Florida May 2022 Trip

I know what your thinking Florida again?  Really?  Wasn't your last trip write up Florida?  Why don't you go someplace else?  Well this time I had a very good reason to make the relatively short trip down to Florida, golf course #2000.  I also made the mandatory stop at Streamsong as well as playing some very good courses in South Florida.

Everglades Club, biarritz par three 14th hole

The trip began, as most Florida trips do for me, at Streamsong Resort.  This was my 17th visit to Streamsong and I love the Red & Blue courses more every time I play them.  This time I teed it up on the Tom Doak designed Blue course.  One of my favorite courses that has one of my all time favorite holes: Top 18

Streamsong Blue Course, par four 4th hole

When I left for Florida I had played 1998 courses so I needed to play somewhere in Central Florida for #1999 before I headed to South Florida for the big 2000.  The course that was chosen was based on availability on a Sunday afternoon and really nothing else.  The Country Club of Sebring is a Ron Garl design that had one decent hole pictured below.

CC of Sebring, par four 12th hole

Day two of the trip began with golf course #2000, The Everglades Club in West Palm Beach.  I wrote a very long explanation of how Everglades came to be #2000 that I will not repeat here.  Check out my instagram or Facebook if you want the long explanation.  

Everglades Club, Punchbowl par three 8th hole

Everglades is a Brian Silva design that sits very near the property of an old Seth Raynor course.  Silva renovated the course in a Raynor theme and installed most of the Raynor templates.  

Everglades Club, the Redan par three 4th hole

I had an interested spectator for my birdie putt on 4.

Everglades is also in the top five of most interesting tee markers I have seen:

After my wonderful morning round at Everglades, I stayed in West Palm for a round at the Tom Fazio designed Emerald Dunes Club.  

Emerald Dunes Club, rear view of the par three 4th hole

Day two concluded with a quick trip around the par three St. Andrews Club in Delray Beach.  A Pete & Alice Dye design.  It features everything you like about Pete Dye designs yet is still very playable.

St. Andrews Club, par three 12th hole

Day three of the trip began in the Boca Raton area with a visit to Boca Rio Golf Club.  Recent host of an LPGA event, the course was originally designed by Robert Von Hagge in the 1960's.  A recent renovation by Ron Forse and Jim Nagle breathed new life into this design.  The course features well over 100 bunkers and I was very proud of the fact that I was only in three all day!

Boca Rio Golf Club, par three 3rd hole

I headed back to the West Palm area for my next round at Banyan Golf Club.  The course was originally designed by Joe Lee and was recently renovated by Kipp Schulltes.

Banyan Golf Club, par three 13th hole

Day three wrapped up with a visit to Sailfish Sands Golf course and their brand new reversible nine hole course designed by John Sanford.  I played the Black course with the Gold being the other option.

Sailfish Sand, Black course, par three 5th hole

The last day of my quick trip to Florida began in Stuart at Floridian National Golf Club.

Floridian, par three 2nd hole

Floridian, par three 8th hole

Floridian, short par four 17th hole

Before I began my long drive home, I checked out the par three course at Floridian, named the Harmon after it's designer, Butch Harmon.  Known to many of us as the #1 ranked teacher in golf for the past twenty years.  Harmon has a teaching school at Floridian and did a wonderful job creating a fun course on a very small and tight piece of property.

Floridian National, Harmon par three course, 8th hole

FLAGS

A Collection is Born

 

Sometimes there are happy accidents in life that turn into something very cool.  Such is the case for the above photo and the story behind it.  The ball markers you see are on the roof of our portable storage unit at work that we refer to as the bird cage.  

We store it in the cart barn over night and wheel it out to the bag drop every morning.  One day a few months ago, one of our staff members put a couple random plastic ball markers on the roof of the bird cage.  The slates being a perfect place to put the markers.  It started with a handful, and then over time it started to become something more than that.  

The bird cage is positioned so that pretty much everybody playing that day will walk by it at some point.  Members and guests started to notice our small collection and would reach into their golf bags and bring out ball markers from their home club or places they had picked them up.  

We eagerly accepted them and it developed into a really fun topic of conversation.  People were excited to add the ball marker from their home club and take a picture of it with the rest of the collection.   I started to notice that we were accumulating a good bit of the top 100 from the various lists, and suggested we put them in order as we acquired them.

The only problem with this was to start the process we needed the #1 course in the country, Pine Valley.  We asked one of our members who was going to be visiting PV to bring us back a ball marker.  He was unable to locate a plastic marker, but gave us a very nice metal one.  

We promptly glued it to the bird cage and began our top 100 collection in order based on the most recent Golf Magazine Top 100 list.  Pictured above are the top 4, we are waiting to acquire 5(Oakmont) before we glue down 6(ANGC).  We will then need 7(Sand Hills) before we glue down 8 & 9, which we already have.  We don't have 10 or 11 yet, but we do have 12 to 15 so our collection is well on its way.  

We started gluing them to the roof for two reasons.  One was space since obviously the roof slates didn't provide us enough room to get 100+ markers on it.  The second reason was more sinister.  We actually had a little bit of theft we were trying to stop.

I was at work when the first theft took place.  I was in the cart barn and from far away I saw somebody remove one and take off in a cart.  Another staff member also witnessed this and we were both a little shocked.  We didn't get a very good look at the guy so trying to find him was not possible.  We then tried to figure out which marker he had taken.  Luckily I had the above picture from the previous week and we were able to determine he had taken Linville Golf Club, pictured in the center of the above photo.  Why this guy passed over Cypress Point, Shinnecock, National and others and instead took Linville is beyond me but it did happen.  

The more shocking theft occurred with two markers from Ohoopee Match Club.  One small and one large, they disappeared together one day.  This outraged some of our staff members.  So very soon after that when a very large metal marker was acquired it was immediately glued down!

Our collection isn't exclusively ball markers.  When the pro from Casa De Campo in the Dominican Republic visited, he didn't have a traditional round ball marker but instead he gave us a unique large square marker that conveniently fit into the roof slats.  A poker chip from the Ocean Course at Kiawah was also added to the collection because it too fit into the roof slats.

I brought back eight ball markers from my recent trip to Florida and am excited to pick them up during my travels this summer.  Our members have really gotten into it too.  To the point that one very generous member actually mailed us the Shinnecock marker from NY when he heard we were looking for it.  We as a staff are excited to see what it will become and just how many ball markers we can get on the roof.  A random act that has now turned into something that everyone that visits the club can enjoy.

Updated photo on September 1st.  We've filled the top row in 5 months and have acquired the majority of the top 50 courses in the US!

October 2022 update.  We now have 66 of the top 100 and have reached the bottom.

March 2023 update. We have filled up the entire side except the ones missing from the top 100.  We currently have 83 of the top 100 and ball markers from 45 states and 12 countries.

We've also started on the other side of the birdcage:

Florida Winter Trip 2022

My trip to Florida in January was exciting for so many reasons.  I played a course that I was told was one of the hardest Ross courses to get on and I played a top 100 course designed by William Flynn that had been eluding me for many years.  Even with challenging weather at times, it was still a great trip to the Sunshine state.

Indian Creek Club, wonderful short par four 13th hole

The trip began at the happiest place on earth, or more accurately, the golf courses contained within.  In my many trips to Florida I had never played any of the courses at Disney.  Four remain of the original six.  I started out on the Lake Buena Vista course designed by Joe Lee.

Walt Disney World Golf Club(Lake Buena Vista), Par three 2nd hole

I headed to the main Disney golf clubhouse after my round at LBV.  The main clubhouse is very close to the entrance to Disney World and is home to the Magnolia, Palm, and Oak Trail courses.  I was there to play the Magnolia, former host of a PGA Tour event and also designed by Joe Lee.

Walt Disney World Golf Club(Magnolia), par three 6th hole with Mickey Mouse bunker

I jumped on the Florida turnpike after my rounds at Disney and headed south to Palm Beach Gardens where day two would involve golf at two massive golf complexes.  The day began at the 54 hole Ballenisles Country Club.  I was there to check out the newly renovated South course.  The course was originally designed by Joe Lee and Dick Wilson in 1964 but was renovated by Rees Jones in 2020.  

BallenIsles Country Club(South), par three 4th hole

A 54 hole site is pretty big, but it pales in comparison to my next stop on day two, PGA National Resort & Spa.  PGA features a total of 99 holes of golf with 81 of those holes at the main complex.  The Championship course is the regular host of the PGA Tour's Honda Classic and a course I played a few years ago.  I was at PGA to check out the new Match course designed by Andy Staples on top of the old Squire course.  

PGA National(Match), par three 18th hole

On the way to the Match course from the clubhouse you drive through the Staples course, a nine hole par three course that used the property from the 1st and 18th holes of the old Squire course.  Andy Staples did a great job creating a fun and easy to walk course.

PGA National(Staples), par three 4th hole

The pace of play was surprisingly good at PGA National and that gave me time to check out one of the other courses on site, the Palmer course.  Designed by the greatest man to ever walk the earth, Arnold Palmer, the course is an out and back design.

PGA National(Palmer), par three 7th hole

The main reasons why I was in South Florida came on day three of the trip.  Before I tackled two courses I wanted to play for a very long time, I began the day at one of the best par three courses in the world, Palm Beach Par 3.  I was able to get most of my round in before a Florida thunderstorm rolled in.

Palm Beach Par 3, 8th hole

Next up on the third day was a Ross course I had been seeking for a few years, Gulfstream Club.  Located just south of Palm Beach, Gulfstream was renovated by Pete Dye, who was a long time member.  It still retains some of its Ross roots, and I was very excited to play one of the most exclusive Ross courses in the country.

Gulfstream Club, Par four 16th hole

Gulfstream Club, Par four 18th hole.  Pete Dye created a new 18th hole closer to the ocean, which runs down the right side of the hole.

I headed even farther south for the final round of day three.  Indian Creek Country Club, designed by William Flynn, is on an island near Miami Beach.  The homes on the perimeter of the island are often referred to as "billionaires row."  Flynn is the architect of some of the best courses in the country, and I was grateful for the opportunity to experience his work at Indian Creek.

Indian Creek Country Club, Par three 12th hole

Indian Creek Country Club, short Par four 13th hole

Indian Creek Country Club, Par three 15th hole

On the final day of the trip I stopped in Vero Beach for an early morning round at the city owned Sandridge Golf Club.  I played the Lakes course.

Sandridge Lakes course, par four 18th hole

FLAGS

SCORECARDS

2021 Year in Review

As I look back on 2021 I can't help but feel fortunate and grateful.  Fortunate that my wife and I have so far managed to stay Covid free despite the recent variant causing major issues in other parts of my life.  Grateful because I was able to play the #1 course on my bucket list in 2021.  Chicago Golf Club was everything I hoped it would be and as a devoted fan of the architecture of Charles Blair MacDonald and Seth Raynor, it really was a dream come true.

Chicago Golf Club. The highlight of 2021.

TEXAS TRIP

Memorial Park Golf Course, par three 15th hole

Travel in 2021 began with a trip to Texas.  This trip revolved around great golf courses in the Houston area, with a final day stop in Dallas.  Tom Doak's re-design of Memorial Park was the highlight of the trip. Trip profile is here: Texas Trip

Club at Houston Oaks, par three 5th hole

ARIZONA TRIP

Estancia Club, par three 11th hole

I had not played golf in Arizona since 2012 and was missing desert golf, so I decided to change that in early 2021 with a trip to the Scottsdale area, with a side trip to Palm Springs to play one of Fazio's best courses.  Check on my journey into the desert here: Arizona Trip

The Quarry at La Quinta, par three 8th hole

FLORIDA TRIP

Biltmore Golf Club, 8th green and 9th hole

I did a trip to central and South Florida in March, which for some reason I didn't do a write up for.  I blame the distraction of uprooting my life that occurred shortly after the trip.  The highlights of the trip were the Donald Ross designed Biltmore golf course in the Miami area, and the Tom Fazio designed Wannamaker course at the PGA Golf Club.  

PGA Golf Club, Wannamaker Course, par three 6th hole

NEW JOB

Yeamans Hall, 14th green looking at the river

If there is one theme to these year in reviews it is my fascination with un-certainty in life.  As a planner, I am always shocked when something happens that I didn't anticipate that takes my life in a direction I never expected.  One of these such events happened in 2021. In May, my wife and I moved to the Charleston, South Carolina area and I started working at Yeamans Hall Club, newly named by Golf Magazine as one of the top 100 golf courses in the world.  I had no idea when 2021 started that we would be moving to South Carolina, or that I had any chance at getting a job at one of the best clubs in the country.  

My wife's first round at Yeamans Hall was on her birthday in late May.  The eden par three 13th is pictured here.

In April I applied for, interviewed, and was offered a job in a very short time.  We packed up, sold our house, and moved to South Carolina in less than three weeks.  The results have been amazing.  Yeamans Hall is one of the most special places in all of golf.  As soon as you hit the entrance gate you know you are in for a very special experience.  

Yeamans Hall Entrance

The year concluded very appropriately with a round at Yeamans on Christmas day.

MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS

Now that we're about at the halfway point of my golf year, let's talk about my favorite part of this blog post, the statistics.

New Courses Played:       154

States Played in:               12

9 Hole Courses played:    27

Top 10 Courses by Architect

16    Tom Fazio

6     Donald Ross
5     Jack Nicklaus

5     Rees Jones

4     Robert Trent Jones

3     Joe Lee

3     Seth Raynor

3     Arnold Palmer
3     Pete Dye

3    George Cobb

3    William Byrd

3    Tom Jackson

3    C.B. MacDonald

3    Robert Von Hagge

 

Top 10 Courses by State

39    South Carolina

19    California

18    Georgia

15    Illinois

14    Florida

13    North Carolina
12    Texas

7      Arizona

7     Virginia
4     Nevada


Milestones Reached

1.  150 golf courses played in SC

2.  100 golf courses played in GA
3.  100 golf courses played in MD

4.  50 golf courses played in CA
  

Favorite Course:                 Chicago Golf Club
Least Favorite Course:       Lombard
Most Overrated:                 Rich Harvest Farms
Most Underrated:               Quixote/US Naval Academy

Favorite Par 3:  11th Hole-Estancia
Favorite Par 4:  12th Hole-Chicago Golf Club
Favorite Par 5:  1st Hole-Quarry at La Quinta 

What's in a name

A fun breakdown of golf course names from 2021

(53)Landforms: Camp, Canyon, Cliff, Desert, Dunes, Farm, FieldForest, Grove, Harbor, Hill, Island, Mound, Mountain, Park, Point, Plantation, Quarry, Ridge, Rock, Trail, Village

(30)Water: Bay, Beach, Brook, Cove, Creek, Harbor, Lagoon, Lake, Pond, Reef, Sea

(13)Object/Man Made: Bridge, Crystal, Feather, Ferry, Hall, Horseshoe, Lights, Pearl, Rose, Saddle, Stone, Teeth, Well

(12)Colors: Blue, Emerald, Gold, Green, Indigo, Orange, Red, White

(11)Trees: Oak, Palmetto, Pine, Willow

(10)Animals: Cougar, Coyote, Crane, Deer, Hawk, Hound, Panther, Terrapin

(9)Directions: East, North, South, West

(6)The word "Links"

(3)The word "National"

(2)Food: Apple, Oyster

(1)States: Virginia

(1)The word "Old"

Best Scores

65-Yeamans Hall
67-Cabarrus, Kenmure

68-Farmstead, Kiawah Island(Oak Point), Plantation Course at Edisto, Ponte Vedra(Ocean), Quixote, Saddlebrook(Palmer)

Worst Scores

81-Wild Dunes(Harbor)
79-The Preserve, The Quarry at La Quinta

78-Rich Harvest Farms

          BEST AND MAYBE WORST SHOT?

 

I've made 2 hole in ones in my life but the shot I hit in April of this year was not that.  It was the infamous Hole in Three.  Fittingly on my last round at my old job I hit my tee shot on the par 3 5th hole over the green and into the hazard.  

I re-teed and the next shot went in the hole, 187 yards, 5 iron.  My wife and I didn't see it go in so when we discovered where it was she looked right at me and without hesitation said "Nice Par".  Possibly the best and yet worst par I've ever made!

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA TRIP

Clear Creek Tahoe, par three 2nd hole

In July I returned to Northern California sixteen years after my last visit.  The trip included my first visit to the Lake Tahoe, golf in the San Francisco area, plus a brief stop on the Monterey Peninsula.  Read all about it here: Northern California Trip

Monterey Peninsula, Dunes course, par three 10th hole

                       CHICAGO TRIP

Chicago Golf club, Punchbowl, par four 12th hole

I have been a lover of the architecture of Charles Blair MacDonald and Seth Raynor since I worked in New York in 2003 and was able to play some of their great courses like Yale and National Golf Links.  Over the years I have sought out their designs and have been able to play most of their best courses.  One design eluded me for years, Chicago Golf Club.  Many consider it to be their best.  It is a must visit for any student of golf course architecture because it's a very small, simple, and relatively flat piece of property that they transformed into one of the best courses in the world.  My trip to Chicago in September was all about playing Chicago but I also played many other great courses on the trip: Chicago Trip

Butler National, Par three 5th hole

MID-ATLANTIC TRIP

United States Naval Academy Golf Course, Par three 12th hole in foreground, 14th green in background

My wife and I took to the road in October to visit family since work would not allow me to get away during the holidays.  During the trip we played two amazing new courses that I'm sure we will be hearing more about in the future.  I also reached an important milestone during the trip.  More on that below.  Read about our road trip here: Mid Atlantic Road Trip

Cutalong at Lake Anna, Par four 10th hole

9 HOLE COURSES

Gibson Island Club, 8th green and 9th hole

Many years ago I set a goal of playing one hundred nine hole courses.  I reached that goal this year, and appropriately I reached the milestone at Gibson Island Club, a wonderful MacDonald/Raynor course in Maryland.  I played nine hole courses in seven states this year and continue to be impressed with the quality of these overlooked gems.

Downers Grove.  Wonderful nine hole course in Chicago

ECLECTIC EIGHTEENS

Always fun putting together the eclectics.  Some of these are my favorite 3rd or 8th or 15th hole I played this year, others are simply trying to get to 18 for the par 3, 4, and 5.

Par 3's 1 to 9

Par 3's 1 to 9.  From top L to R: Quarry at La Quinta Short, Clear Creek, Chicago, Bayonet, Houston Oaks, PGA Wannamaker, Gallery North, Desert Mountain, Kenmure

Par 3's 10 to 18

Par 3's 10 to 18:  From top L to R: Monterey Peninsula Dunes, Estancia, Cutalong at Lake Anna, Coyote Moon, Maridoe, Memorial Park, Royal Oaks, Quarry at La Quinta, Desert Mountain Seven

Par 4's 1 to 9

Par 4's 1 to 9:  From top L to R: Green Hills, Bob O' Link, High Hampton, Lake Merced, Clear Creek, USNA, Gibson Island, Gallery North, Quarry at La Quinta

Par 4's 10 to 18

Par 4's 10 to 18, From top L to R: Cutalong at Laka Anna, Biltmore, Stanford, Verrado, Chicago, Quixote, Martis Camp, Memorial Park, Estancia

Par 5's 1 to 9

Par 5's 1 to 9, from Top L to R: Quarry at La Quinta, Green Hills, Corde Valle, Houston Oaks, Reynolds Plantation, Knollwood, Berkeley Hall North, Butterfield, Desert Mountain Renegade

Par 5's 10 to 18

Par 5's 10 to 18:  From top L to R: Martis Camp, High Hampton, Cleveland, Trump National Jupiter, King & Prince, Monterey Peninsula Dunes, Gallery North, Estancia, Clear Creek Tahoe

SCORECARDS

A little inside look at what it's like trying to put this together when you have cats

FLAGS

White

Red

Yellow

Blue

Checkerboard

Miscellaneous

2022

Obviously the big thing that will happen in 2022 is that I will play my 2000th golf course.  Where that will be is still unknown.  There is one dream possibility that is still very unlikely.  Another outrageous possibility is flying to the UK.  It will most likely just be a random course in South Carolina.

What will definitely happen in 2022 is that I will be returning to Bandon Dunes after a 20 year absence and the wife and I will be taking our first trip to Hawaii.  Shaping up to be a great year!