I grabbed something to eat at Publix and headed over to The Deltona Club, which isn’t more than 10 minutes from Victoria Hills. It is hard for me to make a trip to Florida without a sandwich from a Publix deli!
The proshop told me I could head to the 1st tee and I fell in line behind a twosome. That twosome let me through before they even finished the 1st hole and it was smooth sailing for me, until the back nine. I played through another twosome on the 11th hole and then caught the morning groups. Really, the pace couldn’t have been better! It only took me 3 hours to play, thanks to the chilly weather.
For whatever reason, The Deltona Club is a Central Florida course that you don’t seem to hear much about! I booked my round here mainly because it was convenient to Victoria Hills. But, somehow I stumbled across a brilliant course – one of those hidden gems!
The Deltona Club was originally designed by David Wallace in the 1960’s and was known as Deltona Hills Golf and Country Club for many years. Then, in 2008, the course re-opened after a renovation by Bobby Weed! Weed has done plenty of work in Florida, including some great stuff at Brooksville Country Club, where I played last year.
I’m not sure exactly what Weed did, but I know he spruced up the course with some awesome-looking bunkering! You can scroll through my pictures or pull up the satellite image of the course to see what I mean!
Admittedly, I’m not a huge fan of bunkers. But, the bunkering at The Deltona Club has more of a waste area look to it! The sand doesn’t come into play nearly as much as you’d expect, as many of the large bunkers are around the tees or set back from play. I only ended up in two greenside bunkers and one fairway bunker on an average ball striking day.
In fact, most of the course isn’t too difficult, except for the length. And, of course, the fact that the game is golf and you can have an off day! I played the “II” tees which are 6,517 yards, however the course can stretch to almost 7,000 yards! The rating and slope from the II tees are 71.1 and 121, respectively. Driving areas are generous and there isn’t any water in play. The biggest challenge will probably be putting on the greens.
The course’s setting isn’t terribly memorable, as it is surrounded by older homes. However, the homes are hidden behind trees and set back from play on the perimeter holes.
Besides the eye-popping bunkering The Deltona Club lies on hilly terrain, which is the other element that makes the course unique! Throughout the round you get a nice mix of uphill and downhill holes. Not surprisingly, I found the holes with some elevation change to be the most interesting.
On the front nine the par-5 7th climbs a hill and my third shot from 90 yards was tricky because of the upslope! If you can drive it in the fairway then the 7th is a definite birdie hole, as it is only 441 yards. The par-3 14th is the hole on the back nine which showcases the elevation change the best. It is 218 yards and plays at least a club downhill to a green guarded by bunkers. I’d call the 14th the course’s signature hole!
For $25 the conditions were outstanding! The fairways had good coverage and the ball sat up, with a little cushion beneath it. You’ll get some thin lies, but that is the nature of Florida golf this time of year. The greens were smooth and rolled with enough pace that I had to be defensive. The sand was good and I needed to swing hard to blast it out.
The Deltona Club was the surprise of the trip and a course I don’t think you’d regret playing. If you prefer the premium courses closer to Orlando I completely understand, but if you enjoy a good value then come check out The Deltona Club!
Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):
