Released on = June 24, 2007, 11:52 am

Press Release Author = GolfPublisher Syndications

Industry = Media

Press Release Summary = Southern Dunes in Florida a lesson in golf course design.
Course reviews at WorldGolf.com

Press Release Body = By Tim McDonald,
National Golf Editor,
Golf Publisher Syndications

An easy drive from Orlando, Southern Dunes Golf and Country Club in Haines City is
like finding the Mona Lisa in a trailer park: It\'s a strikingly imaginative Steve
Smyers-designed golf course that ranks among the best in Florida golf.

HAINES CITY, Fla. - The incongruity is striking. Smack-dab in the middle of yet
another cookie-cutter Florida development lies one of the most imaginative golf
courses in the Sunshine State, if not the country.

Playing Southern Dunes Golf and Country Club is like coming upon the Mona Lisa in a
trailer park. Try to ignore the identical screened porches and swimming pools yards
from the course; they\'ll only suck the authenticity out of this work of art.

In contrast to the Modern Bland surroundings, the course terrain is classic
circa-\'50s Central Florida, and Steve Smyers\' design reflects the influence of the
legendary golf architects of the 1920s and \'30s, who emphasized risk/reward
strategy, creative shot-making and bold visual flourishes

Take the eye-catching bunkers - all 180 of them. Filled with red sand, they come in
every imaginable shape and size yet never seem overstated. Smyers didn\'t just put
them off to the side, or at the corners of doglegs; they\'re an integral part of the
course\'s feel.

\"I\'ve seen a lot of courses built within the last 10 years that probably have more
square footage of bunkers . but they are off to the side, and don\'t have the visual
or psychological appeal that our bunkers have,\" Smyers told course-architecture Web
site GolfClubAtlas.com.

\"Everything has to be in context with one another, the shapes and patterns all have
to relate to the topography and the vegetation and the wind and the sunlight.\"

Of course, not everyone appreciates all this high art. I mean, a bunker is a bunker.

\"We had a guy this morning quit after four holes,\" Southern Dunes cart attendant
Kyle Crosthwaite said. \"He was really frustrated. Didn\'t even wait for his ride. He
just walked off.\"

Southern Dunes has plenty of bunkers, but you\'ll notice no water. Smyers is a big
fan of the recovery shot, so you will find no man-made lakes or ponds to
artificially pretty up the layout.

There are tall grasses and ornamentals marking the borders of fairways and growing
out of many of the bunkers, though, which give the course a bit of a Scottish-golf
feel


For more details visit -
http://www.worldgolf.com/course-reviews/florida/inside-southern-dunes-in-central-florida-great-design-5421.htm

June 22, 2007
Any opinions expressed above are those of the writer and do not necessarily
represent the views of the management.

Author/Company
GolfPublisher Syndications
Email - golfpublisherusa@gmail.com
Website - http://www.worldgolf.com

Web Site = http://www.worldgolf.com

Contact Details = Email - golfpublisherusa@gmail.com