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New Smyrna Golf Club in New Smyrna Beach, Florida is a public, municipal course that regularly surprises first-time players. Not because it’s flashy, but because it’s consistently in great shape and more challenging than many expect from a city course.
What Makes the Course Stand Out?
Gary describes New Smyrna Golf Club as an “old Donald Ross design” with small, very fast greens — the kind of greens that reward accurate approaches and leave you scrambling if you miss. “If you miss a green, it’s really tough chipping to the greens,” he explains, which is part of what makes the course fun and memorable.
It’s a full 18-hole facility with practice amenities golfers expect:
Putting green
Chipping green
Driving range
A restaurant attached that’s open all the time for food and beverages
From the back tees, the course plays 6,543 yards, making it “not an overly long course,” but still a strong test depending on conditions and tee choice.
Signature Moments: The Logo Tree and “The Creek Hole”
When golfers finish a round at New Smyrna, Gary says there are two things that tend to come up in conversation.
The first is what the club calls its “logo tree” — a large pine tree in front of the #2 green that appeared on merchandise and stood for “probably 100 years” before it recently died. The club is in the process of replacing it.
The second is hole #4, which is a par-4 where the approach must carry a creek directly in front of the green. Gary puts it simply: “You either make the green or you're in the creek. It's not a long shot into it, but still, you have to be kind of precise.”
He confirms it’s about a 400-yard hole, and it’s a great example of how the course can feel approachable off the tee, then demand real execution on approach.
Course Conditions: Why People Come Back
Course conditions are a reason people return again and again, and a big part of that is the platinum paspalum greens the club installed after rebuilding the greens in 2016.
Gary explains that this grass is especially helpful in the area because of salt intrusion in the water. Platinum paspalum “is not affected by salt and actually likes salt,” and it produces “very consistent, pretty fast greens.”
The club’s maintenance team is another point of pride. Gary says some staff members have been at the course 20 to 35 years, and that experience shows up in day-to-day conditions, including winter presentation. The course is overseeded in early November so it stays green through winter, even when other courses brown out after freezes.
Renovations and Improvements
Gary notes two major renovation milestones:
2006: extensive renovation including cart paths, greens, irrigation, and more
2016: greens rebuilt again and converted to platinum paspalum
He also shares an ongoing focus on replanting trees after losing “probably 1,000 trees” over the years to hurricanes. The goal is to better align fairways like they used to be and improve the look and feel of the course.
Leagues and Junior Golf
New Smyrna Golf Club supports regular play through leagues and associations:
Men’s association (plays Saturdays)
Seniors group (plays Fridays)
Additional groups (including a ladies group) playing throughout the week
For juniors, Gary says “If they're a student in New Smyrna Beach, they're able to come here every day and get a free bucket of balls to go to the driving range. And then they can go out and play the course when it's not so busy.”
What to Know Before You Play
For first-time visitors, Gary recommends using the resources the club provides:
● Yardage books and course guides on-site
● Videos of each hole available on the club website
And if you’re wondering about value, he addresses the common municipal-course assumption directly: while people expect “cheap rates and not so good conditions,” he says New Smyrna is “not cheap rates, but not expensive… and it’s always in good condition,” which is why it surprises so many players.
Visit New Smyrna Golf Club
New Smyrna Golf Club is located at:
1000 Wayne Ave.
New Smyrna Beach, FL 32168
To learn more, call: 386-410-2690
