Located in Fort Mill, South Carolina, the name of this golf course is what initially grabbed my attention: The Regent Park Golf Club! The idea of golfing at a club with the same name as Canada’s first public housing project really appealed to me.

Add to this the fact that the course was amazing! It reminded me a little of Osprey Valley Resorts here in Ontario, as it’s an under-priced public facility in great shape and provides great fun to golfers who aren’t afraid of a little risk and reward.

What’s also hilarious about this course is that it was built on land that was once owned by Jim and Tammy-Faye Baker, the crazy television evangelists who went bankrupt just over a decade ago. Adjacent to the course is a Bibleland theme park that was originally going to expand to the land that is now the course, but the Baker’s bankruptcy changed all that.

To quote from their website: Regent Park Golf Club is located 12 miles south of downtown Charlotte, one mile off of Interstate 77. Bordering the North Carolina / South Carolina state line, the course travels through the two states and three different counties. The course was designed by Ron Garl and is Charlotte’s most challenging and beautiful 18-hole public course. Regent Park also offers the most complete practice facility in the Charlotte area.

Regent Park Golf Club & Academy

While in Florida recently, we met up with members of our family who are members of the Dunedin Country Club, in Dunedin Florida. I always knew Dunedin as the winter home of the Toronto Blue Jays, however I was quite enthused to find a great municipal course with a vibrant history. I’ll be sure to spend some time playing this course. To quote from their website:

Designed by all-time great golf course architect Donald Ross, the course was carved out of citrus groves and was opened for play January 1, 1927. Beginning in 1945 until 1962 it was the PGA National Golf Course. Features of the course include: 6,565 yards long with teeing areas of varying distances for each hole; driving range, putting green, chipping and sand trap practice area; complete golf shop; resident PGA pro and assistants; storage for member-owned carts. Numerous golf groups are available for members to provide guaranteed tee times and opportunity to immediately enjoy the full golf benefits of the Club. There are locker rooms for men and women.

Dunedin Country Club

While on a golf road trip, after visiting the World Golf Village, I played a round at the St. Johns Golf Club, which is located in St. Johns county, just outside of St. Augustine Florida. The course is well designed, with 27 holes, winding around towering pines, natural vegitation and numerous ponds which make for some challenging shots. When we played we saw tons of wildlife, including a large gator sunning itself on the 14th tee. As far as municipal golf courses go, this one is well worth playing, affordable and enjoyable, a great representation of the quality golf to be found in north east Florida.

St. Johns Golf Club

Recently while on a golf road trip, I came across the Cocoa Beach Country Club, which is located on a peninsula surrounded by the Banana River Lagoon at the western end on Minutemen Causeway in Cocoa Beach Florida.

It was an interesting course, well maintained, and with a nice clubhouse. There are three nine hole courses, and the Banana River and the seventeen lakes that are located on the golf course at the Cocoa Beach Country Club provide a habitat that attracts an abundance of waterfowl and other birds. The birds are definitely a factor, although not in an unpleasant way. When I was on the driving range it often seemed as if one’s shot would hit one of the many birds passing by.

In addition to birds, there are dolphins, alligators, turtles and raccoons that make the Cocoa Beach Country Club a true habitat and wildlife sanctuary. If you happen to be in the Space Coast region, it’s worth paying a visit to the golf club, at least to hit 15 balls on the range for U$1!

Cocoa Beach Country Club