 |
FEATURES |
|
Family Fun at Florida Golf Resorts
by Karen Misuraca
Parents who like to play golf will often use vacation time to introduce their children to the game. And nowhere on the planet are there more destination resorts that cater to beginning players and golfing families than in Florida. Junior clinics and golf camps, junior-sized rental clubs, discounted green fees for youngsters, stay-and-play packages--add all of that to beautiful beaches, a zillion swimming pools and dependably sunny weather, and you have a recipe for good times for all ages.
Breezy Beachfront Golf
On Florida's southeast coast near Fort Lauderdale, the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa makes it easy for parents to start kids off in golf--if they can be dragged away from snorkeling and water sports at Hollywood Beach, the waterfalls in the glass-floored swimming pool, and roller-blading on the seaside boardwalk. Free hotel shuttles transport golfers, tennis players and spa-goers to the Westin's sister resort less than a mile away, The Diplomat Country Club and Spa, where children are VIPs at the Manny Zerman Golf Academy. A former top amateur and pro tour player, Director of Instruction Manny Zerman focuses on the fundamentals of the game, and the rules and etiquette of golf. Nine-week golf camps, June through August, fill up fast with children 6 to 12, and clinics for kids are scheduled throughout the year. Zerman said, "Teaching kids is our primary focus. We know how to make it fun for them, whether it's a one-time lesson or three days of practice, instruction and play."
On the sea-breezy Joe Lee-designed Diplomat golf course, between the Intercoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean, thousands of coconut and Royal palms, and decades-old banyans border the fairways. Young players love to use the GPS distance finder and try their luck shooting for the island green. And, when they find out that you can order snacks and lunch to be delivered right to their golf cart, they get hooked on the game!
Of the 998 water-view rooms at the Westin, the club-level rooms have advantages for families, including a 10,000-square-foot lounge, complimentary continental breakfasts and evening refreshments and snacks. Non-golfing children ages 3 to 12 are happy at the Westin Kids' Club where supervised swimming, snorkeling, art, tennis and play are available all day. On the Westin Family Package, the Kids' Club and all meals for children are complimentary.
 Arnie's Golf School
The more sports-oriented the family, the happier they are at Saddlebrook Resort, a half-hour's drive north of Tampa International Airport. The sprawling Sports Village complex here comprises basketball courts, sand and grass volleyball courts, forty-five tennis courts, two fitness centers and a half-million gallon "superpool" with vollyball nets, basketball hoops and training lanes. Two Arnold Palmer Signature Golf courses and comprehensive teaching programs at the Arnold Palmer Golf Academy make this an unbeatable golf vacation destination.
Located smack in the middle of the resort, the first tees of both golf courses lead the way to fairways meandering alongside lagoons and dense groves of cypress, pines and palms. A whopping seventy practice stations are lined up at the Golf Academy, plus ten target greens and the Scoring Zone Super Green short game area designed by Arnie.
According to the Director of Golf, Jerry Couzynse, "A good way to get children interested in the game is for a father and son, or mother and daughter, to sign up for our Play with the Pro package, which gives you two hours of instruction on the short and the long game, and two hours with an instructor on the course. I usually recommend the Saddlebrook Course for this, as it's a walking course."
Tiger wannabes age 12 and over sign on for the popular five-day Junior Golf Camp at Saddlebrook, offered year round, which includes all-day instruction, meals, lodging, and social activities. Sharing the teaching venues and the golf courses with resort guests are students from the on-site Saddlebrook Prep School, a unique, small facility specializing in academics, golf and tennis, for grades three through twelve.
Besides deluxe guest rooms at Saddlebrook, one- and two-bedroom suites have living rooms and fully equipped kitchens. And for children 4 to 12 who are not yet ready for golf and other boring grown-up stuff, the S'Kids Club offers all-day, supervised fun, from biking to swimming and indoor play.
|
 Tips for Parents of Young Golfers
Director of Golf at Saddlebrook Resort near Tampa, Jerry Couzynse, said, "Remember that kids have short attention spans and they get bored easily. It's best to play with them on the putting greens and the chipping practice areas at first, so they have fun and experience some success right off the bat."
"My most important advice for parents is to make sure that their kids have fun during their lessons," said Manny Zerman, Director of Instruction at Manny Zerman Golf Academy near Fort Lauderdale. He said, "And, I want parents to know that the children should continue with the other sports they like to play, whether it's baseball, soccer, tennis or whatever. All sports will help develop hand-eye coordination, patience and focus, and that makes it easier to learn the game of golf.
"My teaching pros and I plan our clinics and lessons to be non-intimidating and different each time, so that rather than withdrawing and being overwhelmed, kids look forward to every session. We integrate games and we group children not only by age but by experience, so that they relate to each other on an equal basis."
|
|
Island Hideaway
For families craving the wild beaches and the low-key, non-commercial feel of Florida's Gulf Coast islands, South Seas Island Resort on Captiva Island fills the bill with 2.5 miles of white sand beaches, the absence of high rises and fast food chains, and one of the prettiest 9-hole golf courses in the Southeast.
Accessed by a scenic 35-mile drive from the new Southwest Florida International Airport at Fort Myers, and a bridge from adjacent Sanibel Island, Captiva is awash with tropical flora, in particular, mangroves that have been painstakingly restored since Hurricane Charlie, and now provide verdant habitat for hundreds of birds species such as tundra swans, herons, storks, egrets and migrating roseate spoonbills. Primarily on foot, by bike and golf cart, and on the free island trolley, vacationers head to the beach, the sailing school, the Kid's and Teen Clubs and to eleven swimming pools in the plantation-style resort, where no building is higher than the tallest palm tree.
 Newly opened and renamed after a $140-million, post-hurricane renovation, the 3-par, 9-hole Captiva Island Golf Club winds along the gulf, with stunning ocean views from nearly every hole. Just across the bridge on Sanibel Island, The Dunes Golf and Tennis Club offers complete practice venues, and some excitement on the course when the occasional alligator is seen in the swampy lakes alongside the fairways, golfers are advised to bring a camera and binoculars for wildlife viewing.
Families find a wide variety of accommodations at South Seas Island Resort, from hotel rooms to cottages and 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom West Indies-style villas with kitchens that can be stocked prior to arrival.
Playing on the Disney Golf Trail
Of the 99 holes of golf on five courses at Walt Disney World in Orlando, the Oak Trail Golf Course is a good choice for beginners. The 9-hole, walkable course plays about 3,000 yards, with some holes long enough to challenge experienced players. For ages 17 and under, the green fee is under $20 and the replay rate on the same day for all players is 50% off; juniors can play for as little as $5 in the summertime at the end of the day, and it's free to rent junior clubs. In June and July, Walt Disney World Junior Golf Camps for 8- to 15-year-old girls and boys at the Oak Trail, Palm and Magnolia courses are conducted by a friendly, light-hearted PGA teaching staff that emphasizes not only the basics of the swing, but rules, safety and etiquette. Kids get to play with the pros on Oak Trail, and they receive achievement certificates. Oak Trail is in the Magic Kingdom area of Disney World, across the street from Disney's Polynesian Resort. Families are VIPs here, in rooms with two queens and sofabeds, and in 1- and 2-bedroom suites sleeping five to nine people. The location is perfect for golf and for easy transport to the theme parks, water parks and Downtown Disney by monorail, bus and water taxi.
|
|
|
|
