The Highlands Golf Course

I am giving this golf course three stars for technical reasons. When we came to the address for Highlands there was no mention of that course on the sign only the name of the country club. Once we were on the club grounds there were no signs directing us to Highlands. We ended up at one of the private courses and had to get directed to Highlands. The course itself is like a maze. We ended up zigzagging down paths and crossing roads to get to several holes. That being said our party enjoyed the course. It was in good condition for February and the greens were nice. The fairways on many of the holes are challenging due to the numerous sand traps and water hazards. Would we play the course again? You bet!

In the late 80’s we bought a condo in The Meadows due to our love of the old Florida feel of the neighborhoods and the lush foliage. None of that has changed. We sold the condo when we moved here 14 years ago. We decided to play the Highlands Golf Course as it is one of the three Meadows courses open to the public and we haven’t played there in probably 20 years.
Upon arrivals we were greeted by two cart guys that were very friendly. They directed us to a room where we were to pay at had 2 racks of sale clothing and a mostly empty refrigerator with drinks and one sandwich. No Pro shop. We asked where e driving range was and were told «we don’t have a driving range for non-​members.» Hmmmmm. So we asked about a putting green and were directly to the first hole.
At the first hole we tried to park our cart and were curtly told to turn around by the starter as i guess they have rules about where you park. We obeyed and when he realized we were 45 minutes early he became more pleasant.
The practice putting green was BEAUTIFUL and there was also a chipping green. I got enthused about playing on a well maintained course! We chipped and putted and chipped and putted. Then we teed off.
The course was so pretty and pretty well maintained… until you reach the greens. AWFUL!
Thankfully they have GPS because the paths are by poorly marked. We passed many confused golfers!
There are seval bathrooms one course which is nice.
At the turn we found the oasis in a lack of customer service… the woman at the snack bar. She was so friendly and courteous! Now finding out way from the 9^th to the 10^th hole? That’s another story.
When we finished our round we got totally lost coming back to the «building» that they call a clubhouse. The cart shut off and we had to push it. The restaurant next to this building has been closed which was disappointing.
On the way home my husband asked if I would play there again. I don’t know… it’s beautiful but it seemed like we were second class citizens