Trump National Doral Miami - Blue Monster Course

We had a great fore caddie that really helped us navigate the course.

It was wonderful. time for beautiful and good course and conditions of fairway and green

Top 10 I have courses I have played in condition and grandeur. If you go in the rough you have to hit a wedge out from wherever you are is the only drawback. Fairways were like carpet and the greens were like velvet but like ice to putt on.

The golf course, pro shops, restaurants, facilities and staff were all first class!

The property was grand. Staff was great! Layouts and speeds were challenging. Played both blue monster and golden palms. Anytime you pay top shelve prices, you expect a top shelf experience. We were not disappointed! 1 notch of the bucket list

I have played a few well known courses but this was the most difficult by far. Still had a great time. Many sand traps and water hazards. Greens were perfect!

It has been roughly 30 years between rounds for me at Doral. Much has changed aesthetically, both with the ownership of Donald Trump and the redesign by Gil Hanse.

Still, there is something very familiar about the Blue Monster. It is an iconic golf course that perhaps has been left behind. Since the PGA Tour eschewed backlash by moving Doral’s date on the schedule, it is stuck in the purgatory between toney 1950s Florida resort golf and the shadow cast by other Florida mega-resorts, namely Streamsong, that have passed it by.

What Doral has going for it is a brand name. Serious golfers know the label. They grew up watching men like Greg Norman, Ray Floyd, Nick Faldo and Steve Elkington win the Doral Ryder Open on CBS to the dulcet tones of Pat Summerall and Ken Venturi.

Most every course claims a signature hole. Doral, however, has a legit signature hole: the brute of a par 4 18th, the famed Blue Monster, and namesake of the course. It is a hole that every serious fan of the game ought to experience for themselves. Playing into the prevailing wind, the carry off the tee to clear the hazard that looms down the left side is weightier than it appears. That only earns you another chance to baptize a ball with an approach that played 180 yards. Remember Rory tossing a club into this penalty area the last year the tournament was played here? You will have empathy for him after you’ve holed out.

You also feel like being a guest at the resort is a big deal. The rooms are terrific. The practice areas are spacious. There is an ambiance about the place.

However, judging from a golf perspective, outside of the rush of playing the finishing hole and its’ sister hole - the adjacent par-3 ninth that is a handful, the rest of the holes are just not that memorable. Hanse did some major surgery on several holes, particularly the 15th and 16th, which don’t resemble the previous iteration in the least. And I think they were good changes. It’s just that the rest of the course is one dogleg with water down one side after another. Yawning, typical Florida resort-style golf. And the Blue is honestly not even the toughest course on the property.

Having said all that, I still enjoyed the round. I think one’s golfing resume ought to include a round on the Monster. And that, in the end, is why a round here comes with such a hefty price tag. They know most will pay for that opportunity.

I think this place has fallen apart in just the last year. There doesn’t seem to be any system to get you from your car to the 1st tee. Paying 450 bucks and then hitting off mats on driving range is ridiculous. Send some of your people out to Greyhawk and learn how to manage the experience. Horrible.

Be careful which tee box your are choosing - plays longer

Everything about the course and facilities is top notch!

However, hidden costs you don’t know about until you’re there.

$32 Valet Parking Charge.

$31 Mandatory Fore Caddy fee before noon tee times.

Also, no halfway house for food and drinks. Only drink cart with snacks.

I’ve read a few reviews about how the course doesn’t warrant the price tag and I have to disagree.

I arrived an hour early and shopped. Took in the whole scene. I hit balls at the range, chipped, then putted. Went right out to the first tee without a back up. No one was up my butt about my time or anything.

Cart girl came up to me on the third hole and three times after.

The course itself is sprawling and beautiful. There are iconic holes and plenty of views.

I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I had a 2:30pm tee time and teed off around 2:25 when I saw no one in front of me. Played the round in three hours and fifty minutes. I wasn’t in a hurry, but the threesome in front of me was pretty slow. I caught up to them on the fourth hole and I’m kinda glad I did. I was on vacation and was happy to enjoy the sights and being able to relax. I smoked a cigar and took it all in.

I recommend the Blue Monster to you all.

I’d like to first and foremost say that all the staff were wonderful, polite and did their job with the parameters set for them.

After paying $350 for the round plus mandatory caddie tip, it seems odd that they charge you $20 to park your car.

While the course has the name and prestige associated with it, there is no difference between that and many others courses within a few miles that charge a fraction of the price.

I could not believe that the food and beverage cart

My biggest complaint was that the food and beverage cart does not take cash ( for Covid reasons - but it’s okay if 300 people inside in the restaurant ) . If you offer a credit card in payment they write down all the info on a piece of paper and the transaction is processed at the end of the day. I cannot imagine how anyone thinks this is a secure method of paying for food and beverage while you are on the course.

Apparently The trump course hasn’t approved credit card readers or any of the other point of sale systems that exist in the market.

And good luck if you are a vegetarian. They have nothing except peanuts for you to eat…

Please update the address for the Silver Fox course at Trump National Doral. Should be the same address as the Blue Monster.