While I was visiting my parents this summer I played a handful of courses in The Villages. One of the courses I played during that June visit was the Okeechobee Executive Course. One day after work I golfed here on a stormy evening. All the clouds made my pictures turn out terrible so since I planned on playing the Escambia Course today – Okeechobee’s sister course, I thought another loop around Okeechobee was a good idea. Golf in The Villages on Christmas is free so it worked out well for another round here with updated pictures.
My dad joined me to golf and we got started early in the morning. The Okeechobee Course was the first of three executive courses we played on Christmas morning. I think the free golf saved us about $55, so that was a nice bonus. When I was here in June the starter didn’t charge me for my round either, so I’ve played the course twice for free. I’ll take it!
Anyway, my thoughts after two rounds at Okeechobee are very similar. The course has a good collection of holes, is quite spread out, but the setting lacks some – even when compared to the many executive courses around here that are lined by homes. I walked my round in June and it was a hike. There are big gaps between holes and with thunderstorms threatening that day I was a little worried how I’d get back to the car if a storm approached. However, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky today and we rode in a cart, which made the routing more enjoyable.
Okeechobee is tucked between a row of houses and a hillside. Transmission lines also run though the area and while the power lines aren’t in play, they are visible on every hole. That is why I said earlier that the setting is just so-so. Compared to most of the courses in The Villages, the land has some up and down which results in the decent holes.
The 1st and 3rd are the most noticeable downhill holes. The 1st is 140 yards and drops about a club to the green. The 3rd also drops a club, however it is 205 yards. The 5th and the 9th are my favorite holes. Both holes are 168 yards and require you to carry the ball over water from the back tees. From the forward tees the angle into those greens is better for the higher handicaps. Like many executive courses in The Villages, Okeechobee is all par-3’s.
Overall, I think Okeechobee is a decent little course. Conditions were good, just dewy since we started early in the morning. The course is more enjoyable than it looks in the pics, however I wouldn’t put it too high on your list of nine-hole courses in The Villages to check out. We played Escambia next and I preferred that course.
Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):