COLLEGE GROVE, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee Golf has added a state-of-the-art practice facility to one of the area's premier golf courses. The Blue Raiders cut the ribbon on their new building, built in partnership with and located at The Grove Club, Tuesday.
"Today, this celebration allows us to recognize the generous supporters who have made all of this possible," MTSU President Sidney McPhee said. "The completion of this project represents a strong commitment to our teams and a substantial investment in our golf program."
After breaking ground on August 15, 2020 the Middle Tennessee Men's and Women's Golf programs officially took residence of the $1.1 million facility, funded entirely through private donations, on Tuesday.
"[Our donors] have done a great, great thing," Director of Athletics Chris Massaro said. "And now our golf teams have even better opportunities to compete on a national scale. We expect to have more trophies and fill up these walls with more accolades."
The Blue Raiders' new digs feature three indoor hitting bays and an indoor putting green with multiple slope changes that will help the Blue Raiders perfect their game even in unfavorable weather conditions.
Two of the indoor hitting bays include TrackMan simulator studios that will provide players with real-time feedback on the distance, speed, and rotation of their shots and can simulate play on more than 90 courses. Just steps away are a players' lounge, locker rooms, training facilities and a study area.
"We are very excited to open this facility at The Grove," head men's golf coach Mark McEntire said. "The Grove is one of the premier golf courses in Tennessee and being able to call The Grove home will change the way we recruit, raise money and develop our players.
"The Grove hosts events like the [Korn Ferry Tour] Simmons Bank Open and the Tennessee Junior Cup [hosted by PGA Tour member Scott Stallings]. It attracts the best players in professional and junior golf. This is very exciting for us, and we're thankful we can join the family."
"We are beyond grateful to all of the great supporters we have in our golf programs and to all of the great players and coaches we have had who have helped make this possible," head women's golf coach Chris Adams said. "To have an amazing building like this with all the amenities on a championship golf course with great practice facilities sets our program apart from others from a recruiting standpoint."
"The building is big enough that it gives us the ability to use the TrackMan technology indoors while also getting to putt on a green that offers different breaks and not just your typical flat putt. I know the players are very thankful and excited to get to use the facility."
The facility was made possible by the efforts of Mark and Cindy Enderle, Mike Green, Brent and Vicky Clements, John and Gina Floyd, and others. The synthetic turf in all practice areas was installed by Goat Turf, located in Murfreesboro and owned by Blue Raider Baseball alumnus Tyler Burnett, while construction was completed by Shane McFarland Construction.
With a state-of-the-art practice facility located at the highly-rated Grove Club, Middle Tennessee Golf will now stand on par with some of the top programs not only in the state of Tennessee, but all of Division I golf in what it offers collegiate players to give them the ability to become top-ranked players.
The 18-hole, par 72 Greg Norman Signature course at The Grove offers fairways kept at tour heights, greens rolling at U.S. Open speeds and bunkers identical to those at the Tour Championship, providing a golf experience that is unparalleled in Nashville and Middle Tennessee.
