A Sunday in Ocala: Golf at Baseline and Lunch at Flying Boat

Sometimes it’s nice to get outside The Villages and try something a little different.

This wasn’t our first trip to Ocala for this combination. We’ve paired Baseline Golf Course with lunch at Flying Boat before, and this time about two dozen of us made the trip together.

Last Sunday, we started with golf at Baseline Golf Course, followed by lunch and drinks at Flying Boat Tap Room.

Neither place was new to everyone in the group, but putting the two together worked well for a Sunday outing.

Golf at Baseline Golf Course

Baseline is a little different from the golf we usually play around The Villages.

It’s considerably shorter than a traditional championship course, measuring 3,604 yards from the blue tees and playing to a par 64. There are no par 5s, with plenty of par 3s along with a handful of par 4s.

Even with the shorter layout, it doesn’t feel like an ordinary short course. Several holes are particularly pretty, with mature trees, flowers, landscaped areas and water features throughout the property.

The most unusual feature comes after the fourth hole.

Baseline gives you 19 holes to play. Between holes 4 and 5 is “Lucky 13,” a bonus island-green par 3. If you play Lucky 13 well, you can use that score in place of your worst hole of the round.

It’s an unusual addition and one of the things we remembered most about the course.

Our cost was $86 for two golfers, or $43 per person.

If you’re looking for a demanding championship layout, this probably isn’t that kind of round. We found Baseline relaxed, attractive and noticeably different from the courses we normally play around The Villages.

Then It Was Off to Flying Boat

After golf, our group headed to Flying Boat Tap Room.

We had made a reservation ahead of time, which helped with a group our size. They seated all of us together in a room toward the back, with plenty of TVs around the space.

We’ve been to Flying Boat before. On this visit, it was much as we remembered it: casual and lively, with plenty of room for our group to sit together after golf.

Beer is a big part of the selection. There were plenty of choices when we visited, and flights were available for anyone who wanted to sample several.

One of our favorites from previous visits has been the smoked wings. We didn’t get a photo of them this time, but based on those earlier visits, they’re something we’ve ordered and enjoyed more than once.

What We Ordered at Flying Boat

With a group this large, quite a bit of the menu ended up scattered around our tables.

There were burgers, sandwiches, salads, shrimp tacos, mac and cheese and other dishes. I didn’t hear any complaints from our group, although with this many people and this many different orders, this was more of a chance to see the range of the menu than to compare everything closely.

Some of the portions were substantial.

The Grande Salad was $18, and the wooden bowl that arrived at the table was enormous. Based on what we saw, it was easily enough salad for several people.

Another substantial order was the chicken salad, piled with grilled chicken, cucumbers, tomatoes, cheese and other toppings.

The TimmieToppie burger was $23. It can also be ordered without the bun, which is how we had it, with coleslaw on the side.

A cheesesteak was another of the heartier choices that made its way to our table.

Would We Do This Day Trip Again?

Yes.

Baseline isn’t a long or especially difficult golf course, but that wasn’t really what we were looking for on this trip. We liked the landscaping, the relaxed round and the unusual Lucky 13 bonus hole.

Our experience at Flying Boat was also consistent with previous visits. We enjoyed the beer selection and food, and the restaurant was able to keep our group of about two dozen seated together.

Put the two stops together, and it was an easy day away from The Villages without turning Sunday into a major road trip.

For us, that was really the appeal: somewhere different to play, followed by a casual place where a fairly large group could sit down together for lunch afterward.