In 2021, Welk Resort Group entered into an agreement to be acquired by Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation for $430 million. Exclusive golf course information, specifications and golf course details at Welk Resort - Fountains. The group is currently headed by Jon Fredricks, grandson of Lawrence Welk. 8975 Lawrence Welk Dr 96, Escondido, CA 92026 210,000 MLS NDP2111212 Near the Golf Course, Fabulous location - easy walk to Community Center, mail. Welk Resorts got its start in 1964 when beloved television bandleader Lawrence Welk bought a motel and nine-hole golf course north of San Diego. Ownership of the business has remained primarily with the Welk family, with seven family members and a former company president sharing 88 percent of ownership, along with 12 percent owned by employees through an employee stock ownership plan. ĭuring the 50 years since the company's formation, the company has developed five luxury resorts with over 1000 vacation ownership accommodations. As the initial property expanded, Larry Welk, a record company executive and Lawrence Welk's son, became the group's first CEO and guided the company into the timeshare business in the 1980s. After the entertainer staged one of his shows at the site, it gained in popularity for tourism, eventually growing to include a theater, more golf, and vacation homes.
The property included a golf course, motel, and mobile home community. Built on 600 acres of beautifully manicured grounds, the Welk Resort San Diego Fountains Golf Course measures over 4,000 yards from the tournament tee. As of 2015, the company has developed five properties in Cabo San Lucas, Lake Tahoe. Both courses stretch out across over 600 acres of lush, beautifully manicured terrain that incorporates both forests and wetlands. In 1964, Welk purchased 900 acres (360 ha) of mostly undeveloped land near Escondido, California, 20 miles (32.2 km) north of San Diego. It was founded in 1964 by television bandleader Lawrence Welk. The Welk Resort San Diego offers two 18-hole championship golf courses, the Oaks and the Fountain.