Is Dye's Valley worth it?

[layingfive]

I'm planning out a trip for next summer with some buddies to Florida. The primary purpose is TPC Sawgrass, but of course we'd like to play elsewhere too. What about Dye's Valley? Is it worth the $150-ish that it commands during the summer months? Or is it only notable for its connection to the Stadium course?

 

I guess what I'm saying is this: if we can save a lot of cash and still play a course of comparable quality in the area, then we'd probably do that, but if Dye's Valley is a don't-miss in its own right, then I'd like to know that too.

 

Muchas gracias, compadres.

[bruinsPATSirish]

[quote name='layingfive' timestamp='1414606476' post='10369037']
I'm planning out a trip for next summer with some buddies to Florida. The primary purpose is TPC Sawgrass, but of course we'd like to play elsewhere too. What about Dye's Valley? Is it worth the $150-ish that it commands during the summer months? Or is it only notable for its connection to the Stadium course?

I guess what I'm saying is this: if we can save a lot of cash and still play a course of comparable quality in the area, then we'd probably do that, but if Dye's Valley is a don't-miss in its own right, then I'd like to know that too.

Muchas gracias, compadres.
[/quote]

I haven't been there personally but I have heard multiple times that the Valley course is a better round of golf than Sawgrass.

[golferdrmjr]

I played both courses last year and enjoyed the Valley course. You'll have to get some responses from the locals though, as far as if there's better values on other courses in the area.

[billylds]

I played both courses earlier this month and the Stadium course is quite a bit better than the Valley course in my opinion. The Valley course just underwent a major renovation to deal with the poor drainage but it still sits on swampland and will never handle the rain as well as the Stadium course does with its sub-air system. The day I played Valley was a soggy mess due to the rain the previous days but Stadium was just fine. There are some good holes on the Valley course for sure, including the island green 5th, but nothing like the Stadium course. For me, it's comparable in appeal to Sawgrass CC on the other side of A1A. Both Sawgrass CC and Dye Valley run through housing developments for most of the round while Stadium is pretty much void of that. The Valley course does feature some elevation change, particularly on the back nine, which is a nice change of pace compared to most Florida courses. For comparable money I believe you should be able to play the Ocean course at Hammock Beach which is about 50 miles down the coastline. If you are willing to drive there then I think it is a better course for the money, but if you don't want to drive that far then the Valley course is one of the better options in the area. If you are looking for the best value, it is tough to beat Donald Ross' Hyde Park in Jacksonville which runs about $25-$30.

[kemau]

definitely book at the valley course.....i've played there and walked it tip to tip in september for the web.com championship after it re-opened and it looked sharp. bring your stimpmeter to get a number on the greens! very fast. also, look at st johns golf and country club as they just hosted the first stage of web.com q school october 25th - 28th. they've hosted that for several years now so that's an endorsement to consider. great track and another one with ski slope fast greens. i've never played ocean hammock but every review i've seen and/or heard has been stellar. good suggestion to check out

[Capitalist!]

I like the history of a course... I would rather play Sawgrass CC...

That said Valley shares the clubhouse and driving range... Which adds to appeal...

[Doc420]

Played a tournament there last year right before the renovation. The greens were running over 13, I loved that. Tpc is fun, but the greens were slow only running around 9.

[wldchld22]

I thought it was harder than Sawgrass. 9 of the last 13 holes have water I think?

Loved it but playing it after Sawgrass was a little tough mentally. I would recommend Dye as the warmup.