The "Secret" Beach at Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton, Bermuda

After our day at Riddell's Bay, hubby and I went back to the cruise ship. The pool areas were crowded with screaming children and tipsy adults, and I longed for a quiet place to relax in the sun. We had a map of Bermuda that marked beaches with pink splotches, and we noticed that three pink splotches flanked the Port Royal Golf Course, where we had a tee time the next day. It appeared that you could literally walk off the 18th hole and dive right into the ocean. I decided to wear my tankini under my golf clothes for the round, so I could be ready for a post-golf beach adventure.

Port Royal Golf Course was host to the PGA Grand Slam of Golf from 2009 to 2014, so its layout may look familiar to television viewers. Greens fees are $150 per player, and sometimes they have a special deal offering free rental clubs to cruise ship passengers.

The course is strikingly tournament-class, though it still has a tropical island charm. The golf attendants wear crisp white uniforms, which gives them a naval vibe. The rental club selection consisted of late-model TaylorMade Burners, with a choice of ladies flex, regular men's flex and stiff flex shafts. Hubby chose stiff flex, while I opted for the regular men's flex, without realizing that the irons were heavy steel shafts. But the driver and woods had graphite shafts, so I fared okay.

The practice area includes driving mats facing the ocean. If you can hit one that makes a splash, pat yourself on the back.

The first hole is a long drive downhill. The guy in the maintenance truck on the right seemed quite confident in our abilities.

Here's a shot of where hubby's ball landed, taken once we got down the hill.

I could sense immediately that I might be taking more photography shots than golf shots during this round.

The ocean is, like, everywhere on this course. Here's an amazing view of my ball on a green, with some seriously aqua blue waves. How's a girl supposed to make a putt with that in the background?

Here's the same view but taken horizontally, suitable for framing. I think I'll enlarge this one and put it over my couch in the basement.

Port Royal is a hilly course, like Riddell's Bay on steroids.

I didn't make a single par during the round. I blame the distracting ocean views.

From every vantage point, you can see that this is a course made for television.

As if the ocean weren't enough, occasionally there were inland water features to contend with, too.

But the 16th par 3 is a jaw-dropper. If your ball goes in the water, you're almost jealous of it.

The slope on the 18th makes it look much longer than it actually is.

After the round, hubby and I asked one of the uniformed staff about the beaches we saw on the map. Of the three, he said Whitney Bay is a private beach for the cottage residents and Pompano Beach is very small and more of a water sports beach. But West Whale Bay is public. He said he'd drive us there in a golf cart.

I'd worn my bathing suit under my golf clothes, but hubby had to change into swim trunks at the clubhouse. After that, the staffer drove us in a golf cart down to the 14th hole and showed us the way.

The "secret beach" is off of the 14th green, which has houses along the border.

The beach path is hard to spot, but if you follow one of the white hazard posts, you'll see that there is a path.

Here's a shot of hubby on the steep path, which I snapped on the way out. On the way in, I was trying to keep my balance and prevent myself from getting caught in the prickly stuff.

Once down the steep but short footpath, you'll see a narrow road. The ocean is in sight.

The beach is part of West Whale Bay Park, a tiny grass field with a park bench and a brick shack with restrooms. You can also get here by taxi (from the island's main thoroughfare, Middle Road, take Whale Bay Road). But if you're golfing at the Port Royal, walking off the 14th green is the way to go.

Beyond the sign, follow the path to the beach.

It's a small beach, but perfect in size just for two, with no one else around.

The sand is white, not pink like other Bermuda beaches. But the water is clear as far as the eye can see.

Hubby and I stripped off our golf clothes and took a dip. After a tough round in the hot sun, ahhhhhh!

We stayed almost an hour, till the tide showed signs of coming in and hubby got pinched on the foot by a crab. If I had it to do over, I would have planned a morning round, so we'd have more time to spend on this wonderful little beach. The next day, we'd visit Horseshoe Bay and Church Bay, which were on the beaten path and crowded with cruise tourists. Nothing would compare to the seclusion and calm waters of West Whale Bay.

It was about 5:30pm when we decided to head back. I threw on my pink cover-up dress over my swimsuit and hubby put his golf shirt back on. The course was empty by now, but drenched in a warm afternoon glow. As we walked slowly back through the course, hubby found several errant golf balls, including a Titleist he'd lost.

From the clubhouse, we called for a taxi to take us back to the dockyard. But we paused for one last look at the course.

I don't know if I'll ever get a chance to return to Bermuda, but if I do, this day definitely deserves a replay.