Photo By Jason Bortz | A.C. Read Golf Course, located on Naval Air Station Pensacola along Bayou Grande, is...... read more read more
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by ENS Frank Bell
NAS Pensacola - A.C. Read Golf Course, located on Naval Air Station Pensacola along Bayou Grande, is one of the top courses in the area. Built originally as an 18-hole course, today it offers a total of 45 holes with both regulation and executive courses.
First constructed in 1942, A.C. Read Golf Course was built to support the Sailors and Marines stationed at NAS Pensacola. It is named after Albert Cushing Read, who was in the first class of aviators to graduate at NAS Pensacola in 1915 as Naval Aviator number 24.
The construction of the course was also intended to serve as a firebreak in the case an aircraft went down during either takeoff or landing at Sherman Field. The fairways gave pilots options to land if they were to have an engine failure near the airfield. The firebreak was much more relevant when the course was first constructed because the accident case rate was much higher during the early 20th century when naval aviation was first starting out.
Throughout the years, the course has continually been expanded and renovated. The last expansion in 1988 added nine holes to the regulation course. Captain Bill Dickson, retired, was the commanding officer of the base at the time of the last expansion.
When asked about the expansion, Dickson explained they “added 9 holes to accommodate for an increase of Sailors that were coming through NAS Pensacola at the time.”
One of the main renovators of the course was Jerry Pate, a former player on the Professional Golfers’ Association Tour and U.S. Open winner. The course now has three 9-hole regulation courses along with an 18-hole executive course. The regulation courses include Bayou, Bayview, and Lakeview while the executive course is named Oaks. Bayou, Bayview, and Lakeview can be played in 18-hole combinations that range anywhere from 5,400 to 6,600 yards long and Oaks is a par-60 that plays between 4,000 to 4,300 yards. Much of the executive course was built on top of the original course and it still includes some of the original fairways.
A.C. Read Golf Course is open daily from 7 a.m. to sundown. Some of the amenities they offer include club and cart rentals, punch cards, a driving range, practice greens, lessons, club repair, and re-gripping.
If you are feeling hungry, the course also features Oaks Restaurant and Lounge for breakfast and lunch options. Oaks Restaurant is open daily from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and they also offer full-service catering options for parties, receptions, and meetings.
The course is definitely worth checking out and this time of year is a great time to go. After all, a bad day of golf is always better than a good day at work. For more information on the A.C. Read Golf Course visit https://www.navymwrpensacola.com.
| Date Taken: | 09.19.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 09.19.2022 15:14 |
| Story ID: | 429637 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 432 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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