Groundbreaking for the nation's newest golf retreat will be conducted Thursday.

Guess where it's happening, folks? How about right here.

In a development that few if any area golfers or nongolfers could have envisioned, construction begins this week on Ballyhack, a highly exclusive, ultra-private golf club being built in Roanoke County's Mount Pleasant area. The facility, carrying an expected $15 million pricetag, will be situated on a 370-acre tract off Pitzer Road that for years has been known as the Saul Family Farm.

A national golf retreat for corporate executives and other movers and shakers of the business world? In Roanoke?

Richmond-based golf architect Lester George said the links-style, par-72 course -- which he's spent the past year designing on "one of the greatest parcels of land one could ever find" -- will be nothing short of a home run.

"It's awesome," George said. "The golf course is going to be magnificent."

With a design reminiscent of the Scottish highlands, the 190-acre course will boast 50-to-70-foot elevation changes and old-style, gouged-out, roughed-edged bunkers. Two holes will share a green. The putting surfaces will average 8,000 square feet, allowing golfers to play a variety of different approach shots.

"It's got kind of a little highland wetland up there on the front nine, and the back nine has got some stream channels and rock outcroppings," George said. "It's got all kinds of cool stuff going on."

It better have. The golf course has to be a big star for Ballyhack to succeed. The club model calls for only 60 local and 200 national members. Fully refundable membership deposits run from $40,000 to $130,000, with annual dues from $2,500 to $10,000. All of those numbers vary depending on a member's location and status.

"A terrific golf course is what makes the draw," said Roanoke native Jonathan Ireland, the club's director of golf operations. "The property is just absolutely breathtaking. I will tell you this: We'll have no problem getting 60 [local members]. We already have approximately half of that number subscribed."

Not your basic club

How unique will Ballyhack be? George has your answer.

"It's the first facility of its kind in Virginia ... shoot, I think this one is easily the first of its kind this side of the Mississippi River," he said. "If there is another one, I'm not sure I know about it or it's probably not the same kind of format. There's probably only a handful of established ones like this in the U.S."

The short list is topped by Sand Hills Golf Club, the No. 1-ranked Modern Golf Course in America located in remote Mullen, Neb. Sutton Bay Golf Club, positioned in tiny Agar, S.D., is another prime example of the unique model fitted to attract affluent executive types who yearn to escape the business world at times and flee to a secluded golf getaway.

Bill Kubly knows the deal. The CEO of Landscapes Unlimited, a course developer business based in Lincoln, Neb., is an ownership partner in Sand Hills, plus his company built and developed Sutton Bay.

Kubly has built and developed approximately 10 golf courses designed by George, including Richmond's Kinloch Golf Club, which opened in 2001 and is now rated the country's ninth-best Modern Golf Course. When George invited him two years ago at a golf industry show to come take a look at the Saul Farm property, Kubly was immediately awestruck.

"The minute Bill stepped on it he said, 'Lester, we've got to do this like Sutton Bay ... and if you do it that way I'll be your partner," George recalled. "All I had to say was 'done.'

"That convinced me this would work. Bill Kubly has enough experience to know that."

Kubly is confident Ballyhack can be the East Coast's answer to Sand Hills and Sutton Bay, which are located in desolate midwestern outposts that make Roanoke look huge.

"People are tired of having to buy a residential lot at a remote destination ... with a real-estate driven golf course, but they do want to belong to a getaway club," Kubly said.

Ireland said the plan calls for the construction of 15 four-bedroom cottages that will house members and their guests.

A golf hideaway

Unlike what they may currently face at their hometown country club, Ballyhack members won't ever have to fret over securing a tee time, Ireland noted.

"A busy day will probably be about 50 golfers," said Ireland, who left his job as head professional at Roanoke Country Club in January 2006 to join the Ballyhack group.

"The idea will be that it's your own golf course when you come out and play here. You'll really feel like you have the whole property all to yourself and your guests."

George said the model of the exclusive golf retreat is becoming more tempting for those who can afford a princely pricetag.

"It's what corporate golf wants," he said. "They don't need a lot of campus activity, so to speak. When you get to Sutton Bay or Sand Hills, you never leave the property."

Unlike Sand Hills and Sutton Bay, Ballyhack's members won't be stuck in the middle of a veritable Timbuktu. It's a 10-minute drive to downtown Roanoke and 15 minutes to Roanoke Regional Airport.

"I had to drive four hours to Sand Hills after flying into Denver," George said. "With our place, you'll still have the feel of being in a secluded, remote area, but you can hop in the car and find anything you want in a matter of minutes.

"I have a tendency to get a little bit bored if it's sleep, eat, and play golf. I always thought those places were unique and fun to do, but I couldn't take a steady diet of it. I mean I couldn't do it for a week."

Should they grow tired of chasing a little dimpled ball around the rolling hills, Ballyhack's clientele will have other sporting options at their disposal. While it won't be an "on-campus" activity, provisions are in place to cater to those who may want to do some hunting and fishing on their Roanoke getaway.

"We will have ties to a local preserve for deer and turkey hunting," Ireland said. "We will have our own fishing vessel and boat captain at Smith Mountain Lake, which has some of the best fresh-water striper fishing in the world. And there are 2,000 miles of trout streams in the area."

"Just no guns on the golf course," George said, laughing.

Will it work?

Can Roanoke expect to be among the nation's top golf destinations in a few years?

George, Kubly, and Ireland are certainly buying it. So are a couple of the most recognizable names in Virginia sports history -- Richmond-based amateur golf icon Vinny Giles and Virginia Tech football coach Frank Beamer.

"When Bill Kubly and Lester George first took me to the Ballyhack site, I knew a unique golf course could be designed and built there. I was flattered to be included and can't wait to play it," said Giles, the 1972 U.S. Amateur and 1975 British Am champion.

Giles, 64, who has won a record seven State Amateur crowns, is serving as a consultant in the project.

Beamer, an avid golfer, was so impressed he joined the ownership group three months ago.

"Having Frank on board is really fun for us," George said. "He really understands that we want him to be able to come there and be Frank. This is the kind of place that we find a lot of these celebrities, for lack of a better term. They don't have to flip the 'on' switch here. He can come here and just be himself, bring his coaches, friends, family and just be himself."