With an international reputation for providing stunning golf escapes and luxury travel experiences, there were enormous expectations when the Cabot Collection announced its first United States location in 2021.
And Cabot didn’t back away from a challenge, going all in by selecting a property in Florida, arguably one of the most competitive states in the country when it comes to top-notch golf destinations.
Cabot Citrus Farms, north of Tampa in an area known as the Nature Coast, opened in January 2025 with a total makeover of what was once World Woods Golf Club, 36 holes of which were designed by Tom Fazio in the 1990s.
“We’re different than probably your traditional Florida location, and what I mean by that is it has a ton of undulation,” says Cabot Citrus Farms general manager David Bennett. “It has oak trees and pine trees — it really feels like you’re more in South Carolina or even North Carolina with all of the elevation changes and the topography of the land.
“I don’t want to knock any other Florida golf courses but a lot of them are kind of artificially made. Our courses naturally lay with the land and that’s what separates Citrus Farms from probably all their golf destinations in Florida … and we’ve got a great architect.”
While Cabot ownership was familiar with golf course architect Kyle Franz, who worked under Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw a decade ago on the world renowned Cabot Links in Canada, his name is not widely known among casual golfers.
The decision to entrust the upstart Franz, who had previously executed major restoration and renovation work around the world for several Hall of Fame architects but had yet to secure a solo job, with two golf courses may have been viewed as a calculated risk.
No one is questioning the choice now as the Karoo Course has been named the best new public course in the United States in 2025 by Sports Illustrated.
“It was great to work on a beautiful sandy piece of ground in Florida,” said Franz, noting that the sand on the property went as deep as 50 feet in some locations. “It was almost like working at home in Pinehurst, only it was in central Florida. I’m really happy with the design. We tried to do something that was very classically oriented but also pushed the envelope in some cool, different directions.”
“Cool” items such as split fairways to provide golfers multiple routes to the hole, sweeping sand features and large greens with lots of contour.
“I have people come up to me all the time in airports or restaurants and tell me there’s like this cult group of people who absolutely love the Cabot Citrus Farms Karoo Course, and how wild and funky it is,” Franz says. “It has developed kind of a very similar sort of cult following that Tobacco Road has north of Pinehurst.”
“What is so interesting about Kyle’s design on Karoo is the different ways it can play — it’s truly kind of adventure golf where every day there is so much variety,” Bennett adds. “There is unbelievable sloping to the massive greens. Kyle’s mind is so creative that he sees things that others don’t. With the unique design it can take golfers a few laps around to be able to see it all — and you probably won’t even see it all after a couple rounds. Over time the golf course is going to just continue to evolve in people’s minds and they are going to want to come back and play it over and over again.”
The second 18-hole course is called the Roost, which is a creative collaboration between Franz, Ran Morrissett, Rod Whitman and Mike Nuzzo. Its 50-foot elevation changes at several spots on the course are unique to the relatively flat Sunshine State.
“It has some pretty intense topography for a Florida course,” Franz says.
An 18-hole round of golf in peak season, which runs from Nov. 1 to late April, costs $280, with a new clubhouse, food offerings and ample luxury lodging now on site.
“There’s some familiarity with the Cabot brand, but obviously when you break into the U.S. market it’s a whole different animal,” Bennett says. “What separates Cabot Citrus Farms from any other place is just kind of the laid back nature, great hospitality and more of an intimate feel. And the other difference between us and some other larger Florida resorts is we’re a walking village. It’s very quaint. Everything takes off from one centralized location so you don’t have to get into a car, or you don’t have to necessarily even get in a golf cart if you don’t want to. I think that’s something that is unique.”
In addition to the two visually stimulating 18-hole layouts, Cabot Citrus Farms also has The Squeeze, a 10-hole course where Nuzzo drew inspiration from the world’s best short par-4 holes, an 11-hole par-3 course called the Wedge, and a nearly two-acre putting course.
“We have everything from a traditional golf experience to a course to settle a bet, or a dramatic 45-minute par-3 experience,” Bennett says. “Cabot ownership has been eyeing this property for a long time, and unfortunately the two golf courses that were here were pretty far in disrepair. So, it made sense to reimagine the whole property, and that’s what ended up happening. People have come back after playing the World Woods courses and are blown away by dramatic change with the property.”
One of the resort’s game changers was when the Suncoast Parkway from Tampa to Cabot Citrus Farms was opened in 2022. The addition removed “remote” from the equation and now Cabot is roughly a 50-minute drive from the Tampa International Airport. In addition, world-renowned Clearwater Beach is about a 90-minute drive, as is Walt Disney World in Orlando.
Bennett says the resort will be expanding its amenities soon with a pool complex, a sporting club that includes shooting and ax throwing, and bass fishing.
“We’ll be rounding things out so for those who aren’t interested in playing golf 24 hours a day,” Bennett says.