Tiger Woods to give Brookville’s Tam O’Shanter a second shot

Tiger Woods conquered Bethpage Black in 2002. Now he gets to draw up a Long Island course of his own.

Woods and his firm, TGR Design, will design an 18-hole private course at the former Tam O’Shanter Country Club in Brookville, according to an announcement from The Armchair Collective, the property’s new owner.

“I have great memories of competing on Long Island, especially at Bethpage,” Woods said in a statement announcing the project. The 15-time major champion won the 2002 U.S. Open there.

The redevelopment would include a new clubhouse, a golf performance center, practice facilities and cottages for members and their guests. Plans also call for a 20,000-square-foot putting green inspired by the Himalayas putting course at St. Andrews in Scotland, according to Golf Course Architecture.

The course will be designed for walking, with wide fairways that give golfers multiple ways to play each hole, according to TGR Design’s project page. The firm plans to preserve mature trees and incorporate native fescue into the layout.

The design also calls for reusing farm buildings on the property. The historic milk barn would serve as a rest stop overlooking the putting course and short-game area, while another barn would be converted into overnight accommodations for members and guests, according to TGR Design.

The property changed hands in 2019, and by September 2020 a proposal to divide the golf course into 27 residential lots was before the Nassau County Planning Commission.

Tam O’Shanter closed in 2021. The housing plan fell through after arsenic was found in the topsoil, Newsday reported.

The Village of Brookville amended its zoning code in 2025 to allow for-profit private golf clubs.

The Armchair Collective bought the 148-acre property in September. Mayor Daniel Serota told Newsday the developer still needs to file for permits.

Site preparation and demolition are underway, with course construction expected to begin in 2027, according to Golf Course Architecture.

The Armchair Collective expects to release the club’s name and conceptual renderings in early 2027.

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Top: Tam O’Shanter opened in 1962 and quickly became one of Long Island’s premier private country clubs. The club closed in 2021 after the property was sold. (Credit; GLI/Andrew Rappaport, file)