Our afternoon round at the PGA Golf Club Dye course in Port St. Lucie, Florida was an unforgettable thrill. Perfect Florida weather combined with impeccably grooming results in a great day of golf.
Developed by the PGA of America, PGA Village is a community built around learning and playing the game of golf. It serves as the winter home to PGA professionals. PGA Village includes the PGA Golf Club, the PGA Center for Learning and Performance (see separate article) and the PGA Education Center, the training forum for PGA apprentice professionals. Although the PGA moved their national headquarters to Texas, the PGA Golf Club remains a gem.
A special treat is a walk through the PGA Gallery in the clubhouse. Replicas of all four of golf’s major trophies including the original Wanamaker trophy and the current Ryder Cup trophy are on display. With player memorabilia from the PGA Championship and the Ryder Cup, the PGA Gallery is a must-see, then a drink or lunch in the comfy Taplow Pub next door tops it off.
The PGA Golf Club comprises three incredible courses. The Dye Course by Pete Dye, the Wanamaker Course by Tom Fazio honoring Rodman Wanamaker who spearheaded the PGA in 1916 and the Ryder Course, honoring Samuel Ryder who started the first Ryder Cup in 1927. According to the Golf Magazines 2016-17 rankings, Wanamaker Course ranks #23 in Florida and the Dye Course ranks #30. We played the Dye Course.
The Dye Course at PGA Golf Club
Champion Bermuda grass has flourished on the new greens and the surfaces are exceptional. A mix of Paspalum and Celebration Bermuda on the fairways achieves better color with tremendous heat and humidity tolerance. Unlike some Florida courses, they over-seed everything with Rye grass in the winter. Hence, besides the fairway, the rough is also green not brown.
At 7221 yards from the tips, the Dye Course is long. However, six tee grounds and five combo lengths are on the card making eleven distinct course yardages for golfers of any ability to have fun.
A firm mix of crushed gravel and sand for cart paths is indistinguishable from waste bunkers even near the tee grounds. This natural minimalist approach may have helped the PGA Golf Club achieve Audubon International Signature Status – a higher level “beyond compliance” classification.
Waste bunkers are immense and are integral to the course, often guarding water hazards. The Par4 Hole #4 diagonal waste bunker on this short dogleg right is penalizing if you bite off more fairway than you can carry. Greens are large but often with false fronts and considerable undulations. Hence, the approach and pitching landing areas are smaller requiring more precision.
Clumps of tall wispy grass often guard the fairway bunkers providing a more punitive location than the bunker itself.
Fairway bunkering near the second shot landing area on the Par5 Hole #7 stands out for its size and complexity.
Our experience at Dye Course leaves us thrilled yet deprived because we didn’t play the other two courses. This is some of the finest golf in Florida.
Explore other Florida golf course profiles from Quintessential Golf Magazine.
