To the Editor:
I can remember watching TV commercials of this place called “The Villages” and wondering, and yes, dreaming of, playing golf when I wanted to in retirement. Playing affordable golf – free – on executive courses with just a trail fee.
That dream came true about eight years ago when we came down full time from Ohio.
Oh, I’m still playing golf with our friends, but now we discuss where we can play and where the greens are actually even playable. We talk about the diseased grasses, “unputtable” greens, tees with no grass, and roughs that are not a lot better then some of the Ohio cow fields I played as a boy. We try and compare notes and decide whether we should go north that far, or south to have decent conditions on golf courses, and which is not too bad this week.
This just has to change. I used to be excited to show our out of state friends the tracks we loved. Now I am embarrassed.
We need it fixed – quickly – before you lose the luster that these Villages were built upon. It’s not the amount of play, it’s not water, it’s not environmental conditions or someone not fixing ball marks. It’s not anything except catching problems before they are out of hand, attention to detail and having the funds to correct these problems. Bring back the pride, and please, get it done.
Gary Horton
Village of Dunedin
