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River Club is a really nice layout where demanding small greens make up for minimal elevation change in terms of shotmaking. The course is on outstanding shape especially considering how dry it has been this year - very good irrigation all over. Pace of play was 4:25 which isn’t that bad for a weekend. Very friendly staff including marshals. This will be my regular upgrade from my usual home course and at GolfNow prices is an outstanding value compared with neighboring courses.

Tatum Ridge is a completely ordinary layout in less than average shape. The small, well contoured greens are pretty good but everything else is dingy, dried out, or outright crummy. Clubhouse is basic, men’s room revolting. Very little shade and no water on the course. There are much better values within a couple of miles

IMG is a tough layout so choose wisely from the many tee box options. Like all courses in this part of Florida it’s pretty flat but it offers a good variety of shotmaking challenges. Greens are subtle and well maintained but not terribly fast. Fairways are in terrific shape right now. There’s not much shade on the course so these days it can get pretty hot.

IMG used to be El Conquistador and a Tour stop and if you're anything but a pro you'll still find it's length a challenge. The white tees where we played are only 6,100 but we often were hitting long irons and hybrids into greens. Conditions were outstanding - fast but uncomplicated greens, good sand in the bunkers, soft fairways. Given the Covid crisis I was reluctant to ride with anyone so I asked to walk (normally for members only) and found it an easy and enjoyable stroll. We started at 7:46 and were done with 18 before 11am - excellent pace!

This is a favorite course - three great nines, superb practice area, well looked after. All that was true today except the greens were really slow - honestly running around 7 stimp. It made chipping really easy but putting a little frustrating. These aren’t especially contoured greens so they can hold a lot of speed and they’re usually pretty quick. It’s nice to be able to get up and down from anywhere but I hope they get back to their typical speed soon

This is a classic championship level course in goat-track condition. Greens are half dirt and very uneven, rough is spotty and the bunkers are embarrassing.. we had a fine time once we reconciled ourselves to the fact that putting was completely random, because there are many classic holes on this course. However we won’t go back until they put some care into the conditions, starting with a liittle water!

Wahconah is not as famous as Taconic, its neighbor to the north or Berkshire Hills to the west, but in most ways it's just as good a layout as either. I rated the course as moderately difficult because the greens were slow this trip, but when they're fast in late summer you won't find many tougher courses as far as second shots go. The course is easily walkable with most tee boxes right near the preceding green, but its very hilly, so if you're not pretty fit it's better to ride. Generous landing areas and the fairways are in outstanding condition (greens were a little uneven). If you par 14 you'll be among the very few - easy drive, tough second shot, tough third uphill, brutal green!

This is my very favorite course in the area. It features wide open landing areas so you can blast away, but very tough greens which put a premium on good approach shots and skilled lag-putting. Pace of play is usually OK but this time was more than 4:30 which I think is too slow for a course designed for skilled players.

This was my fourth time at this course and it's always a pleasure although the best feature is usually the complex,fast and demanding greens which on this occasion had just been punched and were bumpy and sandy. Still, the varied shot values and rolling terrain make it an outstanding value at the crazy low Golfnow rate.

Lakewood National is a new entry into the crowded upscale clump of courses east of i75 stretching from South Sarasota up to the Manatee River, and it may be the best of the bunch. The course is brand new so while the proshop is open there are no other amenities to speak of, and the course is surrounded by new or impending construction so the setting isn’t attractive. That’s all there is to say about this setup which isn’t a rave. The practice area and driving range are first rate, stocked with new NXT Tours. The course offers a range of tees from 7100+ to around 5000, and because the fairways are fast you can move back a little from your usual comfort zone. Be wise though, because the greens will eat you up if you aren’t a skilled putter. The contours are severe - several holes have elevation changes of over eight feet! The whole course, in fact, offers a lot more undulation than is usual in Florida, and it’s very welcome. I thought the par 3s were pretty straightforward - hit to the right area of the green and you’ll make par. Hit anywhere else and you won’t. Likewise the par 5s - put the ball in play, get your second shot to where you can hit a wedge and you’ll make par there too. The par 4s are really tough. Even from the 6378 tees where we played several were well over 400 yards, and while the landing areas are generous there’s plenty of trouble if you stray. The big issue is that if you’re coming into these greens with a long club you’ll be very lucky to be in the right spot, and then the combination of speed (around 10.5 today) and contour will make your putting critical. I love these kinds of challenges and don’t remember when I’ve had more fun on a course, especially a new one. The Golfnow rate was a steal, so take advantage before the development is built up and it all goes private!

This is an exceptionally well- maintained course with lots of shotmaking challenges but not impossible to manage for less skilled players. Forced carries tend to be on the approach not the drive. The three nines are rotated so you're never playing on freshly punched greens, and the greens recover fast. Of the three nines I think Estuary the most interesting but all have appeal. Golfnow rates make this an exceptional value. Not a good course to walk due to long trips from green to tee.

This is a very beautiful layout marred by very slow play. The wildlife is close to what you'd find in sanctuary courses, the greens are rather small but heavily contoured, rough is thick and challenging, fairways are overseeded bermuda and pretty good. Our round was close to 5 hours which is due to tight tee times with several foursomes ahead of us not ready to play such a challenging course. I'd go again, but would want to be sure it was at a less busy time of year. We rode which is good - the distances green to next tee are excessive.

Pick your teebox realistically - if you're too far back this course will play really long. It's in excellent shape at the moment - fairways and teeboxes are good, traps better than average and greens very true although not especially fast. There are a couple of funky par 4s on the back but otherwise this is one of the best layouts in the neighborhood, with an excellent practice area. At the Golfnow price of just under $50 it's a good value, too, especially if you have some long hitters in your group who can wheel out the big lumber from the back tees.

This is a VERY short course - par 60 but rating is 58.7, but if you want to get out and practise your wedge game, or want to spend some quality time with a young or inexperienced or elderly player it's tough to beat. The small greens are well maintained, pace of play is excellent, players and staff are courteous. It's basically a par 3 course with a few opportunities to hit longer clubs. If that's what you're looking for you won't be disappointed. I've played it twice now and will be back.

This is a fine course in fine shape and was a real pleasure to play. The smooth greens are heavily contoured with complex undulations, but at the moderate speed they rolled at were very fair - they'd be brutal if fast. The layout provides a nice mix of wide open driving holes and narrower risk/reward opportunities. The nicely maintained flora and the plentiful water both say Florida, but the layout is classic parkland, including some mild elevation changes and many elevated greens. I enjoyed it very much and will go back.

This is a fine place to spend an afternoon, but don't expect memorable shots unless your memory's pretty vivid. The course is in nice shape, greens are slow like every other in the region at this time, but smooth. Fairways are well tended too. It's in shot values that Jacaranda falls short - every tee shot needs to avoid a trap left at 220 or so, sometimes there's one on the right also. There are other ways to set up a course for heaven's sake! Very flat. The best holes are the shorter par 4s because they're the only ones which ask for some imagination.

From the moment I walked into the Pro shop until the moment I left this was a gracious, friendly experience, with some excellent golf in a beautifully maintained setting. Played holes 1-18 (out of 27) which offered a wide variety of tee shots and approaches ( I used every club except my 6i), lots of places to hit driver and lots of places where it was wiser not to. The greens were very well maintained and smooth, but brutally slow - I suppose that's inevitable in August when it pours every evening and then climbs to 92° every day. If they mowed short and rolled them the greens would die, but it's frustrating, partly because you have to hammer every putt and partly because the course doesn't get a chance to strut its stuff - the slopes are moderate so firm and fast would be ideal. There are SIX sets of tees which is really a great idea. We played the Emerald at 6446 which was perfect as it turned out, although three of the par 3s were about the same length (182ish). Generally the landing areas are more generous than they appear from the tee, and the green complexes not all that tough - again, faster greens would make a huge difference, and I'm sure in winter they're lightning. The setting is midsized homes on most holes, but they never really intrude because the landscaping really sets the course in its own world. From the Pro to the head chef everyone was just as nice as could be. I'm definitely looking forward to going back, and since it's really close to my work I'm actually hoping to join. First rate all around.

I don't know what lefe means, but the water in Waterlefe is everywhere - on every hole, and sometimes in play on more than one shot. If you control your tee shot its actualy a pretty easy course, with less than complex green complexes. If you don't control your tee shot you'll be wet. A lot. The setting is an upscale housing development - present on most holes but not obtrusive. Greens had been punched three weeks prior and were still sandy but fairly true, fairways, rough, and surroundings were all very well maintained. I wouldn't recommend this course to a beginner, or to someone who wants to bang driver off every tee, but it's a gracious and entertaining round, and at the Golfnow rate (I paid $12.59 with fees and taxes) a ridiculous bargain

Alaqua is an enjoyable trip through a beautifully landscaped community of massive villas. Conditions except where construction is going on are very very good - greens are well maintained (#6 is due to be repalced and needs it) but not at all fast when I played. Many holes involve forced carries over water (and gators) so pick the right tees or be prepared to lay up from time to time. Most holes ask for some kind of shape from the tee, and a few have very limited landing areas. 13 is an island green which is 177 from the back but there are other holes just as tough. I'd play it again with pleasure. Golfnow price is an excellent value.

Wahconah is set in the hills of Berkshire county and offers a challenging, scenic, varied round of golf. It best suits a good shotmaker with a reliable shortgame since the main challenge is the fast, true, sloping greens. Even from the tips the course isn't all that long and few holes are out of reach for the bogey golfer, but from above the hole the putts will challenge anyone. Fantastic wide open downhill drive on #1 (favor the right side), then a tough, long, uphill par 3 set the stage for a fairly easy front 9. 7 is reachable but remember that the green runs AWAY. The back is tougher, especially the diabolical par 5 14th. 18 is reachable but the big green runs hard left so it's a tough hole to birdie. Clubhouse isn't much to speak about. Staff isn't particularly welcoming, but the course makes up for all that.