Valley of the Eagles - Elyria, OH

I wanted to post an update/review of a new course that just opened in Elyria, Ohio (~30 min west of Cleveland) called Valley of the Eagles. It is located on the same site as what was previously Spring Valley CC, however the course has been completely redesigned (Nicklaus). The clubhouse is still under construction and though the course itself is mostly complete and playable it still has plenty of rough edges and needs to grow in and mature for at least another season.

The course opened late in August for a half-season preview at reduced pricing ($40 for 18 & cart). Ownership has contracted with Troon Golf to manage operations on the property, and I have to say that the service I received was fantastic. Although the club does not currently have any kind of food & beverage operation given the state of the clubhouse, there were beverages and snacks available prior to teeing off and at the turn (I believe they are having issues with the city concerning obtaining their liquor license). Not a big deal, this is just a preview and I was really only there to see the routing of the course and get a pulse on what kind of conditioning I could expect and how the grow-in was coming.

Okay, enough talk - on to the pics!

Scorecard, front & back:

Rating card:

Club will utilize a three-zone hole location rotation, in other words all the flags are the same color (white):

View from top of hill down to putting green (same location as before); the unfinished swath adjacent to the green is going to be a bocce court:

Here's the old pool, which was filled in, and what I believe will be an outdoor bar/beer garden in the background:

Okay, on to the course! Most holes will have three pictures:

1) Tee

2) Approach (from ~150-100 yards out)

3) Reverse from behind green

Obviously par 3's will not have an approach shot. For reference, there are only two sets of tees in play at the moment - a back tee and a forward tee. The back tee is a hybrid of blue and white, and the forward a hybrid of gold and red.

#1 - The first tee is where the shared tee for old holes #3 and #10 used to be, and the first half of the hole follows the route of old #3, however the second half now follows the river to the right as opposed to going up the hill:

Rather short, a well-struck 3w can cut the corner and get you around 100y in, however if you are short there is no way you're playing out of the junk. A rather difficult opener IMO, especially considering all the trouble down the right-hand side... which is the majority of golfers' bane. The approach will keep you honest as there is no forgiveness even a few feet right of the putting surface, and the pin was of course cut all the way back right on this day.

#2 - A bit of a routing issue here, there is a substantial cart ride from #1 green to get to #2 tee, which is located at one of the highest points on the property, basically the old #12 tee. However instead of going straightaway the hole doglegs left (the large tree actually splits the fairway - noticeable in the second pic - however most players will find themselves well left/short of the tree off the tee) leaving a reachable shot into this par 5:

#3 - A short par 4 that is virtually a re-skin of old #14. Placement is key off the tee here or the stand of trees will block all but the most towering of approach shots into this green. I hit 3w well through the fairway here but was able to launch a PW onto the surface however that angle does render the green quite shallow.

#4 - Another re-skin, this is a straightaway par 5 very similar to the old #15, however there is a well-placed fairway bunker right in the center of the fairway forcing the player to make a choice. The hill to the right will kick leaking fades back into the fairway, however another bunker on that side does a good job of keeping players honest. Driving to the left will result in a blind shot and may even block the player behind the trees. The green features a collection area short left that will swallow a lot of shots.

#5 - Par 3, uphill, actually a really nice looking hole. Trouble is all down the left side in the form of trees and the river, and a bevy of bunkers protect the front of the green. No worries, as anything hitting the right side of the green is going to funnel down left. Both the guys I was playing with hit shots at the right edge of the green and found themselves within 12' of the hole.

#6 - Medium length par 4, this hole follows the same direction of old #17 however the elevated tee has been removed. Slight dogleg right with bunkers protecting the green left and trees down the entire right side. Good birdie opportunity if you keep your drive in the fairway.

#7 - Another neat little uphill par 3 cut into the side of a hill, you can see this one from the road when you drive by and the leaves are off the trees (which offers a much better view of the hole than from the tee!). The shot is semi-blind in that you won't be able to see your ball settle on the green although you can see most of the pin and the general direction you want to go. As with the previous par 3, erring to the side up the hill will kick the ball down onto the green; missing right will put you down in no-man's-land. The green is surprisingly small once you get up there.

#8 - Short par 4, playing slightly downhill and a re-skin of old #10 (actually used to be old #11 waaay back when #10 was still the short par 3 - more on that later). Anyways, a nice drive sets you up with a short iron approach to an elevated redan-style green, so it's not just bomb and gouge. I admit that I missed the fairway pic here because I eviscerated a drive right in front of the green... which I easily converted into a bogey 5.

#9 - Another short par 4 with plenty of trouble lurking off the tee; this one will be an interesting risk/reward decision once they get the full complement of tees in effect. As it currently sits I was able to hit driver with impunity as you can miss a mile right and still have a shot into the green, however that route does force you to carry a couple bunkers in front of the green.

#10 - A cute little par 3, this used to be the site of #10 before SVCC added the new holes in the back. It will play no longer than 120 - a back pin may push that up to just over 130 - but the tee is elevated making it a bit tougher due to wind exposure and the ball stays in the air longer in the event of a push/pull. Miss left and you're wet (or bunkered if you luck out), and anything short and safe will leave a long putt to a back pin... which is exactly where it was when we played. Good short par 3 IMO.

#11 - Dogleg left par 5, this was previously #5, however there is a fairway bunker in the middle of the landing area that forces the player to be honest... or long. A reachable par 5 provided you keep the tee shot in play, not much trouble up around the green so if you have a window, have at it.

#12 - Short, dogleg right par 4, virtually a re-skin of old #6. I was never a fan of this hole, and it's not much better now... mature trees protect the inside of this dogleg so that bombing a 3w over it is out of the question for all but the highest launchers. I took a hybrid over the inside of the corner and managed to keep it in the fairway. Ultimately this is probably an iron or hybrid off the tee even though the card indicates you should be able to hit driver. Green is wide open, so if you have a look at it there's no reason you wouldn't be able to make par if you get it in the neighborhood in regulation.

#13 - Dogleg right par 4, you can actually cut the corner over the native grass to the right although where to aim specifically is not apparent until you've played it a couple times. This is definitely a birdie hole as there is plenty of leeway off the tee and the large green is moderately protected by lateral bunkers. The sycamores leaning over the left half of the fairway are really cool looking and frame the tee shot up nicely.

I forgot to get a reverse-green shot here.

#14 - another short par 4, the second shot here is pretty intimidating despite the fact that you'll likely have a short iron or wedge in your hand. Tee shot is all about placement to afford the best angle into the green; there's not much playable space on the other side of the river that isn't putting surface, so take dead aim. Also forgot the green pic here, which would actually have given a nice perspective on that point...

Scenic shot behind the tee box:

#15 - tricky dogleg right par 4, you can't really cut the corner off the tee since the trees are TALL. I tried to cut a 3w around the corner but of course it went dead straight and fortunately kicked straight down out of the big tree behind the fairway bunker. Playing smart will leave a long approach into an elevated green, so really just a solid par 4 that cannot be overpowered.

#16 - long par 3, formerly known as #9. Just a long, difficult hole (tips out at 241, even the one-ups measure 225) that will most likely result in an up and down for par if you're lucky as 3 is a great score here.

#17 - straightaway par 4, very similar to the old #1. You can get away with a miss left here however there are rock outcroppings that may wreak havoc should you fly it on or around them; the right side is pretty well protected by tall pines. This green is heavily sloped from back to front and is rather narrow compared to its brethren.

#18 - the home hole is a rather oddly situated par 5 IMO. The tee sets up where old #2 was, except the trees to the right have been cleared out making room for the fairway. The landing area is at a lower elevation than the second portion of the fairway, which creates a blind second shot regardless of whether you're going for the green or laying up. Further complicating the prospect of getting home in two, the two-tiered green is fronted by the creek and surrounded by trees. If you're going to safely miss this green, long and left is really the only safe option.

I failed to get an approach pic here, but I will say that this hole is quite demanding and broken up in a way that requires three solid shots in order to reach the green in regulation.

Takeaways:

- The course is routed pretty well, although there are a couple of long spans between holes which are necessary due to the spaces allocated to future housing. Thankfully there are not a ton of these since the course mostly sits in a floodplain, however it is unfortunate nonetheless and discourages walking.

- I was a bit disappointed to see that a large number of holes were simply re-skins of old SVCC holes. Granted, the elevation of the property and fact that the river runs through does limit options somewhat but the holes down behind the clubhouse could have been completely new if they would have been willing to wipe the slate clean. It's like they were almost afraid to remove any trees and push a significant amount of dirt down there which really chained them to the old routing.

- Conditioning is really quite impressive considering how new the course is. I know a lot of people I talked to that played there were disappointed citing how much raw dirt is still exposed and just the fact that it is still a construction site. Well of course it is! They're not going to have paved paths and everything hemmed together for a couple of years, but as far as playable surfaces go I would consider the tees, fairways, and greens to be in excellent shape considering they just opened up. Greens are a bit sparse in some areas however they are extremely receptive to shots and roll true.

- Some holes are overly targety; I despise this kind of play as it really removes a lot of strategy from the equation as far as weighting risk and reward off the tee. I'd rather have a course that simply tightens up around the landing area as opposed to putting in cross hazards, or routing holes around fixed features like a river so they achieve the same effect, that take driver out of your hand.

- I also dislike when trees are used as main source of protection or strategic obstacle on a hole - they are temporary and will eventually die. See comment above about lack of change with regard to the routing of the holes down the hill.

All in all, I'm eager to see what the course turns into and if it will continue to get financial backing from the investors should operations not support its evolution. I have witnessed firsthand this period in a course's infancy at another course in the area and once the novelty wears off with the public it becomes difficult to justify the inflated greens fee and play will drop off unless conditions are maintained. I wish them the best of luck as I would love to continue playing there in the future!

POST AWAY!

Sorry if some of my pictures appear far away - I was trying to get the full scale of the course and didn't want to zoom in for fear of reducing the quality.

Great job on the thread. I lived in that area from '94-'02 and have found memories. Would love to play that course. Considering the population, NE Ohio has a lot of courses. If it wasn't for the long winters I'd almost call it a golfers paradise!

Great job with the review and pic! I'll have to try this place out next summer

This certainly looks like it is is worth a play! However, what's with the name??? New Ohio courses have some weird names. "Valley of the Eagles" is just as bad as "The Virtues" and I don't think there are many eagles in that part of the country...

This certainly looks like it is is worth a play! However, what's with the name??? New Ohio courses have some weird names. "Valley of the Eagles" is just as bad as "The Virtues" and I don't think there are many eagles in that part of the country...

They have eagle nests on the course, so at least this name fits.

This certainly looks like it is is worth a play! However, what's with the name??? New Ohio courses have some weird names. "Valley of the Eagles" is just as bad as "The Virtues" and I don't think there are many eagles in that part of the country...

I agree, but as minteq said there are a number of bald eagles in the region specifically around the Lake Erie shores. However when posting the thread title I was a bit surprised that the course name does not include "golf course/club" in it.

The Virtues was previously Longaberger Golf Club, it was simply renamed by the new owner. This one is a head scratcher as well... maybe the owner also has significant holdings in a chain of addiction rehabilitation centers? It sounds more like a retreat facility than a golf course.

This certainly looks like it is is worth a play! However, what's with the name??? New Ohio courses have some weird names. "Valley of the Eagles" is just as bad as "The Virtues" and I don't think there are many eagles in that part of the country...

 

I agree, but as minteq said there are a number of bald eagles in the region specifically around the Lake Erie shores. However when posting the thread title I was a bit surprised that the course name does not include "golf course/club" in it.

 

The Virtues was previously Longaberger Golf Club, it was simply renamed by the new owner. This one is a head scratcher as well... maybe the owner also has significant holdings in a chain of addiction rehabilitation centers? It sounds more like a retreat facility than a golf course.

Haha, yes maybe they do! I grew up on the west side of Cleveland and while there are some eagles in the area, it just seems odd to name your course that. But then again, it's all about marketing so I shouldn't try to apply logic. Good point on the lack of Golf Course in the name.

My parents still live in Cleveland and my Dad plays 3 times a week and hadn't heard about this. Do many people in the area know this is now open? I would be curious what their offering is and how it will be different from Grayhawk, which seemed to struggle with conditions and play from 2010-2014 when I was last there.

To be fair, the course is only open as part of an unofficial preview. I'm not sure when the grand opening is set to occur however from the looks of things they will have to get it in gear to make next spring. I haven't been inside the clubhouse but in my experience that is what takes the longest part to finish, so if the status of the course is any indication I'd say they have a ways to go yet.

It's funny that you mentioned Grey Hawk, as that is the course I alluded to earlier about having difficulty maintaining conditions after the "novelty of new" wore off. These are distinctly different projects however and I feel VotE has a better shot at hanging in therefor a couple of reasons. GH was heavily dependent on real estate sales to make the project work. The former owner of the property had attempted, without success, to work the project in reverse and by that I mean he thought getting housing in place first would generate revenue to construct a golf course. Some lots were sold and houses built, but the course never came to fruition. So along come GH's investors to resume the project, however they realized the importance of building the golf course first in order to attract buyers. So they got that part right, but now they have this beautiful, maintenance-intensive** golf course... in the middle of nowhere.

Besides being late to the housing party (course opened up in 2004), the location was just too far out to be a viable location for real estate development. GH is situated roughly 5 miles off the highway, and the exit itself is far west of any real commerce. Not this is not necessarily an issue for a golf course (see: Dunes, Bandon) but when you rely on residential real estate sales on the property to make the project profitable, these issues are problematic.

VotE has limited real estate development associated with it, and the property is much more accessible than GH, relative to Cleveland and other suburbs on the west side. I don't know about the type of housing that is planned but GH was almost exclusively single-family homes, so that will likely play a role as well.

** GH was a maintenance nightmare due in large part to the design of the course - Von Hagge favored exaggerated mounding on the sides of each fairway to frame the tee shot and obscure cart paths. A lot of rough that would typically be able to be gang-mown had to be hand-mown or taken such care with a riding mower that it took more expensive equipment and more manpower to do it. Excessive bunkering off fairways and around greens exacerbated this issue. I don't see this being an issue at VotE as a lot of holes have one or two bunkers at most, and a lot of greens are not protected by bunkers at all because the terrain offers inherent defense. GH was literally conjured out of bean fields; with the exception of 4 holes (7, 8, 12, and 13) there were no natural features - including trees - to work with, so I think there was probably some kind of need to over-create because they had a clean slate to work with.

I have played it 3 times, I liked it. I was a fan of Spring Valley when it was private, knew some members. I like the new layout, yes there are some things left over, but I thought how they did it was really cool. The conditions are real nice, when it grows in, I think it will be fantastic.

Only issue is what are they going to charge? Its Elyria, so anything over $50 will struggle, there are a lot of options around. I know Greyhawk and Shale Creek lowered there rates to be competitive.

I've played Grey Hawk and Shale Creek a number of time. It's hard for me to get that far north and west with so many courses near the Medina area. I just got hooked on Rawiga. VERY nice course IMO. i also really like the links style feel of Shale. My groomsmen and I played Shale the morning of my wedding. I can't wait to try VotE this upcoming spring.