Sarasota National - Venice, Florida

Like chiclets in the checkout lane, this round of golf is powered by impulse. We're visiting Shawn's dad in Bradenton, and the weather is pretty crappy for the second day in a row. We played nine through the rain yesterday, but there's no point to do that when there's sunshine and golf 30 minutes south. A tee time is found, for an hour from now, and it's a 35 min drive. Perfect. To Venice we go.

Since this decision was made post-haste on a Starbucks patio, we are less than prepared for the round. For two type-A, overly analytical people, this is a rare occasion. We typically plan, revisit the plan, further calculate the plan, and then execute the plan. As a result of going on a whim, our golf clubs that we thought were in the trunk are, in fact, in my father-in-law's garage drying out from our previous

Interesting driving range.  Water in the middle.
How in the world do they get all those balls out of the water?

round. No big deal, we can make that be on the way. My rainy day golf shoes are back at the hotel. I'll just go with the super open weave ones. Can't be that wet on the course. Well heck, now traffic is moving slower than it should, so our extra stop and traffic are going to land us late for our tee time. At least we got all our bad vibes out of the way. The skies are blue ahead. Literally.

View from #2 Tee

Calling to apologize for what will be a late arrival, the guys at Sarasota National are very flexible. We land and have about 20 minutes to warm up before our new tee time. By the time we walk through the clubhouse it's lightly drizzling. A few swings in on the range, and it's now raining. We keep warming up despite the others going inside. After all, it's 30° and snowing at home, so what's a little rain? Then, the weather becomes a hurricane. The wind is slapping rain pellets against us. We are instantly soaked to the bone. "Seriously?" I ask myself. I grab the camera, and we run back in the clubhouse.
We end up starting about fifteen minutes later in light rain. Most of the cart path is shell gravel, and it's just flooded. A kayak might have been more appropriate for this round of golf. Cue the wind and heavy rain. It's back. Shawn looks at me. "You look miserable. Are you sure you want to do this?" I'm determined. We're in too deep at this point. I don't back down easily. It's not one of my better traits.

The sun decided to start showing its face on the third hole. It certainly wasn't the end of the rain, but the worst part was over. Funny thing: we couldn't be anymore wet than we were. I hung my glove and socks to dry on my bag. The good news about the 40 mph wind is it would help dry us out a little faster. What a day to play a links-style course.

Sand cranes.  Look real hard: baby sand crane beneath the right crane.

Despite the crazy weather start, I had some of the best shots I've had all week in the beginning of the round. Shawn's score for the front nine was also much better than the back. I think the distraction of weather helped us to play a better game. This silly game is all mental.

Later gator. 

This course is pretty new, and the neighborhood surrounding it is just starting to take form. I don't even think we saw more than a dozen homes. Additionally, the course runs through an Audubon International Certified Signature Sanctuary for birds. We saw a couple gators, cranes galore, and other critters of the wetlands unknown to me. While the course was nice, especially the back nine, the wildlife was one of the best parts of the experience. We share the same favorite hole on this course, number 7. A great expanse of water runs down the whole left side of the fairway that curls along it. The green, surrounded with low bunkers, is a peninsula jetting out over the water.

This was a very nice, playable course. There were some really beautifully carved holes, and the animal friends were pretty good company. I wouldn't recommend walking this course, as some holes have a great distance between them due to the preserve land. All in all, this was a nice mix of distances, target golf, and traditional golf elements. The diversity in structure helped keep the round interesting and set each hole apart from the next. While we didn't experience it due to the soggy conditions, the starter claimed the greens were 12 on the stimpmeter. We would like to come back in five to ten years, once it and the neighborhood are more established.

Sarasota National Official SiteMore sunny skies and creatures of the south