September 26, 2024, was a day far-from-the-coast Augusta, Georgia, won’t soon forget. Hurricane Helene roared through, leaving in its wake a battered and devastated community, parts of which are still recovering today. The Bobby Jones Links-operated Forest Hills Golf Course – suffered its own unique misfortune.
The classic Donald Ross-designed course owned by Augusta University, and where Bobby Jones once won the Southeast Amateur in the same year he won the Grand Slam, had closed in June 2024 for a complete greens renovation and generated a lot of excitement for its planned October 1 reopening. Then just days before, the hurricane hit. At least 1,500 trees went down, with debris scattered throughout the property. The course staff, many whose homes were also damaged, worked overtime on the clean-up, two tree companies were engaged, and within six weeks, the course reopened. Today, with a few minor projects remaining, Forest Hills is thriving again.
“The entire team pulled together to get the job done,” says Joshua Deal, Vice President of Operations at Bobby Jones Links, and President of the Georgia Section PGA of America. “It was a collaborative effort. First and foremost, the team at the facility immediately got in contractors to assess the damage, particularly with the tree cleanup. That was the biggest hurdle and to make sure we could eventually reopen to members and guests when it was safe. Priority one was cleaning up debris, hangers and widow makers that were all over the course. Then we could turn our attention to the outlying areas and aesthetics. As you can imagine, the cleanup in those areas surrounding the course was about a six-month process.”
Extensive course damage was subsequently caused by the machinery needed to remove the trees. Cart path repairs quickly became prioritized, so that it was safe to travel around the property, while irrigation systems were temporarily put on the back burner because the course didn’t need to run water in the winter. Once it warmed up though, a lot of the irrigation damage was discovered. So, the course superintendent and crew have spent time isolating areas of need, repairing them, and playing “whack-a-mole” from there, according to Deal.
“On the positive side, the community was incredibly supportive and happy to get Forest Hills back open and experience some normalcy of being out there and playing,” says Deal. “They love the new greens, and the course reopened in absolutely fantastic condition. We’ve had great feedback from both guests and members, and that’s helped provide a little spark of momentum as we continue to clean up from what was a scary situation. It was great to hear members of the community say they’re just so happy this place is back open and in great shape.”
Photographed by Dave Sansom
With Masters week so important for the club’s annual revenues, Deal says there were a lot of eyeballs on Forest Hills in April – only adding to the pressure to offer great playing conditions. Plus, it’s home to Augusta University’s golf team, former back-to-back NCAA Division 1 national champions in 2010 and 2011, who also host a major college event on the course in April. “
Forest Hills Golf Course has been around a long time – its 1926 opening predates Augusta National, so it has a quite a history. “The golf course has been around a long time and is not going anywhere. Even a devastating hurricane can’t keep this great Augusta course down for long.”
And that’s more than evident now.
