Where are you playing tomorrow - Chicago (Round 3)

[chisag]

3 hours ago, TheBear95 said:

Only when the rain came, did the groups finally come-in. Because, it's getting wet that's going to kill you.

 

... LOL, that sums it up perfectly. 

[Argonne69]

I forgot to mention that I saw a young caddie at Jackson Park on Friday. I don't play there often these days, but I'll have to look into it if I tee it up there again anytime soon. 

 

[psygolf]

1 hour ago, Argonne69 said:

I forgot to mention that I saw a young caddie at Jackson Park on Friday. I don't play there often these days, but I'll have to look into it if I tee it up there again anytime soon. 

 

I believe they started the program a few seasons ago.

[Shriner]

Played Boone Creek yesterday and had a blast.  Greens were some of the smoother, faster greens I have played all year.  Very impressive for a $45 course out in the country...lol.  You really can't ask for much more than this course.  Two total houses that you see all round, some blindish tee shots, alot of variation in the holes, decent tee boxes and fairways and really nice greens.  It is rather short but there are some challenging holes.  

 

We teed off at 2:30pm, my wife, 9 year old, 3 year old and passed one twosome on hole 12, then finished in 3:20 without seeing another group.  Gorgeous day...

[MountainKing]

The "I'm gonna screw around and take 5 hours to play a round of golf, but I don't have time to wait a thunderstorm out" crew....

 

[DavePelz4]

Our comp played Prairie Bluff yesterday.  On Friday, PB sent this email regarding pace of play...

 

PRAIRIE BLUFF GOLF COURSE PACE OF PLAY POLICY

Prairie Bluff Golf Course Pace of Play Policy

Please keep up with the group ahead and/or play at a 2 hour pace or less per 9 holes (4 hour pace or less per 18 holes). Players or groups that fall out of position will be asked to regain position on the course by either speeding up play or skipping holes. If a group is unable to comply with the Pace of Play and/or does not observe the Pace of Play policies they will be asked to leave the golf course. No refunds will be given. Our Pace of Play Policy is set for the enjoyment of the majority of our golfers. We thank you in advance.

Pace of Play:

Hole 4...............53 mins

Hole 7...............1 hour, 32 minutes

Hole 9...............1 hour, 59 minutes

Turn Time: 5 minutes. Any group taking more than five (5) minutes, may lose their position on the golf course.

Hole 13.............2 hours, 55 minutes

Hole 15.............3 hours, 22 minutes

Hole 18.............4 hours

Tips to Speed up Play

- Play ready golf! - Put clubs away and write down scores at the next tee

- Driver and passenger of golf cart should work together by dropping off and picking- up each other whenever possible.

- Spend less time looking for lost balls. Drop a ball and keep moving.

- Keep pace with the group in front of you.

- Pick the tee box based on your skill level.

- Pick up ball and advance as needed or skip a hole when necessary.

- If carts are restricted to the cart path, take a few clubs to your ball.

 

I laud PB for the education and ironically, we finished the round in about 3:45 which was awesome.  PB is at 10 minute tee times and the group in front of us finished the first hole in 8 minutes and the starter would not let us go until the 10 minute mark.  Can't say if the email and the 10 minute interval led to the quick round but I'll take 3:45 every day.

 

Interesting conditions. On several fairways I plugged or backed up tee shots. The course itself didn't seem over watered so that was surprising. The greens on the other hand were firm, slow and didn't hold much.  I hit several well pinched 60 degree wedges that hit and rolled out 25 feet. On 14 from the fairway at 140 yards, I hit a high from 140 trying the keep it below the hole.  The ball landed just short of the pin yet ended up going over the green.  This happened to everyone in the group.

 

Overall, the course is in great condition. Bunkers have sand, rough was probably at 2.5/3 inches but of course, too many unrepaired ball marks.

 

Next round is Wednesday at Rich Harvest. Looking forward to having another go at it as last time, RHF won.

 

 

[Bonneville85308]

2 hours ago, MountainKing said:

The "I'm gonna screw around and take 5 hours to play a round of golf, but I don't have time to wait a thunderstorm out" crew....

 

 

Close cousins to the "we screw around playing slow rounds at twilight and finish 18 with just enough light left for us but nobody behind us, but don't have time to let anyone through" crew.

[chisag]

1 minute ago, Bonneville85308 said:

 

Close cousins to the "we screw around playing slow rounds at twilight and finish 18 with just enough light left for us but nobody behind us, but don't have time to let anyone through" crew.

 

 

... I got caught between a rock and a hard place about a month ago. Played behind a 5 group bachelor party that were at least all golfers but still slow. The twosome I was paired up with were livid the entire round and at some point you have to comprehend things aren't going to change. By 18 it was right at 5 hours and light was barely good enough to finish but all 5 groups were socializing on the green. Guy with me yelled "Get the F*ck off the green" and a few looked but they ignored him. So this moron just fires a 7 iron right into the middle of all of them. They were all 20 somethings and once the ball landed right between them and thankfully didn't hit anyone, they almost ran off the green. I told they guy that was insane and he could have quite literally killed someone and his reply was "Good, one less millennial to deal with". While complaining every hole he never hit into the group ahead if us. Fwiw he was wearing a familiar red hat. Probably the most unpleasant round of golf I have ever played. 

[TheBear95]

3 hours ago, Shriner said:

Played Boone Creek yesterday and had a blast.  Greens were some of the smoother, faster greens I have played all year.  Very impressive for a $45 course out in the country...lol.  You really can't ask for much more than this course.  Two total houses that you see all round, some blindish tee shots, alot of variation in the holes, decent tee boxes and fairways and really nice greens.  It is rather short but there are some challenging holes.  

 

We teed off at 2:30pm, my wife, 9 year old, 3 year old and passed one twosome on hole 12, then finished in 3:20 without seeing another group.  Gorgeous day...

Yes, the greens at Boone Creek are great. It's definitely a surprise if you haven't play there before. 

[propman]

33 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

 

... I got caught between a rock and a hard place about a month ago. Played behind a 5 group bachelor party that were at least all golfers but still slow. The twosome I was paired up with were livid the entire round and at some point you have to comprehend things aren't going to change. By 18 it was right at 5 hours and light was barely good enough to finish but all 5 groups were socializing on the green. Guy with me yelled "Get the F*ck off the green" and a few looked but they ignored him. So this moron just fires a 7 iron right into the middle of all of them. They were all 20 somethings and once the ball landed right between them and thankfully didn't hit anyone, they almost ran off the green. I told they guy that was insane and he could have quite literally killed someone and his reply was "Good, one less millennial to deal with". While complaining every hole he never hit into the group ahead if us. Fwiw he was wearing a familiar red hat. Probably the most unpleasant round of golf I have ever played. 

You have alot more patience than I.

I would have looked into playing the front 9 again or I would have seen if I could get a "rain check" feigning a muscle pull or something along those lines.

Sounds like your group was lucky it didn't get it's butt kicked in from the twenty in front of you. 

[chisag]

9 minutes ago, propman said:

You have alot more patience than I.

I would have looked into playing the front 9 again or I would have seen if I could get a "rain check" feigning a muscle pull or something along those lines.

Sounds like your group was lucky it didn't get it's butt kicked in from the twenty in front of you. 

 

... It was a nice course and only the 2nd time I played there so didn't want to leave or skip the back. But yea, if it was my normal course I would have doubled back to the front and played it again. It was insane as the guys I was with never seemed like they would confront the bachelor party group just mumbled and complained the entire time, at least they played a more forward tee so my time interacting with them was minimal. Still can't believe they fired an iron shot from 140 yds right into them, I have never seen that done on purpose in 45 years of playing . I hit my putt and left quickly while the 2nd guy was getting ready to chip without any more interaction with those 2 knuckleheads. I told the cart kid my partner hit into the group on the green and was surprised to hear that group didn't tell anyone but were still standing around and talking. 

[St Jimmy]

6 hours ago, Shriner said:

Played Boone Creek yesterday and had a blast.  Greens were some of the smoother, faster greens I have played all year.  Very impressive for a $45 course out in the country...lol.  You really can't ask for much more than this course.  Two total houses that you see all round, some blindish tee shots, alot of variation in the holes, decent tee boxes and fairways and really nice greens.  It is rather short but there are some challenging holes.  

 

We teed off at 2:30pm, my wife, 9 year old, 3 year old and passed one twosome on hole 12, then finished in 3:20 without seeing another group.  Gorgeous day...

 

 

I played there Saturday and Sunday also.  My good friend has had some serious health issues and I've been trying to get him back on the course.  It's a very short and easy play and perfect for an easing back to into the game.

 

Disagree with the variation in holes comment.  I think the course has that "didn't we just play this hole?" feel to it.  But the greens are great and make it worth playing.

[Wolfhammer]

11 hours ago, Argonne69 said:

I forgot to mention that I saw a young caddie at Jackson Park on Friday. I don't play there often these days, but I'll have to look into it if I tee it up there again anytime soon. 

 

 

I've seen them there on Saturday/Sunday mornings. From what I gather they're part of some Chicago Parks program. They caddie for free; all you have to do is tip. I keep forgetting to bring cash but I'd love to hire one of them out. Win/win right?

[Holy Moses]

On the way to Prairie Landing yesterday, I realized I left my wallet at home. But it wasn't at home, it was at work. After rushing to work and then to the course, I went straight to the tee and got there just in time. My tee shot went right into the water. Ended up bogeying the first. Played well the rest of the front and shot 1 over. Eagled 10 and went on to shoot 33 on the back, even though my drive on 18 went into the water. Just missed a putt for birdie to tie my best score of 69. Ended up with 70. Sometimes you jut have to skip the range and putting warmups! 

[TheBear95]

2 hours ago, St Jimmy said:

 

 

I played there Saturday and Sunday also.  My good friend has had some serious health issues and I've been trying to get him back on the course.  It's a very short and easy play and perfect for an easing back to into the game.

 

Disagree with the variation in holes comment.  I think the course has that "didn't we just play this hole?" feel to it.  But the greens are great and make it worth playing.

Agree on the layout. However, I would love to take those greens and give them to another course. 

[St Jimmy]

1 hour ago, TheBear95 said:

Agree on the layout. However, I would love to take those greens and give them to another course. 

I forgot to mention the bunkers.  Was in quite a few of them and they're stellar!  

 

They've watered heavy and the rough is lush, thick, and very penal.

 

 

I might've just talked myself into going back again next weekend. 

[MountainKing]

23 hours ago, DavePelz4 said:

Our comp played Prairie Bluff yesterday.  On Friday, PB sent this email regarding pace of play...

 

PRAIRIE BLUFF GOLF COURSE PACE OF PLAY POLICY

Prairie Bluff Golf Course Pace of Play Policy

Please keep up with the group ahead and/or play at a 2 hour pace or less per 9 holes (4 hour pace or less per 18 holes). Players or groups that fall out of position will be asked to regain position on the course by either speeding up play or skipping holes. If a group is unable to comply with the Pace of Play and/or does not observe the Pace of Play policies they will be asked to leave the golf course. No refunds will be given. Our Pace of Play Policy is set for the enjoyment of the majority of our golfers. We thank you in advance.

Pace of Play:

Hole 4...............53 mins

Hole 7...............1 hour, 32 minutes

Hole 9...............1 hour, 59 minutes

Turn Time: 5 minutes. Any group taking more than five (5) minutes, may lose their position on the golf course.

Hole 13.............2 hours, 55 minutes

Hole 15.............3 hours, 22 minutes

Hole 18.............4 hours

Tips to Speed up Play

- Play ready golf! - Put clubs away and write down scores at the next tee

- Driver and passenger of golf cart should work together by dropping off and picking- up each other whenever possible.

- Spend less time looking for lost balls. Drop a ball and keep moving.

- Keep pace with the group in front of you.

- Pick the tee box based on your skill level.

- Pick up ball and advance as needed or skip a hole when necessary.

- If carts are restricted to the cart path, take a few clubs to your ball.

 

I laud PB for the education and ironically, we finished the round in about 3:45 which was awesome.  PB is at 10 minute tee times and the group in front of us finished the first hole in 8 minutes and the starter would not let us go until the 10 minute mark.  Can't say if the email and the 10 minute interval led to the quick round but I'll take 3:45 every day.

 

Interesting conditions. On several fairways I plugged or backed up tee shots. The course itself didn't seem over watered so that was surprising. The greens on the other hand were firm, slow and didn't hold much.  I hit several well pinched 60 degree wedges that hit and rolled out 25 feet. On 14 from the fairway at 140 yards, I hit a high from 140 trying the keep it below the hole.  The ball landed just short of the pin yet ended up going over the green.  This happened to everyone in the group.

 

Overall, the course is in great condition. Bunkers have sand, rough was probably at 2.5/3 inches but of course, too many unrepaired ball marks.

 

Next round is Wednesday at Rich Harvest. Looking forward to having another go at it as last time, RHF won.

 

 

 

I just checked my GPS for PB since it records time,  3 hours and 10 minutes and 3 hours and 35 minutes for both rounds this year (both Saturday early afternoons).  I didn't play it last year, or really anywhere for that matter, but in 2019 all the rounds recorded were under 4 hours.  I know the Lunde's always ran a tight ship when I worked with them at the Brooks of Naperville, I'm guessing it followed them to PB.  Hopefully I didn't just jinx myself, but our group was talking about just playing there more.  I love hitting up different courses, but these long rounds are really deflating.  

[DavePelz4]

29 minutes ago, MountainKing said:

 

I just checked my GPS for PB since it records time,  3 hours and 10 minutes and 3 hours and 35 minutes for both rounds this year (both Saturday early afternoons).  I didn't play it last year, or really anywhere for that matter, but in 2019 all the rounds recorded were under 4 hours.  I know the Lunde's always ran a tight ship when I worked with them at the Brooks of Naperville, I'm guessing it followed them to PB.  Hopefully I didn't just jinx myself, but our group was talking about just playing there more.  I love hitting up different courses, but these long rounds are really deflating.  

 

One thing I actually should have mentioned from Saturday is that they had a ranger on the course checking things out. Individually none of the things probably stands out but the fact that they've put together a plan has to be having some positive impact.  We saw the group in front of us tee off and thought NFW they'll stay on pace but they did or they were kept in position.  Either way, a smooth round.

[chisag]

19 minutes ago, DavePelz4 said:

 

One thing I actually should have mentioned from Saturday is that they had a ranger on the course checking things out. Individually none of the things probably stands out but the fact that they've put together a plan has to be having some positive impact.  We saw the group in front of us tee off and thought NFW they'll stay on pace but they did or they were kept in position.  Either way, a smooth round.

 

 

... PB is one of the few courses I played that had rangers for twilite golf and they actually ride the course and help with pace off play if necessary. 

[psygolf]

On 8/8/2021 at 1:29 PM, chisag said:

 

 

... I got caught between a rock and a hard place about a month ago. Played behind a 5 group bachelor party that were at least all golfers but still slow. The twosome I was paired up with were livid the entire round and at some point you have to comprehend things aren't going to change. By 18 it was right at 5 hours and light was barely good enough to finish but all 5 groups were socializing on the green. Guy with me yelled "Get the F*ck off the green" and a few looked but they ignored him. So this moron just fires a 7 iron right into the middle of all of them. They were all 20 somethings and once the ball landed right between them and thankfully didn't hit anyone, they almost ran off the green. I told they guy that was insane and he could have quite literally killed someone and his reply was "Good, one less millennial to deal with". While complaining every hole he never hit into the group ahead if us. Fwiw he was wearing a familiar red hat. Probably the most unpleasant round of golf I have ever played. 

Playing twilight at Marovitz 20yrs ago used to be a “war-zone”...the pro shop staff would lock up at 7p, then people would sneak off #1 for some free golf.

It was the only time that I’ve been on a green when someone behind yelled “FORE!”...then hit their approach to the green and played thru.   lol

[Argonne69]

With rain a distinct possibility, I decided to stay close and played a pair of nines at Marovitz this morning. Good call. Got lucky with the opening nine. I teed off with a threesome, and we made it around in just under two hours. I was watching the radar closely, and we finished the round just before the rain hit. After hunkering down in my vehicle for 40 minutes the rain passed, and it was back out for another soggy nine. The rain seemed to have chased away most of the players on the course, so the second play was fairly quick by SM standards.

 

Conditions were decent. I was quite surprised at the amount of new sand in many of the bunkers. Unfortunately it hadn't been groomed in a while, and it was wet with numerous footprints. The greens were similar to Jackson Park, looking good but only rolling 8 or so. 

 

Very good day ballstriking. Three birdies and three bogies. Highlight of the day was reaching the long par 4 4th in two. It was playing into a steady headwind, and I hit just about as good a fairway wood as I could hit. The ball came to rest on the back fringe with a back pin location. That was followed by one of the lowlights of the round, a slightly downhill putt that raced a good 7 feet past the hole. I wasn't going to leave the birdie putt short. Luckily I made the comeback for a nice par.

 

Speaking of lowlight, my conversation with the ranger sitting on the 4th teebox checking tee times ticked me off. There was a single stuck behind us. Since there was a threesome in front of us, I mentioned to the ranger that we should ask him if he'd like to tee off with us, and then join the group ahead. The ranger firmly informed me that singles have no standing on the course, and that they won't allow singles to play through. I sternly told him that he should check the rules of etiquette before spouting off nonsense. The rule that singles have no standing was changed in 2004, with a clarification in 2008. I play 99% of my rounds as a single, so I think I know the rule pretty well by now. He insisted I was wrong, so I pulled up the rule on my phone to shut him up. OK, I know it's a city muni, but if you're going to hire someone to help maintain the pace of play, it would sure be nice if they were at least acquainted with the current rules. Grrrr.

 

[cpeck12]

Playing Klein Creek Saturday morning, and haven't played there in maybe 10 years... has anyone played lately? How are the conditions?

[geochitown]

let us know.  I think last report on this forum was either early this year or last year.  

Goose droppings and bad bunkers?

 

Hopefully in good shape, because like you, it's been 10+ years for me, and apart from 1, 10 and maybe 13, I had fun there...

[geochitown]

On 7/26/2020 at 8:14 PM, DavePelz4 said:

Made the mistake of playing Klein Creek today. Sadly, if this is "better conditions" then one of us is in seriously need of help. Yeah, I'm sure it's me. I understand they're taking bunkers out but the way to do that isn't pull the sand out and pray that nature reclaims the area. Look at how Prairie Landing did it, first class job and you don't even know there were bunkers pulled out. The fairways were rough and in a couple of places they were sopping wet with standing water. The greens were inconsistent at best and several were rock hard. On #5 we were all within 50-75 yards going in, all hit high flighted wedges and no one was able to hold the green. The ball literally bounced at least 5 feet in the air. Several of the remaining bunkers had weeds and small evergreen shrubs growing in them. And what's up with the bounders in the bunkers? Not talking about large sized pebbles, although those were also present, but literal boulders in the bunkers.

Apparently they're not of the belief that COVID-19 is a thing. Rakes in bunkers although the young lady in the pro shop did wear a mask. I believe the new owner was there and he didn't wear a mask.

Need to say something good so I guess it's that the bathroom was clean.

 

From last summer (DPelz4)

[cpeck12]

29 minutes ago, geochitown said:

 

From last summer (DPelz4)

 

Yeah I remember reading that... hoping someone has played it since summer 2020. Will try and find someplace else if it's still in rough shape.

[geochitown]

1.75" of rain today at Rt 120 and the Des Plaines River (location of Merit Club, more or less)

 

[Argonne69]

Rather unpleasant weather this morning at Glencoe. I teed off earlier than normal this morning thinking that I'd beat the heat, but with the dewpoint so high we were joking about needing a lifeguard out there.  The course was quite wet. Walking only. Through the green was in mostly playable shape in spite of the occasional wet spot, but I began to realize that the teeboxes are in need of some serious leveling. Bunkers were trash with compacted wet sand and a few small lakes. The rough was in the process of being cut, so it was actually a decent height. With the morning dew glistening off he greens, they were initially very slow. Maybe 8. They began to speed up late in the round, but were no more than 10. Pace was OK at 3:50, but again could have been much quicker if the group two ahead of us hadn't fallen two holes behind.

 

Rough front nine. With a combination of humidity and sunblock on my right hand I couldn't keep a grip on my clubs. I finally wised up on the 9th tee and put on my rain gloves. Problem solved. Two birdies on the back, but six bogies overall. Highlight of the day was knocking my second on the 10th to within 15 feet of the back pin after another sweet 7 wood from 220 yards out. Lowlight of the day was a nasty snap hook on the 8th that wound up under the lip of the left fairway bunker. Just ugly.

 

Last day with my old Odyssey Tank #7 putter, as I stopped by PXG to pick up my new Blackjack after the round. Of course I made several nice par putts today as the old putter desperately tried to convince me to keep it in the bag. I guess I'll throw it in the back seat of my vehicle for now, instead of the closet. Lol. The Preserve on Thursday. Anyone catch the latest episode of The Golf Scene on NBC Sports? The new clubhouse looks like it's ready to open. I hope I can stop in for a beer after my round on Thursday.

 

[geochitown]

Hopefully they have the patio open as it appears the inside offerings are limited at the moment.

 

Just pulled this off of dupagegolf

 

Clubhouse Partial Open and Preview.pdf (dupagegolf.com)

 

 

[Ryan3773]

Coming down tomorrow to play Shepard’s crook and thunderhawk.

 

any insight as to how wet those courses are? Like is there standing water?

[TheBear95]

3 hours ago, Ryan3773 said:

Coming down tomorrow to play Shepard’s crook and thunderhawk.

 

any insight as to how wet those courses are? Like is there standing water?

I doubt it. Prior to this week, it was incredibly dry in Lake Co. The rain was needed.