​In 1973, Riverbend featured a grand opening event. The original plans was to build Riverbend on a 182 acre site along the Loxahatchee River.  Each residence would offer a view of the water or the golf course.  According to Karl A. Kendall, Riverbend’s “basic concept was a rustic blend of shelter for man into the natural environment of a green riverfront forest”.  The Fazio design would compose of 1500 units composed of garden units and townhouses including the adjoining Little Club and a pro shop.  There would be three club houses   With the growing popularity of tennis, plans were drawn up for 20 courts and a tournament viewing stand. Additionally, three swimming pools, bike paths, shuffleboard, gun equipment and a clubhouse complex that would include a marina.

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The architecture team of George and Tom Fazio, were selected to design the course.  They had already shown their expertise with Kuilima Hotel and Country Club located in Hawaii, Little Club in Tequesta and Jupiter Hills, Jupiter FL. Tom was a strong believer in an executive style course that would appeal to senior citizens in the range of par 60-65. Having valuable experience designing Jupiter Hills, Tom constructed ponds at strategic spots and no “pushover” Par 3 or Par 4 holes. Except for the Par 5 hole 17, all the Par 4 holes area dogleg variety. Greens were built with same formula of other Tequesta clubs.   

Now that the golf course was completed, the management felt that it needed the services of a “big name” golf professional to represent the club on tour and a qualified resident pro. They did not have to look very far because Gardner Dickinson’s residence was within a few miles.

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Gardner Dickinson was a talented American professional golfer, known for remarkable career during the 1960s and 1970s. Born on June 6, 1931, in Mount Kisco, New York, he turned professional in 1956 and went on to win a total of five PGA events. Dickinson was recognized not only for his skill on the course but also for his contributions to the game, including his role in the development of golf instruction. He left a lasting impact on the sport and is remembered as a respected figure in the golfing community.

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By 1973, Dickinson was known wherever golf was played and was still a contender on tour. He was a recent member of the Ryder Cup team (1967 and 1971) and beat Jack Nicklaus in a playoff a few years back.  He was quite happy to accept the post and selection as resident professional.

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In early December 1973, they celebrated a grand opening event called the Slater-Berst Inaugural. In attendance were “Buck” Kinniard, popular TV sportscaster on Channel 5, Bud Harvey, PGA Magazine editor, Tom Fazio and Gardner Dickinson.

Gardner was born in Dothan AL, won a national golf championships as an LSU Tiger, turned professional golf in 1952, and proceeded to win 7 professional tournaments, one in a playoff against Nicklaus. He died as a Tequesta resident in 1998 at the age of 70. He continues to hold the best record in Ryder Cup matches 9-1-0 and was 5-0 when partnering with Arnolf Palmer. His best finish in a major was T-5 in the 1965 PGA. Gardner went on the found the Senior Tour which is now called the Champions Tour. He was voted into the Palm Beach County Hall of Fame in 2004. To learn more about Gardner, go to the Wikipedia link below.