Golf in Miami.
Best courses, real foursomes.

Miami is a year-round golf market with one signature problem: the best courses are private and the best public courses are crowded. The short answer: Crandon for the views, Miami Beach Golf Club for the convenience, Doral Park for the value, and Trump Doral if you want to play a real tournament course without joining one.

The rest of this guide is how to actually book a tee time, what to expect at each course, and how to never play alone.

Best public courses

Crandon Golf at Key Biscayne

The most beautiful public course in Miami. Robert von Hagge design with seven holes touching mangroves or water. Rates run $90 to $180 depending on season. Book through the city of Miami site, 30 days out at 8 am sharp.

Miami Beach Golf Club

The most convenient course in the city if you live in South Beach or downtown. Arthur Hills redesign. Tight fairways. Quick rounds. Twilight after 2 pm is the best value play.

Doral Park Country Club

Often overlooked because of its proximity to the Trump Doral resort. Great greens, real challenge, half the price. The locals' choice for a weekly round.

Granada Golf Course, Coral Gables

Nine-hole executive course inside the Coral Gables loop. Free for residents, low-fee for non-residents. The right answer when you have 90 minutes between meetings.

Best resort and semi-private

Trump National Doral, Blue Monster

The Cadillac course. The PGA Tour stop is gone but the Blue Monster is still one of the best public-access championship courses in the state. Book through the resort. $250 to $450 depending on date.

The Biltmore, Coral Gables

Donald Ross design, restored. Walkable. Historic clubhouse. The closest thing to a country-club experience without joining one.

Country Club of Miami, North Miami

Forty-five holes. East course is the championship layout. Locals' favorite for early morning rounds before the heat sets in.

Turnberry Isle, Aventura

Two Raymond Floyd-designed courses. Solid pace of play. Best resort golf experience in northern Miami-Dade.

Top private clubs

For the record: Indian Creek, Riviera, La Gorce, Miami Beach Country Club. Initiation in the high five figures to six figures. If you have access, you know. If you do not, the resorts above cover 95 percent of the experience for 5 percent of the cost.

Indoor and simulators

Miami summer afternoons are not golf weather. Simulator options that locals actually use:

• Eight Iron, Coral Gables. Trackman bays, full bar. Good for nine quick holes with a Plus 1.
• X-Golf, Brickell. League play, lessons, and walk-up bay rentals.
• Topgolf Doral. Less serious. Great for a date or a non-golfer Plus 1.

How to find a foursome

The hardest part of golf in Miami is filling the other three slots. Three things that work:

1. Post a tee time on Plus 1. Pick a course, a date, and a tee time. Members request to join, you approve. Works same-day for short notice and a week out for tournaments and weekends.
2. GolfNow Connect or Meetup golf groups. Less curated, but recurring weekly groups exist at most public courses.
3. Show up as a single. Most courses will pair you up. Crandon and Miami Beach Golf Club are the most reliable for solo pairings.

Local tips that save strokes

• Book 30 days out at 8 am. Crandon, Miami Beach, and Doral release tee times on a rolling 30-day window. Set a calendar reminder.
• Twilight rates after 2 pm. Half the price, half the heat, full nine or twelve holes before sunset.
• Bermuda greens are firm and fast. The locals who win money games practice short game on Bermuda. The cross-grain reads are not what you remember from up north.
• Pack a towel and a second shirt. Summer rounds are humid. Real ones bring a change for the clubhouse.

How Plus 1 helps

Plus 1 is the plans-first social app for Miami. Golfers use it to fill a foursome a few days out, post a Doral or Crandon outing with a stranger who matches handicap, or find a Plus 1 for a charity tournament. Free to download. Active in Miami and South Florida.