Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
356
and narrow fairways present ample challenges. Water provides obstacles on 12 of the 18
holes at
Rocky Point Golf Course,
4151 Dana Shores Dr. (
&
813/673-4316
), located
between the airport and the bay. It's a par-71 course with a pro shop, practice range, and
putting greens. On the Hillsborough River in north Tampa, the
Rogers Park Golf
Course,
7910 N. 30th St. (
&
813/673-4396
), is an 18-hole, par-72 championship
course with a lighted driving and practice range. All of the courses are open daily from
7am to dusk, and lessons and club rentals are available.
You can book starting times and get information about these and the area's other
courses by calling
Tee Times USA
(
&
800/374-8633;
www.teetimesusa.com).
If you want to do some serious work on your game, the
Arnold Palmer Golf Acad-
emy World Headquarters
is at Saddlebrook Resort, 5700 Saddlebrook Way, Wesley
Chapel, 12 miles north of Tampa (
&
800/729-8383
or 813/973-1111; www.saddle
brookresort.com). Half-day and hourly instruction is available, as well as 2-, 3-, and
5-day programs for adults and juniors. You have to stay at the resort or enroll in the golf
program to play at Saddlebrook. See p. 360 for more information.
For course information online, go to www.golf.com or www.floridagolfing.com; or call
the
Florida Sports Foundation
(
&
850/488-8347
) or
Florida Golfing
(
&
866/833-
2663
).
SPECTATOR SPORTS
Major-league baseball fans were thrilled when the
Tampa Bay
Devil Rays
made it to the World Series against Philly in 2008. Although they lost, the
games remain a hugely popular draw for sports fans flocking to Tropicana Field, 1
Tropicana Dr., St. Petersburg (
&
727/825-3250
). Tickets range from as low as $10 to
as high as in the hundreds, depending on how good their season is. In 2009, the Rays
moved to a new spring trailing facility in Port Charlotte.
New York Yankees
fans can watch the Bronx Bombers during baseball's spring train-
ing, from mid-February to the end of March, at
George Steinbrenner Field
(
&
813/
879-2244
or 813/875-7753; www.steinbrennerfield.com), opposite Raymond James
Stadium. This scaled-down replica of Yankee Stadium is the largest spring-training facil-
ity in Florida, with a 10,000-seat capacity. Tickets are $10 to $20. The club's minor-
league team, the
Tampa Yankees
(same contact info), plays at Legends Field April
through August.
National Football League fans can catch the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
at the modern,
66,000-seat Raymond James Stadium, 4201 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., at Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr., Boulevard (
&
813/879-2827;
www.buccaneers.com), August through Decem-
ber. Single-game tickets are very hard to come by, as they are usually sold out to the
plethora of season-ticket holders. This is a huge football city!
The National Hockey League's
Tampa Bay Lightning,
winners of the 2004 Stanley
Cup, play in the St. Pete Times Forum starting in October (
&
813/301-6500;
www.
tampabaylightning.com). You can usually get single-game tickets ($19-$349) on game day.
The only thoroughbred racetrack on Florida's west coast is
Tampa Bay Downs,
11225
Racetrack Rd., Oldsmar (
&
800/200-4434
in Florida, or 813/855-4401; www.tampa
downs.com), home of the Tampa Bay Derby. Races are held from December to May ($2
general admission, $3 clubhouse), and the track presents simulcasts year-round. Call for
post times.
TENNIS
Sharpen your game at the
Hopman Tennis Program,
at the Saddlebrook
Resort (p. 360). You must be a member or a guest to play here.
10
