Black Bear Golf Club

Unlike most courses here in Florida, this is NOT flat. Very hilly fairways will either reward or punish you. Well placed shots are a must. Greens were in great condition except for one that was being worked on. I haven’t played here in years and it was great to play it again. I recommend playing it.

I have played this course several times and I love the layout. I could tell they aerated the greens a few weeks ago and most of them have come back nicely. The greens were a little slow probably due to this though. The first issue came as I stepped on the 6th tee. I look down the fairway and see a flag in the middle of the fairway and none on the green. After I hit my drive I see the sign saying the green was in rough shape so they have a temporary flag. They did not cut the fairway differently just put a few ropes around an area they considered to be green. The sign also said just try 1 putt and pick it up. This in itself is not an issue, just the fact no one mentioned it in the clubhouse. It seems like a fairly important thing that patrons may want to know. My other issue comes with the 18th hole. A challenging hole that demands a good tee shot and a second shot of 130 yards plus over water. I guess this was too hard, so they took the front part of the putting green and made it an alternative hole for whoever does not want to hit over water. I think just instituting a local rule that if your approach shot goes in the water you take a drop on the other side of the lake would have been just fine, but I am not the GM. Overall, this course could be better, but it could also be a lot worse. Hopefully, my next round will not see it the latter.

I haven’t played here in a while and I was impressed with the conditions. The fairways are in great shape and the greens are lush…tricky course demands accurately placed shots. Sand traps are the only reason I didn’t give it a 5 star rating. I recommend playing this course, it’s a superb design.

the condition is horrible. there is dirt and weeds in the rough and there are horrible spots that are unplayable. the staff and club pro treat me like dirt, but the cart guys are nice. The new owner has ruined this golf course I will never play again. The only reason i'm not giving 0 stars is because i can't.

Love the layout, but course is definitely not in good shape right now

I’m a longtime fan of Black Bear, but this was my worst experience in almost 20 years of playing out there. First and foremost was the lack of warning that the greens were being aerated. This is definitely something you should be told prior to booking. This may be a Golf Now problem and not a Black Bear one. The bunkers were very inconsistent and the green side rough had large growths of weeds on a lot of the holes. As much as I like this course, it’s overpriced given the current conditions. If you can get on for high 20’s or low 30’s, that would be fair. Over 40 for a course in this shape seems a bit too high. That said, I’m sure I’ll be back once the greens are sorted.

Played Black Bear a number of times when over from the UK. A great layout in better condition than other courses I recently played in the area.

Our golf group plays this course several times per year. This is the worst shape it has ever been and price is too high for this area. Greens were aerated but we were not told and charged the full price. The starter said we should have been charged less due to the aeration.

In addition, our tee times were reserved using Golf Now. The third tee time was canceled 48 hours in advance yet Black Bear did not acknowledge and is now charging my card for a no-show fee when I have an email from GolfNow that shows the submission of the cancellation.

Won’t be back.

Very hilly, most everything slopes back to the fairway. Very few trees, very windy. Fairways nice, greens recently aerated (and advised so prior to reservation) but still rolled well. Look forward to playing again.

I received a charge from Black Bear for $96 a few days after playing there and being charged $48 on the day of the round. I called to have it reversed and the pro shop guy said they probably wouldn't but then got the owner on the line. The owner proceeded to yell at me and accuse me of trying to put them out of business. I said I was sorry that my friends bailed but that shouldn't be my responsibility as I only played one round of golf. He seemed giddy to be stealing $100 from me. I will never play here again and will discourage all of my friends from supporting this place. Red Tail and Eagle Dunes are awesome nearby courses with great customer service and fun layouts, so I will be playing there instead.

Great layout good condition will play again here

for sure 4 stars love it 😍

They had just aerated the greens a week before I played so I understand them being in the condition they are now. But they could have at least tried to blow the sand off the greens and there are millions of the dirt balls laying around the green. The bunkers and sand traps are probably the worst condition I’ve ever seen for a course that charges as much as They do. Fairways are in decent shape. Still a fun course because of the unique layout. Black Bear could be a whole lot better for what you pay.

Neither golf now or their own website told you that the greens were aerated. I always like this course it's a fun course to play but the grwens are absolutely horrible not worth going for weeks until the greens come back

Interesting course. Lots of moguls and elevated greens. Sometimes you need to drive ahead and look before you tee off.

Friendly staff. Good snack bar.

I've been playing this particular course on/off for the past several years. Being a Pete Dye course, I've always enjoyed the unique, and challenging layout. The course does reward you for making great shots. Anything less , and you're left in a precarious situation. The course aside for a moment, this course needs massive improvement in guest relations, and how they welcome and treat the golfers when the arrive in pro shop. Other than the volunteer starters; the pro shop staff would highly benefit from an extensive course(no pun intended) in customer service. I can say with the utmost confidence; that today will be the last day I'll book a time here. The way they treated both me, and my 7 year old daughter(to whom I'm introducing the game) was unforgivable. In fact, we didn't even play today. We left the facility, and headed over to Red Tail, which I must say had come a long way with the issues they experienced a couple years ago with their greens. Course was in good shape, so was the customer service. Black Bear has lost a long time customer, and a future customer given my daughter is showing a keen interest in the game. For those of you taking the time to read this review; if you're simply willing to fork over 80 bucks to play decent course(at best); then this is the course for you. If your money means more to you, and you want an experience; I'd highly recommend looking elsewhere.