Turn off the 192 away from all the shops and restaurants and head off past Orange Groves and native country side. The Orange County Golf centre is set amid old world Florida.
When you arrive a purpose built complex supports two excellent courses. Panther Lake we were told had a lot of water so we took the cowards option and played Crooked Cat. We were greeted by very friendly staff and the carts were state of the art fully loaded with sat navigation.
The back tees offered a 7,277 yards tour challenge but we opted for the Guest/Member green markers still a long and enjoyable 6,035 yards.
The course has the feel that every hole is individually crafted and as you play you rarely come into contact with players on other holes. I would liken the course to a links type course found in the UK north of Hadrian’s Wall. The fairways are very open with few trees and most rough is native heather grass and sand is in plentiful supply. Every time we lost a ball we seemed to be able to find another two when we took the time to look.
The course has a par 36 front and back nine, overall par 72. There are a pair of Par 3’s and par 5’s both on the way out and on the way back to the club house. For a detailed look at each hole you can visit the Orange County’s own web site but my favourite holes were 12 & 13. On 12th the route to the pin takes you across water twice. Hit right and you may as well get another spare ball straight out of your bag. On the 13th the drive is straight across an expanse of water the majority of the way to the pin. Anything other than a decent drive and it’s a hand in the bag for another ball.
The green fee of $90 included the round, cart and a choice from the luncheon menu plus $10 gift voucher to spend in the well equipped golf shop. When we finished our round we went into the complex and were presented with a good variety of food choices and each tried something different. The food was well prepared and helpings were generous. Crooked cat has been awarded 4 1/2 Stars by Golf Digest's, “Best Places to Play”. and is listed among the Top 50 courses in North America for Conditioning, Pace of Play and Overall Value. I have to agree!
A thoroughly enjoyable days golfing suitable for all skill levels and a course I intend to visit again.