If you've walked or biked the perimeter of the course this spring or summer, you've probably noticed them: small plastic or metal tags fastened to tree trunks along the fairways, scattered with no obvious pattern, some on mature pines, some on smaller ornamentals near the cart paths. Neighbors on Doral, Augusta, Pebble Beach and St. Andrews have been asking about them for months. The answer, once you connect it to what's already been reported about the property, tells you more about the timeline for change here than any press release has so far.
The tags are a tree survey. According to a notice posted by the Lely Golf Estates HOA on May 19, 2026, the community had received "several inquiries about the trees that have recently been marked throughout the course," and the explanation from the new ownership was straightforward: the markings are part of a required process to identify and document tree species on the property, with roughly 740 species identified so far. Some trees may eventually be removed. The stated intent is to relocate what can reasonably be moved rather than clear it outright.
That single line in an HOA update is the most concrete thing anyone living around this course has gotten in months about how far along the transformation of Hibiscus Golf Club actually is.
What the tags are attached to
Back up to March 6, 2026. That's the date the more than 160-acre property at 5375 Hibiscus Drive, on the south side of Rattlesnake Hammock Road, changed hands. Nassif Golf Ventures LLC sold it for $28 million to a new entity called The Lantern Club LLC. The buyer is managed by Naples-based WBDC Inc., or Winfield Building & Development Co., operated by Clay Winfield, who has had ties since 2014 to ownership of The Club at the Strand, a private golf club in North Naples.
The plan, laid out by spokesman Robert Morris, a Naples resident, is to convert the public course into an invitation-only private club. Morris framed it this way when the sale was announced: "The Hibiscus golf course was built in 1969, 57 years ago, and our team is bringing a fresh new quality facility to the town of Naples." He added that the ownership group expects membership to fill within twelve months of opening, and that "the surrounding area and homeowners near our property will benefit once the facility is completed."
The build-out itself is being handled by specialists with real Naples pedigree. MHK Architecture of Naples is designing a new clubhouse and six adjoining cottages. The golf course redesign belongs to Fry/Straka Global Golf Course Design, the Ohio-based firm whose Naples-area portfolio includes Calusa Pines Golf Club, Naples National Golf Club and The Quarry. This isn't a budget rebuild. A November 2025 FAQ document circulated by Winfield put the non-refundable initiation fee at a starting point of $250,000. Golf carts will be restricted on the finished course, with a caddie program and walking encouraged instead, medical exemptions carved out for anyone who needs them.
What actually changes for you, and when
For anyone who plays Hibiscus today, or simply eats at the clubhouse restaurant, the practical countdown matters more than the design specs. Here's where things stand:
- The public course and its restaurant, Brooks Bar & Grill, are expected to keep operating through the end of April 2027, according to Morris.
- Brooks signed a long-term lease when it opened in June 2025, taking over the clubhouse space previously occupied by Mulligan's, then Erin's Isle, then Bogey's Bar & Grill. Owner Todd Brooks, who also runs Brooks Burgers locations in downtown Naples and North Naples, expects to close when the public course does, after less than two years in business.
- The new clubhouse is not planning to offer regular dinner service. Whatever casual, walk-in dining exists at Hibiscus today goes away with the conversion, even for members of the future private club.
What nobody has nailed down publicly is how long the construction phase runs after that. Reporting on the sale, citing language from Fry/Straka itself, points to the finished club being operational by late 2028. That's the only completion estimate tied to the firm actually designing the course, and it's the one worth weighing more heavily than anything else circulating. It's also a longer runway than most residents seem to be assuming.
Why the tags matter more than the press release did
Tree documentation of this kind, identifying and cataloging species across a 160-acre parcel, is typically one of the early, unglamorous steps that has to happen before a property owner can apply for the vegetation removal and site work permits Collier County requires for a project of this scale. It's not landscaping. It's paperwork made physical.
Back in March, Morris told reporters his team was "currently working closely with the county on the permitting requirements needed to break ground and start construction." That was a conditional statement, permitting in progress, nothing visible yet. The tags on the trunks are the first sign that the conditional has started resolving into something you can actually see from your own street. The county paperwork behind a project this size does not move quickly, and a full species inventory across 160 acres is usually one of the earlier steps in that process, not one of the last.
For residents in the neighborhoods built around this course, streets literally named for Augusta, Doral, Pebble Beach, Pinehurst and St. Andrews in a nod to the game itself, that's the useful takeaway. Not a definitive closing date, because the only firm one on record is Hibiscus and Brooks Bar & Grill staying open through the end of April 2027. Just a clearer read on where things stand: the surveys are underway, the design team is locked in, and the club now expected to open by late 2028 has moved from an announcement to a documented, on-site process.
If you've been meaning to play a round before the layout changes for good, or just wanted an answer for what those little tags mean the next time you're driving past, that's the honest state of things as of this writing.
For homeowners in this pocket of East Naples who are watching the property shift and wondering what it means for the neighborhood around them long term, our team at Ryan Batey tracks these changes closely because they shape the daily experience of living here, not just the resale math. If you'd like a clearer read on how this transition might affect your property's position in the market, reach out any time, or get your instant home valuation to see where things stand today.
