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 THE LAYOUT: There are dozens of options on Florida's "Golf Coast,"
but for the price and experience, St. Johns is one of the best.
Architect Clyde Johnston carved a magnificent 7,236-yard track out
of a pine forest that winds through natural wetlands, playing to a
par of 72 with a USGA rating of 74.7 and a slope of 132.
However, only low-handicappers can play from the gold tees, and they
must get permission in the pro shop. There are five other sets of
tees, down to a 2,500-yard family layout, that make the course
enjoyable for players of all abilities.
St. Johns, considered by locals to be the equal of its higher-priced
neighbors near Interstate 95, has been host to the PGA Tour
qualifying school in the first round five times, the 2006 PGA Level
II Qualifying School and U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship
local qualifying the last several years.
Before heading out onto the course, warm up on the state-of-the-art
practice facility, which includes a 10,000-square-foot putting
green, a double-sided driving range and several practice bunkers.
 GENERAL MANAGER: Ryan Roberts
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: Even though there are 63 bunkers on the course,
plus several waste areas, and water comes into play to one degree or
another on 14 holes, St. Johns offers wide driving areas and
spacious yet challenging green complexes.
After a relatively straightforward opening hole, a 400-yard par 4
where the primary obstacles are a large oak tree and fairway bunkers
on the left, Johnston challenges the golfer with a meaty, 552-yard
par 5. Get past the fairway bunker on the right side of this slight
dogleg left and there is water along that side of the fairway all
the way to a green guarded by sand and grass bunkers.
After a beautiful, 210-yard par 3 with water and sand to the right,
the fourth hole is a tantalizing par 4 at 382 yards from the tips,
but the lake on the right comes into play off the tee and on the
approach.
The front nine wraps up with two magnificent holes. The 565-yard
eighth, rated as No. 1 on the card, plays through a corridor of
trees, and even though the water is almost out of play on the left
near the green, seven bunkers pockmark the trip home. Don't be
fooled by the traps short of the green because the putting surface
is actually 40 yards beyond.
If you are ever going to hit a straight drive, No. 9 is the place,
with water on the left and sand on the right. Hit the fairway and
more bunkers plus mounding provide a challenge on the approach to
the green, but take a peek at the magnificent view of the stately
clubhouse across the water behind the hole.
There is only a trace of water on the first three holes of the back
nine, but the par-3 13th, which plays 194 yards from the tips, is
almost completely surrounded by it. Even a breath of wind makes club
selection dicey, with a single bunker protecting the front of the
green.
As good as the rest of the course is, St. Johns is one of those
layouts that saves the best for last, starting with the 557-yard,
par-5 16th, where water is reachable on both sides of the fairway
from the tee. The fairway narrows, so an accurate layup shot is
required, and the wraparound bunker behind the green on the left is
not a bad spot compared to the water beyond.
 The 212-yard, par-3 17th is a dangerous beauty, with water and sand
to the left, a steep slope and grass bunkers on the right. Make par
and run to the final tee.
No. 18 is considered the best finishing hole in the area, other than
the famous one on Pete Dye's Stadium Course at nearby TPC Sawgrass.
Right is the sensible path off the tee because the lake from No. 17
runs all the way down the left side of the hole and three bunkers
sit in the middle of the fairway.
That is also the best angle from which to approach the green without
having to carry the water, which protects the left side. Into the
wind, the closing hole can play two or three clubs longer.
Add up your score and enjoy post-round refreshments in the Grille
Room or on the back patio overlooking the ninth and 18th greens.
OTHER COURSES IN THE AREA: St. Johns is located in what might be
called the golf capital of the United States, because the
headquarters of the four major golf tours in the country are nearby.
Not only that, but the World Golf Village and the World Golf Hall of
Fame are only a few miles away, also in St. Augustine. Located there
are two championship courses, the Slammer and the Squire (designed
by Robert Weed and named for Sam Snead and Gene Sarazen), and the
King and the Bear (named for Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, who
collaborated on the design).
Right down the road in Ponte Vedra Beach is TPC Sawgrass, home of
the PGA, Champions and Web.com tours. On the property are Pete Dye's
Valley Course and the Stadium Course, with its infamous island 17th
green, site of the Players Championship this week.
About an hour's drive down Interstate 95 in Daytona Beach is LPGA
International, home of the LPGA Tour, with the Hills Course,
designed by Arthur Hills, and the Jones Course, designed by Rees
Jones.
Also in the area are Royal St. Augustine Golf and Country Club, St.
Augustine Shores Golf Club, the Golf Club at South Hampton in St.
Augustine, the Ocean Course designed by Jack Nicklaus at Hammock
Beach Resort in Palm Coast, Queens Harbour Yacht and Country Club in
Jacksonville, Magnolia Point Golf and Country Club in Green Cove
Springs, and Eagle Harbor Golf Club in Orange Park.
 WHERE TO STAY: Stay and play on the grounds of the World Golf
Village at the Renaissance Resort, St. Augustine Hotel and Suites,
Laterra Condo Resort and Spa or the Grande Villas, which all offer
golf packages for the Slammer and the Squire, and the King and the
Bear.
Historic St. Augustine is the oldest European settlement in the
United States, first visited by Ponce de Leon in 1513, and there are
numerous hotels and B&Bs in and around the city. Among the best are
the Bayfront Marin House, the Casablanca Inn on the Bay, Casa Monica
Hotel, the Bayfront Westcott House, St. George Inn, Alexander
Homestead Bed and Breakfast, the Pirate Haus Inn and the Carriage
Way Bed & Breakfast.
In Ponte Vedra Beach are the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort and Spa,
Ponte Vedra Inn and Club, the Lodge and Club at Ponte Vedra Beach
and the Hilton Garden Inn. Fig Tree Inn Bed & Breakfast is an option
in Jacksonville Beach.
Golf resorts in the area include the Hammock Beach Resort in Palm
Coast and the Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort.
ON THE WEB: www.stjohnsgolf.com
THE LAST RESORT: World Golf Village, King and Bear Course, Slammer
and Squire Course, in St. Augustine, Fla.
THE LAYOUT: At the top of the list for any golf vacation to Florida
has to be the World Golf Village and Hall of Fame, located in St.
Augustine, the oldest city in the United States, founded in 1565.
Not only can golf fans browse through artifacts the greats of the
game utilized in their diverse roads to glory, but they also can
play the two world-class courses on the property, named after four
of those all-timers.
The King and Bear Course, about 3 miles from the Hall of Fame but
still on land owned by the World Golf Village, is the only
collaboration in golf-course design by Jack Nicklaus and Arnold
Palmer.
 Palmer and Nicklaus played a match that was televised for Shell's
Wonderful World of Golf to mark the opening of the course in 2000,
which also hosted the Champions Tour for the Liberty Mutual Legends
of Golf in 2001 and 2002.
The Slammer and Squire, named for Sam Snead and Gene Sarazen, was
designed by Bobby Weed, although he received input from those great
champions, who were still alive when the course opened in 1998.
The original course on the property, located a short walk from the
Hall of Fame and the hotels on the property, the Slammer and Squire
hosted the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf in 1999 and also was the
venue for the PGA Tour Qualifying School and Champions Tour
Qualifying School.
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DIRECTOR OF GOLF: Jeff Hartman
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: The King and Bear is the more challenging of the
courses, playing to 7,279 yards and a par of 72 from the back tees,
with a course rating of 75.2 and a slope of 122.
It is what the British would call a parkland course, with wide
fairways (for which Nicklaus designs are known) on the front nine
lined by loblolly trees. The more winding fairways on the back side
are framed by 200-year-old live oaks.
The 17 lakes that dot the King and Bear are lined by coquina rocks.
"Arnold and I have varying styles on how we do golf courses,"
Nicklaus said. "(The King and Bear) reflects both of our styles."
The course opens with two strong par 4s, measuring 426 and 435
yards, but there are five sets of tees, and there is plenty of room
in the driving areas.
Stay well clear of the water and sand all down the right side at No.
1, where the green is guarded by a large bunker complex. The water
on the tee box at No. 2 should not come into play, and the shot to a
green protected by three bunkers on the left is slightly uphill.
The best par 5 on the course probably is No. 7, a dogleg that swings
left and measures 573 yards, with a large lake on the left to deal
with on the layup and the shot to the green.
The front nine finishes with two more challenging par 4s, No. 3 and
1 in difficulty on that side, at 462 and 448 yards from the back,
respectively. The eighth has water on both sides of the fairway and
the ninth features a large lake all the way to the green.
Palmer included No. 12, a 412-yard par 4, as one of his "Dream 18"
in a Sports Illustrated article in 2006. Considered the signature
hole, it winds around a lake to the left to a green sitting on a
small peninsula.
No. 14 is a 200-yard par 3 with water and sand on the right,
although there is bail-out room on the left, and it leads to a
strong finish.
Following three more exceptional par 4s at 360, 467 and 427 yards,
the King and Bear closes with a 563-yard par 5 devoid of water,
although there are wetlands to collect any shot pulled left of the
bunker that runs the length of the hole on the left.
The par-72 Slammer and Squire Course, more of a user-friendly resort
course even though both are eminently playable for golfers of all
abilities, measures 6,939 from the tips, with a rating of 73.8 and a
slope of 135.
The course plays through native wetlands, hardwood hammock trees and
old-growth pine trees.
After a relatively straightforward start, the golfer reaches the No.
1-handicap hole on the course, No. 4, measuring 522 yards from the
back tees. Water and sand run down the right side off the tee before
the hole doglegs dramatically to the left to a green protected by
water on three sides.
The seventh is a 178-yard par 3 on which the water on the left must
be carried from the back tees, with bunkers guarding both sides of
an elevated green that requires an extra club.
The front nine concludes with a 401-yard par 4 that plays back
toward the Trophy Tower that sits atop the Hall of Fame, and
although there is no water on the hole, there are eight bunkers to
deal with from tee to green.
The best hole on the back nine probably is the par-4, 442-yard 12th,
which has a water hazard that cannot be seen from the fairway about
120 yards from the hole. Collection areas on three sides of the
green make it difficult to get up and down for par if you miss the
putting surface.
The finish is challenging, starting with the 576-yard, par-5 16th,
the longest hole on the course with sand and water challenges.
The Slammer and Squire winds up with par 4s measuring 459 and 425
yards, respectively, which both bend to the left. The penultimate
hole has water on both sides as you approach the green, and the
final green has a spectacular view of the Hall of Fame across the
water.
The fun isn't over when your round ends at the World Golf Village,
because there are hands-on exhibits in the Hall of Fame.
In addition to the largest PGA Tour merchandise shop in the world,
the property also includes Caddyshack Restaurant, owned by the
Murray brothers. It is a tribute to Bill Murray's role of assistant
course superintendent Carl Spackler in the movie "Caddyshack."
If you don't have time for a round of golf, you can still play the
18-hole natural-grass putting course, take a shot to an island green
on the 132-yard Challenge Hole reminiscent of No. 17 at TPC Sawgrass
or watch a movie in the IMAX Theatre.
As Gary Player, World Golf Hall of Fame global ambassador, says in
commercials for the Hall: "For the love of golf, you must go."
OTHER COURSES IN THE AREA: The World Golf Village and Hall of Fame
are only about a 20-minute drive from TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra
Beach, home of the PGA, Champions and Web.com tours. On the Sawgrass
property are Pete Dye's Valley Course and the Stadium Course, with
its infamous island 17th green, site of the Players Championship.
Also in the area are Royal St. Augustine Golf and Country Club, St.
Augustine Shores Golf Club, the Golf Club at South Hampton in St.
Augustine, St. Johns Golf and Country Club in St. Augustine, the
Ocean Course designed by Jack Nicklaus at Hammock Beach Resort in
Palm Coast, Queens Harbour Yacht and Country Club in Jacksonville,
Magnolia Point Golf and Country Club in Green Cove Springs, and
Eagle Harbor Golf Club in Orange Park.
About an hour's drive south on Interstate 95 in Daytona Beach is
LPGA International, home of the LPGA Tour, with the Hills Course,
designed by Arthur Hills, and the Jones Course, designed by Rees
Jones.
WHERE TO STAY: Stay and play on the grounds of the World Golf
Village at the Renaissance Resort, St. Augustine Hotel and Suites,
Laterra Condo Resort and Spa or the Grande Villas, which all offer
golf packages for the Slammer and the Squire, and the King and the
Bear.
Historic St. Augustine is the oldest European settlement in the
United States, first visited by Ponce de Leon in 1513, and there are
numerous hotels and B&Bs in and around the city. Among the best are
the Bayfront Marin House, the Casablanca Inn on the Bay, Casa Monica
Hotel, the Bayfront Westcott House, St. George Inn, Alexander
Homestead Bed and Breakfast, the Pirate Haus Inn and the Carriage
Way Bed & Breakfast.
In Ponte Vedra Beach are the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort and Spa,
Ponte Vedra Inn and Club, the Lodge and Club at Ponte Vedra Beach
and the Hilton Garden Inn. Fig Tree Inn Bed & Breakfast is an option
in Jacksonville Beach.
Golf resorts in the area include the Hammock Beach Resort in Palm
Coast and the Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort.
ON THE WEB: www.golfwgv.com
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