The piece of property in Brooksville, Florida, where Cabot Citrus Farms is located is absolutely stunning. The 1200-acre parcel previously hosted golfers across two Tom Fazio layouts collectively known as World Woods. It was built for golf. And fun to play. But in need of a makeover.

The dramatic courses dotted with old growth Oaks and lots of sand underneath had seen their best days, but knowledgable players from everywhere – like one of our playing partners Greg – sought them out.

“I remember playing in a really big amateur tournament once,” he beamed walking to the first tee.

Personally, I only played World Woods once, voyaging north from Tampa in my younger years for a 36-hole day before flying out that evening. (I’m pretty sure I slept on that flight.) But World Woods didn’t see enough play to keep the business afloat in the lean years for golf before the pandemic kicked into gear.

Evidently, there was grass growing in the bunkers and greens that were more packed mud than grass towards the end.

Enter Cabot, who burst into the golf resort scene after developing one of the most talked-about resorts in the world in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. The Cabot brand has since expanded to Scotland, British Columbia, and the island of St. Lucia. 

An American project or acquisition (in this case, both) was inevitable. And from the minute Cabot announced the purchase of World Woods and rebranded it as Cabot Citrus Farms, the buzz has been building.

Golf architect Kyle Franz was selected to build the first 18-hole layout, called The Karoo, on much of the land previously occupied by the Pine Barrens 18 of World Woods. Not surprisingly, my playing partner Greg from nearby Hermosa Beach reminded me of when a hole in the existing layout was included in the current routing and where things were the most different. He was visibly excited to see the way things have evolved, yet a tinge of nostalgia for one of his favorites lingered.