The Naples area is famous for its golf,
and that point is definitely not lost on the professional tour players. Many of
the pros have a primary or secondary home in the Marco/Naples/Bonita area,
including Peter Jacobsen, Rocco Mediate, Scott Hoch, Chip Beck, John Harris,
Wayne Levi, Mark Lye, Fuzzy Zoeller, Kris Tamulis, and others.
Each year, more pros purchase homes after experiencing Naples by playing in the
Champion’s Tour Ace Classic and The Shark Shootout, hosted by Greg Norman. They
then come home to work on their game with their instructors. Top 100 teachers
such as David Leadbetter, Rick Smith, Dr. Jim Suttie, and Tom Patri have
academies in the Naples area.
Other sports celebrities have also found their home in paradise, such as Larry
Bird, Mike Ditka, Dr. Jack Ramsey, Ara Parseghian, Dave Wannstedt, Chuck Noll,
Mary Carillo, and Johan Kriek. This is by no means ALL of them, but it shows
the desirability of Southwest Florida for celebrities who can choose to live
anywhere.
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Local golf course architects have gone to great lengths to preserve and emphasize the natural beauty of each site, and added to the ambience with their own embellishments. Every major designer plus a number of professional player designers have left their signature on at least one area course, including Pete & P.B. Dye, Robert Trent Jones Jr. & Sr., Robert Van Hagge, Arthur Hills, Tom Fazio, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Gary Player, and many more. In fact, the very unique advanced search will even allow you to search by golf course architect, # holes, rating, slope, or length.
Within the greater Naples/Bonita area, over 100 courses dot the landscape, plus more in South Ft. Myers and in Marco. The large majority of these are private country clubs, with a large variety of price ranges for initiation fees and annual dues. Initiation fees are typically a one-time fee, with dues payable on an annual or quarterly basis, and they are often partial equity, indicating that the member would receive back part of their investment if they were to discontinue their membership. Most clubs offer some type of social membership, which generally entitles the member to full use of the dining, pool, tennis/recreational facilities, and use of the golf course during May thru October, by paying greens fees. There may also be limited use of the course during the winter months. A full golf membership generally includes all social membership privileges plus use of the golf course on a year-round basis with no greens fees.
When looking at properties, in order to protect your interests, you will want to have a buyer’s broker represent you and accompany you at the various developer communities. John R. Wood agents are highly trained professionals who can represent you in this manner, helping you compare the dozens and dozens of possible developments and neighborhoods that must be considered.
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In the “off season” six months of the year, almost all of the private clubs participate in reciprocal agreements that allow members to play and dine at a selected list of other private clubs in the area, thus allowing their members to experience a magnificent variety of courses in the area. This is an especially appealing benefit for social members, many of whom stay in the area for all or most of the year.
Some of the residential country club communities feature “bundled golf”, which means that the home purchaser receives a full golf membership as part of the purchase price of their home. The amount that this adds to homes or condos in the development is usually quite nominal in comparison to full golf membership fees at some of the clubs. However, purchasers should evaluate the number of members at a potential club, as this will impact lead times in order to obtain tee times. For instance, some of the more prestigious clubs have a very small membership, to the point where tee times are not even required.
Founded in 1958, John R. Wood Realtors is the oldest major real estate company in the area. They specialize in the luxury neighborhoods of Southwest Florida, including the many golf course communities. The Wood firm offers a full range of one-stop residential services for the convenience of their clients, including homeowner’s insurance, mortgage financing, and title insurance. Their international affiliations include Leading Estates of the World, Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate, RELO Referral Network, and The Realty Alliance. John R. Wood Realtors has four offices in Naples and Bonita Springs, with approximately 300 associates and 150 support staff.
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