- April 29, 2024
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Hammock Beach’s Ocean Course, open since April 2000, features six holes on the water.
Hammock Beach’s Ocean Course was recently touted as the No. 8-ranked golf course in Florida by Golfweek, a high-end weekly golfing magazine published in the U.S.
The Ocean Course is a Jack Nicklaus-designed par-72 course.
TPC Sawgrass, in Ponte Vedra, earned the No. 1 ranking; World Woods, in Brooksville, was No. 2, Innisbrook (Copperhead) ranked third; Sugarloaf Mountain Golf and Town Club, in Minneola, was No. 4; and PGA National Resort & Spa, in Palm Beach Gardens, rounded out the Top 5.
The ranking is done by experts who travel throughout the state to play courses. Playability and design of the course have the most weight on a course’s ranking.
The Ocean Course, which has been open since April 2000, has six holes along the Atlantic Ocean, which is more holes than any other golf course in Florida, according to Brad Hauer, director of golf for the Hammock Beach Resort.
Hauer said the Ocean Course is consistently ranked in the Top 10.
“It’s a pretty special place,” Hauer said. “The design and how it sits with the views of the ocean ... it’s very unique for Florida.”
The course is not open to the public, but Hauer said there are opportunities for stay-and-play packages.
More information can be found online at www.HammockBeach.com.
TOUGHEST HOLES
Hammock Beach’s Ocean Hammock course is a par-72 course. But if the golfer can’t master three holes in particular, they will struggle.
Hole Nos. 5, 9 and 18 are the three toughest holes at the Ocean Course, according to Brad Hauer, director of golf.
Here’s why:
No. 5: This is the third toughest hole on the course, Hauer said. It’s a 434-yard par-4 from the back tees. The tee shot is very demanding, with the water protecting the left side of the hole. On the second shot, the golfer will face a mid- to long-range shot with an iron to land on the undulating green protected by three bunkers.
No. 18: Ending a round on the 18th hole is no small task for most golfers. This is a very long par-4, measuring 466 yards. The Atlantic Ocean runs down the entire left side of the hole, and a huge fairway bunker protects the right side of the hole. A decent drive will leave the golfer with a long iron or fairway wood to a slightly elevated green. Two very deep bunkers protect the front left of the green, and there is a false back to the green; if the player goes long, he or she will be left with a very difficult up and down.
No. 9: Closing out the front nine is the toughest task for golfers at the Ocean Course. A par-4 totaling 468 yards always plays into the prevailing northeast wind. The Atlantic Ocean runs down the entire right side of the hole, and bunkers line each side of the fairway. After the drive, players will be left with a long iron or fairway wood to an elevated, skinny, long green. Deep bunkers protect both sides of the green with a false front, making any type of up and down extremely difficult.
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