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Alex Elias  Determined to step outside the Florida paradigm, Nick Price sought to avoid lining every fairway and green with water, instead focusing on retaining as much of the indigenous terrain as possible. To achieve this goal, everything on the course - including the white sugar sand and 2,000 trees and plants, which were relocated to a nursery and then replanted - came from the original site, with the exception of the golf course grass. "The sugar sand that Nick [Price] reincorporated is the overarching characteristic of the golf course," said Aaron Crooks, Head Golf Professional at Soleta Golf Club. "By maintaining the naturalness, the course has a very raw feeling."  Although Crooks said, "You can’t really compare Soleta to anywhere else," one might argue that it bears a subtle resemblance to Pinehurst No. 2. Just as Donald Ross used the sandscapes at Pinehurst No. 2 to define the playing corridors without requiring forced carries, Price employed a similar philosophy with the white sugar sand, ensuring strategic freedom. "Nick wanted Soleta to be played on the ground," said Crooks. "While the sugar sand certainly puts a premium on hitting the fairway, it doesn’t dictate how players play the golf course. Players have the option to hit driver and a lofted club in the air onto the green, but can also run a number of different clubs off the tee and run approach shots onto the green, as Nick envisioned." As Price embraced the same philosophy around the greens, Crooks said, "There are a lot of runoff areas around the greens where Nick ensured there was still turf, allowing players to be strategic with high and low shots." If preserving the indigenous terrain was Price’s primary objective and emphasizing the ground game was his second, then his third was to design a golf course that players of all skill levels could enjoy. This commitment is evident in the tee options, which range from the ‘Nick Price Black’ tees at 7,415 yards to the ‘Green’ tees at 5,145 yards, with some tee boxes spanning up to 150 yards. “From beginners to Tour players, there’s a tee for everybody,” said Crooks.  Perhaps the signature hole on property, the 145 yard Par-3 7th features a horseshoe-shaped tee box that stretches nearly the entire width of the hole, allowing for eleven different teeing options.
“To have a signature hole, that is a pitching wedge, but can play ten different ways, ten straight days, is so unique,” said Crooks. As ‘Soleta’ is the indigenous Native American name for sandhill crane, The Colt - a 9 hole short course co-designed by architect Dean Bedwell and Crooks - was named after a baby sandhill crane and is set to open in Spring 2025. The two courses will be complemented by a world-class clubhouse, a 30-acre training facility designed by David Leadbetter, 93 custom built luxury residences, 14 cottages for members and guests, a state-of-the-art fitness center, and tennis and pickleball courts. "Soleta is centered around fun, without compromising on our world-class golf and amenities. The experience at Soleta is a comfortable one, paired with truly great service," said Crooks.
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