Grande Pines Golf Club near Orlando
Grande Pines golf course was designed by Steve Smyers, who did the superb Southern Dunes a half hour away in Haines City. Nick Faldo, who has worked with Marriott Golf since 1997, was a player consultant on the course.
It is 7,012 yards from the tips and the fairways can be troublesome.
"These are tough fairways to hit," said Richard Walker, of California. "You have to shape your shots. You have to start everything over trouble and bring it around. There are a lot of fairways out here that run out."
True enough, the wise golfer and straight shooter might even consider keeping the driver sheathed and going with a fairway wood or even long iron, staying short of the hazards. Of course, that means long iron approaches. Oh, the sacrifices.
Those hazards come mainly in the form of deep-lipped bunkers, but there are also quite a few trees in the fairways at Grande Pines, that must be avoided.
Long is wrong here, as many of the well-bunkered greens have hazards behind them, and many of them drop off sharply, so that getting up and down requires deft touch and feel.
Green fees at Grande Pines vary greatly according to the season - typical with Orlando golf - anging from $62 to $139.
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