The five best golf courses near Port St. Lucie are the Dye, Wanamaker, and Ryder courses at PGA Golf Club (PGA Village), St. Lucie Trail Golf Club, and The Champions Club at Summerfield — all publicly accessible and spread across a 25-mile radius.
Keep reading for a full breakdown of each course, including what makes them worth your time and how to book them without overpaying.
Dye Course at PGA Golf Club — The Architectural Standout
If you only play one course near Port St. Lucie, make it this one. Pete Dye's 1999 design ranks #15 in Florida on Golfweek's “Best Courses You Can Play” list and #19 on Golf Digest's Top Public Courses in Florida — the highest-ranked course in the region on both lists.
What sets it apart visually and strategically is the combination of coquina-shell waste bunkers, pine-straw roughs, and links-style grass-faced bunkering routed through natural wetlands.
It's a layout that doesn't look or play like a typical South Florida course, which is exactly why it draws the most consistent praise of PGA Village's three offerings — GolfPass reviewers rate it 4.5 stars and regularly call it the most architecturally interesting of the three.
The numbers back up the reputation:
- 18 holes, par 72, 7,200 yards from the back (Black) tees
- Course rating/slope: ~74–75 / 142–148 from the tips; five tee sets available down to more forgiving distances
- Co-hosted the 2025 Senior PGA Professional Championship (October 23–26)
- Audubon Certified Sanctuary for over 25 years
On green fees, timing makes a significant difference. Summer rounds run roughly $50–$60, while peak season (January through April) pushes rates to $135–$215. The booking window also shifts — you can reserve up to 60 days out between May and October, but only 2 days out during the busy season.
Contact: (772) 467-1300 | pgavillagegolf.com
Wanamaker Course at PGA Golf Club — The Championship Host
The Wanamaker has the strongest tournament résumé of any course in the area. Originally designed by Tom Fazio in 1996, it reopened in November 2024 after a full renovation — new turf, clamshell-style bunkering, and roughly 40% less sand overall. The redesign modernizes the course without stripping its character, and early feedback has been strong.
Tournament credentials worth noting: the Wanamaker served as the primary host of the 2025 PGA Professional Championship, where Tyler Collet won and earned a spot in that year's PGA Championship at Quail Hollow.
It also co-hosted both the 2025 Senior PGA Professional Championship and the 2025 Assistant PGA Professional Championship — three major PGA of America events in a single calendar year on one course.
The specs are what you'd expect from a Fazio championship layout:
- 18 holes, par 72, approximately 7,079–7,102 yards from the back tees
- Course rating/slope: 75.2 / 145 — the most demanding rating of the three PGA Village courses
- Golfweek #19 in Florida; Golf Digest Top 50 U.S. “Best Value”
- GolfPass rating: 4.5 stars
Green fees follow the same seasonal range as the Dye Course — roughly $50 in summer, up to $215 during peak season — which makes the value designation feel well-earned when you consider the caliber of design and the tournament history you're playing on.
Contact: (800) 800-4653 | pgavillagegolf.com/wanamaker-course
Ryder Course at PGA Golf Club — Best Value of the Three
The Ryder Course doesn't look or feel like it belongs in South Florida — and that's the point. Rolling fairways, towering pines, and the largest greens on the PGA Village property give it a character closer to a Carolinas layout than anything you'd typically find this far south.
Tom Fazio designed it in 1996, and a significant renovation around 2017 sharpened the conditioning without changing what makes it distinct.
At 18 holes, par 72, and 7,065 yards from the back tees, it plays slightly shorter than the Dye and Wanamaker — and the slope of 133 reflects a layout that challenges you through strategy and pace rather than sheer difficulty.
Reviewers consistently describe it as a “great challenge without the gimmicks… firm and fast,” which aligns with Golf Digest's panel score of 4.2/5, the highest of the three PGA Village courses.
Two accolades stand out here. The Ryder holds a Golf Digest Top 50 U.S. “Best Value” designation — the strongest value endorsement of any course in the region — and it co-hosted both the 2025 PGA Professional Championship and the 2025 Senior PGA Professional Championship. For a course at this price point, that combination is hard to argue with.
Green fees run the same seasonal range as the other two PGA Village courses, making the Ryder the easiest recommendation for anyone who wants a nationally recognized Fazio design without paying a premium for the Wanamaker's championship pedigree or the Dye's architectural complexity.
Contact: (800) 800-4653 | pgavillagegolf.com/ryder-course
St. Lucie Trail Golf Club — Best Value Inside Port St. Lucie
St. Lucie Trail has been a local staple since Jim Fazio designed it in 1988 — originally under the “PGA Country Club” name before that branding consolidated at PGA Village.
It's a semi-private club that still welcomes daily-fee public play, and a full greens renovation completed in summer 2024 has noticeably lifted the experience.
Recent GolfPass reviews describe the greens as “running fast and true” and call it one of the best courses in the area — high praise for a non-PGA Village option.
The layout leans into classic Old Florida design: water comes into play on 10 of 18 holes, more than 80 bunkers are scattered throughout, and the course plays 6,901 yards from the Championship tees at a rating/slope of 73.4–74.0 / 134–142.
Six tee sets bring it down to 5,012 yards, making it genuinely accessible regardless of handicap. Sports Illustrated's Golf Course Review scores it 8.2/10.
What makes it worth considering over a third or fourth round at PGA Village is the combination of price and setting:
- Standard green fees: ~$50–$80
- Twilight special: ~$45 after 1 p.m. mid-summer
- On-site amenities: Lakeview Bar & Grille, five lighted Har-Tru tennis courts, and a pool
For locals especially, the post-renovation conditions and fee structure make St. Lucie Trail the most practical option when you want a quality round without the PGA Village price tag.
Contact: (772) 340-1444 | stlucietrail.com
Champions Club at Summerfield — Tom Fazio's Nature Preserve Course
About 17 miles south of Port St. Lucie in Stuart, Champions Club at Summerfield earns its spot on this list through accolades that have held up for decades.
Tom Fazio designed it in 1993, and by 1995 Golf Magazine had named it one of the Top Ten New Golf Courses in the United States. More notably, it became the first public golf course in the world to receive Audubon Signature Sanctuary status — a distinction no other course on this list can claim.
The setting is what makes it feel different from the other four. The layout winds through a wetland nature preserve just three miles from the Atlantic, and that environment shapes the entire experience — mature vegetation, natural water features, and a quieter, more secluded atmosphere than you'll find at PGA Village.
It plays 6,809–6,890 yards from the back tees at a rating/slope of 72.8 / 135, par 72, and remains open to public play year-round.
Reviewer sentiment has stayed consistently strong. Across 383 Facebook reviews, the course holds a 92% recommend rate, and a April 2026 GolfPass review specifically calls out fast, true greens, an enjoyable layout, and staff that goes out of its way for guests.
On pricing, green fees are dynamic — worth checking directly before you book. If you play here regularly, annual memberships run approximately $4,075 for a single and $5,950 for a couple in 2025, which is reasonable for a Fazio design with this kind of recognition behind it.
Contact: (772) 283-1500 | thechampionsclubgolf.com
Practical Tips for Booking and Budgeting Your Round
The simplest way to approach PGA Village is to treat all three courses as one destination. The Dye, Wanamaker, and Ryder share a single clubhouse, one phone line (800-800-4653), and one booking site (pgavillagegolf.com), so planning a multi-round stay is straightforward.
Timing, though, has a bigger impact on what you'll pay than almost any other factor — summer rates regularly fall under $60 per round, while peak season between January and April can push past $200. That's a nearly four-fold swing depending on when you visit.
Booking windows shift with the season as well. From May through October, you can reserve up to 60 days in advance. From November through April, that window tightens to just 2 days out, so flexibility matters more during the busy months.
For rounds outside PGA Village, here's a quick framework:
- St. Lucie Trail — best quality-to-cost ratio inside Port St. Lucie itself; freshly renovated greens and fees that typically stay between $50–$80
- Champions Club at Summerfield — worth the 25-minute drive south if you want a change of scenery; wetland preserve setting versus the open Florida terrain you'll find elsewhere
- The Saints Golf Course — a municipal-style 18-hole public course at $30–$66 if you want something casual and budget-friendly
A few nearby courses are worth knowing about even though they're private. Hammock Creek Golf Club in Palm City is the strongest publicly accessible alternative outside the top five. The Legacy at PGA Village, Tesoro Club, and Santa Lucia River Club are all well-regarded but require membership or sponsorship to access.
Taken together, these five courses put up to 90 holes of nationally ranked, publicly accessible golf within a 25-mile radius — a concentration that's hard to match outside of a handful of dedicated golf destinations in the country.
Conclusion
Port St. Lucie delivers a lot of golf for one region — five publicly accessible, nationally ranked courses within 25 miles, anchored by one of the most decorated golf facilities in the country.
Whether you're planning a multi-round stay at PGA Village or just looking for a quality local round at St. Lucie Trail, there's a legitimate option at almost every budget.
Book early, time your visit around the season, and you'll get a lot more course for your money.
