Nature Great Dunes

Photography by GABRIEL HANWAY

In the late 1800s, golfing on Jekyll was a privilege reserved for America’s elites. Today, the island is home to the largest public golfing facility in the state. Then as now, its chief appeal lies in the unspoiled beauty surrounding the fairways. With sixty-three holes spanning four ocean-breeze-cooled courses, Jekyll Island is where Davis Love III played as a young man, among the oaks, pines, and free-ranging fauna. Golf and nature are in balance here: “The two coexist,” says Aaron Saunders, the island’s golf superintendent. “There’s not one without the other.” Gators, gray foxes, roseate spoonbills, painted buntings, wood storks, and even bald eagles are some of the animals golfers might see in these Audubon Cooperative Sanctuaries. A recently renovated driving range, a golf academy for club fitting and lessons, and a commitment to a light environmental footprint are more reasons to swing through the island.

p Jekyll’s oldest course was built in 1927, and nine of its original eighteen holes are still in play. The course is links-style, with expansive Atlantic Ocean views. Historians believe it was the last course designed by Walter J. Travis, the American amateur golfer, journalist, and innovator.