“ He wanted several things— affordability, friendly employees, hospitality extended to all guests, and a really different kind of golf course. He got everything he wanted.”
Member Clubs
MEADOWS FARMS GOLF COURSE leading to a green surrounded by an outfield fence and a warning track, with the tee sitting behind home plate.
There’ s a breathtaking waterfall hole, demanding an uphill shot to a green located above the cascading water. One hole has a row of church pew bunkers down one side of the fairway. Several other bunkers feature wooden islands in the middle, so a ball could land on the lumber and bounce crazily any which way. There are also several island greens.
Of course, the pièce de résistance is the par-6 No. 12. And no, that’ s not a typographical error. It really is a par 6 that measures 841 yards, the longest hole in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records. Three ponds are strategically located along the way, forcing several knee-knocking shots over water leading up to the green. Ball retrievers are a popular item for sale in the pro shop.
“ Farmer wanted something that was truly unique,” said Shirley Lewis, Meadows’ sister-in-law, who has worked in some capacity at the course since it opened in 1993.“ He really didn’ t get serious about the game until his 50s because he was always so busy with his business, he never really had time. He and my husband, Bob, played together back then, but when they went to a nearby course, they felt like they weren’ t being treated very well, almost like they weren’ t really welcome.
“ That’ s pretty much when Farmer decided to build his own course. He wanted several things— affordability, friendly employees, hospitality extended to all guests, and a really different kind of golf course. He got everything he wanted.”
A native of West Virginia, Meadows, now 82, struck it rich, literally from the ground up. In order to supplement his teacher salary, he and his wife, Betty, a school librarian, began buying wholesale tomatoes and selling them on Northern Virginia street corners and parking lots back in the 1960s. He also coached high school football, and many of his players earned extra spending money by helping he and his wife.
Then it was selling apples, cider and other produce out of a makeshift farm stand before coming up with a better idea.
Bill Meadows began opening nurseries around the Washington D. C. area, most of them in Virginia, with several in Maryland and one in his native West Virginia. At one point, there were 23 in all, comprising a multimillion-dollar juggernaut that remains one of the largest independent nursery chains in the country.
Meadows was also involved in other farming ventures, including the cattle business. In fact, when he first opened his golf course, he purposely positioned a“ bullpen” on the property, not far from the clubhouse, where he kept several large, ornery bulls— quite the sight for city folks out for a round of golf in the country.
Ultimately, Meadows became a very wealthy man. He had his own car( for many years a Rolls Royce with a license plate that read, what else?“ FARMER.”) and a driver. He lived in a huge home on another farm about eight miles from the course he built, which he played throughout the years with Bob and Shirley Lewis, and had
“ He wanted several things— affordability, friendly employees, hospitality extended to all guests, and a really different kind of golf course. He got everything he wanted.”
— SHIRLEY LEWIS, Meadows’ sister-in-law
Don’ t try to hit a home run on the 172-yard par-3 baseball hole.
an office built for both he and Betty above the clubhouse. In recent years, his son, Jay, ran the nursery business from its corporate headquarters in Chantilly.
Then, about four years ago Farmer’ s health began to deteriorate. Early Alzheimer’ s turned into the full-blown version. He now lives in a nursing home in Freder-
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