Banyan Cay Golf Club & Resort

The Eagle Course at Banyan Cay Golf Club & Resort in West Palm Beach is a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design that reflects the architect's approach to creating strategic, playable golf within South Florida's flat terrain and subtropical environment. Jones, who established his reputation for routing courses that emphasize options and risk-reward decision-making, worked with the natural landscape to incorporate water features, native vegetation, and elevation changes modest by regional standards but meaningful in context. The course layout takes advantage of the property's wetlands and preserves, with water coming into play on multiple holes and requiring thoughtful club selection and course management. Jones typically designed with multiple tee boxes to accommodate different skill levels, and the Eagle Course follows this philosophy, offering varied yardages that make the layout accessible while maintaining challenge for accomplished players. Bunkers are positioned to frame landing areas and greenside approaches, and the greens themselves feature contouring that rewards accurate iron play. West Palm Beach's golf landscape includes numerous resort and daily-fee courses serving both residents and visitors, and Banyan Cay operates within this competitive market as a facility offering golf alongside resort amenities. The setting is characteristic of inland South Florida golf—palm trees, tropical plantings, and water management systems that double as hazards. The course provides a straightforward test of accuracy and strategy rather than attempting dramatic heroics, consistent with Jones's design principles during the era when Florida resort golf was expanding rapidly.