Quail Hollow, Wesley Chapel, FL

http://www.quailhollownow.com/

A little smaller course than the one we golfed yesterday and a lot less crowded! Of course, when we started it was drizzling but it stopped by the second hole and totally cleared up on the back nine.  We paid $25 a person to golf this course and it was well worth it.  It was a typical Florida course...mostly flat, not too many trees, water and sand.  And on some of the holes, quite close homes...in fact I hit the roof of one of them with a hooking drive, which I never do.  And we weren't golfing too well, so we didn't enjoy this course as much as we should have.  There were bathrooms on the course, which were OK.  There was no cart girl and we didn't go in at the turn.  The back nine was a little more wide open than the front with a nice little par 3 and a couple of  good par 5s. The greens were OK, fairways OK, tee boxes I didn't like because they were uneven and the grass was too long.  It had rained all night so some of the fairways were mushy.  Not sure if I'd golf here again...probably just to see if I could do better!

Pebble Creek Golf Club, Tampa, FL

We booked this course through golfnow.com for a very reasonable price of $30.  The bad thing was there were 8 golfers scheduled for the same tee time!  The starter says this happens when folks book online.  We were paired up with 2 very nice men who, thankfully, golfed with the same ability (or lack of) as us.  The starter kept things moving well so although there was a wait, it wasn't unreasonable.  The course was in good shape for the time of year.  It's a family owned course that claims to have water on 16 of the holes.  I don't think it was that bad but there was quite a few holes with water involved.  There were a lot of dogleg holes so the men had to think about driver use but I only had to on two of them.  Fairways were in good condition but if you didn't hit the fairway, you really had to look for the ball...the grass was that spongy grass that really ate up the balls.  Greens were in OK condition...a little fast.  The cart girl was around frequently but she "threatened" not to come out because she "wasn't getting good tips" which I thought was an odd remark. There was a bathroom on the course that was accessible on the front and back nine and there was a turn as there is on most Florida courses.  We had a snack at Mulligans after the round...nachos made with home made chips, not nacho chips - potato chips.  Unusual but good.  I didn't like that it was hard to see golfers from the terrace but it was a nice area.  I enjoyed this course a little more than other Florida courses I've done because although there was no elevations, there were lots of challenges...doglegs, water & trees...to contend with.  I especially liked hole 18 which was a little dogleg par 4 - you had to hit up to water, then over it to a well protected slightly elevated green. Would definitely golf here again IF it wasn't so crowded!
http://www.pebblecreekclub.com/index.html

Blackmoore, Murrells Inlet, Myrtle Beach, SC

This was another nice, very women friendly course that we got to golf for free because our friend had rain checks.  It reminded me of a Michigan course because it was so wooded.  There were some unusual holes that made it quite challenging.  Hole 4 is par 3 where you have to hit over water...Hole 8 is a split fairway which practically turns back on itself...Hole 16 is a dogleg right with water on the left and a blind shot to the green.  There were good bathrooms and the cart girl came around frequently.  My egg salad sandwich at the turn was not as good as the one the day before.  A good, but crowded, Myrtle Beach course.  http://www.blackmoor.com/

Amendment: 10/31/14

Golfed here again the following year. We had 3 guys & 3 girls...they placed a single guy with the guys and a single guy with us!  Couldn't believe they would do that.  But one of our guys decided to come with us and the two singles ended up golfing with our guys.  Could not believe they would have a strange guy golf ride with one of us, let alone make him play with 3 women! Still like the course though...good bloody mary's!

The Tradition,Pawley's Island, Myrtle Beach, SC

This was a really nice course.  There are LOTS of waste bunkers and sand. There was water on most of the first 9 holes.  But we started on hole 10, which was a dogleg left par 4.  Hole 15 was a nice par 3 that you had to hit over water under a huge "island" green.  The course was in really nice condition with very fast greens.  Tee boxes were quite women friendly.  There were nice bathrooms and a good, attentive cart girl.   We had a good egg salad sandwich at turn.  The course is on the "expensive" side - around $70 - but we didn't pay cause our playing partner had rain checks.  But it was still fairly crowded as most Myrtle Beach courses are.  Would definitely golf here again, given the opportunity!  Tradition Golf Club

 

Skyland Lakes, Fancy Gap, VA

We golfed here on the way to Myrtle Beach. We were attracted to this course because it was located on the Blue Ridge Highway and we thought there would be a lot of elevations.  There were quite a few.  The course was unusual with a large number of blind shots.  It was mostly a short and choppy course with a couple long, open par 5s.  On one of the holes, the tee box was to the right of the green of the previous hole, which could have been dangerous!  But some of the fairways were really tight, protected by trees.  Very little sand on the course but lots of trees and quite a bit of water.  The first hole had water and was a dogleg so it was pretty challenging.  The course wasn't crowded which we enjoyed.  It was in decent condition considering the time of year with very fast greens.  No cart girl, two nice bathrooms on the course.  There were fairway villas and a hotel.  The course and hotel is for sale for $185,000, which seems like a really good price.  My husband loved this course and we will definitely golf here again if were in the area.
Skyland Lakes Golf Club

10/27/14...golfed here again on our way to Myrtle Beach.  Still a lot of blind shots and choppy holes...because of the leaves, we lost many balls.  Because it was a beautiful day, it was more crowded than last year but pace of play was great (except we kept looking for our lost balls!)

Niagara-on-the-Lake Golf Course, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada

http://www.notlgolf.com/

Course number 2 on our Canada trip this is advertised as the oldest course in North America however, according to wikipedia, the Royal Montreal Golf Club is the oldest in Canada and North America.  This is a 9 hole course located right on Lake Ontario.  The day we played was very cold and we started Hole 1 in pouring rain.  However it soon cleared up and warmed up a little.  The course is a little hard to follow because it is so old but it is very woman friendly because it's so short.  There are no elevation changes and little water but there are some trees and bunkers.  There is also a historic fort located on the course which we explored and liked very much.

Whirlpool Golf Course, Ontario, Canada

We golfed here on our "Matilda" outing.  It is one of the Niagara Park Commission courses and is part of the Niagara Golf Trail.  We enjoyed this course very much.  It was a little crowded when we began but spread out by the back nine.  A lot of the holes on the front nine had narrow fairways line with trees.  Hole 2 is their signature hole (par 4) which runs along the road and has a nice pond on the right of the green... that was one of the prettiest holes.  There were back to back par 5's which is a little challenging.  The back nine fairways were more wide open but still tree lined.  Hole 14 is pretty par 3 with water in front of the tee box, and trees and sand on the right of the green.  It's next to the botanical gardens.  Hole 18 has an elevated green right in front of the restaurant so you have an audience on your approach shot.  There was no bathroom on the course but port-a-potties.  There was a turn and a cart girl.  However, things were quite expensive and they ran out of ice! The pro shop had everything on sale for 40% off - we had a field day!  Really enjoyed this course!

Whirlpool Golf Course