Florida Panhandle - NYE

[Edward Buchanan]

I will be spending NYE in Destin, FL and, naturally, will be hoping to get a round or two in.

Any can't miss courses?

I played Kelly Pantation a few years back and thought it was in good shape, but not a particularly interesting design.  I'm a serious golfer, but will likely be playing with a friend whom is more interested in the quality of the beer than the quality of the course.

We will be very close to the Sandestin resort.  Would one of those course be fun for both of us?

Is it worth it to go out of my way to play Windswept Dunes or Camp Creek?  Or am I better off just picking one of the Sandestin courses?

Thanks for any help!  I would hate to drive all the way down there (from Nashville) and miss out on great track.

[Bill_McBride]

Ed, I would invite you over to Pensacola but it's a good hour plus.  Camp Creek is farther east in Panama City.

Windswept Dunes has some good holes and is okay, but unwalkable due to wide separations from green to tee for housing that hasn't happened.

My recommendations would be next door in Sandestin, the Raven (Robert T Jones II) and Burnt Pine (Rees Jones).  My preference would be the Raven, not as over-shaped.

Windswept Dunes would be most affordable.

Thanks for bring some cash to the Panhandle.   The Apalachicola oysters are plump and tasty right now.     Bon appetit!

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

Bill gave you the basics. There are no cannot miss in the area. I would also say Blue Heron is better than Camp Creek which get positive reviews for being a Fazio and nice dune environment. But is very average and more so than Kelly. All of these are fun golf courses. None of them are architectural discussion course. I think Bill will agree that Shalimar Point and the Naval Air station course are the two best designs in the area. Neither are in good condition most of the time. Destin this time of year is wonderful and the beach is great. There is a minimal amount of south Florida bravado to keep the level of civilized behavior up too.

[Bill_McBride]

Bill gave you the basics. There are no cannot miss in the area. I would also say Blue Heron is better than Camp Creek which get positive reviews for being a Fazio and nice dune environment. But is very average and more so than Kelly. All of these are fun golf courses. None of them are architectural discussion course. I think Bill will agree that Shalimar Point and the Naval Air station course are the two best designs in the area. Neither are in good condition most of the time. Destin this time of year is wonderful and the beach is great. There is a minimal amount of south Florida bravado to keep the level of civilized behavior up too.

Tiger, do you really think the Shalimar and A.C. Read (NAS Pensacola) courses are better designs than Pensacola Country Club?  I definitely do NOT agree, but appreciate you speaking up for me!  

[mike_beene]

Is that little par 3 course at the Ft Walton bridge still there.I used to enjoy going over there years ago when we used to go to Destin.

[Sam Morrow]

I'm a fan of Pensacola Country Club and spending quality time with Bill.

[John_Conley]

I guess I don't know Blue Heron.  Is that the old Lagoon Legend?

Shark's Tooth is very good...the best I've seen up there.  Camp Creek is a blast.  Kelly Plantation and Regatta Bay might be snoozeworthy, but an area course that looks like a bunch of fun is Emerald Plantation.  (I think that's the name.)  Windswept Dunes is nearly 7,800 yards I believe.  

Where you are staying, Burnt Pine is excellent (the garish mounding serves as a remider of another era) and Raven is almost as good.  Since there are very good courses in the area, maybe you just stay close to Sandestin.  I reckon Pensacola is 90 minutes from there.

Have fun.

[Edward Buchanan]

Thanks for all of the advice!

I will be staying in Destin on the beach at the Aegean Condos.  Wish we had a few more days for me to neck it up over at the Flora-Bama!  I don't mind lowering myself to South Florida bravado levels every now and again, but will surely appreciate its absence next weekend.

Bill, it might be difficult for me to convince the group we need to play in Pensacola, but I do appreciate the offer.  I saw some pictures posted on here of the course and it looks like a great track.  Rain check? 

I think I'll throw the Raven up the flagpole and see if anybody salutes. 

Thanks!

Edward Buchanan
Nashville, TN

[Bill_McBride]

Rain check no problem, let us all know your thoughts on the Raven.

Great Flora-Bama day today, pouring down rain.   Like a cow pissin' on a flat rock, as Sam Morrow would say.   

[Derek_Duncan]

Edward,

I disagree with some of the other comments on this thread. In my opinion, if you are in the area of Sandestin you best options by far are Camp Creek and Shark's Tooth, with a spin on Davis Love's Origins Course while you're there. Windswept Dunes is a lot of fun and would round out the top four.

Regatta Bay and Kelly Plantation are incredibly average real estate courses. The Blue Heron plug is confusing, especially as being better than Camp Creek. I haven't heard of the course--could someone enlighten me? I also see nothing special in Shalamar Pointe except maybe in a nerdy way, but it's certainly nothing to make a special trip out to see.

For Sandestin, The Raven is kind of schizophrenic play-it-once fun, and Burnt Pine is a hair better, in my opinion. The course there that I'd play again is the original Links Course. It serves up the most authentic Gulf golf experience with quite a few holes right on the Bay.

[JNC Lyon]

I think the course John Conley was thinking of is Emerald Bay, which is right in Sandestin.  Emerald Bay is a Bob Cupp course, and it is a lot of fun to play.  The front nine has a couple strange holes (I really didn't like 5 thru , but the back nine is a really good nine holes, with 15-17 being particularly good out and back from the Choctawatchee Bay.  It's probably much cheaper than the Sandestin courses as well.

I've played a few in the area (Camp Creek, Windswept Dunes, Seascape, Bluewater Bay), and even though Camp Creek and Windswept might be a little better as golf courses, Emerald Bay has the right balance of price, convenience, and interesting architecture if you're staying in Destin.

It really is too bad that the golf isn't better on the Panhandle Coast.  The dunes-lakes combination is spectacular in many places (especially in Seaside, an essential place to see if you're in the neighborhood), and even with how pristine those areas are, it would be great to see just one course use that landscape to its maximum golfing potential.

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

john I am sorry. Blue Herron is part of the real estate dev. Sharks Tooth is the course. Bill, I figured you would discuss Pensacola Cc. It has always been the best course in the area. There was a time when Tiger point east got a lot of love, but those days have faded into the past. It is also a classic design that is well maintained and of course Bill's home course.

[Bill_McBride]

john I am sorry. Blue Herron is part of the real estate dev. Sharks Tooth is the course. Bill, I figured you would discuss Pensacola Cc. It has always been the best course in the area. There was a time when Tiger point east got a lot of love, but those days have faded into the past. It is also a classic design that is well maintained and of course Bill's home course.

 I mentioned PCC in my first reply, but it's as far west of Destin as Panama City (Camp Creek, Shark's Tooth) is east. 

[John_Conley]

Yes, Emerald Bay.

I played a few rounds up there, but didn't play that.  I stopped by to pick up a scorecard and wish I had.  Your description matches my impression from a cursory glance.  Looked fun.

One course ominously absent from the discussion is known to be quite hard.  I've never played there, but the 27 hole complex (Good, Bad, and Ugly nines) at Hombre GC is a regular PGA Tour stop for Stage 2 of qualifying school.

[Sam Morrow]

Rain check no problem, let us all know your thoughts on the Raven.

Great Flora-Bama day today, pouring down rain.   Like a cow pissin' on a flat rock, as Sam Morrow would say.   

Go piss up a rope.

[Edward Buchanan]

Thanks again for all the help.  We are currently booked at the Links Course at Sandestin for only $54.  I'll update my thoughts when I get back.  Just hoping for a fun round with a few memorable holes.  Not expecting anything great.