Travel Story by: Greg and Beverly Wise
A Short Drive to Paradise
at Marco Island, Florida
To most golfers… hearing that you must hit a short drive to get to Paradise is not a welcome term.
But as golfing guests at the JW Marriott – Marco Island you will have such a treat in store for you.
A 10-minute ride in the resort’s courtesy shuttle and you will find what many golfers would consider “heaven on earth.”
Designed by Peter Jacobsen and Jim Hardy, Hammock Bay Golf and Country Club, first opened for play in 2004. In 2014 the entire course went through a $4.2 million dollar renovation with all the turf grass being replaced with Platinum TE Paspalum, creating a more vibrant playable surface for all players in this Southwest Florida environment.
This 18-hole, par 72 Championship golf course – is an Audubon Gold-Certified Sanctuary. You will find yourself looking around through this haven for bald eagles, alligators, and blue herons. But stay focused on your golf game, as this Jacobsen/Hardy design has you thinking about your ball placement for the entire 18-holes.
You will find hitting more greens might be a little easier. But there is unwelcome news for some… these greens are large… we have all heard the statement… “I’m on the dance floor… but I still can’t hear the music,” best describes the size of the green complexes.
Hammock Bay is laid out in a continuous 18-hole loop, the first six holes form wide corridors flanked by water features, trees, and sandy waste areas. You will find yourself, standing on the first tee, thinking… “this is not a coastal golf course. I cannot imagine me… missing this fairway.”
Holes 7 through 15 mark a significant departure, playing through a stunning core area of man-made sand dunes. This creation of rolling dune-scape transformed a flat, uninteresting, portion of the golf course into a magnificent stretch of golf offering distant views of the Gulf of Mexico, Marco Island, and an unparalleled landscape, not found in most Florida coastal regions. The finishing holes will keep you very engaged, as they cut through natural mangroves and lake features, creating a scenic and exciting finish to your round at Hammock Bay.
The Jacobsen/Hardy design team paid close attention to creating a sustainable course that combined beauty, challenge, and fun for golfers of all skill levels. With seven sets of tees, you can personally set your game to maximize this course and score well. From the Black tees at 6,985 yards with a USGA Rating of 74.0 to the forward most tees at 4,907 yards with a rating of 64.2 for men and 69.0 for ladies.
It has been said…
If you are still having an issue hitting these wide fairways or hitting these huge greens at Hammock Bay… it may just be time for you to make an extra stop of Hammock Bay’s sister course The Rookery. Located a few minutes to the East, The Rookery features a complete Golf Academy to sharpen your game or learn new ways to lower your score.
The Rookery is also an 18-hole championship golf course, featuring more water… tighter fairways, more forced carries, to create what would be 6-shots harder, to test your game even more. Agreed… many of us do not need that much additional challenge but playing both courses during your visit to the JW Marriott / Marco Island will complete your “Short Drive to Paradise!”
Leave your clubs at home.
Both JW Marriott courses utilize top of the line TaylorMade equipment. It has been said… “our clubs are probably better than you would bring with you from home.” So, take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to see what you are missing with the newest technology.
Hungry at the turn, or just drop over for an afternoon snack.
Both courses at the JW Marriott Marco Island Resort have food service to give you choices to eat lunch or take care of the afternoon snack. Just jump on the shuttle and in just a few minutes… you are at your table, looking over the course and enjoy your favorite golf course delights. Not to entice you or make you hungry… but the “Smash Burger and an Ice-Cold beverage” is the top selection of most golfers.
This article appeared in JW Marriott – Marco Island Beach marketing booklet that just released on November 24, 2023 – Page 38 Click here to view the Magazine
Greg and Beverly Wise
Originally from Indiana, Beverly and Greg have been in Florida for more than 40 years.
Greg spent the majority of his career with one prominent Florida Real Estate Developer handling advertising, marketing and public relations. After a period of time in the Sales Management end of Real Estate, he settled into the Lead Development portion of reaching and nurturing potential clients.
Greg is a Graphic Designer, Photographer and has been a frequent contributor to “Golf Central Magazine,” for the past 20 years. Writing golf travel, destination, and tournament features and well as special events openings.
Having played golf for more than 50 years, Greg brings an interesting view to the game of golf with a low handicap and a very smooth swing. His eye for photographs of courses, help sell his philosophy that a “picture is worth 1,000 words.” “Getting the reader in to the photo is my main goal.”
Extending his passion for golf, Greg extends his time and talents to the Marion County Junior Golf Association serving as a director for the past 6 year.
Beverly spent her career in the banking industry as Manager of banking operations and closing out her career in Special Services for high end clients in the banking network.
Her grasp of customer service and connection plays a vital role in continuing as this team effort.
Her specialties have become Golf Fashion, and player and patron photography in
tournaments on a close up scale.
After 40 years of banking, she retired and said, “I want to learn to play golf,” and she is doing just that with travel and destination stories.
Greg and Beverly are members of the Golf Writers Association of America, Golf Travel Writers Association, and the International Network of Golf.
