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Miami, Florida (Return to Previous Page)
When many people think of south Florida - Miami in particular - what usually comes to mind is wonderful weather, amazing architecture, beautiful beaches, cool clothes, fantastic food, sensational shopping, and neon-flashing nightlife. Surprisingly - and unfortunately - what many people don't picture when they think of the Miami area is great golf. This is somewhat understandable, certainly, because Miami is one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in America and it's easy to get distracted. If golfers look beyond the glamour and glitz of the "Magic City", however, they will see that there are a number of courses in the area that are just as exciting and magical as the city itself. Honestly, making a trip to Miami without teeing it up is kind of like visiting the Louve in Paris without taking a look at the Mona Lisa. A big mistake, in other words. And believe it or not, the golf around here has been exceptional for quite a while.
Two of the first people to envision the Miami area as a great golf destination were Doris and Alfred Kaskel. In 1959, Doris and Alfred put their heads together - and parts of their first names - and began building the Doral Hotel and Country Club on 2,400 acres of swampland just west of the city. When it officially opened in 1962 (conveniently located only 15 minutes from Miami International Airport), the resort included two regulation golf courses - the Blue and the Red - and a par-3 course. Since then (today known as the Doral Resort and Spa), the facility has been expanded to offer 693 guest rooms, seven tennis courts, five restaurants, a 148,000-square-foot Spa, a fitness center, and three additional golf courses to choose from: the Gold course was built in 1968; the Silver came along in 1984; and the Great White opened in 2000. The most famous layout here, the Blue course (designed by Dick Wilson and also known as the "Blue Monster"), is the annual site of the PGA Tour's "Ford Championship at Doral" each spring. Renovated twice in recent years (first by former Masters champion Ray Floyd and then by the resort's nationally-known golf instructor Jim McLean), the 7,125-yard Blue course remains one of the most challenging layouts in all of Florida. And you can take this to the bank: make a par on the Blue's terrifying 443-yard, par-four 18th (also known as the "Blue Monster"), and you will be bragging about it to your friends far into the future.
In the opinion of many golfers who have played them both, however, Doral's Great White course is even more demanding than the Blue Monster. Designed by Australian superstar and two-time British Open champion Greg Norman (once described as "looking like the guy you hire to kill James Bond"), the newest course at Doral is unlike anything you've ever seen. Considered the only "desert-scape design" in the southeast, this golf course features numerous waste bunkers filled with crushed coquina shells, tall palm trees framing many of the fairways, water on 14 of the 18 holes, and over 220 hard-to-play-out-of pot bunkers. Pardon the pun, but the Great White - 7,171 yards from the back tees - is a "man eater."
Thankfully, golfers not desiring to do battle with either a shark or a monster don't have to at Doral. The other courses here - the Red, the Gold and the Silver - are not pussycats, but neither are they pushovers; just enjoyable layouts designed to offer a good challenge for a variety of abilities. The Red, also designed by Dick Wilson and opened the same year as the Blue, is the shortest of Doral's five courses at 6,146 yards from the back markers. However, there's water in play on 14 of the Red's holes and two of its greens are islands (plop, plop, fizz, fizz). The Gold course - slightly longer than the Red at 6,602 yards from the tips - was originally designed by Bruce Devlin and Robert von Hagge but was remodeled by Ray Floyd in 1995. Like the 6,567-yard Silver course here at Doral (another Devlin/von Hagge design) the Gold course features plenty of sand and water on 16 of its 18 holes. Beauty, convenience, superb accommodations, fine dining, and golf that's as fun and/or as challenging as you want it. That's the place that Doris and Alfred built: Miami's Doral Resort and Spa.
Even closer to the Miami airport than Doral (make your plans properly and you can play as soon as you arrive or just before you leave), is International Links Golf Club. Formerly known as Melreese Golf Club and originally designed by Dick Wilson and Joe Lee in 1962, this very popular old layout was redesigned and modernized in 1997 by architect Charles Mahannah. In fact, nearly $4 million was spent to not only improve the course's conditioning but to help it withstand today's advances in equipment technology. And thanks to its five lakes, nine waste areas, 97 bunkers and a back tee measurement of 7,173 yards (five other tees are available), International Links does just that.
Two other old favorites (just like many of the city's buildings are classic in design, so are a number of its golf courses) can be found at the Country Club of Miami - where none other than Arnold Palmer once held the position of head professional. Both of the beautiful layouts at this facility - entertainer Jackie Gleason liked them so much he had a home here - were designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and opened in 1960. Don't be fooled by the seemingly shortness of the East course at the C.C. of Miami (6,473 yards from the tips). Mr. Jones never designed an easy course in his life, so you can be sure that whatever the par-70 East course lacks in length is made up for with water, sand and his famous challenging putting surfaces. The West course at the Country Club of Miami, on the other hand, is exactly what you'd expect from the architect who was called on so many times by the USGA to beef up its U.S. Open courses. The original site of the PGA Tour's National Airlines Open Invitational in the 1970s (which, apparently, meant that anyone could play in it ... as long as they were invited), the par-72 West course is a typically tough Trent Jones tract. It measures 7,017 yards from the back markers and it more than lives up to its sturdy slope rating of 132.
What's that you say, big boy? You say 132 isn't sturdy enough? Well, then, head on over to Miami's nearby "island paradise" - Key Biscayne - and put your peg in the ground at Crandon Park Golf Course. Located just ten minutes from the city's downtown area, Crandon Park is the only public course on Key Biscayne and it's long been one of the most beautiful and toughest layouts in the state. Tough enough, in fact, for it to have been the site of the Royal Caribbean Classic on the Champions Tour from 1990 to 2004 (past winners include Lee Trevino, Gary Player, Bob Murphy and Bruce Fleisher). Originally designed by Devlin and von Hagge in 1972, this golf course was upgraded and re-fortified by Mr. von Hagge in 1993 to ensure that it would resist the onslaught of the best senior players on the planet. Champions Tour records clearly show that Crandon Park held its own. Looking for a tough test, Ted? Like sand, water and wind, Wendy? Crandon Park Golf Course - at 7,180 yards from the back tees, and with a course rating of 75.4 and a slope rating of 139 - is waiting for you on the idyllic island of Key Biscayne. Bring it, babe. Just be sure to bring plenty of balls, too. (Something else you might want to bring is your camera. The views of Biscayne Bay and the Miami skyline are only spectacular.)
Another course that's close to downtown (and a tract that would the ideal end to a 36-hole day that could start with Crandon Park) is Miami Beach Golf Club. Something of a descendant of the original layout here in Miami Beach (built in 1923 by developer Carl Fisher and one of three to come and go during the real estate boom of the 1920s), MBGC first came to life as Bayshore Municipal in 1969, again the joint effort of architects Devlin and von Hagge. However, don't let "municipal" mislead you. Nestled between the Atlantic and Biscayne Bay - arguably offering even better views of the cityscape than Crandon - Miami Beach Golf Club is no longer the "muni" that it once was. In 2002, the design team of Arthur Hills and Steve Forrest & Associates was hired to give Miami Beach Golf Club a $10 million facelift - and the results are astounding. Now measuring 6,813 yards from the back tees, this lovely layout features tall palm trees lining many of the holes, beautiful lagoons and lakes, numerous pearly white bunkers, and all the challenge you could ask for. For all the fun and great food you could ask for, make sure to make a visit to nearby South Beach if you do tee it up in Miami Beach. Widely regarded as one of the hottest "hot spots" in all of Florida, South Beach can be as relaxing or as wired as you want it. By day, it's a haven for sun-seekers, shoppers and art-deco aficionados. By night, it's home to some of the liveliest people and places in America. It's okay to miss a tee shot or two when you're in the area - just don't miss a trip to South Beach. You may not get a mulligan.
For another golf course with some history behind it, head on up Collins Avenue and A1A for about thirteen miles until you reach North Miami Beach. There you'll find the Presidential Country Club, named in honor of the 34th Commander in Chief of the United States - Dwight D. Eisenhower. Originally designed by Mark Mahanna and built in 1962, The Presidential not only was one of "Ike's" favorite places to play but - no joke - a favorite of golfing celebrities such as Bob Hope, Jackie Gleason, Danny Thomas and Milton Berle as well. In 1998, though, The Presidential was remodeled by one of the best course designers in the world: Tom Fazio. The goal of the City of Miami Beach was to improve both the conditioning and challenge of this mid-length layout (6,576 yards from the back tees), but without disturbing its beautiful natural setting. As you walk the gorgeous green fairways here, many lined with live oaks, ficus and gumbo-limbo trees, you'll no doubt agree that Mr. Fazio did a magnificent job.
If you happen to be a fan of pro football as well as a golfer, then you're probably well aware of the magnificent job that Don Shula did in coaching the Miami Dolphins to the NFL's only undefeated season in 1972 - culminating with a victory over the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII. If so, you'll definitely deserve a ten-yard penalty (or more) if you're in the Magic City and don't make the 20-mile trip to the Shula's Hotel & Golf Club in Miami Lakes. One of the themes of this fantastic facility is that it's not a hotel with a golf course, it's a golf course with a hotel. If you think about it, there's a big difference. Enjoyable golf is number one here; appealing amenities are number two - albeit a close second. Accordingly, Shula's golf course - known as "The Senator" - is a fair, fun but not-so-easy layout that was designed by William Watts in 1963. How difficult you want it will depend on which tees you play. Four sets are available, with a back marker measurement of 69.82 football fields. Oops, sorry. That's 6,982 yards. And should you need to warm up before you tee it up, the facility also includes an 18-hole "executive" course, a 44,000-square-foot athletic club, and a 100-acre wildlife sanctuary that's the perfect spot for a brisk walk or a serious jog.
Not surprisingly, another theme throughout the property is football. Tons of the coach's Miami Dolphin mementos are on display in the 84-room hotel and the restaurant here (it's the original Shula's Steak House and the food choices are written on NFL-size pigskins) and the tee-box markers on The Senator are various colored placekicker tees. For golf fans and football fans alike, Shula's Hotel & Golf Club is definitely a great place to "touch down" for a day or two when you're in the area. (Sorry, couldn't help it.)
But wait. If what you're really looking for is excellent golf and amenities that are more elegant, the place for you is the Fairmont Turnberry Isle Resort in Aventura. Located just fifteen miles north of downtown, Turnberry Isle is one of the most elegant and enchanting facilities in all of South Florida. And as those lucky people who have stayed here can tell you, one of the perks of checking in is the chance to play the resort's two fine courses - both designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. The North course, the first to be built here in 1971, is a typically tough Trent Jones layout. It's big and brawny and it features more than a little bit of water and lots of sand. From the tips, the North weighs in at just over 7,000 yards. A lot less hefty but just as hazardous is the South course, built a year later. If it sounds easy at only 6,403 yards, however, be advised that the South features the same amount of trouble and the same kind of tricky greens that you'll find on the North. All those problems in a much smaller space just might make the South course here even harder to handle than its big brother. What's for sure is that you'll have a lot of fun trying.
So look. When you think of South Florida - Miami in particular - don't just think of wonderful weather, amazing architecture, beautiful beaches, cool clothes, fantastic food, sensational shopping and neon-flashing nightlife. Think great golf, too. If you don't, you'll be missing the boat and the train and one of the best golf destinations in America.
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