By Alan M. Watson, President, GOLF+ PCB
October brings us two to three months of the best golf weather we will see all year in Florida. Sure, it’s raining as I’m writing this, but once the rain is gone, the temperatures cool down, and the summer heat is in the past. From now until the cold winds of January arrive, we can play golf without perspiring as much as we did in July. You won’t wear out gloves as fast, your grips won’t feel as slick, and you won’t have to spend as much money with the cart girl buying drinks just to keep from completely dehydrating. Yes, golf weather is upon us in Florida.
So let’s maximize this potential by getting in some good rounds and maybe even some range sessions so we can actually improve this fall and early winter. You can actually hit a few more balls to loosen up because it won’t wear you out as badly as it did during the hot months, which means you’ll be better prepared on the course. You could even show up an hour early for your round and chip and putt. I wager twenty minutes of short game practice before a round will take two to three strokes off that day. I’m serious. You can have a better round just by getting some putts in to get the speed of the green and hitting some chips to test the grass and get some basic distance practice in. If a course has a practice bunker, that’s great as well, so you can get a feel for the sand and work on some splash outs. Very few golfers ever practice sand play, and it shows!
Another great thing about the cooler temperatures is that you won’t be as worn down towards the end of your round, which means a fresher you will hit better shots and your mechanics won’t suffer as much. I’m sure you have found, like I have, that on about hole sixteen or seventeen you start to dip your shoulder in your swing, or you just don’t seem to have the same power you did earlier. It was the heat that was slowly draining you, but since that won’t be the case you can still hit more full shots at the correct distance later in the round. Mental focus will be better also throughout the round as you aren’t as busy wiping sweat out of your eyes and wondering where the cart girl is with your next Gatorade.
As golf is a supply and demand industry, many golf course rates tend to go down a little bit this time of year as well, which is another bonus if the cost of golf is a concern for you. Many courses will offer cheaper overall rates, discounted afternoon times, and some will even offer packages to locals because there are fewer tourists around. According to Cody Ainsworth, General Manager, Legacy Golf Club in PCB is offering a locals rate right now of $75 per round. He said you can also take advantage of their Winter Virtual Punchcard with gets you 12 rounds for about $65 per round when you pre-pay. And the best part is that the punchcard rounds are shareable and they come with a bag of range balls to warm up with. You even have up to a year to use those discounted rounds. I also spoke with Gavon Byrd, who is the top man at Bay Point Golf Club, and he told me about the Local Player Pass for Q4 that gets your rounds down to $75 each with a one-time $75 registration fee. This is a great deal when you consider that the top rate at Bay Point is usually around $130 per round. I also saw an online flyer from Sunny Hills, which is about 45 minutes from the beach, and they are offering some special rates right now. So wherever you play this time of year, you should be able to save a little money.
The fall is also a great time to head over to GOLF+, or your favorite golf shop, and get your grips replaced, lofts and lies checked, and any other repairs or fixing services you might need. Shops are slower in October and November than any other time of year, so they should have more time and availability to get to your clubs quickly.
Let’s enjoy this cooler weather, work on our games, work on our equipment, and just enjoy some time outdoors playing the sport we love. I encourage you to make the fall of 2026 the best ever for you and your golf game.
Fairways and Greens
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