It's a beautiful day at Bobcat Trail. You'll most likely hear this a few times when you visit Bobcat Trail for a round of golf, but they really mean it. "The Cat" is one of Sarasota County's best clubs as signified by their 4 1/2-star rating in Golf Digest's "Best Places to Play." Laid out by PGA Champion, Bob Tway, and architect Lee Singletary, the course will really make you think as there are risk-reward decisions to make all over the lot. The club has also undergone a renovation of the entire complex including brand new Champion Bermuda greens, renovated and enlarged clubhouse (with flat screen TVs), bunker renovation and new Precedent Golf Cars with GPS. Once again, it's a beautiful day at Bobcat Trail.

Honors & Accolades

Rated 4.5 Stars "Best Places to Play" - Golf Digest 2007

While modest in length, this beautifully maintained Mark McCumber design offers a multitude of water hazards and tight fairways. It's a true example of how length does not necessarily constitute the best in golf. The final hole, a 409-yard, par-four dogleg left is an intriguing finishing hole where par is most satisfying and a birdie leaves the player with a full feeling of triumph. Located in Port Charlotte, Deep Creek is approximately 30 minutes south of Sarasota.

Honors & Accolades

Best local course 1996-97/Charlotte Sun Hearld Readers Choice Award 2 1/2 star Golf Digest Places to

Since undergoing extensive renovations in the summer of '03, Capri Isles has matured into one of the most beautiful courses in the greater Sarasota area. The par-72 layout offers a substantial number of dogleg holes and tree-lined fairways with water coming into play on 14 of 18 holes. If it's your first visit, make sure to take your time and think your way around. You'll find this popular club located just off I-75 in Venice, 25 minutes south of Sarasota.

The Legacy at Lakewood Ranch offers a level of service and conditions found at world-class private facilities. This championship 18-hole golf course, designed by Arnold Palmer, is comprised of towering pines, majestic native oaks, and wetlands, all preserved as a stunning backdrop where Florida's coastal wildlife abounds. Legacy was once again awarded 4 1/2 stars in Golf Digest's "Best Places to Play" for 2006. In 2004, the course was voted the #1 Public Golf Course in Southwest Florida by Florida Golf News.

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Honors & Accolades

4.5 stars from Golf Digest's "Best Places to Play" for 2006.

Designed around natural preserve areas, renowned golf course architect Ted McAnlis has said, "the synergy of the golf course design with the native environment has created a gorgeous golf course." This 7200-yard challenging layout is a work of art, to say the least. Special care was taken to enhance the wetlands, preserve areas and natural features, and to incorporate them all into the overall community design. Meticulously maintained, Preserve at Tara is a must play seven days a week!

This beautifully manicured WCI course features two distinctive nines. The front nine has an open links feel with wide fairways and greens that will accept only your best bump-and-run approach shots. The home nine requires more accuracy from tee to green as it meanders through a large conservation area with water that comes into play on every hole. Most fairways are lined with stately pines and ancient oaks. Finally, the TifEagle Bermuda greens are such a pleasure to putt they'll bring you back year after year.

There are very few semi-private clubs in the Sarasota area as challenging as River Club. The club is in Bradenton, convenient for visitors to both Tampa and Sarasota. Architect Ron Garl incorporated extensive mounding with rolling fairways, undulating greens, and numerous grass and pot bunkers. Although water comes into play on 16 holes, the front side is actually fairly open off the tee. However, the back meanders through dense woodlands so you'd better be hitting it straight by the turn.

Honors & Accolades

Ranked 14th Best Course in Florida by Florida Sports Magazine
Rated 3.5 Stars - Golf Digest's"Best Places to Play" for 2006.

Open since late summer 2006, River Strand is a 27-hole championship golf course by the Arthur Hills/Steve Forrest and Associates design team. Hills is one architect who lives up to the adage of creating a course that is challenging for the scratch player and fun for the high handicapper. He's done it again here with a course that fits harmoniously with the environment as holes winds through tributaries and tidal areas of the Manatee River. The facility also features a great practice facility and a first-class clubhouse is planned in the near future.

The Links is an executive length golf course in the Cape Haze community of Rotonda. Water comprises 35 of the 80 acres of land with an assortment of grassy hollows, pot bunkers, multi-fingered sand traps, and triple tiered greens to force players to use precise club selection and exacting skills. Although not a championship course, it is still fun and challenging.

Open since 1973, the Jim Petrides design at The Hills is the focal point of this semi-private club. Set within the Oakland Hills community almost an hour south of downtown Sarasota, The Hills is an 18-hole, par-72 championship course. The course features well-place water hazards throughout, which will surely test the course management skills for every level of golfer. Hit it straight off the tee and you'll have a great chance at scoring as plenty of putts can be holed on these well-kept greens.

Long Marsh's gently rolling fairways meander through 300 acres of natural Florida scrub, its fairways and greens invitingly framed by native pines, oaks and palms. Now a 27-hole facility, each hole has its own distinctive character, set amid natural bunkers, lakes and marshes that are havens for wildlife. This Ted McAnlis-designed course opened in February of 1999 and is enjoyable for golfers of all levels. Four sets of tee boxes provide course distances ranging from 7120 yard to 5257 yards.

Designed by D.J. DeVictor back in the early 80's, the Palms is best known for its 15th and 16th holes. These two brutes back to back are part of a tough five-hole finish. From the 14th hole on you have to watch out for six different water hazards which are just waiting to ruin your good round. All three courses at Rotonda are located almost an hour south of Sarasota (past Venice) near Englewood.

Sarasota National Golf Club is Gordon Lewis' newest creation in Southwest Florida. Built to the specifications of Silver Signature by Audubon International, the golf course is both environmentally friendly and unparalleled in beauty. The expansive fairways and undulating greens are sure to delight golfers of all skill levels, and the friendly professional staff will see to it that your experience is world class every time.

Open since 1990, Serenoa is a very interesting layout with water on all 18 holes. The well-maintained fairways are open, rolling, and surrounded by natural wetlands and marsh. Although you wouldn't know it from the scorecard, the course plays long and proves itself to be exceptionally challenging. In fact, Serenoa was voted one of the "Top 100 Courses in Florida" and one of the "Top Three in Sarasota" by Florida Golf News. It's also easy to get to; just a 1/2 mile east of I-75 off Clark Road.

The terrific Arthur Hills layout has been receiving astounding reviews and is regarded by many as the best golf course in the area. The layout plays through a landscape highlighted by mature, wooded, wetland preserves. Its unique setting provided Hills the opportunity to create a collection of strategic risk/reward holes. Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour is a definite "must play" for anyone playing in and around Sarasota or Tampa. Stoneybrook is located in Bradenton, just north of Sarasota.

Travelers will find this Scottish links-style course conveniently located on the outskirts of Sarasota. The course is in one of the area's most natural settings amid preserved wetlands and 11 lakes. There are no homes on site, just an abundance of wildlife and nature and 18 challenging holes. Designed by one of the area's best architects, Ted McAnlis, the course plays much longer than its 6757 yards and provides just enough water for it to be factor. The par-5 #13 is their 504-yard signature hole - a monstrous, daunting dogleg over water.

Consistently rated four stars by Golf Digest since 1996, this course is the highest rated in the Sarasota area and one of the best in the state. Designed by Ron Garl, it offers 27 thrilling holes winding their way through natural woodlands and wetlands, all surrounded by canopies of southern live oak and slash pines. There's also a great practice facility and a unique, well-equipped pro shop.

Honors & Accolades

Rated 4 1/2 stars by Golf Digest

Chip Powell is considered one of today's most thoughtful and ingenious golf architects. His layout at Venetian Golf & River Club provides all the aspects of course design that today's players are looking for. There are a number of challenging hazards, but you won't find the course to be overly penal. This terrific course is set on 660 acres and provides panoramic views over the surrounding countryside. You'll be eager to see what's next as each hole seems as memorable as the last. Venetian is a WCI Properties managed facility.

This Ted McAnlis design was voted "Best Public Golf Course" in the Venice area. It features three distinct nines - Gleneagles, Turnberry and Sawgrass - all with sculpted mounding, dramatically rolling terrain, and various elevation changes. All three enhance the spectacular beauty of unspoiled Florida landscaping and are inhabited by a wide variety of wildlife. The course record still stands at 65, held by PGA Tour player Paul Azinger. Located 20 minutes south of Sarasota, in Venice.

Waterlefe's unrivaled natural setting is composed of a collection of signature golf holes designed by course architect Ted McAnlis and situated along the Manatee River. Although over 6900 yards from the tips, the course offers five sets of tee options, which help provide a competitive layout to challenge all golfers. Features include five unforgettable holes that touch and border the scenic Manatee River. The club also houses a full-service golf shop and a popular grillroom to satisfy any appetite. Waterlefe is a WCI Properties managed facility.