have done it ourselves some time ago (Steph and I), but we didn't. I’m glad someone else did it though, and did it with more pizzazz than we would have. So what’s the “it?” A first class driving range right here in Fort Myers.
Wait, I owe the owners (Jim St. Germain and company) an apology. Alico Family Golf (AFG) is not a driving range, it is, in fact, a complete “golf practice facility,"
replete with a snazzy mini golf course that delights both young and, uh, not so young (Why not bring the grandkids?). AND, it has disability access!
But that’s not nearly all! You can get custom fitted for any club or series of clubs, get fitted for a golf ball to suit your game, take private or group lessons, drop in for a
clinic, join a golf club for handicap purposes, grab a bite to eat, slurp down a beverage or two, cool off or watch TV in the pristine clubhouse, or simply just sit outside and enjoy the ambience.
The point is that about the only golf-related thing that you can’t do at Alico Family Golf is to play 9 or 18 holes of “real” golf. But sometimes you just need that little tune up, and all you have is an hour or two, and there just is no better place anywhere near Fort Myers to do it than Alico Family Golf.
Seriously, if you are a beginner or wannabe golfer, clinics start with the very basics, like rules and etiquette (don’t you wish everyone took this clinic?), and moves through full swing, bunker play (which I need), and course management. As I look at the list, I realize that I could do every clinic offered and learn something to better my game.
Just want to hit balls on one of the 60 grass tee boxes, or one of the 10 covered hitting bays? You can do that all day with small to jumbo baskets, or you can get yourself an Advantage Card. Oh yeah, get an Advantage Card with more than $50 on it, and AFG will add up to $125 cash to it! You cannot be serious! Oh sorry, that’s tennis.
I can see myself spending some serious time on the putting green, working on that consistency from 10 feet in. I know they'll have to replace a ton of sand in the practice bunker when I'm through, and I'm gonna love chipping up to the elevated chipping green.
In any event, in case you don’t get the picture from my ramblings, you can click here for actual pictures, or you can hop on down to Alico Family Golf and see for yourself
if I have come close to what’s available for all golf-interested parties. Whether you’re deadly serious about your golf or merely want some serious golf fun, AFG has something for you.
Me? I’m looking forward to the end of April when my down time starts, and I can start swinging the clubs again. Being off of Alico on Lee Road, it’s a little bit of a hike for me, but it is hike that will be worth it!
I'm sure the courteous and knowledgeable staff at AFG can answer any questions you might have (239-334-4653, but if you want to head down there, they are at 16300 Lee Road. Just tell 'em T. A. Sent ya.
Grip it and rip it...T. A.
