Sugar Mill - Hole 9
The good news is that Sugar Mill, a fine member-owned private 27-hole Joe Lee golf club, is open to the
public. The bad news is that it is only open to the public between May 1 and October 1. If you're in the
Daytona area during Florida's off season (when many of the members are up north), take advantage of the
club's policy and get a tee time. Sugar Mill lies a few miles off I-95 in
New Smyrna Beach,
about a 30 minutes drive from Daytona Beach Shores.
Opened in 1970, Sugar Mill is one of the area's older, more established golf/residential communities.
Both the golf course and the community reflect a graceful maturity not always found in other developments.
Aged cypress, pines and oaks and other vegetation that line many of the fairways provide canopy for the residences,
secluding them from the golf course. The phased development of Sugar Mill is reflected in the varied architectural
styles of the homes, which range from the wood-frame to the contemporary.
Before the land was developed, hunters stalked deer, wild bear and even boar on this heavily wooded site
that later became a retreat of the Ford Philpot Evangelistic Institute. Now, the only religious activity on the
site are the orisons silently performed by golfers negotiating a beautifully groomed course that consists of
three nines - the
White,
Red and
Blue.
The White-Red course was finished in the 1970s and the Blue was completed in 1984.
The Sugar Mill course is a throwback to the best in traditional architecture. There are no tricks here,
just straightforward, what-you-see-is-what-you-get golf. The course is not overly long but it is not a
pushover. Lakes, trees and the occasional tight fairway keep golfers alert. The best of the nines is
the blue that includes a marvelous dogleg left short par 4 of 357 yards from the back. A huge
oak whose branches tower over the left side of the fairway all but ensure a bogey here if the
tee shot is too far left. Another oak similarly situated at the joint of the dogleg on the
416-yard 6th hole puts a high price on distance and accuracy off the tee if this one is to be
mastered as well. As with all the nines, if you pick the correct tee markers, you'll have a fun
and challenging experience. 
Daytona Golf
