doral resort - blue monster golf course

How can you not tell golfers that all courses are cart path only and that resort is under major reconstruction? A $225 surcharge to play a course that is cart path only, mandatory caddie and under construction. Waited half hour for drinks poolside because there was only one waitress at the entire resort delegated to serve guests at the pool. Donald you're fired!

the Blue Monster is a killer! it is beautiful, and it requires exact placement of each shot. It will wear you down, but you will really like the course the pros play.

Beautiful and challenging course to play with my son. We were paired up with good players and we enjoyed ourselves

If you have the time and money, you should play this very beautiful signature golf course. It is difficult, beautiful, well maintained and long! Simply go and treat yourself!

I didn't stay at the Trump National but rather arrived after lunch with all my bags for an afternoon round of golf before heading off to the airport. I was fearful of what I would be able to do with my bags but this proved to not be an issue at all. As soon as I stepped out of my cab I was very warmly greeted by one of the bellmen who took care of me. He sent my clubs off to the golf clubhouse then escorted me downstairs to the locker room and introduced me to the attendant. I was set up with a locker and quickly changed into my golf clothes - a fabulous start to my afternoon and the locker room is gorgeous with oversized lockers (it held my computer and overnight bags) and all the stuff you need to clean and shower up after a round.I had a reservation on the White course but was able to change to the Blue Monster even though the 12:00 noon to 2:00pm period was blocked off for members. As this was my first time at Doral I can't compare the course to what existed before the big renovation. However, it is tough with narrow fairways, water on most holes, far too many bunkers for my liking and quick greens. Playing from the white tees (6,300 yards) is enough of a test for most (it has a slope of 139!) so don't try to be a hero and play the blue tees - you won't have any fun.The pace of play was great - just over four hours but this is likely due to the fewer than normal golfers playing during the member times.Was it worth the $235 - I would say yes but I've hear the white course is very good too!If you're an Uber fan feel free to request a cab when leaving the resort - there are plenty in the area.

This is one of the great American Golf courses. The course is challenging yet rewarding if you play it smart. Need to be very precise or will end up in a big deep fairway bunker or a lake. Greens are rolling hills with elevation changes,very fast but will receive the ball well. Windy days will make an already challenging course into a very difficult course. Expensive but worth the splurge.

On entering Doral, The hotel is stunning and the set up is too, however, we felt let down by the prices charged to play. The fees are are above the market for what is charged on the other championship courses. To have to have a mandatory caddie on certain times also should be optional + to have to pay a tip, so everything is extra, is not right. Golf Should be an enjoyable experience and not feel like you are being ripped off. To be a great course, everything should feel right. It does not here.Also the starter here was no where to be found and then we found him. We then arrived slightly early and then had to wait for our actual tee time before teeing off, when no-one at all was on the tee, ridiculous!

Just returned from the Blue Monster. Sad to see what Mr. Trump has done to a once tough course. I wish he could move the airport so the sound of airplanes would not be the soundtrack of our day. Mr. Trump, please keep to the pageants that promote glam and glitter. Please stop "improving" once great courses. If you are interested in playing great peaceful golf in a place with a great "Major" track record, head north to Pinehurst and visit Number 2. Far more value for your hard earned money. A great natural course that is for everyone.

Went to the Cadillac golf tournament event, lots of people, great time, good fashion show. Advised bring cash to avoid extra charges

As we all know, this is now the Trump National Doral and the Blue Monster has been redesigned by Mr Trump and Gill Hanse. Most of the work thus far has been to the front nine which has been completely redesigned and rebuilt. All of these holes have tremendous character and are fantastic. The back nine is basically the same as it was, although plans are underway to carry out further renovations, presumably to these. The course, especially the front nine is more difficult but playable. Well worth a trip to the new resort and course. It should be noted that the other two courses, the Red and the Gold are undergoing a major overhaul and are currently closed. They should be a sight to behold when they reopen.

I played the Monster on Fri, 4/25/14. Here's the tally, $20 for valet parking (unknown until I claimed my car), $5x2 for Club care in tips, you are forced to have a forecaddie $80, greens fee $400, sandwich $20/ea, a bottle of water $5 ea x 4 (total $20), residual tips for the cart girl and caddie $50 (min). Consider it a $550 to $600 round for a 5.5 hour romp to have the experience. Expect to wait for others stacked up in front of, and behind you. The course is a 9/10, but the experience due to the raping of all players for profit kicks it down to a "done it - never again" status. Remember, it's a Donald Trump resort. If you answer in the affirmative and would like to go, forego breakfast to get to the course early/early and beat traffic to know your bearings and assure you are present when needed. This place is downtown Miami, and next to the International Airport.

I played the Blue Monster on February 20. No doubt the revamped course is a severe test of golf and was in excellent condition when I played. However, for a total cost of more than $550, the entire experience did not measure up with Pebble Beach, TPC Sawgrass and Pinecrest 2. The staff were all very polite and my forecaddie (Sean/Shawn?) and his colleague were terrific but the full fee should not be charged until they can deliver the full expectation of service and amenities that comes with that price point. The day I played was the first day that the new pro shop was open. After paying, I asked to use the restroom - it wasn't available yet and I would have to go back to the Spa where I had parked and taken a shuttle to the course....However, they pointed out that there were portable toilets out on the course for the forthcoming tournament, so I could wait and use one of those. Thankfully, portable toilets were available at the practice range because those on the course were wired together and locked-up. The golf cart I was given had no scorecard and no divot repair material in either bottle. When I arrived at the first tee 8 minutes before my tee time, I noticed a PGA pro with others beside the tee. Course staff asked me to immediately tee off on my own and catch up to the threesome that was approaching the first green - then changed his mind and drove me out to the threesome, saying I could play the first hole at the end of my round. I guess my $550 isn't worth the same as others'. Those considering playing here should know that airliners fly low overhead every 90 seconds - two minutes. One last observation - the pro shop would not validate my $18 parking fee, saying that charge is "part of the business". While a small part of the total cost, I would observe that Pebble, TPC Sawgrass and Pinehurst don't charge for parking if you have a tee time, so this just seemed to be part of an overall strategy to gouge every possible dollar from guests. While the golf course itself was great, I left feeling that I had gotten "the business".

Some of the new greens were a little slower than others. Fairways are generous (as my ball rolled forever). I found myself putting through the fringes when short siding myself. Ruff was being thicken for the upcoming tourney. It was cart path only at the time we played. The caddie had a laser for distances which helped maintain speed of play, but I found myself with a hand full of clubs at time for my second shot ( our caddie hustled his butt off tending to distances, raking bunkers, and assisting with clubs). You have to pay a caddie fee before heading out on the course. If you do get a good caddie, he'll make you feel like a pro.

The course itself is fun and the caddies are great. But since to play you basically must stay on property this impacts the overall experience and ours was terrible. So much construction at the course and clubhouse that I was nearly hit by construction equipment 2X. At this price point completely inexcusable. It should have been closed until construction was completed.

I had extremely high hopes as I decided to play on my 40th bday. Played at Key West GC the day before and flew in for this round at Doral. Got to the hotel about 75 minutes before my round after flying in. Since the place is a major construction zone, I was re-routed to another entrance. After valeting the car, I shuttled to the course. Checked in for my round and was told they wanted to push my round another 20 min. All good. More time to warm up. Turns out the clubhouse and mens locker room were closed (as well as restaurants, etc) so I used the small bathroom at the pool to change my clothes. Long walk back to the pro shop and ready to warm up. Now they told me they were moving my tee time up another 20 min. Needless to say, all the time I thought I had going in was now dwindled to 10 min. I chose to rent clubs and didn't get any choice of shafts and the clubs were worn. Anyway, off I go feeling a little rushed and the whole system just seemed very disorganized, surrounded by a construction war zone. Here's the deal... Trump wanted to make the course challenging for the pro tourney next month so he overhauled it. All good for the tourney and course conditions (amazing), but not the most peaceful experience. Because of the changes, the course is cart path only. Here's an important tip.... WALK THE COURSE! They charge you a little more for the caddy if you walk, but what an amazing experience. I felt like a pro out there. The caddy (Rob) was phenomenal. I can't say enough about how great the course was once we got out there. It is tourney ready. I really want to give this a great review for the course conditions, the awesome caddy (Rob) and the overall experience, but everything else around it was below average. If you want to golf here, don't stay at the hotel. Everything is closed and round the clock construction. Very little empathy/sympathy from the staff and you expect to get great service and experience for what you pay. Not even an apology for anything. The two best people I met were the caddy (Rob) and the kid on his first day trying to find a place for me to change my clothes. I can now cross this off my bucket list but expected a little more.