Johnny asked me to be the first one to post a review for the Sawgrass courses on the new North Florida section since I recently had the opportunity to play these wonderful courses.

I played here o... Continue »

Johnny asked me to be the first one to post a review for the Sawgrass courses on the new North Florida section since I recently had the opportunity to play these wonderful courses.

I played here over the Thanksgiving 2011 weekend and got a great stay-and-play deal at the Marriott that had me playing the Dye's Valley course twice and the PLAYERS Stadium course once. I played Dye's Valley on 11/27 and 11/29. I didn't know too much about this "other" Sawgrass course before playing, but it's a worthy companion to the main course.

The scenery and style of Dye's Valley is similar to its big brother, so you definitely know you're playing at Sawgrass. Yet, it has it's own quirks and design choices that make it unique. It's not a super long course (though there are different tees to challenge every level of golfer), but it's relatively tight and you must stay on the fairways to post a decent score. Off the fairways there is a ton of mounding and some really thick, nasty rough. Really tough to hit out of and you need to watch your ball carefully because it tends to sink down and disappear in the thick stuff. Both courses feature a ton of water hazards that come into play on most every hole. Dye's Valley boasts more water, though, than PLAYERS Stadium.

The course was in great condition when I played there and I got good weather the whole trip. The rough areas were a little dried out for winter (which made rough grab your club even more), but overall excellent shape. Most holes are doglegs, so positioning is key. My first round I played from the white tees, stayed in the short stuff most of the round and posted a respectable 86 (I'm a 13 handicapper these days). In the second round at Dye's Valley, I decided to play from the blues and I wasn't hitting very well off the tee, so I got my ass kicked and shot in the mid-90s. Just illustrates how tough this course can be if you are slightly off your game. Definitely worth playing Dye's Valley when you make your bucket list trip to Sawgrass.

TPC Sawgrass Golf Course Review
Jacksonville Florida Golf Course Reviews