Sandestin/Destin Florida Golf Options

[ssf301]

I'm heading there in a few weeks for a family function (wife's family).  I have a few questions about the golf.

 

First, I'm getting saddled with a her relatives for a round.  I don't think two of the three are very good/have played much.  I'm going to pay for the foursome because I don't want to play a $hitty course and I'm not certain what their budget is.  At the same time, I don't want to stick them with something too tough for a higher handicap.  I'm thinking the Links at Sandestin?  I played it about 20 years ago and I seem to remember it being relatively nice and not too tough?  Other suggestions?

 

Second, I will get in about 3 rounds myself and would prefer to play a couple of the best courses in the area.  It looks like maybe Raven, Kelly Plantation or Burnt Pine might be the best ones?  Other suggestions?  Also, private ones (that would be willing to give me a slot if the pro from my course called to set the tee time), would also be in play.  

 

Thanks!

[OK_Golf]

I played Burnt Pine this past spring and played Raven about 5 years ago.  Raven was nice and I would play again.  It had a cool look off the tee, bordered by pines with ground off the fairway covered in pine straw in many areas.  It was a solid "B" course at the time I played it about five years ago.  It hosted a Korn Ferry tour event this year (couple weeks after I was in town this spring), so it must be plenty of golf course from the tips.

 

Burnt Pine is in a different league from a conditioning standpoint and I enjoyed it very much.  It was fun and interesting, mix of length on holes.  Some good bunkering and places you have thread tee shots or approached due to water.  I would say its the best course I've played between San Destin and Orange Beach, AL (though I'm only comparing to Raven, Emerald Bay, and Regatta Bay).  I've heard good things about Kelly, but have no first hand knowledge.

 

If you're willing to drive ~30 minutes and shell out ~$200+, and have connections with a private club you may be able to play Camp Creek near Seacrest.  It tops Burnt Pine (IMHO) and is my favorite course in the area (many folks on this board call it the best course in the panhandle area).  I played it several years ago when staying in a rental associated with the company that owns the club (St Joes).  This year we weren't in a St Joe rental, so I tried to have my pro arrange a tee time.  He was turned down (they said they had limited times due to construction work on facilities there and were prioritizing members ... not sure if my pro just didn't have the stroke or if they really were turning most outside play away).

 

Another long drive is Windswept Dunes (~30 minutes inland back-up to Freeport).  Its a fun course, wide fairways, multi-tiered greens.  Looks a little "link-sy" but the two times I've played it has been pretty soggy (so it doesn't play like a links).  I would call it a good fit for higher handicappers because the fairways are wide and they have six sets of tees from ~5,200 yards all the way back to ~7,700 yds, so you could more length if you want it and they could play shorter tees if needed.  They don't have much in the way of facilities like restaurant or clubhouse, but they have a great practice area (range and short-game).  Conditions were less than perfect last time I was there (this spring), but i remember them being great the first time I played (a few years ago).

 

So in summary I would rank my experiences in the area:

 

1. Camp Creek

2. Burnt Pine

3. Windswept Dunes

4. Regatta Bay (tough call here, but Regatta edges out Raven mostly on conditions, generally a higher end vibe and a great finishing hole: par 4 with all carry approach shot over water to a dangerous green ... you feel like you played a shot if you're on this one in regulation!)

5. Raven (bit of a weird mix of holes, I feel like there were quite a few really easy holes then the hard holes were really hard ... not much in between.  Maybe I'm just an inconsistent golfer! 😁)

6. Emerald Bay

 

 

Enjoy you're time out there.  I'm anxious to hear how the golf (course conditions) and weather are this time of year.  I would love to spend more time in the area and understanding what the fall is like would be good to know!

[sethdavidsdad]

I would agree with OK_golf's list but would put Regatta above Windswept and would add Kelly Plantation. If you can get on Camp Creek is is by far the best. 

[Abh159]

Like the others have already mentioned... Camp Creek and Burnt Pine are a level above the rest with CC being the definite #1. Although both of those are private clubs so you'd have to have someone get you on at both places. FWIW I've played CC a number of times, but I always played with a member so I'm not sure how receptive they are to unaccompanied guests. 

 

After that, I'd say Regatta , Raven, and Kelly Plantation are the next best. All 3 are typically around the same conditioning and price.

 

Finally you have the other options. Windswept, Emerald Bay, Indian Bayou, Sandestin, and etc. Any of these should be fine for the round with your family

[vandyfan]

On 10/4/2021 at 3:35 PM, ssf301 said:

I'm thinking the Links at Sandestin?  I played it about 20 years ago and I seem to remember it being relatively nice and not too tough?  Other suggestions?

 

The links is short and pretty claustrophobic in some places. It has a view holes with a nice view of the bay, however. I would agree with the above saying that Windswept is probably the most forgiving off the tee since it isn't your typical florida resort course flanked by houses on both sides on every hole. It is, however, a bit of a drive from Destin proper. I personally love Windswept and make it a point to get out there every year I am in Destin (it also has a lot of tees so you can make it as hard or as easy as you want).

 

Top Tier: Already mentioned Windswept Dunes above. If price is not a consideration, I think Kelly Plantation is the class of the Destin courses. It is an attractive, well maintained course that isn't too target golfy and doesn't have massive housing encroachment. Also has 5 par 5s and 5 par 3s which makes it interesting to play. Raven is also very good and worth a visit. 

 

Middle of the Road: Emerald Bay, to me, is more fun than Regatta but they both can play pretty slow due to resort traffic. Regatta is more on the upscale side vs Emerald Bay. The negative I would say about Regatta is that last summer they had a ton of construction going on with the houses that border the course, like every other hole had major construction on it which was a bit annoying. Baytowne is a distant 3rd but I play it because I have been playing that course for years. It has some really unattractive views on the back 9 due to being randomly sandwiched in between condos. Also hole 13 is like golf course design malpractice and should be nuked off the face of the earth. 

 

 

[ssf301]

I got a no-go from my pro on Camp Creek.  Bummer.

 

On the bright side, I got out of the round with my relatives so I can play where I want as a single (so I no longer have to worry about price or difficulty of the course).  I'm going to try to get 3 rounds in now at Burnt Pine, Kelly Plantation and Windswept Dunes if I can get them booked.

 

I appreciate the help.

[jholz]

I'm a little late to the game here, and I know your plans have changed, but the Ft. Walton Beach Muni is a great option for cheap, non-resort golf in the area. 

 

It's nothing to write home about, certainly, but two solid 18's and very reasonably priced. Well worth the trip across the bridge from Destin. 

[OK_Golf]

Would love to hear post-round reviews.  Enjoy!

[PaddingtonPar]

No love for Sharks Tooth? I would take that if you can get on over the sandestin courses. 

[spdrcrx]

Kelly Plantation

[GreyDawg]

14 hours ago, PaddingtonPar said:

No love for Sharks Tooth? I would take that if you can get on over the sandestin courses. 

I think there's no love for Sharks Tooth because it cost $250+ to play as a guest and they aren't very friendly about letting people on through their home club anymore.

 

My vote is always windswept dunes but I stay in Santa Rosa

[ssf301]

On 10/22/2021 at 12:31 PM, OK_Golf said:

Would love to hear post-round reviews.  Enjoy!

For future WRX searchers traveling to this area, I'll throw my 2 cents in on the courses I got to play.  I got to play with some locals while I was there and the consensus seemed to be consistent with what I read here, that if you can get on them, the top 3 (in no particular order) would probably be Camp Creek, Sharks Tooth and Burnt Pine.  Of course, all of them are private so that sort of made sense.  I wasn't able to get on any of those this trip.  My schedule was in flux the whole time and I needed the flexibility to jump on a course sort of last minute each morning.  I did get to play Day 1 - Windswept Dunes, Day 2 - Kelly Plantation and Day 3 - Regatta Bay.

 

I would rate them in this order:

 

1 - Kelly Plantation

2 - Windswept Dunes

3 - Regatta Bay

 

I played all of them in the 6,300-6,600 yard range.  Unlike most WRXer's I don't drive it 325 yrds right down the middle all the time. 🙂

 

About me - I'm 53 yrs old and currently carrying a 2.7 handicap (I tend to run between 2 and 4).  I drive it in the 250-260 yrd range typically.

 

1 - Kelly Plantation (#2 tees, Plantation Tees 6,453 yrds) (36-33=69)

Of the 3 courses I played, this one was my favorite.  It helped that I scored the best on this one (tends to make me enjoy the course more), but I really didn't play any better here than on the other two, I just had a really hot putter that day and made 6 birdies.  It was in the best condition of the 3 (slightly better than Windswept) and I thought it had some really pretty holes  The greens were quick and had some slope to them.  Being above the hole wasn't a good idea and I actually made a couple putts that would have been a good 6-8 feet by the hole if they had not gone in.  The fairways were generous, more open than Regatta Bay but not as wide as Windswept Dunes.  It had a nice range and putting green.  The only slight complaint (very slight) is that I seemed to have nearly identical distance into a bunch of the par 4's on my second shot.  It happened to be a distance I liked, but I would have preferred a little more distance variation on the par 4's in general.

 

2 - Windswept Dunes (Emerald Tees 6,533 yrds) (36-40=76)

Windswept was interesting.  It had a nice layout and WIDE fairways, like really WIDE.  You could land a plane on them.  Where I played the #2 tees at Kelly, I played the #4 tees at Windswept and the tips were almost 7,800 yrds at Windswept.  The course was in good shape, on par with Kelly but the fairways didn't drain as well.  I think my total combined roll with the driver for the day was about 5 yards.  I thought this was the easiest of the 3 courses I played and apples to apples, I think I would consistently score the best on this course vs. the other two.  It happened to be super windy the day I play here and I'm honestly not sure I would have even attempted to play the other two in that much wind.  That's part of the reason I made the drive, to get a little off the coast.  It had a nice range and putting green though I believe they had the hardest range balls I've ever hit.  When I was warming up, if I had not been able to see the flight of my shots I would have said I mis-hit every single shot.  They were that hard....."marathon" brand.  🙂 Anyway, it was a fun course, playable for anyone.  My only slight complaint on this one was that some of the green complexes were a bit "much".  Some severe slopes and the big greens were almost sectioned off by large slope areas.  I hit a couple (what I thought) were really good shots that caught a downslope on the green and jumped over the back.  I'm sure if you played there regularly you could figure out where to hit your approaches, but for someone new to the course it was a bit of a challenge.

 

3 - Regatta Bay (White Tees 6,359 yrds) (38-37=75)

I thought Regatta was the toughest of the 3 courses apples to apples.  It was more narrow off the tee and had a few holes were you had to lay up into a landing area.  More target golf than the other two, but not bad in that regard.  It had several really pretty holes over the water.  I rated this one a little lower than the other two simply because it was the most expensive of the 3 courses and also in the worst shape of the 3.  Not terrible at all, just not as good and the greens were slower.  Kelly had a pretty full tee sheet each day and Regatta was pretty wide open.  They are right across the street from each other, Kelly is in better shape and costs less so that sort of makes sense.  There was also a fair amount of construction (houses) going on at Regatta which cut back on the views a little.  All that being said I really enjoyed my round there and if it were in comparable shape, it might have re-ordered my rankings.

 

Well, there is my super long winded review.  As usual, the crew at WRX didn't steer me wrong on where to play.  I appreciate all the responses.

[vandyfan]

@ssf301 I agree with a lot of your opinions above. I go to Destin every year, just about, so I am familiar with all of the public courses. GolfWeek just came out with their rankings for Top public courses in each state and WOW do I disagree with this...the only two courses in the Destin area are listed below:

 

 

Regatta Bay? Seriously? Above Windswept and Raven and Kelly Plantation? That is outrageous. Also, I would disagree that Burnt Pine is "public" since I have never been able to get on out there since I don't stay on property but there are probably a number of courses there. 

[krtgolfing]

So wife and I just booked a week in Destin. I am probably going to play probably 4 rounds of golf and and curious on recommendations. I do not have access to private courses so Camp Creek, Burnt Pine, and Sharks Tooth are a no go. From my own research and comments on this post below are the ones I am considering. Please let me know if you have any suggestions.

 

Kelly Plantation

Regatta Bay

Windswept Dunes

Raven Golf Club

Edited February 1, 2022 by krtgolfing

[Abh159]

1 hour ago, krtgolfing said:

So wife and I just booked a week in Destin. I am probably going to play probably 4 rounds of golf and and curious on recommendations. I do not have access to private courses so Camp Creek, Burnt Pine, and Sharks Tooth are a no go. From my own research and comments on this post and below are the ones I am considering. Please let me know if you have any suggestions.

 

Kelly Plantation

Regatta Bay

Windswept Dunes

Raven Golf Club

 

You'll be fine with these 4. Probably the top 4 public access courses in the area.

 

The only reason you would want to change is if you were looking for a cheaper green fee. 

[KingstonGolfer]

Windswept!

[Scrubby]

Just arrived at Sandestin Resort today. For 9 holes tomorrow within the resort, would you go with Raven, The Links or Baytowne? Seems like everyone loves Raven and Burnt Pine is an absolute no go even though it’s like 2 minutes from me lol. 

[vandyfan]

They are all fine with Raven checking the most boxes in terms of conditioning, layout, challenge, etc. 

 

Links is tight and short but has some cool views of the Bay (holes 8, 9, 13, 14, 15). Can feel a little gimicky in some places, has a lot of short, forced carries and #18 is a really penal and difficult golf hole. I thought I was going to hate it so maybe my expectations were low but I think I prefer it to Baytowne. Conditions can get a little scruffy out here from time to time and the course really can take driver out of your hands fairly often. 

 

Baytowne is the least remarkable of the 3 (to me) and weaves in and out of condos and goes across 98 and all other stuff. A personal pet peeve of mine is really long drives between golf holes and this course has several of them. Really disjointed. Does have an extreme boomerang par 5 if you like those. #13 is one of the worst golf holes in Destin. Has no real views of anything and could be 100 miles in-land and you wouldn't tell the difference. It is fairly open for a destin golf course so you can spray it a bit and be okay (on most holes). 

 

Raven is big boy golf (which I don't always want to play to be honest). The one thing raven is missing is views of the bay but it has always been in the best shape of the 3. Can be a quite challenging driving course and there is ton of water in play. A few blind shots even though destin is flat as s**t so you will want to have a GPS app or similar. 

 

Hopefully you can get out to Windswept Dunes. That is, to me, the most fun golf course out there but it is in Defuniak so that is a bit of a hike. 

[kygolfer1.6]

I've been looking online for a forum for Florida Panhandle golf since I spend several months down there every year. I ran across this thread and thought I would give my two cents...

 

I've played all of the courses mentioned. A little about me, I am a little older and I am a scratch golfer. I am going to give my honest assessment of all of the courses I've played. I just hope it helps some of you if you travel down here. I'm sure some will disagree which is good...that's why we all have our own opinions. I will tell you when I look or grade a golf course, I look at the layout first then greens then fairways/tees then the other stuff like bunkers, rough, trees etc. So here you go...but to begin with I can tell you one for sure thing about the golf in the Panhandle...they charge an arm and a leg to play so be prepared. Most courses are way overpriced so good luck.

 

Rated in order:

1) Camp Creek (Watersound)

2) Shark's Tooth (PCB)-both owned by St. Joe's which is adding a third 18 hole championship course near Shark's Tooth but they are private and St. Joe's current initiation is $40K and going up in January to $75K. Dues are +/-$1000 a month.

3) Burnt Pine (Sandestin)

4) Kelly's Plantation (Destin)

5) Regatta Bay (Destin)

6) Windswept Dunes (Freeport)

7) Indian Bayou (Destin)

T7) Raven (Destin)

8) Emerald Bay (Destin)

9) Bay Point (PCB)

10) Legacy Golf Club (PCB)

11) Panama Country Club (Lynnhaven)

T12) Seascape (Destin)

T12) Signal Hill (PCB)

 

***Have not played Santa Rosa Country Club which is why they are not on the list****

 

If you are able to play any of the top 7, the course will be in good condition with decent to fast green speed. The courses are fair and don't have a ton of goofy holes. Indian Bayou is shorter than the others listed from the tips and only has one really dumb hole but the greens are normally pretty good.

Now starting with #8 & #9...both courses lack maintenance. I have played Emerald when it was in very good shape and also when the greens were dreadfully slow. Bay Point has a phenomenal layout (Nicklaus design) but the greens are usually in below average condition, meaning they may be rolling an 9 or 6 and they are likely to be very bumpy. Definitely not worth the money IMO. #10 Legacy (formerly Holiday) is usually in nice condition but the layout is as vanilla as its gets. Bunch of dogleg rights so if you're a fader of the ball you'll love it because its built like a Cinnabon! Greens are normally very good just very weak layout and again like Bay Point, not worth what they charge but in PCB there isn't much competition so they get away with over charging. #11 Panama Country Club lost about 5000 trees to hurricane Micheal so now its just wide open which as you can expect, it has no character or shape to most holes. Greens are decent other than being very grainy but honestly this is a private club that has more $100 millionaires I've ever seen. This course is not worth NEAR what they charge for a green fee ($80-$100). Problem is this course is owned by it's members and they all feel like it's Augusta National and some even act like it is Augusta National when it is a very marginal golf course at best. If this course was anywhere where there was some reasonably priced courses, they'd be lucky to get $40/round but since their only competition is the other two courses in PCB which grossly over charge as well, they get away with it. But you should avoid if possible unless you just like being treated poorly and over pay for a round of golf. Seascape (same owners as Emerald Bay) is the ugly stepchild! Emerald Bay is marginal in it's own right so that should tell you what you need to know about Seascape since it's the ugly stepchild. Greens are mostly sand and no grass in fairways...just awful. It's tied for 12th on this list because the last two are just so bad and honestly I couldn't decide which one was worse (not better but worse) so I left it a tie! Also last on the list is Signal Hill (which is absolutely awful) hence it is #12 out of #12. 5400 from the tips...yep, 5400 TIPS! Greens roll a good 4.5-5 on the stimp. They only charge like $60-$70 per round but it really should be $15 and would be a nice Executive par three course if they mowed the greens. Anyway, its last and that is all that needs to be said about that. 

 

Well I hope this helps anyone headed down to Destin/PCB and are looking for a place to play. 

Edited November 28, 2023 by kygolfer1.6

[sethdavidsdad]

1 hour ago, kygolfer1.6 said:

I've been looking online for a forum for Florida Panhandle golf since I spend several months down there every year. I ran across this thread and thought I would give my two cents...

 

I've played all of the courses mentioned. A little about me, I am a little older and I am a scratch golfer. I am going to give my honest assessment of all of the courses I've played. I just hope it helps some of you if you travel down here. I'm sure some will disagree which is good...that's why we all have our own opinions. I will tell you when I look or grade a golf course, I look at the layout first then greens then fairways/tees then the other stuff like bunkers, rough, trees etc. So here you go...but to begin with I can tell you one for sure thing about the golf in the Panhandle...they charge an arm and a leg to play so be prepared. Most courses are way overpriced so good luck.

 

Rated in order:

1) Camp Creek (Watersound)

2) Shark's Tooth (PCB)-both owned by St. Joe's which is adding a third 18 hole championship course near Shark's Tooth but they are private and St. Joe's current initiation is $40K and going up in January to $75K. Dues are +/-$1000 a month.

3) Burnt Pine (Sandestin)

4) Kelly's Plantation (Destin)

5) Regatta Bay (Destin)

6) Windswept Dunes (Freeport)

7) Indian Bayou (Destin)

T7) Raven (Destin)

😎 Emerald Bay (Destin)

9) Bay Point (PCB)

10) Legacy Golf Club (PCB)

11) Panama Country Club (Lynnhaven)

T12) Seascape (Destin)

T12) Signal Hill (PCB)

 

***Have not played Santa Rosa Country Club which is why they are not on the list****

 

If you are able to play any of the top 7, the course will be in good condition with decent to fast green speed. The courses are fair and don't have a ton of goofy holes. Indian Bayou is shorter than the others listed from the tips and only has one really dumb hole but the greens are normally pretty good.

Now starting with #8 & #9...both courses lack maintenance. I have played Emerald when it was in very good shape and also when the greens were dreadfully slow. Bay Point has a phenomenal layout (Nicklaus design) but the greens are usually in below average condition, meaning they may be rolling an 9 or 6 and they are likely to be very bumpy. Definitely not worth the money IMO. #10 Legacy (formerly Holiday) is usually in nice condition but the layout is as vanilla as its gets. Bunch of dogleg rights so if you're a fader of the ball you'll love it because its built like a Cinnabon! Greens are normally very good just very weak layout and again like Bay Point, not worth what they charge but in PCB there isn't much competition so they get away with over charging. #11 Panama Country Club lost about 5000 trees to hurricane Micheal so now its just wide open which as you can expect, it has no character or shape to most holes. Greens are decent other than being very grainy but honestly this is a private club that has more $100 millionaires I've ever seen. This course is not worth NEAR what they charge for a green fee ($80-$100). Problem is this course is owned by it's members and they all feel like it's Augusta National and some even act like it is Augusta National when it is a very marginal golf course at best. If this course was anywhere where there was some reasonably priced courses, they'd be lucky to get $40/round but since their only competition is the other two courses in PCB which grossly over charge as well, they get away with it. But you should avoid if possible unless you just like being treated poorly and over pay for a round of golf. Seascape (same owners as Emerald Bay) is the ugly stepchild! Emerald Bay is marginal in it's own right so that should tell you what you need to know about Seascape since it's the ugly stepchild. Greens are mostly sand and no grass in fairways...just awful. It's tied for 12th on this list because the last two are just so bad and honestly I couldn't decide which one was worse (not better but worse) so I left it a tie! Also last on the list is Signal Hill (which is absolutely awful) hence it is #12 out of #12. 5400 from the tips...yep, 5400 TIPS! Greens roll a good 4.5-5 on the stimp. They only charge like $60-$70 per round but it really should be $15 and would be a nice Executive par three course if they mowed the greens. Anyway, its last and that is all that needs to be said about that. 

 

Well I hope this helps anyone headed down to Destin/PCB and are looking for a place to play. 

Good write up. Pretty spot on with your course assessment in my opinion. I would put Santa Rosa in the top 5-7 even after the remodel. I have played it quite a bit before and was kind of disappointed that the remodel didn’t really change the layout much the greens are better now and fixed some bunkers. 

Glad to here St Joe is adding another golf course hate it will be another private course though. 

Edited November 28, 2023 by sethdavidsdad

[Lobby]

I sense there’s just too much demand for golf in FL, particularly in the winter. 
 

the courses will be average at best yet expensive. Or good and really expensive 

 

good and inexpensive may be difficult to find in fl. 

[vandyfan]

On 11/27/2023 at 7:03 PM, kygolfer1.6 said:

7) Indian Bayou (Destin)

 

Question about Indian Bayou, I have always avoided it because it looks the trees make it play fairly narrow (based on google earth). I guess that is better than full on water making it narrow but do you feel like the course is challenging off the tee? 

[kygolfer1.6]

7 hours ago, vandyfan said:

 

Question about Indian Bayou, I have always avoided it because it looks the trees make it play fairly narrow (based on google earth). I guess that is better than full on water making it narrow but do you feel like the course is challenging off the tee? 

 

Indian Bayou is not overly difficult based on the layout. There are a lot of trees but fairways are fairly generous and with the exception of a couple of holes, the only balls that are going to find the trees are really errant balls that honestly probably should find some type of penalty. There are a couple of "tight" holes but they aren't unfair. It is a good track with good greens. It has one REALLY dumb hole where you literally have to hit a 90* slice off the tee but other than that it is a fair and good test of golf.