Tag: Florida Golf

Top 35 Private Clubs – Florida 2023

Jupiter Hills, Tequesta FL

While there are a great many fantastic public golf courses in Florida, membership at a top echelon private club assures that you’ll have a quality golf experience every time you tee it up. Limited play at private clubs pretty much guarantees that course conditions will always be great, and you can also say goodbye to the 5-hour round.

The state of Florida boasts 54 private clubs receiving a GolfDay rating of 90 or higher (Premium), by far the highest of any state in the country.

Florida also includes over 160 clubs with a GolfDay rating above 80 (high quality), again the most of any state, so chances are pretty good that you won’t have to look far to find a great club to call home.

We’ve included our Top 35 below, or you can spin through our file of all private courses in Florida, listed by GolfDay Rating. The GolfDay search engine is available as well to find the best courses by proximity to your location.

Clubs are ranked on the basis of GolfDay Rating, and listings include the year a club was founded, course architect(s), current USGA course and slope ratings, a link for the course website, and a notation if currently ranked by Golf Digest (locally or nationally). A link to the GolfDay course page is also included along with a link to Google Maps for each location. 

Mountain Lake Country Club

Our Top 35 private clubs in Florida include designs by the towering figures in golf course architecture, including Donald Ross, Jack Nicklaus, Seth Raynor, Tom Fazio, Robert Trent Jones, Sr., Pete Dye and William Flynn.   

Tom Fazio, with 8 original designs as well as updates to an additional 4, has contributed the highest number to our list of elite private tracks in Florida.

Donald Ross and Jack Nicklaus are close behind with 6 original designs each, and Pete Dye’s long list of fabulous courses includes 3 private clubs in Florida.

The GolfDay private club rating is based on a variety of criteria, including the stature of the architect(s) who did the original design(s), updates that have been done on the course(s), the variety of courses located at the property, USGA Course and Slope Ratings, as well as club longevity and prestige. 

Seminole Golf Club
USGA Museum
  1. Seminole Golf Club/Juno Beach
    • Founded: 1929
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Donald Ross/Dick Wilson/Ed Connor/Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.4/144
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 100, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 100
    • Location
Black Diamond Ranch Golf and Country Club
  1. Black Diamond Ranch Golf & Country Club/Lecanto
    Escalante Golf
    • Founded:1987
    • Holes: 45 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Quarry/Ranch and Nine Hole Highlands Course)
    • Course Architects: Tom Fazio/David Whelchel
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Quarry:            77.9 Rating/146 Slope
    • Ranch:              75.8 Rating/141 Slope
    • Highlands:       37.2 Rating/140 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 100
    • Location
Mountain Lake Country Club
  1. Mountain Lake Country Club/Lake Wales
    • Founded: 1915
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Seth Raynor/William Diddel/Ron Prichard/Tyler Rae
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 73.1 Rating/136 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 98.6
    • Location
The Concession Golf Club
  1. The Concession Golf Club/Bradenton
    • Founded: 2006
    • Holes: 27 (Eighteen Hole Championship Course and Nine Hole Par 3 Course)
    • Course Architects: Jack Nicklaus/Tony Jacklin
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 76.7 Rating/153 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200 Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 98.2
    • Location
Jupiter Hills Club
  1. Jupiter Hills Club/Tequesta
    • Founded: 1969
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Hills/Village)
    • Course Architects: George Fazio/Tom Fazio/Jan Bel Jan
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Hills:     76.9 Rating/148 Slope
    • Village: 73.9 Rating/147 Slope
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200, Golf Digest Florida Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 97.6
    • Location
Calusa Pines Golf Club
  1. Calusa Pines Golf Club/Naples
    • Founded: 2001
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Michael Hurdzan/Dana Fry
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.2 Rating/143 Slope
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 100, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 97.0
    • Location
San Jose Country Club
  1. San Jose Country Club/Jacksonville
Watersound Club
  1. Watersound Club/Watersound
    St. Joe Hospitality
Belleair Country Club
  1. Belleair Country Club/Belleair
    • Founded: 1925
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: East/West)
    • Course Architects: Donald Ross/John Duncan Dunn/Hal Purdy/Malcolm Purdy/Stephen Kay/Gene Bates/Jason Straka
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • East:    70.8 Rating/133 Slope
    • West:   74.3 Rating/144 Slope  
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 96.1
    • Location
  •  
Coral Ridge Country Club
  1. Coral Ridge Country Club/Fort Lauderdale
    • Founded: 1955
    • Holes: 27 (Eighteen Hole Championship Course and Nine Hole Par 3)
    • Course Architects: Robert Trent Jones, Sr./Rees Jones
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.4 Rating/137 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 95.8
    • Location
The Everglades Club
  1. The Everglades Club/Palm Beach
    • Founded: 1919
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Seth Raynor/William Langford/Theodore Moreau/George Fazio/Tom Fazio/Ron Kirby/Denis Griffiths/Brian Silva
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 71.0 Rating/140 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.0
    • Location
Broken Sound Club
  1. Broken Sound Club/Boca Raton
    • Founded: 1978
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Club Course/Old Course)
    • Course Architects: Joe Lee/Gene Bates/Rees Jones
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Club Course: 74.9 Rating/147 Slope
    • Old Course:   75.4 Rating/146 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.8
    • Location
Medalist Golf Club
  1. Medalist Golf Club/Hobe Sound
    • Founded: 1995
    • Holes: 30 (Eighteen Hole Regulation Course and Twelve Hole Medalist Village Par 3
    • Course Architects: Pete Dye/Greg Norman/Matthew Dusenberry
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 77.0 Rating/149 Slope
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.6
    • Location
Indian Creek Country Club
  1. Indian Creek Country Club/Indian Creek Village
    • Founded: 1926
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: William Flynn/Howard Toomey/Dick Wilson/Ron Forse/Andrew Green
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 73.7 Rating/132 Slope
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.5
    • Location
Hammock Dunes Club
  1. Hammock Dunes Club/Palm Coast
    • Founded: 1989
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Creek/Links)
    • Course Architects: Tom Fazio/Rees Jones
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Creek: 76.6 Rating/152 Slope
    • Links: 73.6 Rating/138 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.2
    • Location
Boca West Country Club
  1. Boca West Country Club/Boca Raton
    • Founded: 1969
    • Holes: 72 (4 Eighteen Hole Courses: Palmer I/Fazio II/Palmer III/Dye IV)
    • Course Architects: Arnold Palmer/Jim Fazio/Pete Dye/Dana Fry/Jason Straka
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Palmer I:          75.2 Rating/142 Slope
    • Fazio II:            73.5 Rating/146 Slope
    • Palmer III:       72.4 Rating/139 Slope
    • Dye IV:              72.7 Rating/128 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.1
    • Location
Gulf Stream Golf Club
  1. Gulf Stream Golf Club/Gulf Stream
    • Founded: 1924
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Left/Right)
    • Course Architects: Donald Ross/Dick Wilson/Mark Mahannah/Pete Dye/Alice Dye
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Left:   73.7 Rating/138 Slope
    • Right: 73.9 Rating/137 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 94.0
    • Location
Floridian National Golf Club
  1. Floridian National Golf Club/Palm City
    • Founded: 2011
    • Holes: 27 (Eighteen Hole Championship Course and Nine Hole Butch Harmon Par 3
    • Course Architects: Tom Fazio/Kevin Norby
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 74.7 Rating/145 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 93.8
    • Location
Bonita Bay Club
  1. Bonita Bay Club/Naples
    • Founded: 1998
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Cypress/Sabal)
    • Course Architects: Tom Fazio/Tom Marzolf
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Cypress: 76.9 Rating/145 Slope
    • Sabal:     73.3 Rating/139 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 93.8
    • Location
Ballenisles Country Club
  1. Ballenisles Country Club/Palm Beach Gardens
    • Founded: 1964
    • Holes: 54 (3 Eighteen Hole Courses: North/East/South)
    • Course Architects: Dick Wilson/Joe Lee/Gene Bates/Rees Jones/Jack Nicklaus
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • East:     76.5 Rating/145 Slope
    • North:  73.7 Rating/137 Slope
    • South:  74.4 Rating/138 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 93.7
    • Location
The Club at Ibis
  1. The Club at Ibis/West Palm Beach
    • Founded: 1992
    • Holes: 54 (3 Eighteen Hole Courses: Legend/Heritage/Tradition)
    • Course Architects: Jack Nicklaus/Jack Nicklaus II/Steve Nicklaus
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Legend:           75.7 Rating/142 Slope
    • Heritage:         74.7 Rating/140 Slope
    • Tradition:        74.8Rating/139 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 93.5
    • Location
Old Marsh Golf Club
  1. Old Marsh Golf Club/Palm Beach Gardens
    • Founded: 1988
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Pete Dye/Chris Lutzke
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.8 Rating/152 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 93.4
    • Location
The Loxahatchee Club
  1. The Loxahatchee Club/Jupiter
    • Founded: 1984
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architect: Jack Nicklaus
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.9 Rating/153 Slope
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 93.3
    • Location
Timuquana Country Club
  1. Timuquana Country Club/Jacksonville
    • Founded: 1923
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Donald Ross/George Cobb/David W. Gordon/Bobby Weed/Bruce Hepner
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 74.1 Rating/137 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.9
    • Location
The Country Club at Mirasol
  1. The Country Club at Mirasol/Palm Beach Gardens
    • Founded: 2001
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Sunrise/Sunset)
    • Course Architects: Arthur Hills/Steve Forrest/Tom Fazio/J. Drew Rogers
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Sunrise:           76.2 Rating/147 Slope
    • Sunset:            75.2 Rating/153 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.7
    • Location
Heathrow Legacy Club
  1. Heathrow Legacy Club/Heathrow
    Concert Golf Partners
    • Founded: 1985
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Heathrow/Legacy)
    • Course Architects: Ron Garl/Tom Fazio
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Heathrow Country Club: 72.5 Rating/131 Slope
    • Legacy Club:                      75.4 Rating/141 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.6
    • Location
John’s Island Club
  1. John’s Island Club/Vero Beach
    • Founded: 1969
    • Holes: 54 (3 Eighteen Hole Courses: North/South/West)
    • Course Architects: Pete Dye/Jack Nicklaus/Tom Fazio
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • North: 74.3 Rating/138 Slope
    • South: 70.9 Rating/131 Slope
    • West:   73.0 Rating/137 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.6
    • Location
Sara Bay Golf and Country Club
  1. Sara Bay Country Club/Sarasota
    • Founded: 1926
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Donald Ross/Joe lee/Kris Spence
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.3 Rating/137 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.4
    • Location
Pine Tree Golf Club
  1. Pine Tree Golf Club/Boynton Beach
    • Founded: 1960
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architects: Dick Wilson/Joe Lee/Ed Connor/Ron Forse/Bobby Weed/Scot Sherman
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 75.1 Rating/143 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.4
    • Location
Lost City Golf Club
  1. Lost City Golf Club/Atlantis
    • Founded: 1960
    • Holes: 27 (3 Nine Hole Courses: North/South/East)
    • Course Architects: William Mitchell/Bob Simmons/Ted McAnlis/Tom Fazio
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • North: 37.0 Rating/133 Slope
    • South: 37.3 Rating/132 Slope
    • East:    36.9 Rating/137 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 92.3
    • Location
Sailfish Point Golf Club
  1. Sailfish Point Golf Club/Stuart
The Bear’s Club
  1. The Bear’s Club/Jupiter
    • Founded: 1999
    • Holes: 18
    • Course Architect: Jack Nicklaus
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating: 76.2 Rating/151 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 91.9
    • Location
Trump International Golf Club
  1. Trump International Golf Club/West Palm Beach
    • Founded: 1999
    • Holes: 27 (Eighteen Hole Championship Course and Trump Nine)
    • Course Architects: Jim Fazio
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Championship: 76.3 Rating/155 Slope
    • Trump Nine:     37.7 Rating/147 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest Top 200, Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 91.9
    • Location
Sawgrass Country Club
  1. Sawgrass Country Club/Ponte Vedra Beach
    • Founded: 1973
    • Holes: 27 (3 Nine Hole Courses: East/West/South)
    • Course Architects: Ed Seay/William Amick/Gardner Dickenson/Edmund Ault/Tom Clark//Robert Walker
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • East:    37.5 Rating/146 Slope
    • West:   37.4 Rating/146 Slope
    • South: 37.4 Rating/142 Slope
    • Description
    • GolfDay Rating: 91.8
    • Location
TwinEagles
  1. TwinEagles/Naples
    • Founded: 1999
    • Holes: 36 (2 Eighteen Hole Courses: Talon/Eagle)
    • Course Architects: Jack Nicklaus/Jack Nicklaus II/Steve Smyers
    • USGA Course/Slope Rating:
    • Talon: 75.2 Rating/139 Slope
    • Eagle: 77.5 Rating/150 Slope
    • Description
    • Rankings: Golf Digest FL Top 60
    • GolfDay Rating: 91.7
    • Location
Share this Article:

Florida Top 3 Private Golf Clubs

Florida is home to more golf courses than any other state in the country with over 1,200. But even with all of those courses to choose from, selecting the one that is right for you may not be as easy as it seems.

Not only does Florida have perfect golf weather year-round, there are the beaches, restaurants and family-oriented activities that make it a wonderful place to live for people wanting to maintain an active lifestyle.

If you’re a captain of industry, travel in the circles of the rich and famous, or just an avid golfer with enough money and connections, here are three private clubs in Florida that should go to the top of your bucket-list.

Seminole Golf Club

Perennially ranked as one of the top 100 courses in the U.S. by Golf Digest and currently at number 12, this Donald Ross classic is home to a who’s who of the business elite and golf royalty. Founded by E. F. Hutton and built in 1926, the links style layout at Seminole is arguably the crowning achievement of Ross’ distinguished career. Don’t bother looking for the website—they don’t have one. The members at Seminole guard their privacy and you won’t catch a glimpse of the clubhouse or golf course through the hedges along Route 1 in Juno Beach, but you will have a chance to see it on May 17 when Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Rickey Fowler and Mathew Wolff tee it up in a televised skins game match for COVID-19 relief. As with all pure links golf courses, the wind will be a determining factor in how these great players attack the course—and we are all in for a special treat with this rare opportunity for a look at this historic club.

Seminole will also host the Walker Cup in 2021, so if you miss this match, you’ll have another chance next year—but the opportunity to see Seminole is something you never want to pass up. We rank Seminole at the top of the list as the best private club in Florida.

Jupiter Hills Club

Jupiter Hills Club in Tequesta, FL is the vision and legacy of George Fazio, and also launched the spectacular architectural career of his nephew, Tom Fazio. The club boasts two great courses, the Hills and the Villages, laid down on a unique piece of property just north of Palm Beach that offers elevation change and contour provided by Seminole Ridge—a pretty rare feature in a state that’s known for being extremely flat. The Hills course is ranked among the best in Florida and the crowning achievement of George Fazio’s architectural career. With a course rating of 77.1 and slope of 150, the many top flight golfers who call Jupiter Hills home can test their skill to the max every time they tee it up. And the Village course, designed by Tom Fazio, is no slouch either with a USGA rating of 73.9 and a slope of 147. Known as a player’s club, Jupiter Hills is the place to be if you’ve got game and live in south-east Florida.

Mountain Lake Country Club

Number 3 on our list is Mountain Lake Country Club in Lake Wales. A Seth Raynor masterpiece that often flies under the radar, Golf Digest currently ranks Mountain Lake number ten among all of the courses that Florida has to offer. The club engaged Ron Prichard and Tyler Rae on a recently completed restoration to bring back many of the subtle Raynor features that were lost over the more than 100 years since the course was built in 1917. As always, Prichard and Rae were meticulous with their effort and the result was perfection. In addition to the wonderful course, Mountain Lake is a full service, family-oriented club with pure class, grounded in tradition, and a membership that is committed to maintaining values of the highest standard.

A few others to consider

In addition to these great clubs, The Concession Golf Club is a spectacular Jack Nicklaus design in Bradenton and Belleair Country Club on the gulf coast near Tampa-St. Petersburg offers 36 holes designed by Donald Ross in a stunningly scenic setting.

For more information on the best golf courses in your state, visit GolfDay for everything you need to know.

Informative?

Share this Article: