PALM COAST, Fla. -- Nature and Jack Nicklaus have saved their last for best.
Here along the northeast Florida coast between Daytona Beach and Jacksonville, nature presented Nicklaus with probably the last piece of developable oceanfront property on Florida's east coast. And with the creation of Ocean Hammock Golf Club, the Golden Bear did not disappoint.
Six of Ocean Hammock's holes overlook the Atlantic Ocean, helping to cement the 7,201-yard, par-72 layout as the centerpiece of the Ocean Hammock Resort, as well as the entire Palm Coast Resort that includes 90 holes of golf (Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, William Amick), the Lodge at Ocean Hammock and condominiums at nearby Cinnamon Beach.
"People are really starting to find out about us," Mary Hafeman, Head PGA Professional at Ocean Hammock told PGA.com. "With the Lodge and all the other amenities that we've added, we've become a great destination for golfers and families."
Most of Ocean Hammock's fairways are wide and offer quite a bit of landing room if one can steer clear of the strategically placed bunkers that protect and frame the holes. There's a reason the fairways are wide, and it's not necessarily because Nicklaus was in a giving mood when he designed them.
The wind, understand, has the justly deserved reputation of blowing hard and long here -- from the northeast in the winter and southwest in the summer -- so the wide fairways are needed to give players a chance against it.
For those days when the wind isn't much of a factor, Nicklaus has built one of the trademarks -- elevated greens that favor the player who can hit high fade shots, just like the man himself has done for more than 40 years.
Ocean Hammock opens friendly enough for most players -- with a 380-yard par 4 from an elevated tee with the ocean at your back and plenty of landing area to the left. The hole provides a player with a good birdie opportunity to open the round.
The second hole, a 540-yard par 5, also is a good birdie opportunity if the player avoids the large sandy waste area to the right of the green on his approach. Ambitious players might consider going for the green in two, but the green is only 29 yards deep and 27 yards wide and is guarded in front by two bunkers, so there isn't much room for error.
Those two holes can help set up a good score heading into two consecutive tough holes. The peninsula green on the 526-yard, par-5 sixth hole discourages eagle attempts, while the 458-yard, par-4 seventh hole demands accuracy off the tee and a solid mid to long iron the green.
Although you can hear the ocean from virtually every corner of the golf course, the 185-yard, par-3 eighth hole and 468-yard, par-4 ninth hole are a player's first encounter with the Atlantic. The ocean serves as a backdrop for the No. 8 green and is to the player's right side all along the ninth fairway.
The eighth and ninth holes generally play into the wind in the winter and spring, making club selection on No. 8 and an accurate drive on No. 9 imperative if one is to even have a chance at par.
The 11th hole is one of Ocean Hammock's more memorable. Only 384 yards along from the back tees, this par 4 presents a challenge because of the bunker Nicklaus has placed 234 yards from the back tees. A player must choose to attempt to carry the bunker with a draw that gives him a short iron to the green. The driver has to be accurate, however, because too far left likely will leave the ball in a lake that guards the left side of the fairway.
Playing to the right side of the fairway leaves a slightly longer shot, but takes the water and bunker out of play.
The true difficulty of No. 11, however, is in the approach shot because of the sand that protects the left side of the green, which is only 23 yards deep. Any shot left likely will end up there. And the bunker that can't be seen from the fairway invariably catches any shot long and left.
The impression from the fairway is that, if you hit it over green, the ball just rolls up on grassy knoll. A player can't see the bunker and how it fingers around behind the green. You can make birdie here, but you also can make a 7 in a heartbeat.
Ocean Hammock's final four holes -- collectively known as the Bear Claw -- should rank among the finer finishing stretches in the state, quite an accomplishment considering the closing holes at the nearby TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course, Bay Hill in Orlando and Doral's Blue Monster in Miami are semi-legendary.
The 15th is one of the course's more beautiful plays, stretching uphill 450 yards to a green that overlooks the ocean. And with the prevailing winter wind in your face, it might be the most difficult hole on the course.
The green on the 17th hole, a 174-yard par 3, is set against an ocean backdrop. Twin bunkers on either side of the green protect it, as does the wind, so club selection here is critical. A collection surrounds the sides and back of the green, so anything that misses requires a delicate recovery shot.
The 18th, a 466-yard par 4, has plays with the surf pounding along the hole's entire left side. Substitute the palm trees that dot the right side for cactus, and you get a hint of some of Nicklaus' work along the Sea of Cortez at Cabo del Sol in Los Cabos, Mexico. Again, the wind is a major factor. If it's in your face, 4 is a terrific score. If it's at your back, a birdie is possible.
A birdie on the 18th certainly would be a memorable way to complete the round. But even if your score is higher, there's no doubt Ocean Hammock is one for the memory banks.
"People always comment on how beautiful the whole area is," Hafeman said. "They can sit out on the patio of the Lodge and look at the course and the ocean. There aren't many places where you can do that."
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