Palm Aire Country Club (Champions)

Overview: Palm Aire’s Champions Course is an 18-hole private, member-owned course at 5601 Country Club Way in Sarasota. The original Dick Wilson design is listed at 7,207 yards from the longest tees and par 72. In 2021, Michael J. Benkusky led a tee-to-green renovation that added and expanded tee complexes, relocated bunkers and re-grassed the playing surfaces while preserving the course’s character.

History: Golf Digest dates the Champions Course to 1957 and credits Dick Wilson as the original designer. The property was known as DeSoto Lakes Country Club when it hosted the 1960 De Soto Open Invitational; the official club history records Sam Snead winning and Arnold Palmer finishing fourth. Palm Aire’s current club history describes the 2021 renovation as a full tee-to-green refresh.

Did You Know? The 1960 De Soto Open at the course was won by 47-year-old Sam Snead, while a young Arnold Palmer finished fourth. That result is part of the Champions Course’s bridge between Sarasota golf history and the modern Palm Aire identity.