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Quote from: Kevin_D on March 10, 2014, 02:55:10 PMI feel compelled to chime in here.I played Doral Blue in mid February, just a few weeks ago. I played the Blue tees (6700 yards). My handicap is 13, though I can hit it a decent distance (can hit a driver 270-280 if I catch it) though I can be very erratic when not playing well.When I did play it, I didn't just like the place, I thought it was terrific. I found most of the difficulty to be in the greens, and in the lines of play the course forces you into if you want to avoid trouble, NOT the water itself. Now, if I took an aggressive line and went for every pin, I'm sure I would have dunked in a few more balls than I did, but in general I played safe and avoided the blue stuff (notable exception: yanking my 2nd shot on 8 into the water with only a 7 iron in my hand and wind behind to get to the green). Off the top of my head, my other water adventures included #10 (when I took a too aggressive line and didn't give the wind the proper respect) and #1 (when I thinned/shanked a wedge into the pond right of the green). I think that's it, and probably put more balls in the water on Streamsong Red this past Saturday.Do I think the course is easy? No. Did I score well? No (but not because of the course). Was it fun to play? ABSOLUTELY! In fact I liked it so much I went back the next day and played it again. Fairly generous fairways, huge greens, and oceans of sand - it was a real treat.I don't really expect it to be a "golf destination" - more as a great golf option for people who are going to Miami anyway. It strikes me that a lot of the criticism here is due to 1) the look - ok, I guess you hate all south Florida golf (and would rather just go without playing in the North?); 2) the water - ok, what do you do if you hit it in the tall fescue at Shinnecock? at least with water you can drop 2 instead of re-tee shot #3, and 3) the fact that it is owned by Donald Trump (and if that's your issue, I can't help you). It's not Bandon, it's not Scotland, it's not the Hamptons, and it's not Streamsong, but in my estimation, it's a great golf course for what it is and where it is. Barring an invite to Indian Creek, I will be playing it again the next time I am in Miami. If you don't want to play it, well that's your call, but I think that's your loss.Final point - I played Streamsong Blue on Friday, and had similar wind conditions to Doral. That was also borderline unplayable too. Bashing Hanse because the pros had a very tough day is just silly.Cheers,KevinCouldn't help but repost this.carry on.
I feel compelled to chime in here.I played Doral Blue in mid February, just a few weeks ago. I played the Blue tees (6700 yards). My handicap is 13, though I can hit it a decent distance (can hit a driver 270-280 if I catch it) though I can be very erratic when not playing well.When I did play it, I didn't just like the place, I thought it was terrific. I found most of the difficulty to be in the greens, and in the lines of play the course forces you into if you want to avoid trouble, NOT the water itself. Now, if I took an aggressive line and went for every pin, I'm sure I would have dunked in a few more balls than I did, but in general I played safe and avoided the blue stuff (notable exception: yanking my 2nd shot on 8 into the water with only a 7 iron in my hand and wind behind to get to the green). Off the top of my head, my other water adventures included #10 (when I took a too aggressive line and didn't give the wind the proper respect) and #1 (when I thinned/shanked a wedge into the pond right of the green). I think that's it, and probably put more balls in the water on Streamsong Red this past Saturday.Do I think the course is easy? No. Did I score well? No (but not because of the course). Was it fun to play? ABSOLUTELY! In fact I liked it so much I went back the next day and played it again. Fairly generous fairways, huge greens, and oceans of sand - it was a real treat.I don't really expect it to be a "golf destination" - more as a great golf option for people who are going to Miami anyway. It strikes me that a lot of the criticism here is due to 1) the look - ok, I guess you hate all south Florida golf (and would rather just go without playing in the North?); 2) the water - ok, what do you do if you hit it in the tall fescue at Shinnecock? at least with water you can drop 2 instead of re-tee shot #3, and 3) the fact that it is owned by Donald Trump (and if that's your issue, I can't help you). It's not Bandon, it's not Scotland, it's not the Hamptons, and it's not Streamsong, but in my estimation, it's a great golf course for what it is and where it is. Barring an invite to Indian Creek, I will be playing it again the next time I am in Miami. If you don't want to play it, well that's your call, but I think that's your loss.Final point - I played Streamsong Blue on Friday, and had similar wind conditions to Doral. That was also borderline unplayable too. Bashing Hanse because the pros had a very tough day is just silly.Cheers,Kevin