Havana
 

Played Kenya 1/25/23, course is in sorry shape. Teeboxes, fairways and greens have little or no grass. It seems like it needs to be rebuilt, again.

No, it's Winter. The grass is dormant. It'll start growing again in a few weeks...

The greens on Palmetto have very little grass. Divots became mud dimples

Havana is horrendous condition and doesn't have anything to do with "dormant grass", it has to do with poor maintenance practices & not caring.

I played it today. I won't play it again. I wouldn't pay $20 to play it. It's a dump and embarrassment that it's called a "Championship Course".

The people who maintain these courses have no pride in their work. Havana is a joke.

So "pride" will make dormant grass grow in the winter? Interesting...

I last played it in October. It was in good shape...

But then again, it wasn't in January...

Golf course
 

Don’t think winter has anything to do with weeds all over the greens go look at Glenview and see how good it is.How can one course be so good and another so so bad I don’t get it.

Yeah and eggs were $1.99/Dozen. Hardly relevant.

If all the courses are in bad shape, then it is the time of year.

So, how the other courses?

Here’s an interesting article on overseeing
A guide to overseeding: What, where and why
Keep in mind, if they do overseed, it costs money, which means greens fees will increase.

This is the best solution:
“In searching for a long-term solution, the USGA is helping to fund research at five different universities - California-Riverside, Texas A&M, Florida, Georgia and Kansas State - to create a warm-season grass that stays green year-round and still handles cooler temperatures. “It would be so great to have a grass stay green and grow year round," Whitlark said.“

Havana is in awful shape. Greens are bad as are many fairways. They had the same issue two or three years ago and actually closed one nine. But Kilamanjaro number 5 green is excellent. They rebuilt that green about 4-5 years ago with a new grass(tif-eagle) and it serves as proof that the course can be excellent.

If dormant grass is the issue then why are the courses up North in so much better shape then the ones is the South excluding Southern Oaks which seems to be in pretty good shape. Dormant grass is NOT the issue!

Palmer, Mallory, Glenview, Tierra are fine, Havana is atrocious. It's not the dormancy of the Bermuda grass creating the issues at Havana. I believe it's simply bad management practices and not caring.

I may be wrong, but I thought Havana re-built their Greens with TifEagle Bermuda a few years ago? TifEagle should easily withstand the weather we've had in Florida this year.

Relevant to those who said "it needs to be rebuilt again..."

Havana did not re-built the greens with Tif-Eagle.

Kilimanjaro # 5 was rebuilt. Tif -eagle. Compare to the other 26 holes on Havana. Grass does make a difference. But Havana as an entirety is the worst condition Championship course.

I recall the EXACT conversation last year. Here is the closed thread, started 2/6/22 - almost a year

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...havana-328952/

I just read most of that thread. Interesting how it always seems to be Havana having problems.

Havana
 

Played Kenya to Hemingway yesterday (1/30). It’s not in great shape but it wasn’t that bad. I’ve definitely played courses in worst shape in central Florida. There were some invasive grass on the greens. Tee boxes had grass. Fairways were ok.

J. Mintzer is absolutely correct . It has nothing to do with dormant grass, it has to do with the total ignorance of caring for a golf course. Where is the accountability? People should be getting fired. As for the course being just OK, I want more for my $55.00 greens fee plus using my own cart. We as a group have tried to avoid Havana one of the guys does not include iy on our list of courses.

No reason Villages courses have to be this bad in "winter", we played Falcons Fire & Eagle Creek in Orlando last week, both in excellent "green" condition and less costly than Villages (Falcons much less). Guess the grass in Orlando don't sleep. Avoid Villages courses in winter, far too pricey for what you get.

Weather shouldn't be the excuse. Some courses are in very good shape, others not so good. All the same weather.

Have been here since 2007, played every course in The Villages ( Champion or Executive) , and they as a hole as good or better that anything around outside The Villages

Played 18 holes at Baseline Golf Course this past Sunday 2/5/23. $51 including a cart, beautifully manicured course. Nicer than anything I have seen in the Villages (very sorry to say).

Agree, you would think that the teaching golf pros would advertise lessons from hitting off of HARD PAN in the winter and in the summer give lessons from hitting from the deep rough.

Not so long ago, the villages planted this grass know as winter grass. It was real grass, grew in the wintertime and was a pleasure to play on. Agree that it has it's shortcomings particularly in the spring. Would hope TV expedites the re sodding process. Riley at Palmer was done summer 2022 and it was good after the 1st freeze. Glenview is great too.

Those grasses have been developed. Riley has new grass. Played it after 1st freeze and it was great. Lets hope that TV speeds up the transition to this better grass.

Such experts amazing

Not a real course. :icon_bored:

I hear the villages own employees maintain Lopez and Glenview. They contract put the other courses. Word is,they cut back on money paid to them, thus less maintenance.
You can see the results. Terrible.

I posted on 1-29 how bad Havana was. On 3-1 we played and the fairways and greens were greatly improved. I would play it again. Our group of over 16 players were all happily surprised.

I asked an employee at Glenview course if there was anything to their employment vs other courses. He said it is no different that the other championship courses. He praised his greens keeper. He added that the guy should be made is charge of all courses because he is that good.

If you noticed, Glenview's ponds have water in most of them, unlike the courses farther South that are dry as a bone.

I understand that Lopez & Glenview operated under a different water usage permit and are allowed to use significantly more water than the other courses.

Not trying to demean the conditions or superintendent at Glenview The course's condition is head and shoulders above any other course I've played the last month or w.

Fake News.

Payed Belle Glade yesterday, other than Southern Oaks, the most southern course, and it was NOT dry as a bone, fairways were great. Ponds had plenty of water.

There are some ponds btw 44 and 466A that are low, but there’s plenty in others.