Golf course named for trailblazing Black golfer reopens

On Wednesday, Mayor Landrieu was joined by city officials, golf enthusiasts, and members of the Joseph M. Bartholomew, Sr., family in celebrating the reopening of the Joseph M. Bartholomew, Sr. Municipal Golf Course in the Pontchartrain Park neighborhood. The course officially opened for public play on Friday, November 25, 2011, after a nearly $9 million renovation. The course hosted the “My Bayou Classic” golf tournament that morning and opened for tee times at 2:00 p.m. that afternoon.

“It is truly a joy to be able to open a first-class, public golf facility for all of our residents to enjoy,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “This course will be a critical part of the rebirth of Pontchartrain Park, and we are proud to be a part of it.”

“The reopening of Joe Bartholomew Golf Course as a world-class facility that’s public and available to everyone is a tremendous benefit to New Orleans,” District D Councilwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell said Wednesday. “This course is named after the first African American to be inducted into the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame, and to see it restored so beautifully, right here in Gentilly makes me really proud.”

“Closed since Hurricane Katrina, the Joe M. Bartholomew, Sr. Golf Course was at one time a jewel nestled in the center of Pontchartrain Park. Its $9 million renovation is instrumental to the recovery of this vibrant and historic community and the continued rebirth of all of Gentilly,” said City Council Vice President Eric Granderson.

Tee time reservations can be made online at www.nola.gov/golf.

The City of New Orleans Depart­ment of Parks and Parkways will operate and maintain the course. Eric Kaspar, formerly of the Audubon Golf Trail, will serve as a PGA consultant to the course.

The Joseph M. Bartholomew Municipal Golf Course is an 18-hole, par 72-course measuring between 5,314 yards to 6,823. Originally opened as the Pont­chartrain Golf Course in 1956, The Joseph M. Bartholomew Golf Municipal Course was renovated in 1979 and renamed to honor the first African American inducted in the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame. It has been closed since Hurricane Katrina.

Perez, APC designed the renovation in consultation with Gill Design, Inc. and former PGA Tour player and New Orleans native Kelly Gibson. Duininck, Inc., served as prime contractor on the project. The renovations included new greens, a complete irrigation system, raised fairway elevations sprigged with Bermuda Hybrid Grass, 54 tee boxes, a new practice putting green, 11 new sand traps, a fairway underground drainage system, and a new double-ended driving range. Funding for the renovations comes from FEMA public assistance, Disaster Community Development Block Grant funds from the State of Louisiana, prior year bonds, and other city funds.

The course’s Club House and Pro shop, cart storage facility, and maintenance building will be undergoing renovations in 2012. They are currently in the design phase. Those renovations combined are worth approximately $4 million.

Mayor Landrieu and city officials also unveiled a new logo for the course.

This article was originally published in the November 28, 2011 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper