Your Best Golf Swing

By Jim Nettleton

Today’s review of Tampa area golf courses is focused on two municipal courses owned by the city of Tampa. The city owns three in all, a fortunate state of affairs for residents, who can play these venues at very reasonable rates.

First up today is Rogers Park Golf Course. First opened in 1952, Rogers Park was renovated in 1976 with noted Florida golf architect Ron Garl in charge. Originally a nine hole layout, the course was expanded to additional city property across the street and became a regulation eighteen hole course. More renovation and redesign was done in 2000 including the addition of a new clubhouse facility.

The course now begins with a par 5 that stretches 551 yards. Again, all distances given are from the tips, but the course can play much shorter. From the back tees, Rogers Park plays a solid 6,802 yards. The first hole plays every bit of its yardage and is an opportunity to get your round started with a birdie with two solid shots.

The second is a formidable 432 yard par 4 that is fairly straightaway. This is followed by a relatively easy par 4 of 387 yards, a good birdie candidate. The fourth hole is a good par 4 with water in play off the tee. It plays 417 yards.

Skipping ahead to the eighth hole we find a terrific par 3 of 204 yards with water very much in play in front, to the right and behind the green. This hole requires an extremely accurate tee shot. You’ll be very happy with a 3 here.

The front nine wraps up with a lovely par 5 of 509 yards that is another good birdie opportunity. But if you’re a big enough hitter to go for it in two, you must avoid water tight to the left of the fairway and green.

Now we cross the road and head for the back nine, a very diverse set of holes that you’ll really enjoy. You’ll have a crack at birdie right away on the first two holes. The tenth is a par 4 of 375 that plays downhill to a tricky green. Woods border the hole right and left. Number eleven plays back up the hill and bends right. You need to favor the left side of the fairway on your tee shot.

The twelfth is a great par 3 that plays 202 yards through a chute of trees to an undulating green. Again, a 3 here will put a smile on your face. Number thirteen is a sweeping par 4 of 399 yards that plays over a slight crest and down to the right with water behind the green.

The fourteenth hole is one of the most dramatic par fives in the region. It bends slightly left and requires a very accurate tee shot that must carry water. The water is present the entire length of the hole and you must negotiate it again on your second shot. Add to this the trees and bushes down the right side, so your shots have to thread a needle on this hole.

Fifteen and sixteen are good holes as well, playing 205 and 380 yards respectively. Seventeen is a solid 422 yard par 4 that bends left with water coming into play on the left off the tee and around the green. The eighteenth, which used to be a par 5, is now a formidable 427 yard par 4 that bends slightly right. The second shot is played over a lake.

Rogers Park is a very pleasurable golf experience and certainly merits a play when you’re in the Tampa region.

Not far away from Rogers Park, in the Forest Hills section is another city course, the sporty Babe Zaharias, named, obviously, after the great female athlete. Although ‘The Babe’ plays only 6,200 yards, it is a very enjoyable test. There are plenty of birdie opportunities on this course, but also many possibilities of throwing up a big number.

The greens, for the most part, are small and require accurate approach shots. There are two par fives, numbers 6 and 12, both of which are reachable at 481 and 490 yards respectively. Four of the par 4 holes play over 400 yards, with the longest being the sixteeth at 433 yards. The par 3 holes are nicely setup and are comfortable lengths ranging from 151 to 176 yards. The seventeenth, which is the par 3 of 176 yards, is one of my favorite holes on the course, playing from an elevated tee down to an undulating green protected by a pond.

Another favorite is the thirteenth, a 430 yard par 4 that plays over the crest of a hill down to an elevated green protected by water. All in all, Babe Zaharias is a fun golf course that gives you room to breathe but can also take your breath away with some of its tougher holes. It’s a sporty course, as mentioned earlier, that is enjoyable and not overly taxing.

About the Author:

Jim Nettleton is a radio and television professional who is a lifelong golf addict and lived in Tampa for 10 years. He highly recommends The Simple Golf Swing - http://tinyurl.com/2mmeux for those struggling with their game. Visit his golf blog at http://golf-golf-andmoregolf.blogspot.com/

By Jim Nettleton

Another must play in the Tampa region is the University of South Florida Golf Course, located on Fowler Avenue in the northeast area of the city. Affectionately known as “The Claw”, a name derived from one of its holes, the USF course is a stern test for golfers of all abilities.

The course was designed in an around a swamp, which comes into play on many holes. Generally, the fairways are narrow with trouble on both sides on several holes. The Claw starts you out with a relatively benign par 4 of 439 yards, which has little trouble on either side. But things begin to close in quickly as you play the second, another par 4 that is considerably narrower. The par 5 third hole also requires extreme accuracy on both the drive and the second shot.

After playing number 4, an outstanding par 4, and number 5, an excellent par 3 that is a realistic birdie chance, you are face with the tee shot on the sixth. This is a wonderful par 5 that doglegs left around a lake. Big hitters can choose to cut off as much of the corner as they dare to be left with a short second shot to the green. It’s a hole requiring courage off the tee.

Seven, eight and nine are also fine tests, with the par 3 eighth playing a robust 220 yards.

The back nine continues to force players to be accurate off the tee. Nowhere is accuracy more necessary than on the fourteenth, the infamous ‘Claw’ par 5 that winds through swamp and forest to present a severe test.

The USF course features elevated greens and natural surroundings throughout. Greens fees are reasonable and this course should be placed near the top of your list for a play.

Heading southeast, to Valrico, we find one of Florida’s finest courses, in my opinion, The Bloomingdale Golfers Club. You’ll find no tennis courts, no swimming pool here – just golf in beautiful surroundings and a course that is second to none.

Many tour pros have been members here since they find it a perfect spot to work on their games. The course stretches 7,155 yards from the tips and has a rating of 74.4, which should tell you to bring your ‘A’ game when visiting. Golf Digest, in fact, described Bloomingdale as having the best collection of par 5s on one golf course that they’ve seen.

Two of my favorite par 5 holes at Bloomingdale are the fourth and the ninth. The former measures 564 yards. It begins by bending left and then turning right. Finally, it turns left again to the hole. Accurate tee shot placement is a must as is an accurate second shot. The ninth is a 546 yard dogleg left with a lake on the right that comes into play on the tee shot. It plays to a green that is almost an island.

Along with those, you’ll find a collection of some of the best-designed golf holes in the region, if not the state. Another favorite is the eighteenth, a great par 4 at 409 yards that demands a very well placed tee shot to set up an approach over a marsh up to the green.

The Bloomingdale Golfers Club is most certainly not to be missed on your golf tour of the Tampa area.

About the Author:

Jim Nettleton is a radio and television professional who is a lifelong golf addict and lived in Tampa for 10 years. He highly recommends The Simple Golf Swing - http://tinyurl.com/2mmeux for those struggling with their game. Visit his golf blog at golf-golf-andmoregolf.blogspot.com/