Gulf Stream Golf Club
October 2025 Currents
President’s Message - Beau Delafield
Dear Fellow Members,
It is always an exciting time as we approach the opening of another season at Gulf Stream. Our dedicated staff and Committees have been hard at work over the summer preparing for your return with a variety of activities and events for you to enjoy. This newsletter highlights the plans and goals for the Committees for the 25/26 season.
I would like to thank our staff and our Committee Heads and Committee Members for all of their hard work behind the scenes to make sure that the 2025/ 2026 Season at GSGC is fantastic.
I hope everyone had a great summer and I look forward to seeing you at GSGC for Opening Weekend in November.
Best,
Beau Delafield
Green Committee - John Cornish, Chair
It has been another very busy and productive summer for Jason Tharp and his golf course maintenance crew. Major summer projects included the following:
Recaptured the Dyes’ original putting green sizes and shapes on holes 1 through 14 (not including 8 which was rebuilt a few years ago). You will recall that greens 15 through 18 were restored last summer.
Continued our initiative to provide seaside playability and aesthetics by moderately expanding coquina areas in a handful of areas between golf holes.
Regrassed areas of St. Augustine to Bermuda, mostly in the vicinity of greens and tees.
Installed a new seepage drainage system on the entirety of the 8th hole, and drainage additions on seven other holes.
Removed concrete cart paths on holes 9, 10, 13 and 16.
Removed cart paths by the 11th and 18th tees.
Selective removal of low growth and a small number of trees and bushes to recapture and improve sight lines and long views across the golf course.
Traditional amount of sandcapping (150 truckloads) but focused this year on areas that have been converted from St. Augustine to Bermuda, not been sandcapped before, and exhibit high salinity.
All of this work was suggested and designed by, and done in collaboration with, our golf course architect, Chris Lutzke, a long-time associate of Pete Dye. The vast majority of it was completed before August 1, so that there would be plenty of time for it to settle and grow in during the traditionally rainy months of August through October. Rainfall in August of this year was a bit less than last year, but September rainfall surpassed last year’s 14 inch record by several inches. The course is very wet now, but the new drainage system on the 8th hole is performing extremely well, and we are hopeful that the course will be in good shape for the opening on October 17.
Jason and his team remain highly focused on achieving our goal of constantly improving the appearance and playability of our seaside golf course and enhancing our members’ enjoyment of it. We are confident that upon arrival this fall members will be very pleased with the improved appearance of the course, and that after the rainy season finally ends we will all enjoy playing conditions as good as, if not better than, what was achieved last year.
Treasurers’ Report - Fritz Souder
Operating Performance & Reserves
From a financial standpoint, FY 2025 was an excellent year for GSGC. Operations concluded slightly ahead of breakeven, and all capital projects were completed on time and within budget. Overall, total reserves doubled year over year from $2 million to $4 million. This strong financial performance reflects both prudent management and continued member support.
2023/24 Financial Statement Audit
While it may not be widely known among members, in October 2024 our auditors presented GSGC with an unexpected challenge: the Club was required to produce a comprehensive Fixed Asset listing something that had not been requested in 35 years. Reconstructing a century of club assets was a significant undertaking. Fortunately, developing this Fixed Asset schedule from the ground up is a one-time effort; moving forward, it will simply need to be updated and maintained rather than rebuilt.
Our goal is to finalize the FY 2024 audit in the near future and share it with the membership. Once that is complete, we will turn our attention to the FY 2025 audit, with a target completion date of spring 2026.
A special thank-you goes to Tom Turbyfill, CFO, and his team for their exceptional dedication and hard work over the past year. Recreating 100 years of asset records while managing the Club’s day-to-day financial operations was truly a herculean effort. We are fortunate to have such a capable and committed team.
Membership Committee - Tim Sennatt, Chair
Last year we welcomed 12 new members to our Club, each featured in the 2025 Summer Book. Please take a moment to get to know this outstanding group, all of whom bring unique experiences and perspectives to our community. These members come from nine different states, reflecting the Club’s wide geographic reach and the vibrant community it creates.
Of special note, our new members for 2024-2025 included two under the age of 60, eight in their 60s and two over 70. This age mix is consistent with the patterns we’ve enjoyed over the past 15 years, helping create a balanced and lively community.
We are fortunate to have a wonderful group of candidates now under consideration, with several new introductions made over the summer. It is truly heartening to see such strong interest in joining our Club, and we are deeply grateful to our members for introducing friends and colleagues who share our values. Every new member adds to the warmth and character of our Club, helping to carry forward the traditions that have made this community such a special place for more than a century.
We are excited to continue welcoming new friends in the coming season.
Buildings and Properties Committee - Greg Comfort, Chair
As with every summer at Gulf Stream, there is considerable Club House maintenance work that is accomplished by the Facilities Staff led by Bob Emmett. As is typical every season, this work includes roof repairs, lighting repairs, floor refinishing, caulking and painting, furniture repairs, some building stucco replacement and HVAC maintenance in addition to a whole lot of miscellaneous items that needs to be addressed. Our 100-year-old Clubhouse needs constant attention, which our Facilities team does a great job of staying on top of. Additionally, there has been a significant amount of landscape trimming around the Clubhouse to address some of the overgrown areas.
Several maintenance items have also been addressed at our maintenance facility that have been long overdue. Under Jason Tharp’s direction, we have finished the concrete paving in the maintenance yard along with replacing the deteriorated asphalt paving at the driveways and cart entrance to the golf course east of Mark’s house, repainted the maintenance building, fixed and added some garage doors, addressed some electrical issues and added some landscaping. Additionally, we were able to redo a ceiling in Mark’s living room that had deteriorated.
We have been spending considerable time and effort working with Spina O’Rourke Architects and Tom Sheerer, the interior designer, to develop options for a possible Clubhouse renovation. There are a lot of things to consider as we go through this process and we are doing our best to come up with a design solution that is the best fit for Gulf Stream and its members. Obviously, cost is one of those considerations so we have been working with Mouw and Associates (a contractor who did our kitchen renovation and has done a lot of club work in the area) to look at pricing as we explore alternatives. Our goal is to be able to present the recommended renovation concept to the membership in early January.
We have also been spending some time to understand what the long-term needs of the maintenance facility are and are trying to identify some high-level budget numbers for that effort. This is not necessarily near-term work but having budget numbers will facilitate the Club’s future capital planning.
Lastly, I want to thank Carlos Routh who headed this committee for the last 6 years. He has accomplished a lot for the Club over those 6 years and has provided much assistance and guidance to me as I have transitioned into this role. I very much appreciate all his effort and help!
Golf Committee - Tom Steele, Chair
Once again, the 2025-26 golf season at Gulf Stream Golf Club offers an exciting array of golf activities for the membership. We will continue with our popular weekly events consisting of Ladies’, Men’s, and Couples games, which are always fun and offer great opportunities to meet and play with your fellow members.
Our schedule of events for our opening week:
November 7th – Opening Weekend Men’s Event
November 9th – Dye Cup Mixed Member-Member
November 10th – Ladies’ Welcome All Member-Member
November11th – Ladies’ 9-Hole event
November 11th – Men’s Tuesday event
November 13th – Mixed event
November 14th – Men’s Friday event
Other scheduled traditional events in January/February/March
January 13th & 14th Byers Cup
February 4th – Presidents Cup
March 5th - 7th Men’s Member/Guest
March 31st & April 1st Dixson Member/Guest
All of these events are coordinated and managed by our great Golf Professional Staff led by Mark Mielbrecht, along with Ryan, Jesse and Elena. Chuck and his staff make our experience seamless. We are also pleased that Fitness Expert, George Montoya, is available to help us get ready for the physical demands of golf.
Stay safe and we look forward to seeing you at Gulf Stream Golf Club.
Ladies Golf Committee - Suzanne Sennatt, Chair
Welcome to all Lady Golfers to the 2025-2026 Season at Gulf Stream Golf Club.
The 18 Hole Ladies meet on Mondays at 12:45 PM. We have fun and relaxed formats and it is a great way to connect with new and old friends. The 18 Hole ladies meet for lunch at 11:30 on the South terrace before golf.
Monday, November 10th will be a Scramble/Shamble format. Make your own foursome or call the golf shop for help with pairings.
The 9 Hole Lady Golfers meet on Tuesdays at 9:30 AM. Co-chairs Suzy Price and Whitney Jones have planned a great season. The 9 Hole group meets for lunch following golf on the terrace.
Other dates to note
January 2nd~Ladies Classic begins
January 28th~ Ladies Meet and Greet - Putting and Dinner
February 2nd~18 Hole Ladies Member Guest
February 17th~ 9 Hole Member Guest
March 11th~ All members Putting event
March 16th~ 18 Hole Ladies Member Guest
We look forward to a great season!
House Committee - Lisa Jankowski, Chair
Gulf Stream Golf Club looks forward to welcoming you back for the opening weekend party on November 8, and our opening speaker the next night, on November 9.
Chris Evert, who is celebrating the 50th anniversary of winning her first of six US open singles titles will be our guest, and our very own Mary Jo Fernandez will be moderating the discussion.
This season we hope to see even more of you as we are planning to add weekend breakfast, to our wonderful lunches and dinners. Please check the calendar for the dates that breakfast will be offered.
We are bringing back the popular Master Chorale of South Florida for our two candlelight dinners at Christmas time. Our very popular pop-up events are now on the calendar this year, including full moon dinners, as well as Sunday Socials, which bring all of us together in a very casual setting.
Karen Smith and our Speakers Committee have been busy working on adding great speakers this season, including a Washington Post columnist, a Hollywood Director, and two educators who will discuss civil discourse and leadership. Fox News Anchor Brett Baier returns for another dynamic speech on January 16th.
Our popular games continue as bridge kicks off the season with duplicate bridge on November 1, canasta starts on Friday, November 7 and backgammon continues on Wednesdays starting on November 12. Please check your calendars for the exceptions.
The annual Art Show returns on March 15 to display the work of our very talented members. Our Lunch and Learn lecture during Art Week will feature internationally renowned interior designer Marshall Watson, who just happens to be the younger brother of golfer Tom Watson. We hope to find out how he chose his professional path growing up in a golf oriented family.
The Spring Fling family night returns in early April followed by the Easter dinner buffet.
We look forward to the new season, and as we say goodbye to Kevin Bauer, we also are excited about new leadership under interim club manager, Morgan Arnold. With Morgan, we’ll have many new adventures to come, including possible future improvements to our historic Mizner clubhouse.
Food and Beverage Committee - Jay Turner, Chair
The Food and Beverage Committee is very much looking forward to the 25-26 season! With Chef James and Morgan having a season under their belts, we are excited about the progress, planning, and direction for the upcoming season.
Chef James has spent the summer doing R&D, meeting with purveyors, developing new menus, and recruiting and hiring his team for the upcoming season. Additionally, he attended the CMAA’s Chef Summit as part of his commitment to ongoing education and culinary excellence.
Morgan has been focused on recruiting and hiring his team, while also developing new ideas to elevate the member experience. He has been curating a refreshed selection of wines and planning engaging wine dinners for the upcoming season. In addition, he's working on creative, thoughtfully crafted mocktails to ensure there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Morgan will also be attending CMAA’s BMI Food & Wine Experience in late September to further inspire and refine these offerings.
By the time you read this you will have received the Activity Calendar and noticed some new offerings. Starting in late December, breakfast will be served on Saturdays and Sundays, with a special preview on Saturday, November 8th. Beginning in January, Sunday evenings will feature a mix of Gourmet Dinners and Sunday Socials. The Sunday Socials will be relaxed, casual gatherings on the Ocean Lawn, offering great food and a lively atmosphere.
We look forward to seeing you at the Club!
