. Jack Carmody of
less photographs of the Clubhouse interiors; and Paul Hundley arose early many a morning
Gunster Yoakly and Rocky Biby of Kimley Horne Engineers secured the permits and nav-
and waited late many an afternoon to capture the light reflected on each of the eighteen
igated the maze of zoning issues in Martin County. The Clubhouse is a proof positive of
holes depicted herein.
the talents of Wade Setliff of Architectural Design Group, Kevin and Scott Butler of Butler Construction, and Don Skowron of Morgan Wheelock and Associates. Edward
This project and this book are merely a glimpse into the incredible style, skill and spirit of Mary Webster.
—Joe Webster
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T H E
D Y E
P R E S E R V E
1 8 0 8 C o l o n y Wa y J u p i t e r, F l o r i d a
33478
(561) 575-5863 w w w. t h e d y e p r e s e r v e . c o m