Pinehurst #2

I have never played it. I'll be down in NC this Thanksgiving visiting the in-laws. The rate at that time is $350. I would not be getting a caddie, simply because I'm really going to have to scrape up $350 just to play. Now to my question to you guys, is Pinehurst #2 worth the $350? Nicest course I've played to date is Bethpage Black (I live in NY). I get the whole mystique, history, behind Pinehurst #2. I just want to be sure it's worth the cash. Are there memorable holes, etc.? I hear the greens are brutal (upside down cereal bowls) which doesn't bother me.

I played it last summer. IMHO the course is "really good" but I would say history plays a huge factor in it. I was not WOW'd by it by any means though. Its a great **solid** track. and I can see why they use it for a major. You need to get the ball in the right spot in the fairways depeding on pin locations as your approach shot to those greens is KEY to have any chance of scoring.

Dont get me wrong I am not trying to down play No.2 but I guess I went in expecting "More". Maybe I hyped it up to much in my head, or the fact I had just played Mid Pines / Pine Needles and Dormie which have a lot of elevation change and compared to those No.2 is a pancake.

For the record I was not planning on playing No.2 when we went. I was not staying at the resort and it was spendy. I was very lucky to get on. I was playing Mid Pines and a person in our group happen to be a member and he had a tee time for the next day. His friend playing with us had to skip the round to go back to Charlotte. The member graciously enough asked if I wanted to fill the slot!! **OF COURSE**

When I showed I up I found out the rate was reduced by a good amount being with a member. EDIT: _I ended up overall spending more becuase after the round I went nuts in the pro shop LOL_

I walked the course which I would recommend or take a caddie to enjoy it. It was great playing with a member as he knew every little detail and all the history which was really cool. The best advice he said you can give anyone for No.2....GO TO THE MIDDLE OF THE GREEN if its your first few times playing it and take your chances putting. The dome greens you see on TV are everything and more...!!!

CDM hit it on target. If your in-laws live in the area they may know some members to play with. Less than half the price and you won’t need a caddie or forecaddie. Check out Mid Pines, a really solid Donald Ross, if you decide on a different course. Best of Luck.

I just played #2 on Thursday. You can walk and carry your own bag if you do not want to pay for a caddie but I recommend one. It’s boosts the overall experience. I was fortunate enough to get one that was experienced with amazing green reading. Some greens can easily fool you. As far as value I’d say the price is fair to me coming from N.J. if you can spend a few extra hours playing the cradle and thistle du putting course. Definitely value there. The clubhouse and pro shop are awesome and after play the deuce is a great place to grab a quick bite and drink. If you cannot get on #2 I think #8 is awesome and the 2nd best course at the resort.

read my Pinehurst Trip Report Post in this forum. wouldn't pass up playing #2

I really enjoy #2, I have friends who are members and we play it every few years. Its not strikingly beautiful, but is really interesting. Its nice and wide off most tees, but from the wrong part of the fairway its hard to hold a green. The more I play it, the more I see why a bunker or a slope is where it is. And of course, the history of the place is pretty cool too. Whether its worth the money, you have to decide for yourself. You can certainly get your Donald Ross fix at Mid Pines or Pine Needles, and I'd have to say the Mid Pines is my favorite course in the area. But #2 is really really good.

> @davep043 said:

> I really enjoy #2, I have friends who are members and we play it every few years. Its not strikingly beautiful, but is really interesting. Its nice and wide off most tees, but from the wrong part of the fairway its hard to hold a green. The more I play it, the more I see why a bunker or a slope is where it is. And of course, the history of the place is pretty cool too. Whether its worth the money, you have to decide for yourself. You can certainly get your Donald Ross fix at Mid Pines or Pine Needles, and I'd have to say the Mid Pines is my favorite course in the area. But #2 is really really good.

Good points. I think if you are a golf nut, love the history of the game and especially, if you have an interest or appreciate golf course architecture, #2 is a must play. If none of that matter too much and you want to play an amazing Ross course in great shape with all the amenities for less $, Pine Needles/Mid Pines is the way to go.

I'm headed to Pinehurst for 4 days next week. Hitting Tobacco Road on the way in, then 9, 6, 4, 2, Cradle, and 8 in that order before flying home. Cannot freaking wait.

> @BDowning said:

> I'm headed to Pinehurst for 4 days next week. Hitting Tobacco Road on the way in, then 9, 6, 4, 2, Cradle, and 8 in that order before flying home. Cannot freaking wait.

HeIl of a lineup! I think #6 is sneaky good even though it doesn't get as much press. Great course.

It's close to the best course I've played in the US, only thing comparable would be Bandon for me. Better than Bethpage, Sawgrass, Erin Hills, Straits, Muirfield Village (to name a few) in my opinion. Mostly because the greens are absolutely wild and I have never seen anything like them before. However, the course won't photo well like Bandon, so if you're looking for gorgeous views you'll be disappointed. The genius of #2 is in the subtlety, where as the greatness of somewhere like Pebble is largely linked to the ocean. You literally can't miss it. You could very well miss it at #2 if you don't enjoy that type of golf.

I would also skip caddies there. When I was there a few months ago, we had 4 caddies in our group of 7 and they were uniformly awful. Nice guys, but their knowledge of golf was so bad that it was embarrassing for Pinehurst. One guy couldn't get a yardage within 20 yards, another when asked if the pin was in the front or back of a green said "it didn't matter at #2", which was completely false. A third refused to give lines off the tee and green reading was poor. I could go on with these examples, but if you want a caddie try to request a good one. We tried to request specific caddies before the trip, when we arrived, and the day before our round and were ignored each time, so that's a bummer.

Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

> @CMCSGolf said:

> It's close to the best course I've played in the US, only thing comparable would be Bandon for me. Better than Bethpage, Sawgrass, Erin Hills, Straits, Muirfield Village (to name a few) in my opinion. Mostly because the greens are absolutely wild and I have never seen anything like them before. However, the course won't photo well like Bandon, so if you're looking for gorgeous views you'll be disappointed. The genius of #2 is in the subtlety, where as the greatness of somewhere like Pebble is largely linked to the ocean. You literally can't miss it. You could very well miss it at #2 if you don't enjoy that type of golf.

>

> I would also skip caddies there. When I was there a few months ago, we had 4 caddies in our group of 7 and they were uniformly awful. Nice guys, but their knowledge of golf was so bad that it was embarrassing for Pinehurst. One guy couldn't get a yardage within 20 yards, another when asked if the pin was in the front or back of a green said "it didn't matter at #2", which was completely false. A third refused to give lines off the tee and green reading was poor. I could go on with these examples, but if you want a caddie try to request a good one. We tried to request specific caddies before the trip, when we arrived, and the day before our round and were ignored each time, so that's a bummer.

i have reached the pt where i do not believe a caddie is needed at any course ... a yardage book and range finder and you're good ...

#2 is a nice experience but no where near worth the green fee.

If you want, ill get you an invite to the charity event on Black Friday and its $250 to play.

> @spineshank said:

> If you want, ill get you an invite to the charity event on Black Friday and its $250 to play.

You mean the Green Friday event that I played last year and has registration open to LITERALLY anyone in the world? Sorry to bust the bubble, pal. You're not quite as cool as you wanted to seem. That said, yes, the Carolinas Golf Association does a Green Friday event every year the day after Thanksgiving and I'd highly recommend playing in it.

> @Playerbb said:

> Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

Cradle....$50 for a par 3 course. OK, if you can get 5 buddies (they allow sixsome play) and a cooler full of beverages, it might be fun. If you're a solo and only playing the 9 holes, it's a bad joke. Play Midland Country Club for $15 instead.

> @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > @Playerbb said:

> > Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

>

> Cradle....$50 for a par 3 course. OK, if you can get 5 buddies (they allow sixsome play) and a cooler full of beverages, it might be fun. If you're a solo and only playing the 9 holes, it's a bad joke. Play Midland Country Club for $15 instead.

They allow free unlimited replays so....

> @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > @spineshank said:

> > If you want, ill get you an invite to the charity event on Black Friday and its $250 to play.

>

> You mean the Green Friday event that I played last year and has registration open to LITERALLY anyone in the world? Sorry to bust the bubble, pal. You're not quite as cool as you wanted to seem. That said, yes, the Carolinas Golf Association does a Green Friday event every year the day after Thanksgiving and I'd highly recommend playing in it.

I just meant i would send you the invite they sent out...get off your high horse there bud.

> @krtgolfing said:

> > @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > > @Playerbb said:

> > > Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

> >

> > Cradle....$50 for a par 3 course. OK, if you can get 5 buddies (they allow sixsome play) and a cooler full of beverages, it might be fun. If you're a solo and only playing the 9 holes, it's a bad joke. Play Midland Country Club for $15 instead.

>

> They allow free unlimited replays so....

Yup. People have gone and played 8 hours there.

> @spineshank said:

> > @krtgolfing said:

> > > @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > > > @Playerbb said:

> > > > Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

> > >

> > > Cradle....$50 for a par 3 course. OK, if you can get 5 buddies (they allow sixsome play) and a cooler full of beverages, it might be fun. If you're a solo and only playing the 9 holes, it's a bad joke. Play Midland Country Club for $15 instead.

> >

> > They allow free unlimited replays so....

>

> Yup. People have gone and played 8 hours there.

Last time I was there they were building the place and it looked awesome. Hope to get back sometime soon to check it out. I would have no issue going around the loop a bunch of times as a single. Empty the golf bag and just have the short clubs needed, a few balls, and a towel and the rest for beer / alcohol and I would be good to go. Put on some head phones I could easily do that for a few hours!

> @krtgolfing said:

> > @spineshank said:

> > > @krtgolfing said:

> > > > @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > > > > @Playerbb said:

> > > > > Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

> > > >

> > > > Cradle....$50 for a par 3 course. OK, if you can get 5 buddies (they allow sixsome play) and a cooler full of beverages, it might be fun. If you're a solo and only playing the 9 holes, it's a bad joke. Play Midland Country Club for $15 instead.

> > >

> > > They allow free unlimited replays so....

> >

> > Yup. People have gone and played 8 hours there.

>

> Last time I was there they were building the place and it looked awesome. Hope to get back sometime soon to check it out. I would have no issue going around the loop a bunch of times as a single. Empty the golf bag and just have the short clubs needed, a few balls, and a towel and the rest for beer / alcohol and I would be good to go. Put on some head phones I could easily do that for a few hours!

I'd certainly be willing to spend a bunch of time there, but it does get pretty busy a lot of the time. Better to go with a few friends and relax your way around.

> @krtgolfing said:

> > @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > > @Playerbb said:

> > > Make sure to add around on the cradle and the Thistle Do putting course.

> >

> > Cradle....$50 for a par 3 course. OK, if you can get 5 buddies (they allow sixsome play) and a cooler full of beverages, it might be fun. If you're a solo and only playing the 9 holes, it's a bad joke. Play Midland Country Club for $15 instead.

>

> They allow free unlimited replays so....

Sure, that they do. So if you're getting 4 or 5 guys and playing the loop 5 or 6 times, it's fine and probably worth the money. For a single loop, it's a rip-off.

> @spineshank said:

> > @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > > @spineshank said:

> > > If you want, ill get you an invite to the charity event on Black Friday and its $250 to play.

> >

> > You mean the Green Friday event that I played last year and has registration open to LITERALLY anyone in the world? Sorry to bust the bubble, pal. You're not quite as cool as you wanted to seem. That said, yes, the Carolinas Golf Association does a Green Friday event every year the day after Thanksgiving and I'd highly recommend playing in it.

>

> I just meant i would send you the invite they sent out...get off your high horse there bud.

Except it's not an invitation. It's just an advertisement. Like they don't "invite" people to the Foundation Four-ball at Grandfather, they send out an ad. Either way, it's a great deal and the cheapest way I've seen to play #2 since they did the "#2 for $222" thing 9 or 10 years ago.

> @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > @spineshank said:

> > > @"Johnny Biarritz" said:

> > > > @spineshank said:

> > > > If you want, ill get you an invite to the charity event on Black Friday and its $250 to play.

> > >

> > > You mean the Green Friday event that I played last year and has registration open to LITERALLY anyone in the world? Sorry to bust the bubble, pal. You're not quite as cool as you wanted to seem. That said, yes, the Carolinas Golf Association does a Green Friday event every year the day after Thanksgiving and I'd highly recommend playing in it.

> >

> > I just meant i would send you the invite they sent out...get off your high horse there bud.

>

> Except it's not an invitation. It's just an advertisement. Like they don't "invite" people to the Foundation Four-ball at Grandfather, they send out an ad. Either way, it's a great deal and the cheapest way I've seen to play #2 since they did the "#2 for $222" thing 9 or 10 years ago.

that winter deal? ... think they did it 4 years ago, also ... not really sure why i didn't take them up on it, tbh ...

Watching the Am, and seeing how much trouble the best ams in the world are having with the native areas, leaves me with no desire to play #2, regardless of the price. It looks like it was much more player friendly before the renovation.

> @caniac6 said:

> Watching the Am, and seeing how much trouble the best ams in the world are having with the native areas, leaves me with no desire to play #2, regardless of the price. It looks like it was much more player friendly before the renovation.

I'd prefer to take my chances with the native areas. At least there you can get some bare-sand lies and move the ball along. In the old days, if you were in the healthy Bermuda rough, you had little to no chance of hitting a good shot. That was like trying to hit a shot from a ball embedded in steel wool.

you might have a bad lie 3/10 times in that native grass area ...

They're saying on tv that the greens are 13-13.5. That would be unplayable for me unless I spent two weeks acclimatizing. It would be interesting to see them play at the speed Ross could achieve.

Amazing course for sure. $350 is WAY overpriced , you’re paying for the resume, not the course

> @"Carl Spackler3" said:

> Amazing course for sure. $350 is WAY overpriced , you’re paying for the resume, not the course

In terms of design features, history, and difficulty, I'd suggest that Pinehurst #2 compares with the top public courses in the US, including Pebble Beach, Whistling Straits, Doral, Kiawah Ocean, etc. Are any of those a lot less expensive?