TPC Tampa Bay:

A Place to Play Like a Champion.

Posted by Rick Parnham

The Tampa area is no stranger to professional golf tournaments and the PGA Tour. Twenty minutes north of Tampa Airport along the Veterans Expressway you will find TPC Tampa Bay, a long time host to the Champions Tour. Veteran designer Bobby Weed added another TPC brand course to his resume when he crafted this tournament worthy challenge from the Florida pastures and wetlands north of Tampa. Chi Chi Rodriquez acted as a playing consultant on this routing which weaves through thick forests and around plentiful ponds, the course tests all the shots that your game can muster.

This is a players course as one would expect from the lineage of TPC layouts around the nation. Every shot is fraught with challenge, from tempting doglegs teasing you to bite off the corner to lengthy brutes that require all you have from the driver, to the precision needed to seek out the pins avoiding the strategic bunkering and collection areas.  Weed’s design forces the most of your game. Characterized with heavy undulations around the green complexes punishing a less than true approach with sand and grass bunkers, this layout expects your iron game to be sharp. Our shot maker’s holes highlight a few of the most notable approaches TPC Tampa Bay presents.

Course Stats:

Access: Public daily fee.

Location:

Lutz, Florida

Editor's Shot Maker's Picks: TPC Tampa Bay

Feature Holes Descriptions:

The fifth hole plays as the shortest par 4 on the front side, but don’t let that fool you into thinking you can ease your way to a birdie. The drive must negotiate water and a jut out of trees in the landing area left while the right side is guarded by heavy mounding and bunkers. A wedge into a small green must avoid pot bunkers and plenty of slopes punishing an errant shot. The 13th is another short par 4 that is all about finding the fairway and then a challenging approach awaits. Perched high and surrounded by huge fall aways, there is no room for error on your second. The par 5 14th is a dogleg left bending entirely around a pond. The second shot must negotiate a pinched area of traps setting up a precise wedge to a severely sloped green. Be sure to use the backstop ridge in the green for a front pin location. Arguably the hardest hole on the course presents a totally different second shot. A long iron or hybrid must be struck pure to find the greensite perched precariously with water and bunkers on the left and a nasty sand bunker and grass collection bunkers protecting the bailout pushed to the right.

The greater Tampa area is home to a wide range of golf experiences, with TPC Tampa Bay billed as one of the premier facilities available. Built to challenge the best players, the design lived up to those high expectations. Sculpted with tournament style green complexes this course is a great fit on the itinerary for those looking to test the irons and short game.

Contact:

TPC Tampa Bay
5300 West Lutz Lake Fern Road
Lutz, Florida
33558

866-PLAY-TPC

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