grayesun

We caught up to threesome about an hour ahead of us on 7th hole and played slow all the way to 16. At 17th tee we quit, when we noticed threesome ahead of us had joined threesome ahead of us...forming a six-some.

We expected a little better course conditions than we got. Greens were not so good, many apron areas were burnt. Rough was too deep, causing excessive time lost trying to locate balls. A lot of debris from a recent storm hadn't been cleared yet from rough areas, adding to the difficulty of locating and hitting balls. Facilities, service and carts were very good.

We enjoyed playing Shipyard course, it was challenging, interesting hole layouts and in real good condition. We play 99% in Florida so this course was much different than what we usually see. The rough is deep, thick and brutal to hit from and quite a few balls simply couldn't be found at all. Plenty of water and narrow fairways provided most of the challenge at Shipyard...would we play it again...absolutely! We had a great time!

Greens in rough shape with lots of patchwork repairs, no sand (just dirt) in many bunkers, no 150 yard stakes, not enough water stations or rest room facilities made for an uncomfortable 1st (probably last) visit to this course. No beacons indicating where carts should go or stop to park near greens. Concession service on course (too infrequent), snack bar hot dogs simply awful.

What's good: The course layout, great variety of holes, good practice area.

We arrived late to check in, thinking our tee time was 1:00 - it was actually 12:00, but they squeezed us (two) in - no problem. Big points for that as we were paying a discount rate. Golf carts in good shape, clean, fairly new and well maintained.

Like many sub-division courses, the holes wind through the neighborhood - but you rarely feel concerned about errant shots hitting a home...fairways are wide and rough is mostly very forgiving/playable. Several holes play away from developed areas into woodlands or cleared home-sites waiting a build. Note: It's a well-maintained neighborhood of all block-stucco homes.

The course plays relatively easy, we played as a two-some - both on this course for the 1st time and scored pretty well. Greens, fairways and tee-boxes all in fine shape. We had no problems with bunkers all day (avoided them), so can't report on the condition. No water problems, or out of bounds came into play all day either - despite a few wayward tee shots.

My only suggestion would be for better signage for negotiating around the course - we tried to watch group in front of us because there is a lot of "street crossing" through the neighborhood. Also, "150 yard stakes" on the course would help a lot in determining distances. We spent a lot of time driving around looking for distance markers.