Across a 10-mile stretch of Martin County, Florida, west of the sleepy beach town of Hobe Sound and just north of Jupiter, investors are building or preparing to build eight private upscale courses at five properties. Another club, McArthur, has added a second course that will open this fall. The plans total 162 new golf holes, not counting several short par-3 and regulation-length practice courses.

What exactly is happening in Martin County, and to a lesser extent adjacent Palm Beach County, that’s so attractive to golf’s highest rollers and prognosticators? Golf Digest Architecture Editor Derek Duncan has the full story on the south Florida golf boom.