Chocolate Drop: Dream Golf's Old Shores Ramps Up in the Florida Panhandle

As FEGC member Pearce Barringer noted a few hours ago, Old Shores, a new Dream Golf development in the Florida panhandle, made several newsy announcements today.

We first reported on Old Shores in November 2024.

The resort's first course, designed by Tom Doak, is now under construction, with Angela Moser serving as lead associate. Moser headed up on-site efforts at Doak's Pinehurst No. 10 and recently earned a commission of her own at Burlington Golf and Country Club in Ontario, Canada. A grand opening for Old Shores No. 1 (not the official name, of course) is on the calendar for fall 2027.

Dream Golf also revealed some details of its future plans for Old Shores:

1) The resort's plans also include a second 18-hole course designed by longtime Doak associate and Old Barnwell co-designer Brian Schneider, a 12-hole "precision course" in the vein of The Commons at Sand Valley, a par-3 course, and a nine-hole regulation course similar to The Dunes Club in Michigan. This kind of varied golf offering has become typical of the Dream Golf resorts spearheaded by Bandon Dunes founder Mike Keiser's sons Michael and Chris.

2) Schneider's course will be inspired by Augusta National, but not by the current iteration of the Masters venue. Instead, Schneider will be taking inspiration from Augusta National as it stood in the 1930s, with minimal bunkering, eccentric green shapes and contours, and a rough-hewn aesthetic. Michael Keiser said in a press release that this course will be "very different from the first course [at Old Shores], and as dramatic as anything we've ever built." Whereas Doak's design occupies relatively subtle terrain, Schenider's course will tackle a severe piece of land with up to 90 feet of elevation change.

3) Architects have not yet been selected for the other courses at Old Shores.

4) The golf courses will radiate out from a walkable core consisting of restaurants, lodging, and home sites. "It's like this little village is the hub and the spokes are the golf courses that go out in all directions," Keiser said. "So, when you arrive, we'll get you our of your car and we'll take your luggage to wherever you're staying — a hotel room or rented home — and then you're going to be walking everywhere."

Thoughts? Takes? Have at it.

For my part, I find Michael and Chris Keiser to be among the most smartest, most inventive developers in the business. They love golf and golf course design, and it shows in their planning.