Country Club of Florida
First played the Country Club of Florida in 2005 and for the next few years I was spending a lot of time in the Boynton Beach/Delray Beach area and played here quite a few times. Unfortunately though not since.
There’s under the radar and then there is full cloaking! CCF is invisible to the golf world even though it is on Golf Rd. in the Village of Golf. Around the corner is Pine Tree that does get some love but is an inferior property and a far inferior experience. Trying to jog my memory, I searched around the Web for other CCF reviews. I honestly only found the Top 100 site review and that’s it so I am almost feeling an obligation to do a real review not my usual nonsense.
Here goes. Conditioning was always second to none when I played. I played here a few days after a hurricane once and while you will see the downed banyan trees below, the rest of the debris and whatnot was cleaned up and the course in great shape. I don’t think there are a lot of members – it’s a tiny residential community within the property and you just don’t see anyone else on the course. I remember not ever parking the car when I got here either. Just would leave it right up at the circle. No issues. Because I’m trying to do a real write-up here, I searched and found a couple of scorecards (though I would guess I played here about a half dozen times). The whites are 5,770 and the blues are 6,404 yards so I am sure we played the blues. The scores I found were a 90 and a 87 so a very average round and a slightly better than average round for me and confirms my memory of the course being fun to play but not a push over. Unlike most Florida residential courses, the homes here are way off on the perimeter of the course and don’t really hurt the vibe. Bunkering is strategic but not overdone.
The first is a pretty straight-forward (literally) hole, not long at 368 but must be difficult enough as it is the 5th handicap (or was on the card from when I played). My guess is that both left and right are OB – homes to the left of you, jokers to the right (okay range to the right). I got bogeys on both rounds. Two is a 481-yard short par five. There is a small pond to the left off the tee but don’t even remember it and doesn’t look to be in play at all. From what I remember – and this is like 15 years and 1,500 Miller Lites ago – the green sat up on a little plateau above the fairway. Pond left. Parred both times – and that’s the last time you’ll see that.
Three is 390 yards and the number one handicap. Dogleg left, stay right on your drive but not too far right, homes and you’re back along the range. A trap and trees protect the dogleg. A bogey and a double. The first par three is a mid-distance 164 yarder. No water on this one, nasty looking trap to clear but just the seventeenth handicap. Par, bogey.
Five requires you to thread the needle between a pond along the right off your drive and another to your left and in front of the green on your approach. It’s the number seven handicap and bogeyed twice. Six is another short par five (notice how there are no consecutive holes of the same par). It doglegs right and if you slice your approach there is a juicy pond to deal with. Bogey, bogey, so I am guessing at least one swim in la agua.
The seventh is a dogleg right with water right but if you skull fuck it right off the tee some trees will block you from going in and there is a lot of room left. It’s the 13th handicap. Par, bogey. Eight is a slightly longer par three than 4 (this one at 175) with bunkers left, right and short. Par and bogey.
The photo above and the one with my buddy Bill is from the fairway on nine. Gentle dogleg left. Some bunkers protect the dogleg (I think our host John is hitting from that one in the photo below) and bunkers and trees protect the tenth tee and shots pushed right. It’s 380 from the blues. Bogey, bogey.
I don’t remember a cart girl here so must’ve loaded up at the clubhouse for the back. Both rounds I could find cards for I scored several strokes higher on the back so either it must be tougher or I didn’t have enough access to booze. Usually about three beers in I start playing well. That lasts until about eight beers in where things usually take a drastic turn for the worst.
Ten is the longest par four on the course. Water right off the tee. Water left on the approach. Must’ve avoided them both times. Par and bogey. Eleven is a longer par five than the short stuff on the front. Room right off the tee. Pond left if you yank your approach. Par and bogey, sensing a theme here?
Twelve is a short par four, straight, no water and room right. Yup another par, bogey. Thirteen starts the theme you’ll see for the two threes on the back – anything short is in la agua. Must’ve dunked one here – bogey and double. I believe the scorecard pictured below features the 13th.
Fourteen is the shortest four on the course. Water up the left and trees tight off the right but a decent drive should get you beyond the trouble. I must not have hit a decent enough drive at least once. Double and bogey again, Fifteen is a par five. Tight drive, dogleg so keep your approach right. Number two handicap as it is the longest par five on the course – 529 yards from the blues. Par, bogey.
The 16th is a shortish par four with a bunker right catching wayward drives and a cross bunker for muffed approach shots. Bogey, double. This is a much worse theme than the par, bogey train I was on earlier in the rounds. Another par three over water on 17. Another bogey, double. I must’ve plunked at least one ball in la agua. Finally eighteen is a straight-ahead 400-yard par four. Bunker left off the tee, Very well protected green. You guessed it a bogey and double. On my 87 round, I hit the perfect bogey golfer back nine – an easy for the math challenged to add up, all fives.
Overall I rank CCF firmly in my top 100. I love that it is an unknow gem and that it is a well conditioned, quick paced, fun course to play with some beautiful golf holes. I’ll do a better write-up on the West Palm/Boynton/Delray area in my forthcoming PGA National write-up, heading there for the initial 2021 round.
Golf Scrapbook 