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I played Buffalo Creek for the first time yesterday and was impressed with the course. Besides the greens fees being very reasonable, I was matched up with three other senior golfers and we were all very compatible and had a great time throughout the round. The course was in great shape and played very fair. It was pretty wide open with only a few water holes and not overdone with sand traps. The negative comments I had read previously were about slow play. But we played in 4:15 which was reasonable for a busy Friday. As a result, I definitely will return again.

This was my 3rd time playing the course over the years. I was paired up with 3 others that were really fun to play with. The course was in great condition and there was very little wind, which I gather doesn’t happen too often there. It really couldn’t have been a nicer day of golf (although I could have played better)!

I made a tee time as a single player. The starter matched me up with another single player. We both played fairly well, had a lot in common to talk about, and just generally had a great time. I thought the staff was much more friendly than when I played there a year ago. The course was in excellent condition, which was notable given this year’s higher temperatures in February. There’s plenty of trouble to get into with hazards, water and bunkers, but the course plays very fair. Al-in-all, this was an excellent experience.

I really enjoyed playing for the first time at Esplanade Golf and Country Club at Lakewood Ranch. The staff couldn't have been friendlier and the starter even gave us great advice in how to play the 3rd and 17th holes. I can see where this course can be a devil playing from the tips with so much water in play. But being older and not hitting the ball nearly as far as we used to, we played from the copper tees. I thought the course played very fair (and almost a little easy) from that set of tees. Teeing off at around 8:30, the starter had said that the pace of play might be a little slow, but fortunately, that didn't prove to be true. We played in about 4:20, and the group in front of us was a whole hole ahead of us so we could have played even faster if we didn't waste some time looking for our errant shots. This was designed beautifully and will probably be a totally private course when more houses are inhabited by golfers, but I just don't know if it's worth $99 to play it more than once.

This course was a little less challenging than I would have liked. It's not very long, and although there are some water hazards to deal with, it is very easy to manage for an intermediate golfer like me. The front 9 is a good layout but the back 9 is mostly par 3s. The fairways were good and the greens were in excellent condition. I wound up playing with some regulars there and that was very enjoyable. The round took about 3 hours which was great. The clubhouse isn't plush but is very functional with a very nice bar, patio and modest pro shop. I will probably play there again.