I left Central Florida early on Friday morning headed for Louisiana, where I stayed the night. My plan was to meet a friend for dinner in Baton Rouge so that meant leaving my parent’s house about 5:00 AM Eastern Time if I wanted to play a round of golf on the road. The drive to Lost Key Golf Club – in Pensacola – took longer than I thought and I made it just in time for my tee time at 11:00 AM Central Time.

Lost Key Golf Club interested me for a couple reasons. First, the course is located close to the Gulf of Mexico (on Perdido Key), in an area of Florida that I had not been to yet. Second, the course is an Arnold Palmer Signature Course – meaning that Palmer had a more hands-on approach in the course’s creation. I’ll go out of my way for a Palmer course and thought a round here would be a good way to celebrate the 950th golf course I’ve played.

I paid for my round and checked in with the starter who said I had a few minutes to get loose on the range. So thankfully, I was able to get a few swings in after the long drive. I teed off ahead of a threesome and trailed another single around the course. The pace was excellent and I played quickly which allowed me to take the scenic way back to the I-10. I took whatever road runs along the beaches and stopped to check to Flora-Bama. The beaches looked great, but Flora-Bama just looked like a tourist trap to me.

Before my round I drove around the entire course by accident, thanks to Google Maps taking me to a resident entrance instead of the resort entrance. That meant I was able to get a glimpse of many holes from the road and the sandy landscape of Perdido Key. The course works its way through the pine trees, coastal wetlands and that sandy soil. The course’s presentation is probably its most positive characteristic. Oh and in case you are curious, “Perdido” means “lost” in Spanish. Hence the name of the golf course, Lost Key.

Lost Key Golf Club is part of a resort and community, but I didn’t think the condos took much away from the design. Honestly, I was so busy trying not to lose golf balls that I didn’t notice the houses much! The layout here is very difficult and I’m not exaggerating when I say that Lost Key is one of the toughest courses I’ve played all year. I played the black tees which are 6,690 yards (par-71) with a rating of 73.9 and a whopping slope of 145. What makes the course so challenging is all the target golf it requires.

While the fairways at Lost Key are probably average width, just a thin strip of rough lines each side and the edges slope off into lost-ball trouble. Thick vegetation and water are everywhere (with many forced carries) so that means only the straightest shots actually stay in the fairways. The same thing is found around the greens. The greens are built up and shots landing around the greens will likely take a bad bounce out of play. I’d guess the elevated fairways and greens will help the grass survive in event of storm surge during hurricane season. No matter the reason though, I’m sure you’ll find Lost Key very penal.

There are five par-3’s at Lost Key and I thought they were the best holes on the course. The 11th and 13th were my favorites. The 11th is 158 yards and plays to a small volcano type green that repels iron shots. While standing on the tee it looked like I needed to land my iron on a tabletop. While teeing off I saw the Blue Angels fly by in the distance but wasn’t quick enough with the camera. The 13th is 152 yards and has a gigantic bunker, complete with stairs, that guards the green.

I paid $48 for my round and thought I got a deal. The turf here is paspalum, although I would have guessed it was bermuda. I didn’t notice much of a difference. Some sections on the tees and fairways were sanded, however I ended up with good lies. My pictures make the tees and fairways look pristine, so just know there are some blemishes being addressed. The greens were flawless and quicker than they looked. The bunkers had adequate sand.

Lost Key is a polarizing golf course and I wonder how much return play it gets – I wouldn’t think a lot. The design is ruthless and I think it will fall short of the expectations for many vacation and resort golfers looking for a casual round. At the same time, Lost Key is one of the most unique and interesting courses I’ve played in Florida. I’d highly recommend a round here as long as losing a couple sleeves of golf balls doesn’t bother you.

Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):