Twin Oaks building new pro shop, leasing part to MSU

Contractors are expanding the pro shop at Twin Oaks Country Club, which yesterday approved a lease agreement with Missouri State University.

Under the agreement, the MSU men’s and women’s Bears golf teams would lease roughly 1,400 square feet - with 638 square feet of common space - at the new 10,000-square-foot center, 1020 E. Republic Road. With architectural work by H Design Group LLC, Republic-based Varsity Contractors Inc. broke ground in March and plans to complete the center in November, said Madeline Brown, marketing and client relations coordinator for H Design Group. The price of the project is undisclosed.

The center is going up on the site of Twin Oaks’ former pro shop, which has been demolished, Brown said. Beyond the pro shop, features of the center include four hitting bays, a putting green, team lounge, coaches’ offices and storage for the MSU teams. Three of the hitting bays would be designated for university teams.

The lease agreement was approved yesterday by the boards of Twin Oaks and MSU.

MSU agreed to a 15-year lease, with $66,000 to be paid this year for infill work and annual rent of $21,000 each year after, according to the university board’s June 15 agenda. Philanthropist Bobby Allison donated an undisclosed amount to Twin Oaks and MSU for the project.

The teams also would have access to the country club’s outdoor golf course, according to an MSU news release.

"This facility and agreement will be a game changer for our men’s and women’s golf programs,” MSU Director of Athletics Kyle Moats said in the release. “It not only will greatly enhance our recruiting efforts, but it also will be a great teaching facility for our teams.”

With 600 members, Twin Oaks ranked third on Springfield Business Journal’s recently published list of the area’s largest private and semiprivate country clubs.