Inverrary Country Club
Designed by Robert Trent Jones
History
Broward County in the late 1960s was a landscape of promise, and few developments captured that promise quite like Inverrary. The club opened its doors in 1970, built as the centerpiece of a sprawling residential community in Lauderhill that developer Nathan Rickles envisioned as a premier destination for South Florida living. Golf was not an amenity here so much as the organizing principle — the course came first, and the homes rose around it.
Robert Trent Jones, already the most sought-after name in American golf architecture by that point, took on the assignment at Inverrary. Jones had built his reputation on tournament-ready designs that could challenge the era’s best professionals while still accommodating a club membership, and Lauderhill’s flat Florida terrain gave him a blank canvas to impose that signature muscular style. His work here fit squarely within the wave of championship courses he was placing across the country during this period, lending the new development an immediate credibility.
That credibility paid off quickly. Inverrary became known to golf fans nationally as the host of the Jackie Gleason Inverrary Classic on the PGA Tour, bringing the club into the sport’s spotlight through the 1970s and cementing its place in Florida’s golf history. The tournament, and Gleason’s outsized personality as host, gave Inverrary a visibility that few private clubs of its era achieved, and that legacy remains part of the club’s identity today.
Playing Notes
With 36 holes on flat South Florida terrain, expect wide-open sightlines but constant exposure to wind, which becomes the real variable off the tee and into greens on both courses. Water comes into play often here, so club selection and honest yardage assessment matter more than raw distance — bailout areas exist, but they'll add strokes if you're not paying attention to pin position. The layout is walkable in terms of elevation, since there's essentially none, but carts are the norm given the size of the property and the pace expected between two full 18-hole loops. Bring extra golf balls for the lakes, sunscreen and water for the exposed stretches, and a game plan that favors staying below the hole on approach — these greens can be quick, and uphill putts are far more forgiving than what you'll face coming from above.