A friend and I played Sanctuary Ridge Golf Club for the first time during Thanksgiving week. The course was equidistant for both of us and the course’s website looked intriguing. The interesting thing... Continue »

A friend and I played Sanctuary Ridge Golf Club for the first time during Thanksgiving week. The course was equidistant for both of us and the course’s website looked intriguing. The interesting thing is that course’s website claims it is similar to a mountain course!

The course is in Clermont, which is one of the highest points in Florida and Sanctuary Ridge utilizes it’s location to offer a unique golf experience! This part of Central Florida does have some hills so it isn’t all swamp like you might expect. The reason you’ll want to play here is because of all the elevation change that it features. It isn’t a course that you’ll find in a mountainous state like California or West Virginia, but Sanctuary Ridge is a great change compared to most Florida golf. Many holes have at least a club of elevation change and the 2nd hole drops so much that you cannot even see the green, at least from the gold tees where we played (par 71, 69.4/119/6581).

The course is routed through a community and around a couple low areas where water collects. I preferred the back nine as there are some more natural areas off to one side and half the holes there could be signature holes. You’ll face multiple blind shots, including on the 1st and 15th. The course is friendly so you can freely swing and could get on a roll on some of the flatter greens.

When it came to the conditions, the course didn’t look great because it was pretty dry but played fine. The course should drain well because of the slopes so it might be a good choice after a downpour. For $27 though, the conditions were just fine for my tastes! The tees and fairways were full and cut down. A few different grasses and divots were in the fairways, but they didn’t play. The greens were smooth and quick, I’d love to play every round on greens like this. Once off the fairway there wasn't much rough and patches of sand/dirt. Agree with recent online reviews that the bunkers could use some help. This is a good value course and worth my 45 minute drive. Odd, but I enjoyed this course just as much as Grand Cypress the day before.

I hadn't played here in about 8 years because I was living on the west coast. This used to be my go to course when it was Diamond Players Club. It was one of my favorites because of the unusual elevat... Continue »

I hadn't played here in about 8 years because I was living on the west coast. This used to be my go to course when it was Diamond Players Club. It was one of my favorites because of the unusual elevation changes. The conditions and service were always good.

I hate to give a poor review but this was a bad experience from beginning to end. I arrived early enough to hit a few balls and roll a couple of putts but I was greeted by the starter 'Larry' with "who are you with?". That was quickly followed by "you need to get your playing partner and join up with the group on the tee box because we are busy and I need you to go out early!"

The guys we got paired with were from Boston and were great! That and the nice weather were the highlight of the day. The playing conditions were horrendous especially at this price point. Tee boxes were decent but everything else was horrible. Fairways were thin, bunkers eroded, greens slow and patchy. Will not be back anytime soon!

Played 24 Aug 2014.

I have to agree with everything that GGGary said about this course. May I add that it has probably gone down hill (pun intended) a bit since then. The bunkers are in dire need o... Continue »

Played 24 Aug 2014.

I have to agree with everything that GGGary said about this course. May I add that it has probably gone down hill (pun intended) a bit since then. The bunkers are in dire need of attention and they are battling with weeds on the Tees and Fairways.

Open course but elevation changes galore. Shame, but this course could be a great course with some TLC. Clubhouse is much nicer inside than I thought it would be from the outside. Beautiful view from the dining area.

They had fresh COLD water on at least every other hole. THANK YOU! Friendly staff. Nice putting green. Adequate driving range. Fairways are fairly wide but the elevation changes make this a challenge. Saw panther on #5 Fairway!!

#15 and #17 are my favorite holes (see pics). #15 is a dogleg Left with a massive drop in elevation. This hole is tempting the player to cut the corner which can be done. If you carry over the trees and are not too far Left, you are fine. If you are short or too far Left you are not likely to find your ball. The problem is that if you play it "Safe" following the Fairway, you have a LONG shot into the Green. Pick your poison I guess. #17 is only 285-300 yards depending on your tee box, but it has a HUGE rise to the Green.

Not sure I would recommend this course due to how hard it is with the elevation changes and the need for some general TLC on the course.