New rendering shows plans for renovated youth golf course at Seneca Park

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The city of Louisville unveiled the first rendering of the revamped youth golf course at Seneca Park, a project that benefitted from $1 million in outside investment.

Last year, a day before the PGA Championship began at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, the PGA of America REACH Foundation, the association's charitable foundation, announced it will donate $250,000 to Seneca Golf Course through the PGA Places to Play program. And Valhalla's ownership group — Jimmy Kirchdorfer, David Novak, Junior Bridgeman and Ches Musselman — and membership matched that donation to aid in renovations, with the goal of setting the course on a solid footing for years to come.

The pair of donations were meant provide one-third of the estimated $1.5 million to renovate the course, including the following projects

Renovation of the part-3 course to optimize playability and access
Building a new indoor practice facility, allowing for year-round youth programming
Upgrading and modernizing the driving range for increased use
Creating a new putting course

This week, the city showed the first rendering of its youth course, which is currently closed for renovations. The city said the upgrades will improve safety and accessibility, with redesigned layouts, new putting and chipping greens, and an expanded training space.

"We are extremely grateful for this investment into Seneca Golf Course and to kick off this project that reflects our commitment to creating inclusive spaces where our children can learn, grow and enjoy the game of golf," Michelle King, executive director of Louisville Parks and Recreation, said in a news release Wednesday.

The First Tee of Louisville said the revamped youth course will serve more than 1,700 kids across the city by using golf as a tool for mentorship and leadership.

The project will cost $900,000, and $200,000 of that will come from Mayor Craig Greenberg's latest budget.

"This marks an exciting new chapter for our community and the future of golf in our city," Greenberg said in a news release. "Thanks to the incredible generosity of Philanthropist Jimmy Kirchdorfer and support from the PGA of America, we’re able to launch a transformative project at Seneca Golf Course to create more opportunities for our youth, build confidence, and inspire this next generation through sports."

Construction is expected to begin soon.

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