Bluewater Bay 
Niceville, FL 



Reviewed: 1997
Bluewater Bay
By Ian Thompson


If you're looking for a place to retire, take a vacation or simply play a round of golf at, Bluewater Bay in Niceville, Fla. is hard to beat. The beautifully conditioned 36 holes of golf were my main draw to this self-contained community near Destin.

The Bay, Lake, Marsh and Magnolia nines all offer a different look to the golfer. The original course, the Bay and Lake nines, opened in 1981. This was designed by Tom Fazio, with Jerry Pate as a consultant. For the subsequent nines both Fazio and Pate did one each. Fazio designed the Marsh nine which opened in 1986, and Pate the Magnolia nine, which debuted in 1992.

Director of Golf David Trimm has seen it all, as has superintendent Tom Hanks, both having been involved with the resort since before the original 18 opened. Trimm lives on the property and joined me for 18 of the 36 holes.

Bluewater Bay has a European feel to it, in many ways due to it's German ownership. It is a popular destination for Europeans to visit, with Willi Hofmann, two-time Masters winner Bernhard Langer's golf coach, conducting his golf schools here every year.

The Emerald Coast International Invitational began in 1981 and has featured players from as many as 21 different countries in its field. However, when Bluewater Bay was sold by it's original owners, Europco Management Company of America, in 1991 the tournament spread out to also be played at neighboring clubs such as Sandestin Resort, Emerald Bay and Indian Bayou. It is the largest invitational in Northwest Florida and attracts a lot of foreign as well as American competitors.

"I've gotten to know people from all over America and Europe through my affiliation with Bluewater Bay," Trimm said.

GolfWeek ranked the facility the number 1 course in the Panhandle from 1983 to 1994, and the latest award to be garnered by the facility is Golf for Women Magazine's 1995/96 awarding it a place in their Top 100 listing of golf friendly courses for women.

Numerous accommodation opportunities are available. From golf villas to townhouse units to patio homes to waterfront condominiums, Bluewater Bay has a place to fit your taste and budget, and of course, plenty of golf. Now, heading to the courses. It's always difficult just to feature a few holes from each side, but here are my choices.


Bay

Threading it's way between tree-lined fairways and residential areas, the Bay nine is part of the original 18. Most of the holes on this nine dictate that you need to be able to shape the ball both right to left and left to right. One of the few straight holes is the lengthy par 4 third. Because of it's directness this hole seems narrower than it really is, but it needs a long, straight drive because the second is played to a protected green, that is particularly well bunkered in the front. Thus the shorter the iron you can hit in, the easier it becomes to hit the green.

Number six is definitely the feature hole of this nine. Not a long par 4 at just 370 yards from the back tees, it requires an accurate iron off the tee to leave a short second shot. The tee shot must avoid the water and bunker on the left side, and then you face a memorable shot on this dogleg to the right over some wetlands to a green that sits hard by Choctawhatchee Bay. Thus the exposed green will always be buffeted by wind coming in off the water.

The final hole is an extremely tough finish to this nine. Over 400 yards and hitting out through a tunnel of trees, a par is a very good score here. Anything left is dead as a lake protects this side, but missing it right is no better as the out of bounds sits very close to the fairway here. There's no alternative but to produce your best drive when you really need it on this demanding finisher. The second shot is a little easier than your drive, but only just as it must be played over wetlands to a green that has a deep bunker guarding it's front. Trimm rated this as one of the best two holes on the facility.


Lake

Stepping across to the Lake nine and Trimm's other best hole, number three on this side, which marks a run of superb holes. The left side of this hole again has water guarding it so you better not hook your tee shot, with the hazard changing course near the green and flowing in front of the putting surface. A bunker crosses the landing area, but is a sufficient distance from the tee so as to be well out of reach for most players. A good tee shot will leave a second shot to a green that's set in the side of a gentle hill, below a grove of trees. A beautiful setting to be sure, and one so natural that it looks like it's always been there. Four bunkers around the contoured green add to it's difficulty.

Following on is the downhill par 3 fourth. The tee is set up on a plateau, letting you look down on the shot over water and sand before you. A well hit ball is a must here.

The fifth continues the trend of testing holes. A long par 4 with water again coming into play on the left side, two good shots will be needed to negotiate it. Trimm told me the relatively small green was originally three times as small, but was enlarged for better playability. A good move indeed.

The sixth is the longest par 4 on any of the nines at 465 yards. A hole where a fade off the tee is definitely beneficial as it shapes left to right through the trees. The tee shot goes gently downhill, but then your long second must be played back up the gradual incline to a green with bunkers left and right.


Marsh

Again the third hole is the first I'll highlight on this nine. This is a tough par 4 that will always play into the prevailing wind off the bay. It's one of the few holes that doesn't have any bunkers on it, but at 435 yards and tree-lined it doesn't need any.

It leads into the most spectacular hole on the facility, and the shortest. Played directly toward Choctawhatchee Bay, the 125-yard fourth is a beautiful sight to behold. The shot is all carry over wetlands to large putting surface, with the bay glistening in the background. It's such an idyllic scene, you almost wouldn't mind hitting the ball in the wetlands, just to have seen the hole. You leave the hole via a wooden bridge that winds it's way through the wetlands to the next tee.

The seventh is another tough par 4 played toward the bay. A bunker runs down the entire left side of this 420 yard test, that doglegs slightly to the left.


Magnolia

The newest, and least commercially developed, is the Magnolia nine. It's certainly a little less demanding than it's sister nines, which, according to Trimm, was by design. He likens the way a lot of the greens fall off to the sides into swales to Pinehurst #2 in North Carolina. Talking of the greens, these bermuda putting surfaces rolled beautifully, especially when you consider the large amount of rounds played at the resort.

Both par threes on this nine will test your game. The second is a solid hole of 187 yards played to a large green, with a bunker short left and a fall-off to the right. However, this pales somewhat in comparison to the eighth hole, the longest par 3 on any nine at 226 yards. The design of the hole is not in itself tricky, it's just the sheer length of the hole that makes it so tough.

Back tracking to the par fours five and six that offer different challenges. The fifth is the hardest par 4 on the nine, with out of bounds left and trees right, you need a straight drive here. The green sits above the fairway, kind of like a table top, and thus is hard to hit, especially as you'll be hitting a mid-iron approach. Also a hazard crosses the fairway 50 yards short of the green, so you can't run the ball into this hole, and a shot pulled left will find the wetlands if the bunker wrapping around the green doesn't stop it.

Onto the sixth and the easiest hole of the nine. A good drive, with some wind assistance, could come close to driving this short par 4. The green is wide open in front so a straight ball could run right up onto the putting surface, but bunkers left and right await a misdirected drive or, more likely, second.

Trimm remembers the opening day for this nine when Pate was able to drive this green downwind, but couldn't reach the par 3 eighth into the same strong wind.


So ended my full and very enjoyable day at Bluewater Bay. If I'd had any energy left a full scale practice facility was also available across the road from the clubhouse, but I was just content to watch some others hone their games as the sun started to set.