On Thursday I was looking to stay local to golf. As I’ve mentioned before my dad likes to ride in the cart while I golf, so Thursday was the perfect chance for us to head over to one of the local courses!
Eventually, I’d like to play every hole at The Villages, just to say I’ve done it! However, Havana Country Club interested me because I’ve driven past the course countless times. And, every time I do I comment about one of the holes along the main road with trees in a large bunker. That hole has had me a bit curious for over five years now!
We got over to the course, checked in and tried to find the threesome I was going to join. That turned out to be more challenging than I would have guessed! I took the wrong tunnel and ended up on one of the many cart paths, headed in the wrong direction. We figured it out though and made it to the 1st tee!
Like all the championship courses at The Villages, there are 27 holes at Havana. I only played 18 and we started out on the Kilimanjaro nine. The group that I was paired with was only playing nine holes so we ended up playing the Kenya nine on our own. While I’ll have to come back and play the Hemingway nine, I was happy that Kilimanjaro was in my rotation!
The Kilimanjaro nine was my favorite at Havana, mainly because it had that crazy-looking bunker I mentioned earlier! The 7th is a 392 yard par-4 that runs along 466A, one of the east/west roads in The Villages. The fairway is generous and slopes from right to left, towards a water hazard on the left. A large bunker with some palm trees in it rings around much of the green. The hole offers a pretty sharp look!
Kilimanjaro’s 8th and 9th holes are some other solid holes at Havana. The 8th is a shorter par-4 that climbs a hill and really makes you commit to the approach, as the green cannot be seen from the fairway! Once you reach the green you are treated to some nice views of the massive community.
The 9th on Kilimanjaro is a fun par-3! It is one of those holes where you sort of want to stand around by the clubhouse after you play it to see what the groups behind you do. It maxes out at 159 yards and plays about a club downhill to a large green. The green is guarded by water short and right some large bunkers to the left. It is another shot that made me think! I ended up hitting the green but left myself a treacherous lag putt.
There isn’t much to highlight about the Kenya nine. It is more along the lines of the average course that you’ll find in The Villages, fairly flat and some repetitive holes.
For reference I played the gold tees, which are 70.1/125/6552 for the Kilimanjaro/Kenya combo. Havana features many of the same staples of the other courses in The Villages – wide landing areas and sculptured greens. Personally, I wish there was a bit more variety between the courses!
Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the conditioning at Havana. For $75 I wouldn’t have minded saving my play here until one summer when things are more lush with the bermuda popping! Normally the courses here feature solid conditions so this seems to be an exception to that norm.
The fairways had a very thin layer of ryegrass and it was almost as if not enough overseed was used! Only the most precise strikes ended up a normal distance and the course was struggling to keep the fairways full. The greens were fine with the occasional (mostly cosmetic) crusty spot. The sand was soft and fluffy and our group plugged multiple shots in the bunkers.
Like most of the courses in The Villages, Havana is more about who you spend the day with rather than a super-interesting design! That said though, I really enjoyed the stretch from the 7th to the 9th on Kilimanjaro and it was the highlight of the round.
Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):