
$2.5M Renovation Planned for Abbey Springs Golf Course
Fontana on Geneva Lake, Wisconsin
By Brian Weis
Abbey Springs Golf Course is planning a $2.5 million dollar golf course renovation. Work will be led by Lohmann Quitno Golf Course Architects, who have developed a plan that is primarily aimed retention areas. The project will begin August 2nd, 2021 and will be completed April 30th, 2022, during which time the golf course will temporarily be closed. Property owners of Abbey Springs approved the renovation through a vote earlier this month.
As a semi-private gated community located on the south shores of Geneva Lake, Abbey Springs boasts one of the most beautiful golf courses in the state of Wisconsin. The golf course was originally designed by Killian & Nugent in 1971, however no significant renovations or attention to course improvement have taken place since then. Data from recent assessments of the course have shown that the infrastructure of the greens, bunkers & overall course drainage were no longer sustainable or acceptable for today's golf standards, and so the $2.5 million renovation plan was drawn up to address these focal concerns.
The renovation project is aimed at transforming the course into an ascendant & premier top-caliber golfing destination. The scope of the project includes complete reconstruction of 16 green complexes, including greenside features & bunkes, resurfacing 3 greens, installing fairway drainage on 15 holes, regrading & expanding ponds on 7 holes, increasing quality and size of water retention areas, rebuilding 10 fairway bunkers, regrading 5 fairways, & redesigning the short game area.
PGA Professional Jack Shoger, who has been with the golf club for more than 30 years, said that the project would be a game-changer for the club. "The product our team puts together for our members on a daily basis is tremendous, but providing that product has become a lot more difficult as of late. The game of golf has changed a lot since I've started here, as has the climate, and both have affected the viability of the golf course... I think the time is right to make a change and bring the course up to today's standards, and the standards that golfers expect and our members deserve."
Abbey Springs is looking forward to collaborating with Bob Lohmann and Todd Quitno of Lohmann Quitno Golf Course Architects throughout the renovation process. Being in the business for 35 years, and having a combined experience of 67 years, Bob Lohmann and Todd Quitno are highly regarded & qualified architects who have extensive
experience, including 30 new course designs and have performed 175 course renovations, including Merit Club, Blackstone Golf Club, Westmoor Country Club & Bishops Bay Country Club. "When I first arrived at Abbey Springs twenty-some years ago, I could see that the property is very special," said Lohmann. "But the game has changed a lot, especially the last couple decades. It's time to make changes at Abbey Springs to ensure it continues to appeal to the future generations that will inherit this great property."
"We are coming up to our 50th Anniversary," said Shoger, "and we've seen some great things happen here at Abbey Springs over the years. But this is the most excited I've ever been about our future. I think it's going to be fantastic and I really look forward to seeing the course grow and thrive over the next 50 years."
Abbey Springs will have regular updates on the renovation project through their website.
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Revised: 01/25/2022 - Article Viewed 6,545 Times
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About: Brian Weis
Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.
As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.
Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.
In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.
On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.
Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.
Contact Brian Weis:
GolfTrips.com - Publisher and Golf Traveler
262-255-7600