I had a round with a friend scheduled for later in the day down in Lake Wales. That left the morning open and I figured I may as well squeeze in a morning round somewhere if I was headed down that way. I’ve used this year to re-visit courses that I’ve played before and Providence Golf Club fell into that category.

I golfed at Providence back when I lived in Florida (over 10 years ago) and the only thing I remembered about the course is that I liked it. I’m happy to say that after another round here my opinion hasn’t changed. The course is still very good – and in multiple ways!

I booked an early morning tee time (7:10am) and after a white-knuckle drive through the fog I made it to the course, just as the fog was starting to lift. Thankfully, the fog burned off halfway through the front nine and it turned out to be a beautiful morning.

Providence is about 45 minutes from Orlando (well worth the drive IMO), but probably only 25 minutes from Disney. The course and development feel like they are out in the boonies – and I suppose that is partially true.

While the design goes through the development, there is enough of a natural setting to keep things interesting. The front nine has more homes around compared to the back nine, which has a wetlands feel. Like many Florida courses you’ll see plenty of different birds and a few other creatures. I even saw a couple alligators so be careful if looking for your golf ball!

Providence is a Mike Dasher design and it opened in 2007. Dasher has done some other work in the Southeast and actually worked for Arthur Hills before starting his own design company. Thankfully, Dasher seems to have taken a more playable approach compared to the typical Hills course – and that playability is a reason you’ll want to golf here.

I played the blue tees which are 71.1/123/6430. There are a couple holes that can bite, but Providence has a friendly-to-play vibe to it. This would be a good first course for a golf trip! Driving areas are wide, greens are large and there is not a bunch of contour to the greens. You won’t hear me say this often, but I think the greens could have a bit more contour. Not surprisingly, I overread most of my putts.

However, if you hit some ugly shots water can come into play. The 6th is one of the water holes and one where you’ll need to play cautiously. The fairway angles to the right across water and a couple gigantic bunkers sit off to the left of the perched up fairway. It is the toughest driving hole on the course.

The back is enjoyable and is highlighted by the par-3 12th and the par-4 16th. The 12th (165 yards from the blue tees) sits in a corner of the property with the green surround by water on three sides. The 16th is closer to where homes are being built, but it is another good driving hole.

The conditions were great and well worth my $60 green fee. The rough was dormant but the fairways were still green. The fairways look painted, but the proshop told me their green color was because of extra fertilizer. The greens were smooth, just on the slow side.

I think Providence is a very good course – it is affordable for the local golfer while still worthy of getting mixed in on an Orlando golf trip. If I lived in the area then I’d play here regularly. Overall, I give Providence two thumbs up!

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