Biltmore Hotel golf course in Coral Gables excavating Donald Ross

I’m not one of those golfers who bows to the east and says hosannahs every time the name Donald Ross’ name is invoked, but I’ve always enjoyed playing his courses. I like his small greens, false fronts and the fact you have to be high and extremely accurate with your irons to get even remotely close to the hole.

I like the old-fashioned and settled look of his designs. I’ve played many of his courses, and most are short because in those days, they were normal humans with normal human strength.

And I’ve always gotten a kick out of those courses that try to resurrect Ross’ designs. Like the Biltmore Hotel course in Coral Gables. They have a little Ross design there that can be a lot of fun, especially around the greens.

The Biltmore was owned and managed by the city for years, but the hotel recently took over the operation and management jobs, and it’s trying to bring out the Ross. They’ve already spent $1.5 million and promise to spend more to bring it back to the original Ross specs, while factoring in the equation of today’s technology. Look for the full review coming soon.