Royal St. Augustine Golf & Country Club Review

The holidays are behind us and we are on the road again. We are in St. Augustine, Florida and even though the temperature still isn’t as warm as we would like it to be, today we were able to play our first round of the New Year at Royal St. Augustine Golf & Country Club.

The first thing that comes to mind as I reflect on this course is, “You get what you pay for”.

Let me explain.

When we were searching for a course to play in the area, the prices at many of the courses were already reflecting the impact of the “Snowbird Migration” to Florida. It was the green fees at Royal St. Augustine Golf & Country Club that we found appealing. At $56.00 for 18 holes including a cart, we were delighted and decided this course would be great to play. Their web page is full of information on the course layout and history, so we figured what did we have to loose?

I guess you could say pictures can be deceiving.

Our initial impressions of the club house, pro shop, locker facilities and practice area were great. The pro shop was stocked with everything we would need and Debbie was wonderful. Once she found out we had never played the course before, she went the extra mile to ensure we knew where the first tee was located and shared a few inside tips regarding the course.

Even though we didn’t have a tee time, we had no problem getting on the course. We loaded up the golf cart and headed out to the first tee.

That’s where we first noticed things weren’t as they appeared on their web page.

Royal St. Augustine Golf and Country Club is a challenging 6529-yard, 18 hole layout that meanders through housing areas, lush foliage and wetlands. It is a very narrow track with numerous water hazards. Many of the fairways are moguled, and the sandy waste areas aren’t that forgiving.

We quickly recognized not having any course familiarity was a disadvantage. It wasn’t lost on us that knowing the track layout is a must, and something we did not have in our bag. But the many direction signs from hole to hole were very helpful.

Even though the bunkers are well placed, we found the conditions around the edges of the bunkers to need a lot of tending. We couldn’t help but notice that while the fairway grass was dormant for the winter, it was extremely short, pitted in many areas and made the ground hard to play.

The rough was rough. Exposed tree roots, dry gravel and rocks ran along the fringes of the course.

It felt like water was in play on almost every single hole. We had to be sure to think about our shots and playing strategy. I am pretty sure I lost two sleeves of balls during our round – mostly in the water.

Although I would play this course again, I would try other courses in the area first.

Based on our score card rating – I would rate Royal St. Augustine Golf & Country Club a Bogey.

However, with just some additional course maintenance, it would have easily scored a Par, and most possibly a Birdie due to the great layout.

Fairways and Greens – We are 18 Holes and Counting

Written By Kathy Festa

COURSE REVIEW SCORE CARD

Course: Royal St. Augustine Golf & Country Club

Type: Public Course

Date Played: 04 January 2024

HOLE	PAR	SCORE	COMMENTS
1 – Tee Time Availability	4	3	We walked on with no wait.
2 – Cost of Green Fees	4	4	One of the lower fees in the area.
3 – Condition of Tee Boxes	4	5	Many were dry and had divots that needed to be filled.
4 – Condition of Fairways	5	6	Dry and dormant. Cut very short. Exposed tree roots and gravel in many areas.
5 – Condition of Greens	4	5	Dry and hard, with many divots.
6 – Length of Course	5	5	Back tees distance is 6529 yards and forward tees 4569 yards with a par of 71.
7 – Hazards	4	5	Lots of water hazards and sandy waste areas made it challenging, but lacked maintenance.
8 – Starter/Marshal	3	2	Debbie, the starter was friendly and knowledgeable of course.
9 – High Handicap Friendly	3	3	There are 4 sets of tees to choose from.
OUT	36	38
10 – Practice Area	5	5	There is a driving range, pitching/chipping area and putting green.
11 – Locker Rooms	3	3	Bathrooms with shower facilities.
12 – Pro Shop	4	4	Standard golf essentials.
13 – Location	4	4	Easy to locate, easy access from main highway.
14 – Rental Equipment	4	4	Rentals available.
15 – Restaurant/Food Cart	4	4	The club house has a snack bar with full liquor menu with beer and wine.
16 – Club House	4	4	Plenty of space to relax after a round.
17 – Parking	3	3	Spacious parking.
18 – Customer Service	5	4	Very friendly and helpful.
IN	36	35
TOTAL	72	73	PLAYER: Kathy F.   ATTESTED BY: Marc F.