In honor of the 100-year celebration of Defuniak Springs Country Club, now the county-owned Eagle Springs Golf and Recreation Center, SoWal Life interviewed some of the faithful “old salts” who never gave up on the vision of a golf center in the northern part of Walton County.
Walton County resident, David Delahoussaye:
“I’ve been golfing here long before the county bought it years ago when it was a country club, and well, I’m always looking for a deal when I’m playing golf, and back then I could play a round for well under $25. But when I say that it was like playing golf in a pasture, I’m being kind! There were no groundskeepers, no irrigation, no golf tracks for carts. It was rough but whenever I have a chance to hit a little white ball around I’m a pretty happy camper.
The county got involved around 5 years ago and since then the improvements have been steady. I tend to travel each summer, and when I come back it’s like, wow. Look what they’ve done this time. And it’s still that way. They’re replacing some of the fairways with this sod that’s been developed by one of our Florida universities And it is absolutely beautiful… The county should be proud.”
Steven Miller:
Steven is a relative newcomer to the area, having moved here in 2021. He’s known for organizing the annual Chautauqua Movement Hickory Club Annual Tournament golf played solely with hickory clubs, played on the weekend of St. Patrick’s Day. This past year there were 21 entrants.
The Chautauqua movement was one of the first adult education programs started in 1874 in New York and sponsored by the Methodist Church in Defuniak Springs, The 1884 “Winter Chautaqua in the Land of Summer” was an eight week training program for Sunday School teachers based on four pillars, which are still used today. They are: Arts, Education, Recreation and Religion.
We asked Steve how he identified with the movement and how he played Hickory Club golf. He said, “The connection was largely based on the history of the community and one of the pillars is recreation.” Golf is surely that!
Woodrow “Woody” Virgil
Local resident, Woody Virgil boasts a 14 handicap and has been playing at Eagle Springs for more than 20 years. He fondly remembers watching golfers from his friend Mike Mara’s house near the 5th hole during high school. Woody participates in the Saturday “dogfight” tournaments and recently played in a threesome with Walton Braves High School Hall of Famers. While he’s birdied many holes, he’s still chasing that elusive hole-in-one. He praises the course’s recent upgrades, including Chef Justin, formerly from WaterColor Resort, who serves up his favorite pesto chicken pasta. At $50 per month, Woody finds the course incredibly affordable, playing about six times monthly. He highlights the course’s unique features, such as the uphill 2nd hole, the par 7 2nd and par 3 3rd hole combination, as well as the elevated greens on the par 5 18th. He’s also picked up local knowledge, knowing where to strategically miss shots.
He mentions his friend Virgil, an 83-year-old regular known for walking the course so he can continue collecting balls from the lake near the 12th-hole bridge. Overall, Woody loves the staff, the course layout, and the restaurant, enthusiastically celebrating Eagle Springs’ 100 years.
SoWal Life would like to congratulate Walton County for its extraordinary faith and vision as it committed 2 million to the renovation project (not without controversy). Eagle Springs Golf and Recreation Center is fast becoming the crown jewel of North Walton. Special thanks to staff writer, Paul Willms for putting this series together.
Author: Sowal Editor
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