Windance Country Club

Layout was picturesque with tall pines, forest and rolling hills. Greens were firm and quick.

Although Biloxi, MS is best known for its beaches and casinos, its appeal to golfers and golf travelers is growing quickly. Coastal Mississippi has some amazing and stunning golf courses, with plenty of courses for the public to play, numerous restaurants to eat at, and the opportunity to win big at one of the many casinos. It’s a chance for a hole-in-one and a million-dollar jackpot all in the same day! There are 12 courses immediately in the Biloxi area; several more if you don’t mind putting a few miles on the rental car. Here’s my take on a few of them.

Windance Country Club is owned by Island View Casino Resort and is one of the area’s top resort courses. They’ve recently installed a state-of-the-art irrigation system to help keep the course green year-round. Windance was designed by Mark McCumber and plays over 6,600 yards from the back tees. As you traverse the layout you’ll find rolling terrain on top of very tight fairways and average size greens with less undulation than most. GolfWeek Magazine voted Windance one of America’s “Best Courses You Can Play” for five years in a row and Golf Digest has awarded it 4 stars.

When it comes to dining options, you can’t go wrong with what each of the casinos has to offer: incredible buffets as well as high-end steakhouses. Get outside the casinos and head into the towns of Ocean Springs and Biloxi and I have a couple of suggestions. Patio 44 in Biloxi is known for its fresh take on classic Creole-style dishes that incorporate the freshest ingredients available from the Delta and Gulf Coast regions, dishes like shrimp and grits, fried catfish tacos, and seafood gumbo. The Buckhead Certified Angus Beef they serve is aged for a minimum of 21 days. Patio 44 also offers one of the most unique – and delicious – appetizers I’ve ever had. Their Debris Fries are a “southern take” on Canadian poutine. Perfectly cooked French fries with braised beef trimmings, brown gravy, and melted cheese, garnished with green onions. It’s a must!

Maison de Lu is Ocean Springs is another great choice. New Jersey native Luann Ellis left the snow and headed for Gulf Coast over 20 years ago and now calls Ocean Springs home. Maison De Lu is located in the heart of downtown Ocean Springs and serves some interesting creations. The Goat Cheese Torte is delicious; layered with sundried tomatoes and pesto and served with warm pita chips. The New Zealand Rack of Lamb is sliced into chops and served with the sauce du jour. The side dishes are amazing; Roasted Red Beets, Roasted Mushrooms and Onions, and a great alternative to potatoes, Twice Baked Cauliflower.

This is just a brief glimpse into everything Coastal Mississippi has to offer golfers. From great drives on the course to short drives to everything you want to do off the course, The Secret Coast has got you covered.

Had a great time - the course and the majority of the staff were great. Watch out for the starter who is a affectionately known as grumpy Joe. Enough said!

Came over from New Orleans and playing for first time. Course conditions excellent. Tees, fairways and especially greens were perfect. Layout is beautiful, cutting through pine trees with rolling hills. Only negative is pace of play and lack of marshals to make strong suggestions and pair up twosomes. Will def come back.

greens were very nice, fairways were mostly in great shape. Some of the traps needed attention, but they were not bad. Enjoyed the track, thought it was a nice blend of holes, some easy, some harder. Would definitely play again. Snack bar had a really nice cheeseburger.

The course is in superb, flawless shape. Greens super fast and true - it's tournament condition. Played twilight round; great value, great pace. One of the best, most enjoyable rounds I've had in almost 40 years of golfing on Mississippi Gulf Coast. Par 5s, particularly on the back, extremely challenging - they narrow a lot and while reachable in two with a really good drive, it has to be perfect second, and even laying up is hard because of shrinking space. Terrific golfing experience.

We played Windance on a beautiful clear but windy day. The course was in excellent shape from tee to green and the greens were very very true. You had better beware of the subtle breaks as every green here has them. Number 2 is a monster Par 3 but after that the length becomes a bit more reasonable throughput the round. Hole sixteen is a great par 5 and to us was the top hole on the course but overall a very pleasant round in view of the golf course.
The problem we encountered was pace of play of the lack of it. The first 4 holes were fine and then we caught up to the 5 some on the course which was often waiting on the 4some in front of them. Pace pf play issues can be attributed to the course as well as the golfers. In this case I am not sure why a 5some is ever allowed to play much less on a very busy Sunday. The other point is golfers, including those in front of us all day, need to truly be realistic of their limits. Waiting to hit your second shot on a par 5 from over 250 yds out until the group in front of you has cleared the green is seldom truly needed and never was on this day.
The staff was very friendly and the cart girl was ever present during the round…something that many places seems to be lacking.
Would recommend this course to other with the warning of weekend play could be very slow.

Windance is a step or two below some of the top courses in Biloxi-Gulfport like Shell Landing, Grand Bear and The Preserve, but it's a fine value at about $59-75, less than the cost of the above area courses, perhaps because this course is in a residential community, while the others are more secluded.

The layout is pretty interesting, and the greens are really tough. We played from the tips on a wet day, and it was all the golf we needed. The course has particularly difficult and sloping greens that can really give you a tough time if you're above the hole. The course formerly hosted the Nike/Hogan tours in the 1990s, and past champions include Jim Furyk and Tom Lehman.

I thought the course might be walkable and chose to do so, but there were a few long drives between holes. I probably wouldn't do that again.

I did really enjoy the clubhouse lunch, which included a delicious breakfast burger with potatoes and egg on it.

The course is an amenity of the Island View Casino, who purchased the course in 2007, and there are some very good stay-and-play specials. Island View's new tower is a very good affordable place to stay right on the beach.

I grew up on the coast and loved the opportunity to play here as a kid which was seldom. My Mother lives on the course now so i play it frequently. I also get to watch the grounds crew work while drinking coffee from inside her home. They are always there the same time everyday making sure the course is nice. The pace of play has always been great and I play there often. Windance is a great course for the average golfer or the Scratch looking for a challenge. I love number 15 a little par three but beautifully seluded. Love It

Course is in perfect shape, greens, fairways, tees. Friendliest people around and the staff is top notch. The food and drinks are fair price and excellent quality. Played twice while in the area. Preferred over Grand Bear, Bridges and Oaks.

A very solid course even under winter conditions. Greens were surprisingly quick even though dormant. Number 8 an 10 greens was especially tricky.

challenging course ....does not look like a lot of trouble. Lg greens bad bounces.

This course is an excellent, interesting layout with fast greens. The entire golf course was in good shape, particularly the greens. A good buy for the price.