Charles Fatjo moved his family to Lake Oconee from New York City, and the move started with a golf trip that got rained out. Lake Oconee Life reports that when he went looking for a simulator to practice on, he couldn't find a public one, so he decided to build his own. His venue, Tee Box Social, is listed to open on Scott Road in mid-to-late November. Two months earlier, Tee Time 44 opened on Highway 44.
For Cuscowilla golfers, the timing is good. One indoor room is already open on the Putnam County side of the lake and a second is on the way, both ahead of a spring when the Coore and Crenshaw course will be out of play. Tee Time 44 is built around a kitchen, a bar and lessons, and Tee Box Social is built around practice, leagues and family sports. Together they cover what a clubhouse usually handles on its own: dinner after a round, a lesson, a league night, and somewhere for the kids to go.
The Bobcats Are Moving to Harbor Club
In its 2026-27 golf schedule release, Georgia College & State University says its annual Bobcat Invitational, set for March 15 and 16, will be played at Harbor Club this season, because "the usual location - The Golf Club at Cuscowilla - being closed for course renovations next spring."
The Golf Club at Cuscowilla was designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. Regular players know its spring routine well, and a renovation interrupts that routine. The months before and during the work are also when a simulator bay goes from a rainy-day backup to the main way to keep your swing in shape. The new venues happen to fill exactly that gap.
Tee Time 44 Is a Restaurant With Golf Bays
Tee Time 44 is at 1027 Highway 44, Suite 400, in Eatonton, across the road from Goodwill. Bryan and Amy Pulliam held their ribbon-cutting on September 10 with the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce. The family team also includes their daughter and son-in-law, Anna Kate and Cole Bennett.
Food and drink were part of the plan from the beginning. "With this kind of golf venue, it's very beneficial to have a bar as well as a restaurant," Bryan Pulliam told The Eatonton Messenger. Executive Chef Brett Riccardi runs the kitchen. According to Tee Time 44's opening announcement, he spent 20 of his 30-plus years in the business as a food and beverage director at golf and country clubs. The menu sticks to elevated comfort food, with a Wagyu smash burger and Cajun chicken and shrimp pasta among the signature dishes.
On the golf side, the venue lists eight Full Swing simulator bays. Lessons come from Cole Bennett, the director of golf operations, along with Mark Gunthorpe and Lee Miller, all three certified through the GOLFZON Leadbetter Academy. The Messenger describes a dedicated coaching bay where cameras track the swing, weight transfer and ground force. With the course closed, that bay is probably the most useful thing in the building for a Cuscowilla regular. It gives you somewhere to work on a swing change while the course itself is out of play.
No membership is required. Bay prices change by day of the week and time of day, and bookings go through the venue's online portal. The Messenger's opening coverage listed hours of 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and noon to 11 p.m. on Sunday. Those late weekend hours give it the long Saturday night a clubhouse grill offers.
Tee Box Social Is Built for Practice and Leagues
Tee Box Social sits at 162 Scott Road in Eatonton, in the space LO Cheer used to occupy. Lake Oconee Life lists five golf simulator bays, open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week, plus 13 other sports and a dedicated party room. The non-golf options include hockey, soccer, basketball and football, along with group games like zombie dodgeball and ski ball. Fatjo is also working with local schools, Gatewood among them, to make it a gathering place for families.
The pricing is built around regular visits. The same listing shows walk-in rates of $40 per hour per player off-peak and $50 at peak. It also lists founding memberships capped at the first 75 members, with the rate locked in permanently:
- Player: $69 a month, regularly $89
- Unlimited: $99 a month, regularly $129
- Family: $169 a month, regularly $199
Founding members get a bag tag, their name on a Founders Wall, and early booking for up to two future reservations. Leagues and tournaments start after opening: men's, women's, partner and co-ed leagues, youth events including a girls' golf league, and long drive and closest-to-the-pin contests. For a golfer who expects to spend the whole spring indoors, a weekly league is the closest thing to a standing tee time.
Dinner on Scott Road Comes From Next Door
Tee Box Social has no kitchen. Lake Oconee Life says it is partnering with local food trucks, and guests can order from Bruzze Brewing across the street. Bruzze is a brewery at 170 Scott Road, Suite 2, serving its own beers.
Bruzze's hours shape the evening at Tee Box Social. According to Bruzze Brewing's contact page, it is closed Monday and Tuesday, open 3 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 3 to 10 p.m. Friday, noon to 9 p.m. Saturday, and 1 to 7 p.m. Sunday. That means a Monday or Tuesday session at Tee Box Social depends on whichever food truck is parked outside, and on Sundays the brewery closes two hours before the bays do.
Tee Time 44 serves its full menu in the same room as the bays, so dinner never depends on another business's hours. This difference matters more than bay counts or prices when you choose between the two.
Choosing a Room for the Night
| Tee Time 44 | Tee Box Social | |
|---|---|---|
| Address | 1027 Highway 44, Suite 400 | 162 Scott Road |
| Golf bays | Eight Full Swing bays plus coaching | Five simulator bays |
| Food | Full restaurant and bar, Chef Brett Riccardi | Food trucks, ordering from Bruzze Brewing |
| Hours | Mon-Thu 9-9, Fri-Sat 9-11, Sun noon-11 | 9-9 daily |
| Pricing | Varies by day and time, booked online | $40 off-peak, $50 peak, per player per hour |
| Beyond golf | Simulator games including soccer, baseball and basketball; child-sized clubs | 13 sports, party room, youth and girls' golf league |
Going by those details, here's how a few common evenings match up:
- Dinner and nine holes with friends on a Friday: Tee Time 44, which has the kitchen and stays open until 11 p.m. on weekends.
- A swing change before the course reopens: Tee Time 44's coaching bay, with its camera-based swing analysis.
- A weekly game with the same three players: Tee Box Social's leagues, once they launch.
- Grandchildren visiting on a wet weekend: Tee Box Social's non-golf sports and party room. Tee Time 44's child-sized clubs and simulator games work too, if everyone wants to eat in the same building.
- A Wednesday evening with a pint: Tee Box Social, with Bruzze's taproom open across the street from 3 p.m.
Highway 44 is busier on errand days now too. Publix opened its first Putnam County store on November 4 at 105 Lake Country Road, in Town Center at Lake Oconee. Bryan Pulliam told the Messenger that the Publix was "just pure, dumb luck," since the family had no idea it was coming when they bought the Tee Time 44 site. For a Cuscowilla household, that puts a grocery run and an hour in a simulator bay on the same short trip up the corridor.
Spring around Cuscowilla will look different with the course closed for renovation. If you're thinking about how your home and your plans fit around next year at the club, Jennifer Vaughan and our team are glad to talk it through at our Village Park market center. Love Where You Live. Let's Get Started.