Tiger Woods’ course designed for Mike Trout is complete

Reports on Tiger Woods’ status in recent months have largely focused on his latest round of rehab. This is an even more exciting update. It involves Woods’ partnership with baseball star Mike Trout at Trout National Preserve.

If you follow golf headlines regularly, you’re probably familiar with the outlines of the project, a private destination golf club in Trout’s hometown of Vineland, southern New Jersey, featuring a championship golf course designed by Woods’ golf architecture firm TGR Design court. In the nearly two years since news of Trout National first broke, details about the property have been kept low-key. But as work progresses, the club’s situation has become clearer.

The course was completed in October and thanks to the beautiful weather, all 18 holes are now covered with grass. They form a strong par-72 layout with 7,455 yards of slope and a route that takes advantage of rugged terrain that was once a silica sand mine. The course is designed to inspire imaginative shots, with many greens available for surface play and surrounded by runoff allowing for creative restoration.

“It’s going to be challenging,” said Tyler Trout, Mike’s brother and head of the club’s development team. “But I don’t see anyone conceding a lot of goals here.”

As the turf digs deeper, construction continues on a series of trout-inspired features. It’s worth mentioning that a comfort station called the “Rest Area” behind the 14th and 16th tee boxes is nearing completion. True to its name, its design mirrors the dugout areas of MLB stadiums, with stadium seats serving as perches for viewing ground shots and digital scoreboards displaying scores for players around the field.

Meanwhile, a wider stop has been completed. There’s a full-service venue between the 6th and 11th holes where golfers pass (called “Aaron’s,” in honor of Mike’s late brother-in-law, who had a reputation as the life of the party). Held multiple times during the round, it features a wrap-around patio, fire pits, outdoor cooking and indoor and outdoor bars where members and their guests can relax, watch the game and, if the spirit moves them, entertain their guests. Friends will ask easily.

Trout National Golf Course is just steps away from Philadelphia and Atlantic City, and the area is home to some of the most famous courses in the country, but it aims to appeal to golfers with a course designed for purists, the classics Balance with modernity.

“That feeling has been growing in the game of golf over the past decade or so,” Trout said. “It’s pure golf. You don’t see any houses. But the culture and atmosphere is more modern and relaxed.

In keeping with this ethos, golf facilities will include the Bullpen, a light-filled short course; a 30,000-square-foot lighted putting course and short game area; and a performance center with three hitting bays, one of which can double as a tryout. Clothes table, as well as high-tech training tools such as TrackMan, Swing Catalyst’s Force Plate and an indoor putting lab.

The club’s main building will be a spacious clubhouse designed in the style of a stately manor house with a slate roof, limestone walls and timber accents, as well as a spa, 2,500-bottle wine cellar, barbershop, bowling alley and Trout-designed Fitness center. Like all of Trout Country Club’s other infrastructure, including a helipad, five cabins and two overnight cabins, the clubhouse is scheduled to be completed in advance of the club’s grand opening in April 2026.

Prior to that, member gaming is expected to begin in 2025, but the exact time has not yet been determined. According to Taylor Trout, the membership ranks will remain small, made up of athletes, young business professionals, entrepreneurs and “other avid golfers who like the way we’re going to play the game.”

Mike Trout is one of those avid golfers who doesn’t have any handicap, but when his game is good, he can shoot shots in the 60s. But he hasn’t played recently. Like Woods, he has been sidelined by injury this season, but it hasn’t completely impacted the game. In a gathering that became a hit on social media last summer, Trout and Woods hiked Trout National Park together, with the two discussing details as the course was nearing completion. Recovery isn’t their only shared pursuit.