When Nebraska rancher and publishing magnate Tom Peed and the youngest of his three sons, Zach, purchased the Dormie Club outside Pinehurst, North Carolina, in 2017, they did more than simply add to their portfolio of golf clubs, which at that point totaled four.
The deal, which included a superb Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw course as well as 1,000 acres of land, also led to the establishment of a national association of private destination clubs. In addition to having highly valued layouts, they would also provide members and their guests with first-rate accommodations and the sort of amenities one would expect at such a place, from food and beverage offerings to fully stocked golf shops.
Dubbed the Dormie Network, in large part because the Peeds liked the appellation and all it evoked, the group now has six clubs. It includes another Coore-Crenshaw gem (Hidden Creek on the Jersey Shore), a pair of Tom Fazio layouts (Briggs Ranch in San Antonio, Texas, and Victoria National in Indiana), the Arnold Palmer desig...