Stoneybrook Golf & Country Club, just off 8801 Stoneybrook Blvd., is a semi-private facility that's played mostly by member-residents who live in homes or condominiums bordering many of the fairways of its 18-hole championship course.

Before I teed it up, I knew I was in for a treat, because the course architect Arthur Hills is one of the best in the business, having designed such fine "tracks" as Quail West in Naples. Still, what surprised me about Stoneybrook is how challenging it is, even though it measures a mere 6,146 from the white tees and features very few treacherous bunkers. The reasons it's such a good test? A wind blowing off the Gulf of Mexico frequently finds its way to the course, the fairways are quite narrow and the greens quite small, and Hills has a great imagination when it comes to designing a hole.

On the front side, I particularly like holes two and six, both par threes. Trees hug the right side of these holes, running from tee to green, so even low-handicap golfers are intimidated. Furthermore, number two features a sand trap left of the green while number six has a water hazard down the left side. Therefore, standing on the tee you feel somewhat trapped, knowing the ideal shot is the toughest shot in golf to hit: a straight shot.

My favorite hole on the back nine is number 13; it's 416 yards in length (442 from the blue tees) and ranked the second most difficult on the scorecard. This hole turns sharply right, so you must shape the ball off the tee. And if you hit a short drive and land in rough, you'll probably score bogie. I say that knowing you'll likely have to hit a long iron or fairway-metal club for your second shot, and thus will probably not be able to stop the ball on the small green.

Stoneybrook's golf amenities include a dynamite driving range that features multiple target greens, a well-manicured putting green, and a long practice bunker with pure white sand that resembles the type on the course. This first-class country club also boasts a pool and tennis courts and dining facilities open to the public.

Bob Biroscak, the club's PGA professional, made a point of telling me about Stoneybrook's award-winning Sunday brunch. So even if you're a non-golfer, you can literally get a taste of the good life here.

Stoneybrook Golf & Country Club

8801 Stoneybrook Blvd.

(941) 966-1800

The Lingo

Just in case you're a golfer who prefers to play a variety of Sarasota's superb public courses, rather than join a private country club and play only on your home course with the same group, you'd better be up on golf lingo. The reason: There's a good chance that, sooner rather than later, you'll be paired with one or more experienced golfers who talk Golf-speak, the language of the links. Let me help you brush up on your vocabulary so you can comprehend what these players are talking about, or even join in on the conversation.

Angle of attack: The steeper angle or plane of the downswing, when the club descends into the ball.

Block: A wild shot hit well right of target.

Cast: To release the club early by unhinging the right wrist too soon on the downswing (much like a fisherman does when casting his line and bait).

Carry: Distance measured from the place where the club contacts the ball to the point it first hits the ground.

Hole-out: Hitting the ball into the hole from anywhere on the course.

In-the-leather: A putt that lies no farther from the hole than the length of the leather wrapping on a putter is considered to be "in the leather," and is usually conceded.

Lip: The front edge of the hole.

Over-clubbing: Hitting too strong a club into the green (i.e., a pitching wedge instead of a sand wedge).

Provisional: A ball played after a previous shot is perceived to be lost.

Under-clubbing: Not hitting a strong enough club on an approach shot. Example: hitting a lob wedge instead of a sand wedge.

Wind-cheater: A low shot that bores through a headwind.

Winning Tips

PGA Tour player and Bradenton resident Paul Azinger is famous in our part of the world. Azinger, who plays at Bradenton Country Club, Sara Bay, and Gator Creek, has a street named after him near the Bobby Jones Complex.

Among his peers on tour, Azinger is famous for another reason: hitting wedge shots that fly low into a headwind, land next to the hole, and stop dead. When playing golf on a windy day, here's how to hit this shot like "Zinger."