COURSE REVIEW
Perched on the edge of
the Everglades, golfers
at Bonaventure face
both wildlife and water
By Tim McDonald,
National Golf Editor
WESTON, Fla. (Aug. 18, 2005) - The Bonaventure Country Club is perched dead on the edge of the vast Everglades, the last vestige of civilization before you leave greater Fort Lauderdale and enter the no-man's wetlands on your way to Naples and southwest Florida.
So, despite the fact it's hard by Alligator Alley, the two resort courses don't have the cramped development so much of South Florida golf suffers from. You can actually get a sense of the great swamp here; the course has the usual assortment of alligators, herons, iguanas and hawks, who have the luxury of alternating between fancy living and swamp survival.
"You get Northern visitors down here and they see alligators, iguanas and hawks in one day," Director of Golf Chris Baetzel said. "They think that's pretty cool."
The East course is by far the more difficult of the two, at slightly more than 7,000 yards and replete with water hazards and target bunkers. The course was built in 1970 - the original ownership group included former talk show host Mike Douglas - and has been through several ownership changes since, the last of whom let the course go.
The current owners are five partners who basically grew up together: brothers Keith and Ed Clougherty, Mark Bernstein, Mike Fernandez and Baetzel, who also serves as the director of golf.
"Four guys in their early 40s who hung out in bars together in their 20s," said Baetzel, who moved to Florida from Rhode Island.
The group has already spent $2 million in renovations and continues to spruce up the old - for Florida - course. It shows, because the course is in excellent condition in spite of the torrential rains this part of Florida has been burdened with.
It's a Joe Lee design and the first thing most people gape at is the "waterfall hole," the par-3, no. 3. The one-shotter is over a cascading waterfall to an elevated green, more visually intimidating than it is difficult. Lee, an under-rated course architect, has always liked his waterfalls, and this is one of his earlier ones.
The verdict
The
East course has a slope rating of 132 and is sometimes referred to as
the "Green Monster." That's stretching it a bit, but the course does
have a lot of bite, especially from the back tees. There are more than
the usual risk-reward options; there always seems to be a long stretch
of water that taunts you and dares you to try and hit over.
No. 4 is a 436-yard par-4 into the prevailing winds, where the cars rush by on Alligator Alley. No. 5 has an island fairway with big water left and water in front of the green. Look for red-tail hawks and burrowing owls here. No. 7 wraps around a lake to the right. It's a par-5 reachable in two if you can carry the water - this is where the big, male gator likes to lurk.
"I like that course because you can hit your driver nearly every hole, though there are a few where you probably shouldn't," said Eric McLaughlin, a low-handicapper from North Georgia. "I like it when a hole dares me to hit over trouble; I usually hit it better when I have something to carry."
The course has a nice closing stretch: No. 15 has water all the way down the left and only those with hairy forearms dare to try it at 360 yards - hey, it's been done. The 16th is a 581-yard par-5, No. 17 is a tough, little 177-yard par-3 and the finishing hole requires two shots over water to a two-tiered green.
The course plays harder than it looks, because it seems everything slopes to the water. All the kicks here seem to end up wet.
Service at the club is excellent, especially starter Mike Weaver, the son of Earl, the former Baltimore Orioles manager. Green fees at the semi-private club are very reasonable, up to $80, and the club offers a summer premier card for $200. Annual memberships and Florida residents' rates from $15-$75.
Stay and play
The
Bonaventure Resort and Spa is soon to become the Wyndham Resort and
Golden Door Spa, and, man, do they have some changes planned. A new
48,000-square-foot spa will be added, modeled after traditional Japanese
Honjin Inn style with a tea room adjacent to the main waiting room.
Plans call for 35 treatment rooms, a couples' massage room, a large fitness room, yoga studio, Pilates studio, café and a Zen garden. There will also be a "contemplation area," where you go, it is assumed, to contemplate lotus blossoms, the vastness of the universe and other stuff.
A $75 million renovation is slated to finish this fall. The resort is in the midst of 23 acres of gardens, and has an affiliation with the Bonaventure Country Club. The Weston Tennis Center is nearby, headed by Cliff Drysdale. You can rough it in the Everglades or go shopping at Sawgrass Mills, both 10-minute drives away.
The resort is in the town of Weston, one of those pleasant, ritzy, South Florida towns away from the grime of the cities, where tourists with straw hats ride bicycles with their kids, and where the roads are wide and never a pothole to be found.
Dining out
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Cleo's Bistro is a full-service restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner and spa food is also available at the hotel. Windows Lounge serves cocktails with a limited dinner menu and Weston and nearby Fort Lauderdale have a wide variety of restaurants.
Fast fact
The East course is home to the Latin America Tour's U.S. Qualifying and also hosts the prestigious Dixie Amateur tournament.
Any opinions expressed above are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the management. The information in this story was accurate at the time of publication. All contact information, directions and prices should be confirmed directly with the golf course or resort before making reservations and/or travel plans.
Golf Vacation PackagesFlorida Golf Travel - 866-521-2331 |
