
Esplanade Course
Esplanade at Azario Lakewood Ranch

About this course
Esplanade at Azario Lakewood Ranch is a Chris Wilczynski design situated within the master-planned community of Lakewood Ranch in Manatee County, Florida. The course serves a residential development that is part of the broader Esplanade series of communities developed across Florida. Wilczynski, who has designed numerous courses throughout the state, typically works with the region's characteristic flat terrain and incorporates water features, native vegetation, and strategic bunkering to create definition and challenge. The layout reflects the design approach common to modern Florida residential golf, where playability for a range of skill levels is balanced with enough strategic interest to engage regular members. The course navigates through the community's residential neighborhoods and natural areas, with water hazards appearing on multiple holes as both aesthetic elements and scoring factors. Native grasses and preserved wetlands provide environmental buffers and frame many playing corridors. As an amenity course within a private residential community, Esplanade at Azario serves primarily the residents of the development. The club facilities support the neighborhood lifestyle, with the golf course functioning as a central recreational and social feature. The setting in Lakewood Ranch places it within one of the region's most established master-planned communities, located inland from the Gulf Coast between Sarasota and Bradenton.
Rankings
Ranked by CV ratings from golfers who've played this course. Positions are shown worldwide, by country, and by state; the Public column compares courses anyone can play.
Best in World
Best in USA
Best in FL
Quick facts
- Location
- Lakewood Ranch, FL, USA
- Access
- Public
- Year built
- 2020
- Holes
- 18
- Designer
- Chris Wilczynski
- Par
- 72
- Length
- 7,007 yards
- Difficulty
- 73.1/128
- Course Vaults score
- 7.7
Getting there
The journey to Esplanade at Azario Lakewood Ranch begins at either Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport (SRQ), a swift twenty-minute drive to the northeast, or Tampa International Airport (TPA), roughly forty-five minutes north via Interstate 75. The approach south from Tampa or east from the coast traces the gentle transition from Gulf shoreline to Florida's interior ranch country, where sprawling master-planned communities have transformed former cattle pastures into meticulously landscaped enclaves. As you exit onto Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, the landscape opens into wide, palm-lined boulevards and preserved wetlands, signaling arrival into one of the region's most ambitious residential developments - and the private gates of Esplanade at Azario, where the clubhouse awaits amid serene lakefront vistas.

FAQ
Common questions about Esplanade
Ratings, design, and course details pulled from Course Vaults.
Esplanade has a Course Vaults score of 7.7 out of 10 based on 27 logged golfers.
Esplanade was designed by Chris Wilczynski.
Yes. Esplanade is listed as welcoming public or guest play on Course Vaults.
Par at Esplanade is 72.
Esplanade plays 7,007 yards from the back tees on Course Vaults.
The slope rating at Esplanade is 128.



