Golfing enthusiasts have found a paradise in the Shoals with the edition of a Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail complex.
Jones is a known golf course architect who designed championship courses all over the world. In fact, one of his original works is just across the Tennessee River from the new complex – Turtle Point golf course. Turtle Point Yacht and Country Club is a private club, however.
The new Trent Jones complex in Colbert County features 36 holes of championship golf. The trail has gained popularity worldwide for its quality and affordability.
DANIEL GILES
The club house at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.
Designers of the 10 Trent Jones Golf Trail facilities say the Shoals courses may be their best effort.
The two-year-old complex in the Shoals, which is in the Ford City community of eastern Colbert County, has already attracted golfers from all 50 states and at least 13 countries. Some of the nation’s leading golf magazines have also touted the courses as being among the best in the country.
The courses overlook the Tennessee River between Wheeler and Wilson dams. The two courses – Fighting Joe and Schoolmaster - took their names from the men whose names are associated with the two area dams.
Wheeler Dam is named in honor of Gen. Joseph “Fighting Joe” Wheeler - the only Confederate general to attain the same rank later in the U.S. Army. Wheeler’s intense desire to show that Southerners could be counted on as U.S. citizens prompted him to volunteer, at age 62, for service in the Spanish-American War. The “Fighting Joe” course stretches a breath taking 8,092 (from the black tees) and is just as intimidating as General Wheeler. It’s a links style course that offers an unusual test of golf.
JIM HANNON
The interior of the club house at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.
“The Schoolmaster of Politics” is the nickname given to President Woodrow Wilson, who was responsible for getting Wilson Dam built. The Schoolmaster course provides more traditional golf with every hole keeping with the natural topography along the Tennessee River.
While long hitters tend to fare better on Fighting Joe, the Schoolmaster demands shot planning and precision.
ENLARGE
