PGA of America to Relocate Headquarters to Dallas Suburb From Florida Plans Include Two Championship
PGA of America, a sports organization with about 29,000 golf professionals, plans to relocate its headquarters from Florida to a proposed 600-acre development in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, Texas .
The move follows approval Tuesday of a public-private partnership with the city of Frisco, land owner Hunt Realty Investments and other stakeholders.
The proposed relocation, rumors of which began appearing in golf publications in March, is the culmination of a year-and-a-half real estate search by PGA, which is currently based in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, a northern suburb of West Palm Beach. Show Full Story
PGA said in May 2017 it began searching for markets interested in developing a new headquarters before landing on a tract in the Panther Creek neighborhood of Frisco near Rockhill Parkway and Legacy Drive, about a third of a mile south of U.S. Route 380.
Frisco's public-private partnership, approved by multiple stakeholders ranging from private developers to the school district to the city, was key in landing PGA’s new headquarters, officials said. The partnership outlines plans for PGA to anchor a 600-acre mixed-use development.
"Our move to Frisco will be transcendent for the PGA of America," said Seth Waugh, chief executive officer of PGA, in a statement announcing the relocation. "Everything great starts with a dream. This is the beginning of a bold, new journey, as we bring together world-class partners in a world-class location – to deliver innovative and differentiated experiences for our nearly 29,000 PGA golf professionals, golfers of all abilities and our staff."
Upon its expected completion in 2022, the new PGA headquarters will include a 500-room Omni Hotel, a 127,000-square-foot conference center, two championship golf courses, a short course, practice areas totaling 45 holes and a clubhouse. The golf courses will be open to the public.
The hotel and convention center are expected to open within six months of the golf facilities. So far, 12 PGA championship tournaments, including junior championships, have been booked at the new site running from 2023 to 2034.
Frisco will also become home to the 102-year-old industry group's national player development and coaching programs. The new headquarters is expected to employ at least 100 workers.
Each championship golf course will get its own architect, with Gil Hanse designing one and Beau Welling, who has had a long-term design relationship with Tiger Woods, as the architect of the other.
In the 25-year master development agreement laid out in the public-private partnership, the land and conference center will be owned by the city of Frisco with an entity called Omni Stillwater Woods Golf Resort – a joint venture of Dallas-based Omni Hotels & Resorts, Stillwater Capital and Woods Capital – operating the facility and paying $100,000 in rent each year.
The lease will increase 2 percent after the fifth year as outlined in the development agreement. Omni Stillwater Woods is responsible for all maintenance and capital expenses. Omni Hotels & Resorts will own and operate the 500-room hotel.
The golf courses, clubhouse, practice areas and adjacent public facilities will be owned by the city of Frisco.
Frisco is known for doing innovative public-private partnerships. A similar arrangement was reached with the Dallas Cowboys to develop the team’s nearby global headquarters and practice facility along the Dallas North Tollway. A group that also included Frisco’s school district worked with owner Jerry Jones to give high school athletes the ability to play on the same field as the Cowboys.
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