Source: http://carolinagolfreviews.com/review.php?uid=1
Timestamp: 2019-04-26 06:04:37+00:00

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My review may be slightly biased by my score. I shot a career best 73 with 4 birdies. I was a little worried before I teed off because the putting green was not in great shape. The greens on the course were fine though. Not perfect but they rolled pretty well and I was able to make some putts. Some were tricky to read as the bermuda blades have dried out in the summer heat. Tees and fairways were fine. I was only in 2 bunkers and they had no issues. The rough in a few places was pretty penalizing and deep enough you might not find your ball unless you step on it (raises hand). I won't say too much though because the thick rough kept one errant tee shot in play for me. This course is very reasonably priced and now has tee times online. The starter was friendly and offered to let me go off #10 as a single so I wouldn't be held up. I ran into a maintenance worker on several holes who was filling fairway divots with sand and generally checking things out. That was good to see. Nick Jacobi runs a great course and you should check it out when you can!
Conditions were fine - especially compared to other public courses in Charlotte right now. However... Charlotte National is replacing their 20 year old bent grass greens with Bermuda in July. So they will be killing off the bent grass in June and going to a reduced rate as they die off and are replaced with Bermuda. Then they will offer temporary greens in July while the new greens grow in. So you've probably got another 2-3 weeks to play the course as is. If I get out there to practice in the next month, I'll post another update.
My first time back at Charles T in a long while. I have great memories of playing here a bunch over 15 years ago when I had an annual membership. The course still feels and plays the same. I only got to play the back 9 today as I came out after work. There was not another soul on the back 9 though so it was a leisurely round - big thanks to the pro shop for telling me to play the back. Course conditions were pretty good. 90% of the green surfaces were nearly perfect, but several had some bumpy bare spots - I noticed it on 10, 11 and 17 the most. Everything else was just fine. I'll be back out soon to play the entire 18!
I wanted to get a late afternoon round in on Labor Day and most courses were packed. This course is 5 minutes from my house so I took a chance, knowing conditions have not been good. Well somehow The Divide managed to not meet even my low expectations. The greens were atrocious. They *averaged* a 3 out of 10 -- meaning several were virtually unplayable due to long grass, sand and rough spots. Several bunkers were unplayable due to mud and dried riverbed condition. Fairways and rough were thick and not recently mowed. Tee boxes had also not been cut recently. The course looked very neglected. I fear for the future of this course, to be honest. We've seen Regent Park close a neighborhood course and turn it over to developers. The same could happen here if they don't spend money to get it back to playable condition. The best thing I can say about my round is that Kent in the pro shop was very nice and told me I could start on the back 9 so my pace of play would be good. That was very much appreciated!
I've been playing the Sifford course just about every week on Tuesdays as part of a small work golf league. Looking at the last review from November, I decided I should post an update. I've gotten accustomed to the course now and really appreciate it for what it is -- a friendly, inexpensive, fun place to play. The course itself is kept in good shape. The bermuda greens are pretty consistent -- they've been kept at normal speeds, maybe even a little on the slow side, but they could easily cut them a little lower and make them lightning quick. So it's a good idea to stroke some putts on the practice green before playing. The course is only 9 holes but offers a good mix of challenges. It plays to beginners as well as seasoned golfers. It can play short, even from the back tees, but makes up for that with doglegs, elevation changes and a few undulating, sloped greens. I managed to shoot even par for 9 holes in my round today. So I definitely think your scores and appreciation for the course will improve as you play it more. The pro shop is very friendly and accommodating -- the beer selection and prices are the best around the local golf courses. And the practice area is extensive, one of the best public facilities for practice and learning in the area.
This was a tale of two nines. The front nine caters to members, walkers and families. So even teeing off at 4:15, it was a very slow front 9. The front 9 is also the more difficult nine with small tricky greens and elevation changes that can make it difficult to get a good lie. I breezed through the back 9 in about 75 minutes with almost no one playing the full 18. I came within inches of an eagle on #12. All in all I had a fun round and the course was just how I remember it and expected it to be. The greens will not make a mark so they are all in good shape and rolling quick. And man was it cheap for a Sunday afternoon!
My first time getting out to Mooresville to see the renovated layout and new amenities. The clubhouse is complete and open, though the snack area and restaurant were not fully functional yet. The practice facility is as advertised and very extensive. I made a tee time the night before and got a decent weekend afternoon rate. I loved the course! It's in great shape. The bermuda greens are very challenging but very consistent. With 5 par-5's and par-3's and a couple of short par 4's, scoring opportunities abound. It definitely helps to have some local knowledge to pick good targets, especially on approaches into these young greens -- which don't hold approaches very well. There are some picturesque holes and quirky ones (be careful with your approach into #4!). Conditions were pretty immaculate tee-to-green, but don't venture off the first cut of rough. I lost two balls in thick pampass grass/weeds just off the cart paths on two holes, which was very frustrating. The beverage cart was out on the course and we saw it frequently - which seems to be a lost art these days with other courses. All in all this is course that's worth the long drive for me (50+ min) and I will make the trip again soon!
As with other bent grass greens around town, Charlotte National's are having some issues. Several had bumps and bare spots, while almost all suffered from unrepaired ball mark scars. While green speeds were still good, well stroked putts could bump offline and that was occasionally frustrating. The rest of the course was in good shape. This course remains one of the best golfing values around town and the pro shop guys are the nicest around.
This remains one of my favorite courses, especially the back 9 -- on which I broke par for the first time in my life. :-P The greens were immaculate. They simply don't mark up and roll really well. Tees, fairways and bunkers were all in fine shape. I know folks complain about the cart paths, but they let you in the fairway pretty early. So it's easy to avoid them for the most part. Late afternoon is a perfect time to play here when it's not very crowded. And $29 is a great deal. Can't recommend this course enough for when you can make the drive out there.
First full round here in a while, though I practice here frequently. The new clubhouse and grill are now open too, making the course feel normal again. I really like the placement of the grill and patio overlooking the 2nd green, 9th green, 10th tee, 14th tee and 18th green. Great view of several holes. The course itself was in good shape. The greens were cut and rolled true and fairly quick. Most had lots of ball marks, but not such a crazy amount that they affected putts. I tried to fix several that were fresh on each hole. The 10th green had an odd blemish near the collar where there looked to be about 6 old cup holes filled in with sand. There were a few muddy and GUR spots, but nothing significant affecting play. All in all, tee to green, it's in really good shape. They've added these red, white and blue posts to most greens. I couldn't quite figure out the purpose - my partners seem to think it was to rest your clubs on. A few times they got in the way and we had to temporarily displace them. I would have been more concerned if I had hit an approach shot that ricocheted badly off of one. So golfer beware. Contrary to my experience at Rocky River the day before, the cart girl was seen early and often throughout our round. Pace of play was good and we had a great holiday round. I've played Emerald Lake more than any other course over the years since I had a membership for 2 seasons. So it's like an old friend to me and I'll come back often.
Olde Sycamore is in good shape. The greens rolled true and didn't have any problems. The bermuda fairways are just starting to yellow for the winter. Leaves are a problem if you're not in the fairway though. I hadn't played in a while but not much has changed. This track is still one of my favorites around town and is kept in good shape.
I only played the front 9 today but I wanted to post a more accurate review than the 2 recently posted. The Divide is very close to my house and I had to all but abandon it years ago when things went bad for the Carolina Trail. While it has come back to be in decent shape, it is nowhere near "perfect" as the previous 2 reviews noted. I found the greens okay, but noted that several were bumpy and had bare spots. In fact, #4 appears to have been vandalized or been the victim of a groundskeeper mistake. It had some track marks in the middle of the green that had been sanded but still affected play. Fairways were good, tee boxes, just okay though. Several had sparse amounts of turf to tee on. And while the bunkers have lots of nice fluffy sand, they were mostly moguls, like a black diamond ski slope. The ones I were in had not been raked at all - I'm guessing in several days. And those were just my observations of playing 9 holes. I can only rate The Divide as an average course around Charlotte and I still rank it last of the 4 closest courses to me -- Olde Sycamore, Charlotte National and Emerald Lake being the other better 3.
My first time back at the Lark since they put in the new(ish) greens. This is such a quirky course. The most unique starting hole in all of Charlotte - I hit 8 iron, 9 iron on the short, uphill par 4. The greens can be maddening now for two reasons - they don't hold approach shots at all and they are silly fast. I saw 3 putts from within 15 feet go right off the green. Bounces everywhere are random and often penalizing - fairway, rough, green, everywhere. Tee boxes were not in great shape either. And the course was packed and play was slow. So overall, I'm not a huge fan of this course. For a short notice round on a Saturday morning though, the $34 price was a good value.
Played a Memorial Day late morning round with my Dad (also his birthday) and got paired with another twosome. The ranger was managing groups well and we had no problem with pace of play. $39 for a holiday morning tee time was great value. The course is in very good shape. The greens in particular were excellent, rolling very quick. It took me a few holes to adjust to their speed -- I've never seen them quicker at Eagle Chase. I was happy to see the bunkers raked since I was in several. They're not perfect around the edges, but the playing areas in the bunkers were very good. By the back 9, the sun came out and the views were spectacular (see my @charlottegolfer instagram for a pic). Eagle Chase is a beautiful course, especially the 11-14 hole stretch. The pro shop team is very friendly and helpful. I really enjoy playing here and will come back often this summer.
Charlotte National is a great value and so I keep coming back, especially days like today where it was a last minute round since the rain stayed away. I got off for $25 after 4pm and the gentleman in the pro shop -- who's been there as long as I've been playing CN -- let me go off 10 as a single to get around quicker. The course was just what I've come to expect from Charlotte National -- fairways, tees and bunkers mostly good with a few issues here and there and really good greens. They do a great job keeping the greens in nice condition -- not super fast but smooth with no issues. I got a comment on my Instagram post saying the majority owner bought out the minority owner to consolidate things, but I'm not sure what effect that will have on the course.
I went out to Emerald Lake as a single around 1:30 Sunday when everyone was out playing in the nice weather. The starter got me out within 20 minutes when the first group with an open spot teed off. Pace of play was decent for a packed course. Conditions-wise, the course is in good shape. It's by no means perfect as the previous reviewer claimed. The course is in a bit of transition, with construction of the new clubhouse finally kicking off. The biggest impact is on hole #2 with a trench recently built for irrigation lines leaving a wide dirt path across the middle of the middle of the fairway about 150-175 yards out from the blue tees. I'm surprised they haven't sodded over it. Tees were in average shape, as were the bunkers. One I hit out of on #7 was hard pan. I noticed several others were in need of some maintenance. The good news was that fairways and greens were in really good shape. The greens were rolling pretty quick. I enjoyed my round and will be back, especially to see the progress on the new clubhouse. It's supposed to be done this fall. Justin Morin, the GM, has been posting updates on the construction. There are renderings of what it will look like posted in the pro shop. I'm really rooting for Emerald Lake because I love the layout -- and the proximity to my house!
Olde Syc is one of my favorite tracks and it is in really good shape right now. Greens were very good and rolled true. Tees, fairways and bunkers were all in really good shape. Got a nice $55 deal for Saturday morning. The ranger was out on the course and keeping the speed of play on track. My only complaint was that a few of the pins were tucked very close to the edges of greens, like only a flagstick length (#6 and #11) -- that was a bit tough for us amateurs.
My first time back at Springfield in many years. Still a challenging track. The course was very green and in good shape. I felt the greens were just okay. No major issues, but it seemed they were protecting the greens by not cutting them very low. So the speeds were average and uneven throughout the 18 holes. The slowness exaggerated the breaks and made putts from outside 5 feet difficult to hole. The other difficulty I had was not remembering the holes and getting surprised by hazards and fairways abruptly ending (#5 and #12). I hit a couple of really good shots only to lose my ball, which was very frustrating. You really have to know the course or play with someone who knows it to navigate the blind shots successfully. All in all, this is still a good course that I will come back to play again.
The front 9 was closed for greens aerification today and the back 9 will be tomorrow. So I played the back 9 twice, which made for a unique round. With aerification tomorrow as well as recent rains, the tees and fairways had not been mowed so they were little fluffier than normal. A few bunkers were also still in rough shape (especially the greenside bunker on 17), but should get fixed up tomorrow. The only other issue to note was that last week's flooding rains took out the bridge from the 18th tee to the fairway. So the detour from your tee shot to your second shot required a long ride alongside the 16th hole, down one street of the neighborhood and around the green at 18 back to the fairway. I told you it was a unique round of golf. GM Justin Morin says the bridge should be fixed this week and the greens will heal in about 2 weeks. He also said the course is set up nicely for the cooler Fall weather. I tend to agree. Despite the mostly hot, dry summer, the greens were still running well and there were no issues on the fairways or rough. Give Emerald Lake a couple of weeks and it should be in fine shape. Thanks to Tony and Shannon for letting me join them for these fun 18 holes today.
I ventured out to Eagle Chase on a mid-Sunday afternoon for my first round here since last season. I really enjoy the layout and it's very reasonably priced ($24 this afternoon). I was surprised to see recent reviews complain about the greens. I literally could not find a bad spot on any of them. They are immaculate. They were very consistent and rolled true. Speed seemed fine to me. There are many sloped greens so the uphill putts are certainly slow, but those downhillers are quick. So it seemed about right to me. The bunkers I was in were in fine shape, though some players had not raked after playing them. The rough is definitely hazardously thick, but I didn't think it was unfair. My only frustration today was with pace of play. Even though my round was relatively fast overall and several groups let me play through, there was no marshal and really no guidance from the pro shop about who would tee off when. So the first 7 holes were very slow as we had to sort it out ourselves.
I used my free Sunday afternoon to make the hour's drive out to Tillery Tradition and play it for the first time. I got there early and enjoyed a nice $15 Sunday brunch at Eagle's Nest. The driving range had multiple tiers and even tees off to the left side where you could practice shorter distances to the short target pins for wedge practice. The staff in the pro shop was friendly and helpful. There are plenty of water stations and restrooms conveniently located around the course, but I was disappointed there was no beverage cart on a brutal 95 degree Sunday afternoon. So how about the course. Well... it's a challenging layout with most holes including some kind of dogleg (unfortunately for my game most of them were dogleg rights) and significant slopes and hills to navigate. You will get many sidehill, downhill and uphill lies, even in the fairway. Tees were fine. Bunkers seemed fine. Alas, the greens. They are bentgrass and I'm sure they keep them a bit longer and slower during the summer to save them. So slow speeds were one issue. The bigger issue was that most greens (almost every one on the back side) had many bare spots with no grass at all. A handful of holes had several areas on the green where they would not be able to put a pin because of the damage. At least one of the pins today was near the problem area, but in most cases the staff did a good job of keeping the bad spots out of play. One green (#3) had significant weeds growing on it, which you had to putt through. Given the sporadic nature of the green issues, I wouldn't call it a huge problem, but I was disappointed to be sure. It was a long drive to get there, I paid $40 and was excited to finally play the course. I won't go back until I hear that the greens are in better shape.
My first time at Ballantyne this year. The course was in near perfect shape, as usual. This is a pricey round of golf, but you get private course conditions. The greens are among the fastest in the area -- definitely tops for any public course -- and they can be maddening. My partner and I just had to laugh at a few putts that took a break and rolled well past the hole more than a few times. If your chipping and putting is not on here, you will have a frustrating round. The greens are pretty much immaculate though -- it's just the crazy quickness, slopes and undulations. Tee to green, the course has no peer right now from a public play perspective. The rough is lush and thick -- be sure to watch your shots til they finish. You may way to walk right over your ball to find it in the rough. The only hole with some issues is #8. Always cart-path only, they are still having difficulty sodding the fairway near the green. I found myself in this area and while it was supposed to be fairway, it was thick like rough since it had not been mowed. They need to mark it as Ground Under Repair in my opinion. That was my only complaint (outside of my struggles on the greens). This course is a treat to play every once in a while.
I emailed the day before to get the okay to be first out as a single Thursday morning. That was no problem. There ending up being one twosome that got out ahead of me by a few minutes but I played thru them on the 4th hole. So smooth sailing. The staff has done a lot of tree and brush clearing between the driving range and #2 hole -- which I think will be good and bad. Good in the sense that it's more open and you'll have a better chance to escape if you are in the trees on the left. On the other hand, it will bring the driving range into play if you go left at all, along with all the practice balls. There weren't any other course changes that I noticed. I played really well so I didn't get to see much of the course off the fairway. I did play from a few fairway bunkers though and they were just okay -- hadn't been manicured by the staff like the greenside bunkers -- which were really good. Speaking of the staff, they were helpful and friendly, including the mowers and rakers I played through. The tees were in good shape as were the fairways. I would give the greens a B+/A-. A few did have some sand leftover from the small spikes they used a week or two ago -- I only noticed the spike holes on one hole (#14). Overall, the greens rolled true and had good speed. I made several putts and had no complaints, even with a few stray ballmarks I had to fix. Emerald Lake's in good shape right now so I'll be back soon.
Back at my favorite course for the first time in a while. This is the best conditioned public course I've played around town this year. The greens were immaculate, all of them rolling true and quick. The bermuda greens don't show too many marks but there were a few that needed to be tamped down as lazy golfers weren't fixing them. Tees were very good. Fairways were also very good, but there may have been one or two (#15 comes to mind) that still had some thinness or dead areas. Bunkers were raked and dry. I got out for a Clickit deal at $27 and the course was pretty empty at 5:30. I got around in under 3 hrs. I can always count on Red Bridge for a great round at a great price and this was no exception.
Played Tradition with some old friends on Saturday morning. We had two groups and played best ball in our groups. So I'll couch this review with the caveat that I probably did not get to sample conditions outside of the tees, fairways and greens. It seems like many of the reviews I've read on the site recently have remarked that tee boxes are torn up. I can't remember the last review or even the last round I've played where the tee boxes were any better than average with many in bad shape. Why is it so difficult to maintain grass tee boxes? The ones at Tradition were hit and miss but the majority were spotty, making it difficult to find a good tee spot. The fairways were the big problem, though. Many of them, I'd say more than half, were 50% dead grass -- like the course had "lost" them. So the lies were bare, like hitting off of dirt in many cases. It struck me as very odd. Weather has been pretty favorable recently, but it doesn't look like the fairways are coming back anytime soon. The greens, in contrast, were quite good. I didn't notice any significant issues and my team was able to make putts on just about every green (we birdied 14 of 18 holes!). Putts rolled true with good speed. Overall, I had a good time. The beverage cart made the rounds several times during our play. The pro shop, snack bar and rangers were all nice and helpful. I also like the layout here. The strange poor condition of the fairways and tees just puzzled me. Last comment -- I bought the Queen City Pass for $50 since the first round was free -- this was actually $5 cheaper than paying the $55 fee for a Saturday morning round! You get $10 rack rate and other discounts. So it's a good deal for the former Carolina Trail courses.
Stopped by Charlotte National late Tuesday (5pm) to get in a practice session but figured it would be empty enough to play 18. The pro shop guy only charged me the 9 hole rate thinking I might not be able to get 18 in. I breezed thru 18 in 2.5 hours. At Charlotte National, you get more than you pay for so it's good deal -- especially when you get this kind of super twilight rate. The greens are typically maintained fairly well so they will have good speed and generally roll true. That's still the case. No issues on the greens at all. The aesthetics of the course, however, are where this course is usually lacking and sometimes that spills into the category of poor maintenance. Perhaps the money spent on the new clubhouse (the old trailer clubhouse is gone now btw) took some funds away from keeping the fairways and green fringes weed-free and lush -- the fairway on #4 was pretty bare and splotchy, very little grass -- or keeping the bunkers clear of standing water -- the bunker on #12 had several inches of standing water, yet we've had at least 2 completely dry days recently. The issues affecting play are sparse but the overall feel of the course (pasture-like comes to mind) takes away from its appeal for me. As a comparison, Eagle Chase sometimes gives me this same vibe, but generally is kept in better overall shape. Still, I like the layout at Charlotte National, the course is 5 minutes from my house, it's inexpensive and the staff is friendly. So when I'm in more of a laid-back or practice round type of mood, I will play here. If I want a more refined experience or competitive round, I'd probably play Olde Sycamore or Red Bridge.
For my first round of the new year, I went back to one of my top 5 courses in the area. Got a great price for a morning round on a holiday for some people, though I don't think it was holiday rates. Despite the nice weather, there was apparently still a 40 minute frost delay (9-9:40) and so our tee time was pushed back about 30-40 minutes - however, the pro shop was no help with that. And there was no starter. I mighta thought they would shotgun the start or at least double tee off the back to catch. Nope... Pace of play was brutally slow for 3/4 of the round and no rangers in sight. That's all the bad news. The good news is that the course is just as nice as I remember. Greens in fine shape and very fast (downhill). Tees and fairways were dormant of course and many of the tees were bare dirt in spots, but overall I felt the conditions were good. I just wish they had managed the pace of play better.
My 3rd time here with the new greens. Love 'em. All are pretty much immaculate. Even #12 is now redone and back in shape with the rest of them. The 3 hole stretch of #11-12-13 is one of the most scenic and best risk-reward series of holes around. It's only about 30 minutes for me (would be 25 but Hwy 218 is still closed between me and 601) but I wish it were closer. It's affordable and now in great condition year-round.
First time back in awhile. Great old school layout. Friendly staff with a starter and ranger late on a Sunday afternoon. Lots of juniors on and around the course, good to see. Course was in great shape overall. I do like the "new" greens (been a couple of years but hadn't played since they redid 'em). The ball rolled true and quick but alot of the diabolic slopes are gone, which is a good thing. The course still plays very challenging (the par 3's are all very healthy, 155-185 yds) but pretty fair. I will say that some of the bunkers had such fine-grained sand that I got about the worst buried lie in the face of a green-side bunker as I've ever had. I flew around the course as a single. About my only complaint would be on the price - $45 for a weekend twilight rate is a little on the steep side for Charlotte.
Finally got to play a round here after 2 rainouts in the last month or so. Tough course. Lots of difficult, blind landing area tee shots and many sidehill lies. The hilly terrain and elevation changes tee to green may give you fits. The course is in good shape right now. The fairways were excellent. The greens didn't all look pristine to the eye (some had brown strips here and there), but they all rolled well. No real complaints about conditions. On the 7th green, the ranger asked our group (which was slow) to take extra time at the turn to allow 2 faster groups to overtake us -- which was fine and handled well. I would play here more often if not for the long haul from my end of town.
My first time back at Charles T in several years was like visiting an old friend. I practically learned to play golf here about 12 years ago. I was happily surprised to find it in very good shape. The greens were very good. Very few issues and no problems with ball marks really. It was a late afternoon / early evening round so the greens had gotten a little bumpy, but I wouldn't complain. They are likely faster and smoother for morning rounds. Fairways were lush and nice to play from. I had no problems with tees or bunkers. This course is a high value one - $20 weekday twilight with the Perks card - and it has its quirks. Uneven lies, a few rough tees (#17 has always been that way), and random bounces with weeds/rocks/ditches just off the fairway. The layout is a good mix of easy and tough holes and I've always enjoyed the challenges here. This remains a great, inexpensive place to learn the game, too. There's a 3-hole pitch and putt course here, just like at Renaissance Park. You can play the loop 3 times for about $5 or if you are the only one out there, do what you like. There's also the Impact Performance Golf Learning Center and the $99 Get Golf Ready deal. All in all, a complete golf facility that is helping grow the game of golf in Charlotte.
The greens are just so-so now. So many ballmarks and bumpy spots. A little worried that summer heat may take its toll. The front bunker on #10 was filled with water and had not been touched by the maintenance staff. Everything else seemed fine. For now, though, I'd prefer this course's closest neighbors, Olde Sycamore or Charlotte National.
Course was in good shape. Greens are still fine, though signs of ball marks and summer heat are starting to show -- esp. on green #1. Fairways were very good and freshly mown. Tees and bunkers good. For $25 mid-day when other courses were packed and charging holiday rates, this was a steal. The new clubhouse is nice too. Hot dog, chips and a drink still just $5. Also note the course finally has its own official website.
Playing conditions were very good. I jumped on for a late Sunday afternoon tee time at $38. Not as much of a deal as it used to be, though I could have gotten $5 if I had bought a Clickit coupon ahead of my round. There were 3 groups stacked ahead of me on the tee box, but once I got through the initial foursome on the 3rd hole, I was clear til about the 6th green. Then it was slow going for the final 12 holes. Still only a 4 hour round, but a little frustrating. The greens are in good shape and nary a blemish, yet they are vexing to me -- difficult to read and so fast downhill that there are some impossible greenside shots and pin locations (ex. left of #2 green). Also, yardages are tough to come by on this course other than the 200/150/100 plates in the fairway and on the cart paths. With elevation changes on many holes, it can be tough to get a good number. Not helping me today was the greenskeeper who randomly colored the flags -- they are supposed to indicate front/middle/back, but at least 1/3 of the flags were colored wrong for today's pin location. Sloppy. Overall, this is a good value course but not one of my favorites.
My round started very strangely. Actually before it even started. I drove up about 2 minutes after a small plane crashed near hole #8 (see my pic on Twitter). A dozen or so emergency vehicles arrived within minutes. Apparently all 4 people in the plane made it okay (here's the article). The course asked us to skip #8 and play another hole twice since they had the area taped off and several police cars just off the fairway. I played 2 balls on #9 to cover it. Course conditions for Charlotte National were excellent. The greens were about as good as I've ever played here -- and they compare to the best around town. The fairways were just okay (several had brown patches, #2 and #4 in particular) and there were plenty of dandelions and weeds in the rough, but that's sorta what you get at Charlotte National. And I'm fine with that, especially paying $29 on a Sunday afternoon. Also, their new clubhouse opens on May 19th. I took a peek thru the windows -- going to be nice. Hardwood floors and lots of room for eating/drinking after your round. I will be back very soon to check it out.
My first time back since they redid the greens in Diamond Zoysia last year. I like them. They seem to roll well, maybe just a tad bumpy, but pretty solid. A few of them have some thin spots, though. Hopefully that's not a sign of trouble. The course was in good shape and the $26 deal off their tee time web site (which I grabbed 2 hours before playing) was great for a Saturday afternoon -- can't beat that for a course like this. I do love the layout here and that hasn't changed. Neither have the rough cart paths near some greens. Ha. We ran into a bit of thunderstorm halfway thru (see my pic on Twitter), but it went thru and we went right back it after maybe 20 minutes. The course soaked it up like it hadn't rained in weeks. This course is worth the ride out to Marshville.
Beautiful day for golf, but just so-so conditions to speak of at Emerald Lake. The day started at the driving range where there is no grass to speak of, pretty much bare so you are hitting off dirt. On the course, the tee boxes were similar - bare and had recently been punched. Fairways are still mostly brown and also bare in many spots. The greens are a few weeks out from aeration and they had all been top-dressed with sand. They rolled mostly fine, but the sand slowed things down. On the bright side, they have done some work on a few holes, notably clearing out the brush between what are now holes 7 and 8 (used to be 16 and 17). This will take some of the danger out of the 8th tee shot as it was easy to lose your drive in the thick bushes amongst the trees. Also, they cut back the trees to the front right of the men's tee box on 12 -- which was a good idea. They would almost block the right side of the hole from the tee. All in all the course is just in average shape right now and needs a few more weeks to get in season shape. I was disappointed in the price. $59 rack rate. I had to use a Clickit coupon to get it down to $51 -- which was too much given the winter-like course conditions.
My first round of the new year. Unfortunately conditions were very wet with the heavy rains Thursday and Friday last week. Cart path only and lots of mud puddles in the fairways. I had to take relief in several of the fairways (esp. #11) and in many of them it was difficult to find relief within 25 yards of your ball. None of that is really the course's fault, though it means I wouldn't necessarily choose this course next time after a big storm. The bunkers were also very wet, not necessarily with standing water, but enough where it was difficult to play from them. They had not been raked. One other spot that really bothered me was the tee box on 17 -- mostly mud, little grass. So the best part about the course during my round was the greens. They were in good shape for the season and the wet conditions. They were cut low and rolled pretty consistently throughout. I really like this course and the shape it's kept in. I just happened to hit after a very big rainstorm. The Clickit rate was $46 compared to a rack rate of $52 on the weekends right now.
I played in a scramble here on a Saturday morning. Despite this course being 2 minutes from my house, I rarely play here anymore due mostly to the typical Carolina Trail issues of poor maintenance, green conditions and price. So I went in with low expectations. About all I can say is that it met my expectations. The greens, while some had weeds or bare spots, were cut low and actually rolled fairly well. We only had a few putts disrupted by bad spots. Tees and fairways were okay, nothing terribly bad and nothing spectacular either. The worst part was the bunkers. Now, being in a scramble, we never actually played from a bunker, but the poor conditions were noticeable on every hole. None appeared to have been raked, which meant that many had that dried-up river bed look or actual standing water. On one hole, as we looked from the tee, we could see three different shades/varieties of sand in the fairway and greenside bunkers on the same hole. Needless to say, had I been playing my own ball and had to play from those bunkers, I would not have been happy. I've never particularly enjoyed the layout or aesthetics of this course and with Emerald Lake, Olde Sycamore and Charlotte National within 10 minutes of The Divide, I never have to settle for it. I can't recommend the Divide and would not pay more than $25 to play here.
This is the best round I've enjoyed here, not just from a score perspective but conditions and experience as well. I think the course has finally grown in -- the greens are more receptive, the tee and pin placements seem fairer, and the yardages are marked! All of those are previous complaints of mine. Today conditions were great. A few tee boxes were thin. The sand traps were just okay. Fairways and greens were great and that's what really counts in my eyes. All of the greens were consistently good, not running too slick. And as I said, the course now has yardage plates in the fairways and distances to hazards on the tee boxes. Pace of play was normal and the $39 Clickit coupon was a steal for a Saturday morning round at this course.
Got back to Ballantyne yesterday thanks to a vendor outing. Conditions were perfect. Best shape of any course I've played since last season. Greens were immaculate, rolling well but not ridiculously slick (like they sometimes can be here). The bunkers are some of the nicest in town, with fine, white sand. Tee boxes were about the only thing not perfect with some thin spots, but that's a nit-pick. Fairways were very good. The biggest difference now is that most of the construction around the course is complete. So there are no distractions, no hole re-routing and no ugly mounds of dirt affecting play anymore. Pace of play was great and the halfway house at #10 was well-stocked. Great to see the course whole again. It's pricey but at least back to feeling like a treat when you splurge.
Thought I would take a chance on Larkhaven since a recent review was kind. Bad choice. I was not impressed. There are some good holes here from a challenge and risk/reward perspective but the course conditions give you all sorts of bad lies, bad bounces and difficult putts. So you might shoot 80 and you might shoot 95, depending on your luck. The first hole is the quirkiest one in all of Charlotte -- you can either try your shot at driving the green (it's about 250) or you can hit wedge-wedge. As for conditions, most of the tee boxes were terrible. Fairways were fifty-fifty at best, some okay, some no different from the rough. I do like the bunkers -- nice fluffy sand. Most of the greens were fine -- though the speed is tough to get used to (super slow on anything uphill and average speed downhill). Some had several bare spots. In particular, I was most disappointed with #9. It's supposed to be this picturesque downhill, over water, long par 3, but the tee had no grass at all, just bare dirt. And the green was one of those with bare spots. There are so many quirky holes here -- like #4 with a severely sloped fairway and a perched green. Overall, I was not impressed and won't be back anytime soon.
Course is in great shape tee to green. I took off half a star for the bunkers -- they had some gray sand and were difficult to play from. They no longer have the nice fluffy white sand from years past. From one of my old reviews, I use to think they had the best bunkers in town. No longer. Also, I had a similar experience to what one of the previous reviewers mentioned -- no using stray range balls. We were warming up (this is at 7:00am) and a buddy was finishing his bucket. I noticed a few extra balls from a leftover bucket next to him and so I grabbed a club to hit a few. As I'm walking up, one of the rangers walks past me and scooped up the extra range balls before I got there (didn't say a single word to us). Crazy. Never seen that before at any other course I've ever played. Say what you will about no freebies, but we were talking about 6 or 8 range balls -- what is that about $1.50? It's not like I was up there to practice and sniping all the balls I could to avoid buying a token. I think it's safe to say that's no way to encourage return visits.
I finally got back to Red Bridge after almost 2 years. Other than the routing changes on the front 9, not much has changed -- and that is good and bad. The good is that the course is still very well maintained. The mini-verde greens are in fine shape, as well as the fairways and most tee boxes. There were a few holes where the white tees were up or back (mostly up). I missed all the bunkers so I didn't notice any issues there. Also good was the new routing -- the 412 yard par 4 is a much more logical starting hole than the old one, the 129 yard par 3. On the flip side, however... I was disappointed to see the course is still not well marked. All you get on most holes is the 50 yard markers. There are plenty of sprinklers but 90% of them don't have a yardage. There's also little information on the tees about carry and hazard distances. So if you don't play here often, you can get into trouble with what you think is a good shot (happened to me on #8). I would think by now they would have yardage markers, pictures of the hole on the cart or the tee boxes, some kind of help. While the greens were immaculate in condition, I am not a big fan of the mini-verde grass. There is such a dramatic difference in speed and break on any kind of slope -- very slow uphill and almost unstoppable downhill. With several of the greens severely sloped, there are many unfair places to put the pins and I ran into a few today (front on #5, front on #10, and front on #16). I was also not pleased with the pace of play. I was a single and took 3.5 hours (most places I get around in 2.5 to 3). When I called to check before coming (~3:00), the guy had me make a tee time (for 3:44), took my name and phone number (?), and told me they were clear for 30 minutes around my tee time. Shortly after I got there (3:30), though, not one, but two twosomes somehow get in front of me (never saw them check in). The first was gracious to let me tee off #1 ahead of them, no problem. I caught up to the second group on #3, said hello, but received no offer to play through. I was not in a big hurry so I took my time and played behind them the rest of the front 9. At #9, I hit the clubhouse for some water and when I get to #10 tee, another (!) twosome has jumped in front of me. Why would the clubhouse let them start on #10, with a single on #9? So I played the whole back 9 trailing these 2 twosomes in 95+ temps. Not fun. Overall, I still enjoy the uniqueness of the layout and find it challenging yet rewarding. I just think it is still a little rough around the edges.
Finally, finally, finally made the trip to play Verdict Ridge. Glad I did. The course is a beaut with a couple of the prettiest and most unique holes in Charlotte. It plays like a mountain course with hills, valleys and side hill lies aplenty throughout the 18. The first handful of holes were okay but then things picked up. By the time we reached the scenic #9 (see my photo of it on Twitter @charlottegolfer), I was really digging the layout. 16 is another cool one with giant boulders near the green on the uphill par 5. So layout-wise I was impressed. Conditions-wise, I got the sense it was not as lush or perfect as it usually sounds in the reviews. The front 1/3 of the layout was less than lush, with some bare fairway and tee spots - not bad, just not pristine like I expected. The second 2/3 were better. The greens, while there was nothing wrong with them, seemed slower than I expected, probably about average for most courses. I consistently came up short on the course because the putting green was fast and I'd heard the greens were challenging. I imagine they are when they are running quicker. The staff was friendly and the clubhouse/grill is top notch. The round was pricey (rate is $59 on a Friday afternoon?). The guy gave us the discount card for $10 off when I asked about the rate. That's cool but for the long haul to get there (round trip gas for me was probably $20) and the time of day / conditions, not sure the value is there. I'll be back because I liked the layout and found it very unique to Charlotte.
My first time back at CGL in a while since my experiences and your reviews have varied widely over the last few years. Overall, the course is in good shape. The greens, especially, were solid and cut low and fast with no major issues on any holes. The changes they've made -- I assume to cut down on delays during play -- are not that aesthetically pleasing, since they removed trees and bushes and changed the views, and they've made the course easier. The effect is that about 1/2 of the holes are forgettable and not very challenging (#1, #10, #11, #13, #14, #15 especially). I was surprised the course was not very crowded after 3pm on a Friday and we were able to finish while taking our time. Another thumbs up for the beverage cart which made the rounds several times up til about 6:30pm. All in all, I had low expectations going in and they were exceeded. I won't go out of my way to play here, but it's just so darn convenient and at least now I know the conditions are decent.
I was invited to play here on media day and see the improvements they have made and the shape the new greens are in now. I must say I was impressed. My last experience here back in May was not great because they had just started the construction behind #2 tee and the renovation of #8. While the building construction is still in progress, the #2 tee has been moved closer to the 8th green and now makes the hole play as a more difficult dogleg right. For #8, they have built a new green in front of the creek, shortening the hole and softening the slope of the green. They are still filling in the old temporary green with sod in the middle of the new fairway. So that played as ground under repair. They said the sod should be finished within the week. Everywhere else the conditions were impeccable, especially the new Champion Ultra Dwarf greens. The course recently hosted an LPGA championship and the greens were cut extremely fast -- as fast as any I've ever played. That made the course play more difficult than usual. I realize it was media day and all, but I was treated extremely well by the entire staff and had a great experience. I look forward to going back soon.
My first time here and overall I enjoyed it. The pro shop attendant was very nice and when I asked about the conditions he admitted the greens were in good shape but slower than normal since they can't cut them as low due to the heat. He was right. The greens were all immaculate, but they were slower than I would have liked. The rest of the course conditions were so-so, I thought. It's a little rough around the edges. A few of the tee boxes were bad - #7 stood out. A few fairways had some bad patches or were brown/thin. None of that really affected play much, but it took away from the aesthetics for sure. The layout is challenging but fair. The carts have nice hole layout guides with helpful tips. I would love to come back here when the greens are quicker and the course is more lush. I imagine it's awesome in the spring.
I try to play here when I can, but it's sometimes difficult to get tee times. They get quite a bit of member / local play and don't start tee times until 8am. I kinda feel like an outsider here since I'm not a regular. So I can't say the course / staff is overly welcoming. I did manage to be the first one off today and the lady let me go at 7:45, but several holes were still being watered, well after 8:00 too. So I had to dodge waterfalls on a few holes. The course is in really good shape, but I'm not a huge fan of the greens here. Only one had issues (#12 with bare spots being repaired) and the rest were nicely manicured. The problem is that the greens have a very pronounced grain where your uphill putts are extremely slow, downhill putts fast and almost every putt has alot of break. So it was difficult for me to make even 5-10 footers consistently. Tees, fairways and bunkers were all in good shape and I do enjoy the layout (which should play really easy, but there are some tricky holes and OB stakes). Fore warning -- they are aerating the greens over the next couple of weeks. So it may be late June before you want to come back if you don't get out there in the next week.
Not my favorite course, but it's the closest course to my house (<5 min) that I play it once or twice a year for variety's sake. So I guess it's just my luck that they aerated the greens last week. The greens were slow and had a top dressing of sand. So you had to nuke your putts to get it there. A few tee boxes were not in great shape and the fairways were just okay. Didn't seem like the rough or fringe around greens had been cut recently (even though we saw guys mowing). And then there's the bunkers. Half of them are fluffy white sand and half are orange dirt / clay. No consistency. Pace of play ended up 4.5 hrs, but it felt very slow. Backed up for all of the last 12 holes. No rangers. This kind of experience is why I don't play here much. Emerald Lake, Charlotte National and Olde Sycamore are within 10 minutes of here and they are miles better.
Compared to my recent play at Ballantyne and Emerald Lake, these greens were in the best shape. Very true on the roll and good speed (not slow at all but not crazy slick either). Tees and fairways were just average, but no issues to report. The greens and the price make this a good place to play anytime.
My first round here in almost 2 years. I was disappointed. I was surprised right away as we headed to the 2nd tee to see that #2 and #8 were being torn up and renovated. I'm on Ballantyne's golf e-mail list and I get messages about once a week. Nowhere in any of these messages has it mentioned any renovations. The work was going on while we were playing, including very loud equipment. #2 was not much affected, but #8 had been shortened to a 250yd par 4 with a temporary green. Not cool. Elsewhere on the course, conditions were very average. Several greens had bare spots covered with green sand. Several fairways had bad patches. The greens were extremely hard and slick. It was a difficult putting day. Overall, I was sorely disappointed since we paid $60 for an afternoon tee time. If I'd paid $30 or even $40, I might have let it go. But when I play a resort course, it should be immaculate. I can't recommend this course right now.
Played in a scramble here Friday morning and the conditions were great. They have their Club Championship this weekend and as you can imagine did everything they could to have the course in great shape. The greens, especially, were very good. Smooth and rolling true, quick but not fast. The few issues I could find were one hole with a large area of sand in the middle of the fairway (#13) and a few fairways that were downright shaggy (#8, #18 stood out), I guess because of the rain and wanted to hold off cutting for the club championship. Rough was fair. Overall, happy with the conditions and will be back to play my own scorecard when I can.
Emerald Lake is in great shape right now, with the greens especially rolling smooth and true. There are still a few with some sandy spots, but overall very good. Fairways are in great shape. A few tee boxes are thin, but most are fine. They are doing a great job with the course this summer and they still have a great membership special going for August. $1995 for 12 months incl. cart fees. It's an unbeatable deal and I took advantage of it 2 weeks ago.
I took advantage of their July membership special and joined up this week. So I played this morning with several other members and had a great round. Conditions overall are very good here. The Cato-Crenshaw greens are faring much better than other bentgrass courses. There are a few greens with a top-dressing of sand (6, 10, 12, 13, and 16 if I remember right) but other than a bit of speed difference, that didn't affect play. I'll probably be playing here a bunch now. So I'll post reviews/updates as conditions change.
Course was in very good shape all around and stands up very well in comparison to courses around town. Greens were good speed and consistent -- only issues were lots of ball marks from recent play and one or two spots on a couple of greens (#16 was one) that did not come into play. Tees, fairways, bunkers were all good. I'm definitely warming up to this place as a regular spot in my rotation -- I'm even considering their July membership special of $1995 for 1 year with carts/range included since I live so close.
I was worried about conditions, given recent reports from other local courses, including a few of the Carolina Trail ones. I'm happy to report Golf Links is doing fine. The greens were in good shape. Just lots of ball marks and the 13th green had aeration holes and some sand. For whatever reason, they cannot keep the 13th green in good shape. It's always been an issue on this course. Tees and fairways were fine. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised. We had a 6:51 start time, cart path only due to the floods Monday. After we let one twosome play through ours, we breezed through our round in just over 3 hours.
Played quickly as a single by starting on the back 9. A few greens on the back 9 had been lightly top-dressed with sand. A few others were pock-marked due to heavy traffic from lazy golfers not repairing pitch marks. I would say that 2/3 of the greens on the course were in very good shape, rolling quick and smooth. The course is holding up well in the early summer heat and better than other local courses.
I played in the Matt Clark charity tournament Saturday morning and the course was in perfect shape. No issues anywhere. Smooth, quick greens. Lushness all around. The rough is in mid-season form, which means it's thick and penalizing when you're in it. It's not past the point of fairness, but you will need to keep a close eye on any shots that are headed for it -- in some cases, you may have to walk right over a ball that has nestled down in the thick stuff. This is one of my favorite area courses mostly because it's kept in such great shape.
Eagle Chase is in real good shape, about the best you get here. Everything was real nice and I did not notice any problems. The greens were very smooth and consistent. They had good speed until a good shower hit us on the 11th hole. After that, they were obviously a little sluggish. The tees, fairways and rough were all lush. This course played just like I remembered it (I only get out here a few times a season), with one minor change on the 3rd hole par 3. The right greenside bunker -- which was always tough to keep dry and playable -- has been eliminated. So now it's just a grassy swale, an improvement in my book. This place is a great deal if you can make the trip - $39 max with the weekend voucher.
The course was in fine shape and there were no issues to report. The only thing was I thought the greens were just okay, speed and smoothness wise. This probably has more to do with me not making any significant putts than the actual conditions. So take it with a grain of salt. When it's perfect here, though, the greens roll fast and true. Today, I just didn't think they did that. Maybe it was the recent rains because I also thought the fairways were shaggier than usual.
After hearing great reviews lately, I tried Regent out. The greens did not disappoint. They were quick, rolled true and in great playing condition. There were no issues with tees, fairways, or rough. Overall, the course is a fun round with challenges and easier holes mixed well. A couple of holes can play very difficult, though, and so my scores always seem to balloon because of a few bad swings. In particular, #1 is a target tee shot where long will get you in trouble, then you have a tricky downhill approach to a green guarded by a creek and a big bunker -- where one of my shots plugged. They had us starting on #10, so this was our 10th hole, but otherwise that's a tough opening hole. #8 is a brutally long par 4 that can give you a blind 2nd shot, but it also penalizes long tee shots that are just a little left of center. #10 is a par 5 with a very narrow target area for your 2nd shot and anything left is dead and gone. And then #13 is a pretty scary long par 3. The tee shot requires almost the full hole distance's worth of carry to a sliver of a green. Perhaps I just don't play here often enough to shoot a good score. It seems like experience with the layout will help you quite a bit.
Enjoyed my round here today. The staff was friendly as always and we moved around the course at a good pace. Although the greens weren't pretty to look at (looks like they had to treat some areas and there were light splotches on many greens) and still a bit on the slow side (aerated last month), they rolled true and were consistent. The fairways and tees were in good shape and more lush than most courses this early in the season. A few of the bunkers needed to be raked, not just from earlier play, but because they were wet or muddy. Overall, this is a fun course, with many challenging holes but also some short par 4's and reachable par 5's where you can be aggressive. It also has a great short game practice area. If I lived closer, this would be a regular stop for me.
Played just the back 9, but it was enough to tell me the course is in good shape. The greens especially were consistent and good, with no bare spots like I've seen here sometimes. They rolled true. The only issue is that the greens here are generally slower than other area courses. I also still have trouble with the pin locations because the flag colors are all the same and there is no hole location info on the scorecard. Still, this is a nice value for the area. It was $14 for 9 holes walking this morning and $23 to ride 18 before 9am. That's a deal.
Course was in good shape overall but not quite what I'm used to. The greens were about as slow as they ever get around here, but that's still not as bad as lesser courses. I believe the greens were aerated a few weeks ago and they must be letting them grow in before mowing them short. The slower speeds made it difficult to hit a straight putt and the breaks were harder to gauge. Granted they were all solid with no problems, other than the speed. The tees and fairways are starting to green up as well. The price ($44) was one of the lower around the area for a Saturday morning start. So it was still a good day and hopefully just a couple of weeks before it's in great shape.

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