sabram

Southern Dunes will be about an hour by car. It's my favorite course if you're willing to drive that far. OCN will take you about 40 minutes. .Legends Clermont is good and located right in Clermont. I prefer it to Clermont National. Both are hilly, but National is a very funky course that doesn't use the elevation as well. The fairways are often narrow and the rough is currently very deep so you'll spend a lot of time looking for balls. Highlands Reserve is a lot of fun, not expensive and only 20 minutes away Championsgate Country club is also a good option about 30 minutes from Clermont

My most recent round at Rockland Lake was with three guys from Poughkeepsie who mainly play at James Baird. They like Rockland Lake enough to drive down fairly often

I liked Palisades and was sad that it closed. It was a good value option. Do you know if they built houses on what eas the golf course?

I went back to play Berkshire Valley Last week. Another one that I hadn't played in years. It is a little cheaper than Wild Turkey. It was designed by Roger Rulewich who was the RTJ Sr Associate who designed Ballyowen. What Berkshire has going for it is the setting and scenery. It is very pretty. But, it's on a difficult property... very steep with drainage issues a difficult walk and a few holes carved into the side of the mountain slope that I wasn't too fond of. The three Morris County residents I played with prefer Berkshire to Sunset because of the setting and they felt the greens at Berkshire were more manageable for them. I really enjoyed the round, but still prefer Sunset. Click on the photo below for a photo tour of Berkshire Valley

I stand corrected about Francis Byrne. I hadn't played there in many years so went back the other day based on comments on this thread. It was really quite good. The last time I played there it was a mess with barely any grass and the bunkers were terrible. The recent reno/restore has brought the course back to life. I prefer it to Hendricks. The land has a lot of movement and elevation. The Raynor/Banks style features are better done here than they were at Hendricks as there is more challenge here compared to the more subtle versions at Hendricks (although still not in the same class as the private club Banks courses in the region (e.g. Forsgate, Tamarack etc, which are amazing. ) Byrne is a great bargain if you live in Essex County, but it was $66 green fee plus $22 cart for out of county players. Click on the photo below for a photo tour

If you'd like to reminisce about the closed courses, click on a photo below to see photo tours of Sugarloaf Mountain and Palisades. Those were very different courses. Sugarloaf was the best in the area. Palisades was a funky little locals course that you could play for $29. Sugarloaf Mtn Palisades

VK, As Hawkeye said, they are your own personal rankings. If that's how you like them "they are what they are". I've played 21 of the ones on your list, most of them only one time. Here's my order of preference. Group 1 are the ones I'd like to play again Pinehurst #2 Kiawah Ocean Bethpage Black (I've played here a bunch of times) Tobacco Road Pine Needles (2 rounds) Arcadia Bluffs Royal New Kent Group 2 are the best of the rest IMO Cabot Citrus Karoo (Played only once right when it opened. I'd like to see it again if it was less expensive) French Lick Ross Bay Hill (I've played here a bunch of times and don't need to play again) Torey Pines South (I've played here a bunch of times and don't need to play again) Group 3 (the rest) RTJ Legislator RTJ Judge French Lick Dye Stonewall OCN Crooked Cat (I play here often because I now live nearby. I prefer OCN Panther Lake) TPC Myrtle B Independence (I played here one time long ago and remember it as a fun round. I wouldn't mind seeing it again. I also recall liking the nearby Hunting Hawk) En Joie Hermitage (Two courses here. Not sure which you played, but they are fairly comparable in quality) Gaylord Springs Belmont (I played here on the same trip as Independence. It was not very good, but I understand it was subsequently restored or renovated, so wouldn't mind seeing it again)

Great observation. Isn't that what a good golf course is all about?

I think there is a wide diversity of opinions about the Bandon courses because the courses are pretty different from one another. Same thing with Sand Valley.

I play Highlands Reserve every month from September to June (I'm not in Florida most of July or August... it's too hot) Highlands Reserve is a very good choice. It used to fly under the radar of most tourists, but recently it's gotten more well known and green fees have increased, although it's still a really good value compared to most other courses in the area. It's a very good design with lots of variety, lots of elevation changes, mostly generous fairways, good greens, and no water. It's built on a sandy site so drains well it is playable even a few hours after a storm and is never cart path only. The first two holes are okay. The third is a neat shortish drop shot (i.e. steep downhill) par 3. The fourth is where the course gets really good and lots of fun. I'll give you a hole by hole description with playing tips if you'd like. Holes four through 18 are all very good with the only exception (IMO) being the par 5 ninth, which is a tight, dogleg left with a tough downhill approach shot. They rebuilt the greens three years ago and the course has been in very good condition ever since. Click on the photo below to see photos of the course from several rounds over the last couple years. PS- Most of the VRBO houses within the Championsgate Country Club community are very nice and well appointed. PPS If you are looking for other good options convenient to Championsgate consider Southern Dunes. It's as good or better than anything you've played, but will be more than $100 for tee times in the morning during Winter. Also, take a look at Legends Clermont which is more budget friendly.

No golf course architect will ever please everyone 😁

But putting from a long ways away is easier for most duffers than a greenside sand shot or chip from rough, and better than if the ball eas in a pond, all of which would be common results if the greens were " normal" sized with "normal" surrounding features