There are more than 17,000 golf courses in this country, and over a thousand in Florida alone (the most in the country), but there are none quite like the new Match Course at PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, FL.
PGA National is steeped in golf history, and has always been one of the nation’s highest-profile and largest golf resorts, with five courses (now five and a half) headlined by the Champion Course, which annually hosts the PGA Tour (the long running Honda Classic just changed sponsors and it is now the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches, which starts next Thursday, February 28, 2023). Along with vaunted Pinehurst, North Carolina and Destination Kohler (aka Whistling Straits), Wisconsin, it is one of just three U.S. resorts that have hosted both a Major and the Ryder Cup.
In the case of PGA National, that was the 1983 Ryder Cup and the 1987 PGA Championship—plus the Senior PGA Championship a whopping 19 times. The Champion Course opened as a George and Tom Fazio design in 1981, but was extensively redone by Jack Nicklaus, who is most associated with the layout and its infamous “Bear Trap,” a trio of holes known as one of the toughest stretches in American golf.
The other traditional eighteens at the resort include the Palmer, the Fazio, and off-site hidden gem the Estate. There used to be a fifth course here called the Squire, but it was reimagined in 2021 as two new layouts, The Match Course and the Staple, both by innovative designer Andy Staples. The changes were part of a massive resort-wide overhaul that took advantage of COVID to shut the resort for nearly a year. The $100-million-plus upgrade touched everything from guest rooms to dining to the spa, fitness, tennis center and pools.
The Match Course is a creative new twist on the current red-hot trend towards shorter courses and non-traditional routings. It has 18-holes, but the scorecard has no pars and no course rating. Instead of tee boxes, there is one vast teeing area on each hole with the back and front marked, in many cases well over 100-yards long, and the player who won the previous hole gets to decide where to tee it up. As a result, there are what would be par-4s that can play as long 3s, par-3s that can play long or very short, and a little bit of everything in between. At over 5,800 yards, it’s short for eighteen, but there are still “par-4s” here that can stretch over 430 yards.
It is designed solely for match play, not stroke play, and anyone out of contention is expected to pick up. As a result, the full eighteen can be played in under three hours (the stated maximum). The course slogan is “Because Nobody Cares What You Shot!” Even if you do, you can’t enter your round for handicap purposes because it’s not rated, so don’t waste everyone’s time trying to keep score.
I got to play the Match recently, and as promised, it was a ton of fun, and also a great way to work on your shot making and course management. If you are playing a match with any degree of seriousness, there is a lot of strategy in choosing tee locations, what to hit off each tee, and whether or not to bring forced carries or layups into play. The green complexes are inspired by classic Golden Age architects such as Raynor, McDonald and Ross, and many of the greens are slightly elevated in front with big drop offs in back, so even though it runs on the shorter side, the worst misses are long.
The Staple is a 9-hole par-3 course, in keeping with the trendy style that has recently popped up at just about every top golf resort in the country, more a “short course” than a traditional par-3 “executive course,” with all the holes 60-130 yards, requiring just a couple of clubs. Unlike all the other courses here—and almost all of Florida—it’s walking only, and nice walk at that. Golf at PGA National is definitely not cheap, especially the Champion Course, at which greens fees can be in excess of $400 (and you have to stay here to play it, with forecaddies offered and sometimes required), so this is a great way to tune up your short game before a big eighteen, in order to play your best. Both the Staples and Match have similar greens and the same superintendent, so they roll fast and true with significant undulations.
Beyond the new courses there have been some significant changes across the rest of the resort. My favorite addition is the new Sushi by Bou, part of a small chain and a sort of omakase-style spot that is both delicious and a bargain, especially by inflated South Florida resort standards. I say omakase-style because it’s not the traditional “chef’s choice” that defines the genre, usually changing a lot daily based on fresh catch, but rather a set menu (though it does change, only less often and less dramatically) presented the same way as classic omakase, only at the 12-seat sushi bar and with every course made to order in front of you. The basic 12-course meal is a steal at $60, and not just compared to the rest of the resort, but for pretty much anywhere. It requires reservations and often sells out, so I highly recommend booking in advance if you visit.
Sushi by Bou just opened here in December 2023. The resort’s homegrown offerings include the Butcher’s Club, a fancy steakhouse by Florida celebrity chef Jeremy Ford, a James Beard Award nominee and the winner of season 13 of television’s Top Chef. It is an upgrade from the previous steakhouse concept here, offers both Prime US beef and wagyu options for most cuts, and as a signature does an individual Beef Wellington using a filet mignon, an unusual spin. That has been open for about two years since the renovation, as has Honeybelle, which replaced the less interesting Palm Terrace. This one is also helmed by a repeat James Beard nominee, Lindsay Autry, and features a Southern spin on classic dishes and a woodburning oven for Neapolitan pizzas, with a great value happy hour daily and weekend brunch.
Guest rooms were renovated, especially noticeable in the new bathrooms, and the resort got a brand new and quite nice fitness center in the main building, more convenient than the existing one at the sports and racquet club. In addition to the new equipment, there’s a slate of daily complimentary group classes. The main pool area was refreshed, and there’s a new supervised children’s camp, Banyan Buddies, where guests can enroll kids while playing golf or for Friday date nights. In the family-friendly vein, they added a new hands-on Beekeeping Experience, using the on-site hives and PGA’s 250,000 honeybees. The tennis center added six pickle ball courts (12 in all) and expanded to 19 har-tru tennis courts. The spa was redesigned by tennis legend turned designer Venus Williams and her V Starr firm, and is now surrounded by a sort of hidden garden-style outdoor relaxation area with hammocks strung between palm trees and Adirondack chairs on the sand, a great place to take your Zoom calls from while working remotely. In addition to the 360 guest rooms there are now 21 freestanding cottages, designed by Serena Williams’s firm Serena & Lily, with a coastal beach aesthetic.
One final upgrade of note is a small one, but near and dear to my heart as I really enjoy seeing resorts reduce the horrific waste from single-use plastics. PGA National installed filtered water bottle refill stations like those found in airports throughout the resort, so bring your water bottle if you go.