Public courses in Ft Lauderdale area

[JackD]

Heading to a wedding in Ft Lauderdale in January. Looking to play a couple rounds while I'm there. Any recommendations?

 

Looks like Jacaranda and Plantation Preserve get a fair amount of love. Any others to consider?

[nsxguy]

Pompano (next town north) Municipal is a pretty good layout.

 

Palm Aire, also in Pompano, has 3 decent courses.

 

Colony West (Tamarac, west of Ft Laud) is an excellent track.

 

Haven't played any of them for awhile so I can't vouch for current conditions. That said, January is high season so they should be at, or near their best, condition-wise.

 

 

[pearls24]

I just got back from the Hollywood/Ft. Lauderdale area.  We played Plantation Preserve and Emerald Hills.  Preserve was in better condition out of the two.   Both decent layouts.  You could see how Emerald Hills was once a very nice track but conditions are not what they used to be.  Didn't get to play it this time but Deer Creek in Boynton is supposed to be a good layout as well.  

[Jetierney13]

I would highly recommend Osprey Point in Boca Raton if you are able to get a tee time.  They have 3 9's and always used to be in great shape. Also a fun layout since its up against the everglades so not the normal home lined Florida course feel.

[nsxguy]

On 12/29/2021 at 11:58 AM, pearls24 said:

I just got back from the Hollywood/Ft. Lauderdale area.  We played Plantation Preserve and Emerald Hills.  Preserve was in better condition out of the two.   Both decent layouts.  You could see how Emerald Hills was once a very nice track but conditions are not what they used to be.  Didn't get to play it this time but Deer Creek in Boynton is supposed to be a good layout as well.  

 

Deer Creek is in north Broward County, town of Deerfield (Beach ?), just south of Boca. Boynton is about 15-20 miles north of Deer Creek.

 

Deer Creek is generally kept in VERY good condition but you'll pay for the pleasure. Generally ~ $125 in season (Winter).

[golfer55082]

I know this is an old post but the information seems still relevant and I hope to get some help from here.  I am planning to spend a week in Ft Lauderdale in early January of 2024 to play 3-4 rounds of golf.  I am looking for decent golf courses that do not break the bank.  I prefer typical Florida golf style golf courses with good layout and on the challenging side.  The following is the list of golf courses I put together from my initial research. The order is the preference level.  For folks from the area or have knowledge of Ft Lauderdale golf courses - does the list and the order make sense? Are there any in the list I should avoid? Any good ones I miss?  Thanks in advance!

 

Plantation Preserve ($110)

Osprey Point ($80. Busy, may not get in)

Jacaranda East ($199. A bit too expensive. Is it worth it?)

Jacaranda West ($199. A bit too expensive. Is it worth it?)

CC of Coral Springs ($90. How is the course and condition?)

Eagle Trace ($102. Condition varies depending on luck.  Many public tee times available – good or bad?)

Deer Creek GC ($115. How is this course?)

Emerald hills ($104.  Closer to city.  A lot of tee time open.  Why isn’t busy even on Weekends)

 

Edited November 23, 2023 by golfer55082

[nsxguy]

11 minutes ago, golfer55082 said:

I know this is an old post but the information seems still relevant and I hope to get some help from here.  I am planning to spend a week in Ft Lauderdale in early January of 2024 to play 3-4 rounds of golf.  I am looking for decent golf courses that do not break the bank.  I prefer typical Florida golf style golf courses with good layout and on the challenging side.  The following is the list of golf courses I put together from my initial research. The order is the preference level.  For folks from the area or have knowledge of Ft Lauderdale golf courses - does the list and the order make sense? Are there any in the list I should avoid? Any good ones I miss?  Thanks in advance!

 

Plantation Preserve ($110)

Osprey Point ($80. Busy, may not get in)

Jacaranda East ($199. A bit too expensive. Is it worth it?)

Jacaranda West ($199. A bit too expensive. Is it worth it?)

CC of Coral Springs ($90. How is the course and condition?)

Eagle Trace ($102. Condition varies depending on luck.  Many public tee times available – good or bad?)

Deer Creek GC ($115. How is this course?)

Emerald hills ($104.  Closer to city.  A lot of tee time open.  Why isn’t busy even on Weekends)

 

 

Welllllll, of course I can't tell you whether any of them are "worth it" but I've played most of them - not too recently though.

 

Conditions are ever-changing as you are well aware and I haven't played many of them in the last 3-4 years. For me personally and most of the guys I play with nowadays, the game is on the greens. If the fairways are a bit ratty, no one cares; roll it over. If the greens are poor though, nobody wants to play them.

 

 

Jacarand East and West. East was always the better of the 2 and in better condition. But I believe within the last 10 years or so they re-did the West. I played it about 3 years ago and it was considerably better than I remembered.

 

But IMO, they're not worth almost double some of the others.

 

Osprey - 3 9's, one of which is really tight with penalty areas on both side of a number of holes. Other 2 9's are more open. It's always been in very good condition. Played it a couple of times within the last 2 years and it was very good.

 

Plantation Preserve. A favorite of my old club when they came down from NY for a pre-season week's warmup. Haven't played it recently but it was always in very good shape. A few tight holes but fairly open for the most part.

 

Deer Creek - Always in primo shape, usually $125 in Winter. Very nice layout, greens are normally immaculate.

 

Coral Springs - another nice layout. Played it a few times in the last 3 years and the condition was pretty good as I recall.

 

Don't ever recall playing Eagle Trace or Emerald Hills.

 

A few alternates.

 

Colony West is a very interesting track and good test but was not always in the best condition.

 

Bonaventure, I believe a former Tour stop, is a very nice layout. Also not always in the best condition.

 

Palm-Aire (Pompano Beach) 3 courses below. I used to play there regularly up until about 4 years ago so not sure about now.         

 

Palm-Aire Oaks - decent track that used to host some high-level amateur tourneys but was in disrepair when we left. Wouldn't recommend unless they've really worked on it.

 

Palm-Aire Cypress - Nice track and tighter than the Oaks. This course was in pretty good condition when we left.

 

Palm-Aire Palms - Not as nice as the other 2. Pretty wide open though.

 

Oriole (Margate) - A somewhat underrated (IMO) course. Not as long as most but a good layout that's always in pretty good shape and greens are usually immaculate and very fast. I play there a couple of times per month. And usually about $60 in Winter. Not an especially difficult test though (other than the greens if they're very fast).

 

Hope this helps.

 

Enjoy your Thanksgiving. 👍

[simsjim215]

Hi... Just to keep an aging thread alive.  

I just returned from a week in Wilton Manors, and had an opportunity to play three times.  My first time playing in FLA.   I am a high handicap, so was looking for good value (under $100).

 

In order of how i liked what I played:

Country Club at Coral Springs - the nicest conditions and best service of the three I played by a wide margin.

Bonaventure - not for you if you are super picky about conditions, but a good bargain.

Palm Aire-Palms - iguanas everywhere.  Again, as said in a post above, one could see where this and Bonaventure were both once better than they are now with good bones.  If you can look past the frayed edges, you'll have fun and have enough in $$ in your wallet for some empanadas afterwards.  

 

Pace of play at all three was decent - although i played Mon, Tues, Wed.  I booked tee times as a single on all three dates and was matched with 2-3 others on all dates.  Longest round took about 4 hours - not terrible for public.   CS felt most like a private to me. The facilities, course and service were IMO an outstanding bargain.  Some of the greens were ailing a bit, but overall for me it was the most pleasant of the three.  

 

There are many to choose from, so it can get overwhelming trying to land on which one.  A local guy told me to seek out Osprey (if I can get on) and Woodmont, alas time ran out.

 

I'd be interested in hearing about how your excursion goes.

 

 

Edited December 4, 2023 by simsjim215

[Mw1991]

I'm playing Jacaranda next week I will report back here on conditions. I'm paying 119 for the round. 

[golfer55082]

On 11/23/2023 at 12:17 PM, nsxguy said:

 

Welllllll, of course I can't tell you whether any of them are "worth it" but I've played most of them - not too recently though.

 

Conditions are ever-changing as you are well aware and I haven't played many of them in the last 3-4 years. For me personally and most of the guys I play with nowadays, the game is on the greens. If the fairways are a bit ratty, no one cares; roll it over. If the greens are poor though, nobody wants to play them.

 

 

Jacarand East and West. East was always the better of the 2 and in better condition. But I believe within the last 10 years or so they re-did the West. I played it about 3 years ago and it was considerably better than I remembered.

 

But IMO, they're not worth almost double some of the others.

 

Osprey - 3 9's, one of which is really tight with penalty areas on both side of a number of holes. Other 2 9's are more open. It's always been in very good condition. Played it a couple of times within the last 2 years and it was very good.

 

Plantation Preserve. A favorite of my old club when they came down from NY for a pre-season week's warmup. Haven't played it recently but it was always in very good shape. A few tight holes but fairly open for the most part.

 

Deer Creek - Always in primo shape, usually $125 in Winter. Very nice layout, greens are normally immaculate.

 

Coral Springs - another nice layout. Played it a few times in the last 3 years and the condition was pretty good as I recall.

 

Don't ever recall playing Eagle Trace or Emerald Hills.

 

A few alternates.

 

Colony West is a very interesting track and good test but was not always in the best condition.

 

Bonaventure, I believe a former Tour stop, is a very nice layout. Also not always in the best condition.

 

Palm-Aire (Pompano Beach) 3 courses below. I used to play there regularly up until about 4 years ago so not sure about now.         

 

Palm-Aire Oaks - decent track that used to host some high-level amateur tourneys but was in disrepair when we left. Wouldn't recommend unless they've really worked on it.

 

Palm-Aire Cypress - Nice track and tighter than the Oaks. This course was in pretty good condition when we left.

 

Palm-Aire Palms - Not as nice as the other 2. Pretty wide open though.

 

Oriole (Margate) - A somewhat underrated (IMO) course. Not as long as most but a good layout that's always in pretty good shape and greens are usually immaculate and very fast. I play there a couple of times per month. And usually about $60 in Winter. Not an especially difficult test though (other than the greens if they're very fast).

 

Hope this helps.

 

Enjoy your Thanksgiving. 👍

Want to provide an update. Hopefully it  can help others. Just finished a 5 day 4 round golf trip in Ft. Lauderdale area:

 

- Thursday 1.4: Jacaranda East. $179+tax. Excellent green. Good tee box and fairway. Layout a bit mundane. A bit too expensive. Recommend otherwise. 
- Friday 1.5: plantation preserve: $125+tax. Excellent tee box, good fairway and good green. Excellent layout. recommend! 
- Saturday 1.6: country Club of Coral Springs. Got an excellent deal, regular weekend morning price is $95+tax. Worn down tee box and fairway. Ok green. Would not recommend. This is the only regret of the trip. I would not go back regardless of the price. 
-Monday 1.8: Osprey Point Golf Course. Wow golf course & everything! Layout is excellent. Regular weekend price is $93. Tee box, fairway, green all top notch. Definitely Recommend! I would definitely play there again! 
my personal ranking: osprey point, plantation preserve, very close 3rd jacaranda East, and………….. cc of Coral Springs.

 

Edited January 8, 2024 by golfer55082

[lakland5strng]

Long time lurker, first time poster...  Used these threads to inform a few rounds played in the area Jan 22nd ish.  Wanted to get out of the cold of Detroit for a quick trip. Thought I'd contribute, ha.

 

Played Deer Creek - Thought was great.  Conditions were fantastic, enjoyed the layout. Even though were sending groups off both 9s pace of play was still 4 hours.

 

The next day did 36 at Jacaranda.  Picked this b/c of proximity to where we were staying, the 36 holes, and it is always mentioned in these posts.  It felt a lil tired compared to our Deer Creek experience.  Both courses were a fun layout, nothing felt tight, but a few holes felt a little target golf-y. The one negative is the conditions fell a little flat.  Greens were nice, but fairways were a lil rough (large areas of weeds,crabgrass,bare spots) and the tee boxes had some bare spots and a bit shaggy.  I can appreciate if have to prioritize working backwards from greens is most favorable.