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50 Best Courses under $50


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[b]Emerald Falls Golf Club[/b], Broken Arrow, OK ... I tipped the scales at $55, but it's close -- mentioned as part of Golf Digest "Best New Courses you can Play" ... I think the year was 2007


Another suggestion, that requires a little tweaking of the Rules:
[b]Cherokee Hills Golf Club[/b], Catoosa, OK (at Hard Rock Hotel/Casino), with a free "Players Card" from the casino the peak, in-season rate is $40 (without the card it's $60) -- Original Design by Perry Maxwell (architect of Southern Hills in Tulsa)

I too am VERY interested to hear the results ... and may also have a bit of "push-back" on your method:
1. Consider excluding cart fees ... budget golf seems like it should be all about the "the golf" and paying for a car isn't really paying for your golf experience (some might say it even takes away from the true golf experence)
2. Consider a "bare green fee" and "loaded green fee" (with all the extras) for example the two green fees I quoted you include golf, cart AND range balls, which may increase the "value" recieved for the fee.

But again, GREAT topic and love to hear the results. Where will you be published?

Thanks,
OK_Golf

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OP - you may want to consider listing multiple courses for some of the larger states in your article. For instance, in my home state of PA a course was posted that is near Pittsburgh, at least a 4:30 drive from the Philadelphia area. However, plenty of people might make the <2 hr. drive to:

[url="http://www.blueridgetrail.com/layout.asp?id=385&page=10290"]Blue Ridge Trail Golf Club[/url] in the Poconos - highest weekend rate is $46.

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[quote name='Petethreeput' timestamp='1366064344' post='6852149']
Old Works, Anaconda, MT. Under 50 without cart.
[/quote]

Love this course!

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[quote name='2putttom' timestamp='1366337045' post='6875445']
[quote name='sharkiesj' timestamp='1366084735' post='6854441']
Pacific Grove GC. Best bang for your buck in the entire state of California.

Honorable mention: Aetna Springs
[/quote]

+1 on P G. friendly folks too.
[/quote]

That's my home course :) Won't even tell you what I pay as a resident. Think I spend more on range tokens.

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[quote name='Petethreeput' timestamp='1366064344' post='6852149']
Old Works, Anaconda, MT. Under 50 without cart.
[/quote]

Old Works did not live up to my expectations. The background story of the course is pretty amazing as is the scenery. Unfortunately, I found the conditions to be less than desirable. Granted, Old Works receives a ton of play in a relatively short period of time.

Home Courses
- Country Club of Scranton
- Seven Oaks GC at Colgate University

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Harrison Hills in Attica, IN... A William Langford classic with Tim Liddy DNA.

http://www.golfclubatlas.com/courses-by-country/usa/harrison-hills-in-usa/

It is a wonderful track by any measure...

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[quote name='DavePelz4' timestamp='1367284010' post='6940823']
Oak Grove and Plum Tree which are ironically both in Harvard, IL. If you're looking for a great day and 36 truly championship holes under $100, go to Harvard. You'll be hard pressed to find more challenging greens than Oak Grove.

Forgot Aldeen in Rockford. Awesome track.
[/quote]

Second Aldeen, however, I'm not certain that its under $50 w/ a cart.

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I look forward to reading this article. I don't think there is nearly enough thought put into value courses. We all play less than stellar courses where we think a couple upgrades would make it perfect and then there's courses that are highly anticipated because of the price but you're expectations are often lifted too high. And then there's the rare gem that's actually affordable, more people would bring there clubs on trips if they knew about these.

Gold Mountain in Bremerton, WA has already been mentioned, prime rates plus cart brings it just over $50 for the Olympic Course, but I think it's under $50 for the Cascade Course. But both courses usually play for around $30 and they're a bargain at $50! I would say who needs a cart but these are pretty big courses, lots of elevation.

Also, Highlander in Wenatchee, WA is just over $50 prime rates but it rarely plays close to that and I think it's maybe the most underrated course in the state.

How about include courses that might be over $50 technically but rarely cost that much. Because we all know big city munis never reach $50 and are a ripoff at $25-$40 and they never have any deals other than maybe junior golf. Maybe that could be a whole other article.

Anyways, to go with your specifications, for Washington I would say Lakeland Village and The Classic, both usually play far under $50. I haven't played North Bellingham and Indian Canyon yet, those are supposed to be 2 of the best values in Washington.

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[quote name='bwrichmond' timestamp='1366648921' post='6893569']
[quote name='FlopShotFred' timestamp='1366374985' post='6877087']
Dale Hollow State Park - Burkesville, KY is a hidden gem
[/quote]

Going with 23 other guys there this weekend for the first time... Looking forward to it!
[/quote]

How'd you like it?! I'm doing my bachelor on a houseboat and there will be like 16 golfing here in a few weeks.

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[quote name='FlopShotFred' timestamp='1367608519' post='6965396']
[quote name='bwrichmond' timestamp='1366648921' post='6893569']
[quote name='FlopShotFred' timestamp='1366374985' post='6877087']
Dale Hollow State Park - Burkesville, KY is a hidden gem
[/quote]

Going with 23 other guys there this weekend for the first time... Looking forward to it!
[/quote]

How'd you like it?! I'm doing my bachelor on a houseboat and there will be like 16 golfing here in a few weeks.
[/quote]
It was awesome. The course is great, but had some bunkers that were washed out with the rain we got. Still a plenty fine track. You'll love it as part of a bachelor party, but I'll warn you that it's in a dry county. Take your booze with you and be discreet about it on the course and you'll be fine! Enjoy!

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Mark Twain Golf Course, Elmira NY
Owned and operated by the City of Elmira, Donald Ross design.

$26 for 18 (not sure what the cart fee is, because I walk, but I doubt it's $24)....Remarkably well maintained IMHO.

Sometimes they put the pins where they don't belong, though. A couple of greens are diabolical to the point of ridiculousness. Donald Ross didn't design these greens for bent grass.

But a great course, at a great price.

found the cart fees: $28 for 18, shared by two riders...so $26 + 14 = $40..
$16 single rider + $26= 42

Leaves you $8 or $10 bucks for a snack. Gatorade and hot dog with meat sauce, onions and mustard, a whopping $4 + tip (please leave the nice lady a buck, will ya?)

FORE RIGHT!!!!

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A few weekends ago I played Eagle Knoll Golf Course in Ashland, MO. It is between Columbia and Jefferson City. I think it cost me $47. Their sign on the highways says they were Golf Digest's #3 Value in America.

I had a heard great things about the track, as it hosts some state amateur events. It is now one of my favorite courses I've ever played. It is a firm and fast track, which is very hard to find around these parts. I can't wait to play it again.

[url="http://www.eagleknoll.com/"]http://www.eagleknoll.com/[/url]

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Greater Akron, OH area...
Chippewa
Seven Hills
Turkeyfoot
And I'm going to have to give a nod to what was once a so-so course. Paradise Lake in Suffield, OH. The new owners have spent the last five years putting time, effort, and money into the track. Their efforts have paid off.

All the above courses are top-notch and simply highlight how blessed we are in NE Ohio in regards to the number of public play courses that are affordable.

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[quote name='b_smith07' timestamp='1368376549' post='7017422']
Also, my vote for Florida would be World Woods GC near Tampa.....just awesome views and scenery and I believe under 50 for the whole season. Not to mention an amazing practice facility.
[/quote]

They get up to 119 in the winter I believe, but it's hard to find any decent course in Florida under $50 yearround

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Cook's Creek. About 20 miles outside of Columbus. Awesome track. Placed on John Cook's old family farm. Never paid more than $30 to play it.

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[quote name='TheMackDaddy' timestamp='1366051274' post='6850475']
Gold mountain golf course in Bremerton, Washington. Good luck finding something better!!!
[/quote]

I couldn't agree more--although the Cascades course misses it at $45 + $16 cart = $61 and the Olympic comes in at $65 + $16 cart = $81.

Take a look: http://www.goldmountaingolf.com/green-fees

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I don't think that peak price including cart is necessarily the right metric to use when determining value. When I look at prices at a course, I look at what I will actually be paying. Since I often play with the kids, I look very carefully for youth rates. I also try not to play on weekends--both for cost reasons and because the courses tend to be more crowded.

Also, since I live in Northern VA, there are no courses here that are under $50 peak rate with a cart. None. Even the dog tracks are over $50. You have to drive for 2+ hours to find a course for under $50, and then it will most likely be a muni course either in or close to West Virginia or a course a little closer to home that is in serious need of some TLC. Don't get me wrong, I usually pay less than $50 (but barely) for some nice courses--I just usually play weekdays using specials and coupons (and/or I drive for an hour to get out west to one of my favorites, Blue Ridge Shadows--which is still $68 peak with cart).

Also, I don't think that choosing one value course per state makes much sense. You really have to compare apples to apples, and comparing prices in Southwest Virginia to the prices in Northern Virginia is borderline ridiculous. Places like Utah and Tennessee with have lots of choice for courses under $50, while the Mid-Atlantic will have a lot fewer--and with the higher cost area, the quality of the under $50 courses (when you can find them) will suffer.

I think that value courses come in two flavors. The first is "What is the best bang for the buck for courses where I live or happen to be right now?" You either live there, are visiting family, or are there on business or something. This is good information, but it is extremely localized based on location. It is not based on what state you are in, but more "What can I get to within an hour or so of where I am?"

The second flavor of value course is the value destination course. "What courses are both good enough and affordable enough to be worth a trip to go and play there?" And here, value in cost of travel and cost (and quality) of accommodations also comes into consideration. These destination value courses also come in two flavors: ones you can get to within a days drive (i.e. regional) and ones you will probably fly to (i.e. national).

In short, value courses need to be compared to others in the same category, and those categories are highly dependent on location--both yours and the location of the course.

I applaud your work on the under $50 courses--I just think that it has a fairly narrow focus that will emphasize areas with lower cost of living.

Hey, it might even make me want to move. :-)

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