A DAY OF GOLF AND THEN SOME

Early to bed - early to rise.....and so on. A 7AM tee time doesn't do anything for me except groan when the alarm goes off at 5:45AM!

Oh well. The excitement of a new course always gets me going. The dew is heavy this early and when you hit your ball it makes a path through the shiny wet grass when it hits the fairway. That always helps to see where you hit it when the flat light of the morning makes it disappear from sight. Then the first rays of the sun hit the course and it is all so beautiful.

I wish I could say that the Sandpiper Golf Course that is part of the Club Med property was all that brilliant. The resort itself is 30 years old and the golf course was one of the originals in the area of Port St. Lucie. The fairways are lined by those houses that so define what Florida used to be. These little "cracker" boxes with bright flowers and surrounded by palm trees are still there.

Club Med is in the midst of their renovations and they have started a wonderful Golf Academy that should be one of the best in South Florida, but I must say that their course maintenance leaves a little to be desired. This Tom Fazio Course is a fun 72 hole 6000 yard course easy enough for everyone to play..

We played all 18 holes of this lovely little course. Big wide fairways with forgiving greens....lots of Par 4's and enough Par 3's and Par 5's to make it interesting. Along with the on-site 18-hole golf course there are 15 world-renowned courses within 25 minutes and the Club Med concierge can arrange tee times at any of them.

There is also a Tom Fazio II-designed short-game practice course and of course the driving range and chipping and putting green. There are also daily group lessons that are complimentary along with so many other complimentary things to do at Club Med Sandpiper.
At the Academy Brad Brewer and Don Law, along with Marie Claire De Bortoli, are committed to helping each unique athlete through every stage of junior, amateur and professional development.

Brewer was mentored by golf legend Arnold Palmer, and Law, an Industry leader in junior golf, and De Bortoli,a LPGA Master Professional, are working together
to pioneer a new training model with the ultimate goal of developing premiere talent.

There is also a world class tennis academy too. At Club Med’s Tennis Academy everyone from active adults to junior pros receive a comprehensive tennis training experience.

Led by Gabe Jaramillo, who has developed eight number one players, and
Scott Del Mastro, who has trained pros & juniors across the world, the Club
Med Tennis Academy is perfect for players of all ages and skill levels.
There is stadium court, 6 Hydro clay courts and 14 hard courts, a 12,000 sq. ft.elite fitness training facility with top-notch equipment and the complimentary group lessons daily as well for those who are not trying to be professional and who just want to better their game.

There is so much to do here, I'm glad that we started out at 7AM this morning. 18 holes with the sun coming up and a slight breeze makes me forget about the alarm going off so early. I still have plenty of hours left today to do everything else!