Where are you playing tomorrow - Chicago (Round2)

[VNutz]

Played Bowes Creek on Saturday, and as always it did not disappoint. I really think I could play that course on the regular and not get tired of it. Great conditions, greens rolled just a little quick and very true, and the recent rains and humidity made the greens receptive enough to attack pins. What could have been an amazing round turned into merely a really good one thanks to the putter unfortunately. I had at least 3 approaches end inside of 5 feet and only made 1, add to that a missed 3 footer on 18 and an eagle chip on 10 that hit the pin and bounced out and I could have been looking at sub par numbers, even 60s if a 15 footer or two would drop. Can't complain though, the blazing sun hid behind the clouds after 4 holes to give way to some wonderful shade and a breeze, and we had some drinks and celebrated a buddy's birthday after the round.

 

Only downside was getting buzzed with hardly any warning walking down 9 fairway. Somebody snap hooked their tee shot on 1, I heard the impact off the tee, then nothing until a split second "fore" as it buzzed by me at arms length and waist high. There was time to yell, they simply waited too long and by the time they did there was no chance to react as it went between myself and a buddy about 20 yards away. No acknowledgement as the entire group fired up breakfast balls and then went out of their way to not come over to apologize.

[DavePelz4]

Will echo VNutz's comments on Bowes but also ask if they've changed/modified the "Member for a Day philosophy." On Saturday we were charged for range balls and in lieu of the pyramid on the range, they had the range servant ball dispenser and you paid for the size of the basket.

 

We finished our round before 3P and after 4P there was possibly less than 5 groups who teed off after that. With the current daylight and a cart, you could easily skate around in 2-2.5 hours and never see anyone and be done by 8.

[Shriner]

I think Bowes is a unique situation. Obviously it was intended to be private and they have gradually been shifting away from that. Right now, it still *feels* like a private course. The cost to play that course is insane when you consider the quality/conditioning/facilities. I am not sure there is a better deal other than maybe Blackstone. I have played on Friday afternoons with virtually NO ONE in front or behind us.

 

LOVE that course and will be interesting to see how things change over time. They are building houses again on the front nine.

[Holy Moses]

Played Aldeen for the first time on Saturday. Heard they had a great practice facility, but it was closed due to the pro-am today. Maybe they were going to work on the course on Sunday, but there were a ton of rocks in the bunkers and a number of exposed bunker liners. I would expect more if I was paying $2,000 for a pro-am. Nonetheless, the course was still in good shape and it was challenging. I played from the tips with two very good amateur golfers who had + handicaps. I'll probably go back. Shot 78 even though I struggled with my approaches on holes that weren't par threes.

[Argonne69]

I know I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel here, but would you choose to play Bliss Creek, Hughes Creek, or Blackberry Oaks?

 

[Argonne69]

Looks like we're more or less at the midpoint of the season. Well, at least using the calendar. Hopefully we'll have a better fall than we did spring. Based on the number of posts it seems most of us have played fewer rounds this year. I've played 46 rounds this year, compared to 54 last year. I think I can count on one hand the number of local rounds I've played that didn't involve rain gear, or the threat of rain. The long term forecast for July looks like more of the same, rain.

[ldchristopher]

> @Argonne69 said:

> Looks like we're more or less at the midpoint of the season. Well, at least using the calendar. Hopefully we'll have a better fall than we did spring. Based on the number of posts it seems most of us have played fewer rounds this year. I've played 46 rounds this year, compared to 54 last year. I think I can count on one hand the number of local rounds I've played that didn't involve rain gear, or the threat of rain. The long term forecast for July looks like more of the same, rain.

I’m at literally the exact same amount of rounds as this time last year. I had 43 as of July 9, 2018 and I’m at 43 as of today. It definitely helped that I played 15 rounds in June this year since I was starting to fall off my 2018 pace a bit. Rain stinks but in good conditions the pace slows considerably. For a “dying” sport (I read that on GolfWRX via a cranky old guy so it must be true), a lot of people sure do play it when the weather is decent.

 

[mci711]

I'm at 48. Half of them at 7 Bridges. Last year at this time I was in the 20s. Going to set a new record this year and maybe hit 100 for the first time ever.

[VNutz]

> @Argonne69 said:

> I know I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel here, but would you choose to play Bliss Creek, Hughes Creek, or Blackberry Oaks?

>

 

Haven't played Blackberry Oaks, but Hughes Creek from what I remember was better than Bliss Creek. Neither were great, but I remember Bliss being very short and cramped.

[DavePelz4]

BB Oaks is probably the best of the 3. The range sucks though. There is some variety in the course, and it's usually in very good condition. The par 4 18th is a fun finishing hole where depending on the length of your drive, you could be playing the approach over water. The greens are the defense of the course with some interesting angle allowing for tough pin positions. It's only about 6,300 from the tips but there is water on 5-6 holes. 3 of the 4 par 5's are reachable...although for someone with VNutz length, they're all reachable.

[geochitown]

Chicago thread has advanced to a new thread, Take 3.

found here:

https://forums.golfwrx.com/discussion/1780300/where-are-you-playing-tomorrow-chicago-round-3#latest

 

[Quem24]

> @Argonne69 said:

> A very pleasant morning out at Tanna Farms. It seemed like the first round in ages where rain wasn't a possibility. My first visit to the course. I got a chance to tee it up with @DeeBee30, and the company was certainly better than the layout. I can see why the course isn't highly regarded in these parts. The quirky layout takes driver out of your hands too frequently, or requires a precision tee shot. Definitely more target golf than fire and forget. The large number of par 3s didn't bother me as much as the fact that they were all fairly boring. I don't recall too many layouts that start with a par 3 either. The conditions were OK, but no where near ideal. There were a number of very wet spots in the low areas. The bunkers were wet with standing water in most of them, and the greens were excruciatingly slow. The two of us left way too many putts short, often by 3 feet or more. Even chip shots were difficult to get close.

>

> Decent round off the tee, other than a few wayward shots. Wedge play once again was subpar. It's frustrating to miss several greens when you're hitting a wedge. Scrambling was decent, but the greens made it difficult to get the ball close. I made one nice 25 ft birdie putt, but that was basically blind squirrel golf.

>

> Overall it was a fun round with a fellow WRXer, but I won't be in a hurry to return to the course.

 

Should @Shriner and i attempt this gimmick-fest Thursday given the wet conditions recently?