If you are in the Ft Walton/Destin area, put this course on your list of places to play. This course is a hidden gem in many aspects. I was originally going to play a few days ago and the experience... Continue »

If you are in the Ft Walton/Destin area, put this course on your list of places to play. This course is a hidden gem in many aspects. I was originally going to play a few days ago and the experience began by meeting the pro when I checked in. The customer service was warm and friendly. Truly they live up to the motto "Where you are always treated like a champion". I only played three holes before having to stop due to a thunderstorm. Fast forward a couple of days and I redeem my rain check. upon showing up, the club pro remembered me by name no less and even got me out before a large group as a single.

On to the course. This is definitely a challenging track. On quite a few holes (I don't recall the exact holes) the layout plays about a half club longer than the yardage on my skycaddie. In retrospect, these holes were slightly and deceptively a tad up hill. Most of the fairways a wide enough you can hit driver but there are a few holes that require a shorter club off the tee. Hitting into the greens is going to require your best effort. The greens for the most part are pretty small so hitting to the middle rather than firing at the pin seemed to work out better for me in most instances. There were a few greens that were multi-tier so hitting to that portion was the better shot selection. You can easily see the layout of the green from your approach shot to aid in your shot selection.

The greens were very receptive; my ball was never more that a foot and a half from the ball mark. The ball marks weren't deep at all but that's due to the type of soil in the area. The greens rolled at a nice quick pace - not overly fast but definitely quick. They were true and smooth - just putt them as you read them as there weren't any tricky reads that I encountered.

Initially I was skeptical of what I was going to encounter as one of the neighborhoods you drive through before the course isn't that nice. However, they have put a lot of money into the course and it is definitely apparent. The driving range is pretty level and flat so finding a good spot to warm up was pretty easy.

The only knock against the place is the girl in the concession area. On both trips here she was pretty snotty and did not pay attention very well when orders were placed. Hopefully I will get back there to play at least once more while I am here.