An island green is one of golf's most demanding design statements — and one of its most structurally unforgiving. Surrounded by water on all sides, the green's perimeter must resist constant hydrostatic pressure, wake from maintenance vessels, seasonal water level fluctuation, and the slow, relentless movement of Florida's sandy soil. When Nicklaus Design selected us for the bulkhead work at their Jupiter facility in 1999, the brief was simple: build it so it never needs to be rebuilt.

Mark assessed the site during the course's construction phase. The island green configuration required a continuous timber bulkhead around the full perimeter — no breaks, no sections with different structural logic. Every timber, every deadman anchor, every tie rod had to be engineered as part of a single unified wall that would hold through decades of Florida weather.

Southern Yellow Pine was selected for its density, nail-holding strength, and proven performance in Florida's freshwater and brackish conditions. All timber was CCA-treated to ground-contact standards — the specification standard of the era, and still among the most durable treatment systems for timber bulkhead applications.

The bulkhead has been in continuous service since 1999. Now over 25 years standing, it remains structurally sound — a testament to proper specification, correct treatment, and construction that didn't cut corners on the details no one would ever see once the green was sodded.