Where are you playing tomorrow - Chicago (Round 3)

[DavePelz4]

Played hooky and joined another old timer at Blackstone. They have, and are, doing a ton of clean up work from taking down or pruning trees, cleaning the areas around the ponds/marshes, etc. It's opening up some views of areas surrounding the property and making the course more healthy.  Also new homes on the course as well as several lots that look to be in various stages of development. 

 

There was some inconsistency in traps though.  The left trap on 3 (yes I visited it) was hardpan, while others were filled with fluffy sand.  There was also some inconsistency in the greens which is rate for Blackstone.  It's rare that you can leave a putt above the hole short let that happened several times.  Fairways have just been punched but that didn't impact much. 

 

As a 2 some behind a 3 some and then 4 foursome, the expectation was for a slow round, however we got around in a tidy 3:40 which was nice.

 

After some decent rounds, yesterday can be described as "many good drives wasted." Too many.  On 4, hit probably what will be as the drive of the year and had a wedge in. That's a huge arse green let somehow I managed to not only miss it, but miss it left into the junk.  Solid drive turned into a 3 that to a crappy chips followed by 3 less than inspired putts.

 

Not easy to find many highlights when you can't put consecutive good shots together.

[TheBear95]

22 minutes ago, DavePelz4 said:

Played hooky and joined another old timer at Blackstone. They have, and are, doing a ton of clean up work from taking down or pruning trees, cleaning the areas around the ponds/marshes, etc. It's opening up some views of areas surrounding the property and making the course more healthy.  Also new homes on the course as well as several lots that look to be in various stages of development. 

 

There was some inconsistency in traps though.  The left trap on 3 (yes I visited it) was hardpan, while others were filled with fluffy sand.  There was also some inconsistency in the greens which is rate for Blackstone.  It's rare that you can leave a putt above the hole short let that happened several times.  Fairways have just been punched but that didn't impact much. 

 

As a 2 some behind a 3 some and then 4 foursome, the expectation was for a slow round, however we got around in a tidy 3:40 which was nice.

 

After some decent rounds, yesterday can be described as "many good drives wasted." Too many.  On 4, hit probably what will be as the drive of the year and had a wedge in. That's a huge arse green let somehow I managed to not only miss it, but miss it left into the junk.  Solid drive turned into a 3 that to a crappy chips followed by 3 less than inspired putts.

 

Not easy to find many highlights when you can't put consecutive good shots together.

 

You had drive-wedge on #4 the par 5? 

[MountainKing]

2 hours ago, TheBear95 said:

 

You had drive-wedge on #4 the par 5? 

 

Lots of speed training over the winter

[ldchristopher]

2 hours ago, DavePelz4 said:

On 4, hit probably what will be as the drive of the year and had a wedge in.

DP4 needs his ball rolled back. Going driver-wedge on a 564-yard par 5. 

[DavePelz4]

3 hours ago, TheBear95 said:

 

You had drive-wedge on #4 the par 5? 

 

It's 526 from the gold tees (I'm old) and there was quite a bit of wind behind us.  It took a HUGE first bounce and then it's downhill from there.  Guessing I actually hit it in the 260 range and that's rare for me.

[DavePelz4]

3 hours ago, TheBear95 said:

 

You had drive-wedge on #4 the par 5? 

 

Gold tees Sir...I'm no VNutz, although definitely nutz.

[TheBear95]

1 minute ago, DavePelz4 said:

 

Gold tees Sir...I'm no VNutz, although definitely nutz.

 

That's still a great drive. I'm black/gold combo guy at Blackstone

[DavePelz4]

28 minutes ago, TheBear95 said:

 

That's still a great drive. I'm black/gold combo guy at Blackstone

 

Thanks...but at the very worst I should have made a 5.  I made a 7.  Woke up at 3AM thinking about that shot.  Maddening.

[Quem24]

Played George Dunne for the first time yesterday.  Well, the first time playing 18 holes.  A few years back I played 9 holes, and when that took 3 hours (not exaggerating) I walked off the course. 

 

I had those ghosts in the back of my mind as I got out of my car and the parking lot, as expected given the weather, was 80% full.  Didn't help that leading up to the round people kept warning me that they'll just let walk ons head to the tee box in between tee times, followed by me seeing only 3 golf carts outside the clubhouse.  I was frantically calling all members of the foursome to get to the first tee box so we could mark our territory and tee off as scheduled.

 

All my fears were unwarranted.  Round went off without a hitch  60something gentleman had control of the carts, which were in the basement and he'd bring them up, and which groups should be going off when.

 

We finished in exactly 4 hours.  Waited on a few scattered shots throughout the round but pace was more than adequate.

 

You guys tell me if I just got lucky playing this course after spring rains beautified it, but I loved the course.  Conditions were one tick short of pristine.  Fairways were lush, rough was grown in thick, which is a good defense for the wide fairways but a tick penal for the water wraparound holes where fairways are hard to hold.  Greens were fair, true, and well kept.

 

Exceptions - tee boxes were average at best, and bunkers were hit or miss.  Hit being they were below average, miss being they were trash and completely unplayable.  No bueno there.

 

Big fan of the layout.  Nice views and not a house in sight.  No parallel holes limits ball dodging (if the group that was heading from 2>3 is viewing this post, I apologize for my tee shot off 11, I trust you heard my multiple FORES since I saw you diving under your carts).  My only minor gripe is those water wrap around holes are the same concept right to left on 4, 8, and 18 (think I have those holes right).

 

I've moved pretty far away from this section of south courses but I'll be back to this one.  Nice spring / fall course in my view.  $36 with a cart was a steal, though obviously got lucky with the weather, curious if you all feel I got lucky with pace and conditions as well.

 

 

Edited April 15, 2023 by Quem24

[DavePelz4]

21 hours ago, MountainKing said:

 

Lots of speed training over the winter

 

My speed training is focused on how quickly the wine glass can be refilled.

[ldchristopher]

Shepherd’s Crook this morning with Bear and two other fellow walkers. The course was lush and the weather was perfect. Of course, that also means the course was packed and-ahem-let’s generously call them “loose” shots were plentiful. A shank whistled past me while I was standing on the 12th tee and Bear got hit in the butt by a guy who was trying to hit to the 9th green  but ended up hitting a toe shot to the 18th. We got yelled at by the group in front of us because they almost got hit on the 18th fairway. Problem was, we didn’t hit. Judge Smails over on 9 hit a mega block. 
 

I drove the ball well but wasn’t comfortable with short irons. Not sure what the issue was. Just felt awkward. I hit 10 greens but the good vibes and great ball striking from Wednesday didn’t carry over. No bail outs with the flat stick either. 34 putts ain’t gonna cut it. Anyway, 79. 

[TheBear95]

3 hours ago, ldchristopher said:

Shepherd’s Crook this morning with Bear and two other fellow walkers. The course was lush and the weather was perfect. Of course, that also means the course was packed and-ahem-let’s generously call them “loose” shots were plentiful. A shank whistled past me while I was standing on the 12th tee and Bear got hit in the butt by a guy who was trying to hit to the 9th green  but ended up hitting a toe shot to the 18th. We got yelled at by the group in front of us because they almost got hit on the 18th fairway. Problem was, we didn’t hit. Judge Smails over on 9 hit a mega block. 
 

I drove the ball well but wasn’t comfortable with short irons. Not sure what the issue was. Just felt awkward. I hit 10 greens but the good vibes and great ball striking from Wednesday didn’t carry over. No bail outs with the flat stick either. 34 putts ain’t gonna cut it. Anyway, 79. 

 

Better to be hit in the a** than the head. Some WILD shots out at Shepherds today, lol

 

I'll add, the course was in lovely shape tee to green. But, the greens were kind of slow for Shepherds. I was a bit surprised, as I played it before in April and the greens were moving.

 

Also, they added a nice looking bathroom right behind #5 tee box and look to be the process of adding a short game area outside the clubhouse. Dollars being spent in Zion.

Edited April 15, 2023 by TheBear95

[MountainKing]

Back out to the Preserve today, the course just gets better as the season progresses.  The course was possibly the best shape I've seen it.  Greens were quick and smooth, fairways were fast with a ton of rollout.  Bunkers were perfect.  We had a 2:10 front 9, on the front the heavens opened up on us and we played on, this worked out since it looks like a lot of guys left the course.   By 10 the weather was back to perfect and the back 9 was empty giving us a solid 1:20 pace. Hard to complain about an overall 3:30 pace on a Saturday afternoon. 

 

Conditions were perfect, and my round reflected that with an even par 72, 3 birdies and 3 bogies..  Felt great off the tee, with the run out a of the holes were playing much shorter than they usually do, but more important I came in with 28 putts which is unheard of for me.  We don't get too many days like this over the year, so I'm glad I could take advantage of it.

 

 

[Chanceman]

On 4/16/2023 at 5:12 AM, ldchristopher said:

Shepherd’s Crook this morning with Bear and two other fellow walkers. The course was lush and the weather was perfect. Of course, that also means the course was packed and-ahem-let’s generously call them “loose” shots were plentiful. A shank whistled past me while I was standing on the 12th tee and Bear got hit in the butt by a guy who was trying to hit to the 9th green  but ended up hitting a toe shot to the 18th. We got yelled at by the group in front of us because they almost got hit on the 18th fairway. Problem was, we didn’t hit. Judge Smails over on 9 hit a mega block. 
 

I drove the ball well but wasn’t comfortable with short irons. Not sure what the issue was. Just felt awkward. I hit 10 greens but the good vibes and great ball striking from Wednesday didn’t carry over. No bail outs with the flat stick either. 34 putts ain’t gonna cut it. Anyway, 79. 

Are these "loose" shots at SC a regular feature of the golf course design or just of the current "clientele"??

[TBone0576]

On 4/15/2023 at 6:05 PM, TheBear95 said:

 

Better to be hit in the a** than the head. Some WILD shots out at Shepherds today, lol

 

I'll add, the course was in lovely shape tee to green. But, the greens were kind of slow for Shepherds. I was a bit surprised, as I played it before in April and the greens were moving.

 

Also, they added a nice looking bathroom right behind #5 tee box and look to be the process of adding a short game area outside the clubhouse. Dollars being spent in Zion.

I was out there maybe a month ago playing their Trackman virtual system.  I think the new practice area will be a big improvement.  I go over there a few times a year to practice as there is nothing else very close to me other than maybe Midlane.   Haven't played the course since before Covid but hopefully will get out there at some point this season.  One of the better tracks in the immediate area for me, I prefer Shepherds to Thunderhawk most of the time.  

[TheBear95]

2 hours ago, TBone0576 said:

I was out there maybe a month ago playing their Trackman virtual system.  I think the new practice area will be a big improvement.  I go over there a few times a year to practice as there is nothing else very close to me other than maybe Midlane.   Haven't played the course since before Covid but hopefully will get out there at some point this season.  One of the better tracks in the immediate area for me, I prefer Shepherds to Thunderhawk most of the time.  

 

It will be interesting to see it when completed. Not a lot of space to work with, but credit to them for trying to maximize what they have.

 

If I had to choose one for a single round, I too would go with Shepherds. There's a nice walking culture that exists at Shepherds that more courses in our area should have.

[ldchristopher]

10 hours ago, Chanceman said:

Are these "loose" shots at SC a regular feature of the golf course design or just of the current "clientele"??

I’m attributing the constant “fore” calls, shots whizzing past players, and approaches hitting the wrong green to two factors: 

1. It’s April and most people haven’t played that much this year. Shake off the rust. 
2. Perfect weather + good course + Spring rates = packed tee sheet

Now, if I play there again in June and it’s more of the same, then I’ll blame the clientele. 

[chrisf60526]

Prairie BLuff on Friday.  Course was in great shape and the pace was great.  Weather was so nice that i got a -1 PCC score on my hanidcap 🙂

 

BTW, good to hear that Dunne was moving.  I played there 4 times last year and finished 2 times only due to slowness. 

 

On another note, PB is joining the trend of adding covered bays simulators to the driving range.  This must be a money maker for these courses.  Guess its good to see all that $$$ they are getting getting put back in.

Edited April 17, 2023 by chrisf60526

[TBone0576]

21 hours ago, TheBear95 said:

 

It will be interesting to see it when completed. Not a lot of space to work with, but credit to them for trying to maximize what they have.

 

If I had to choose one for a single round, I too would go with Shepherds. There's a nice walking culture that exists at Shepherds that more courses in our area should have.

It is a fair course with a lot of interesting shots and some challenging greens in the summer time.   As you mention not a bad walk even with the elevation changes.   I think the practice area will be nice and appreciate what they are trying to do but it will take at least a year to grow in and I found it strange putting 3 bunkers in the middle of the green and one off to the side.  Once the season gets going I would assume that is the place you are going to need to watch yourself from getting hit with a ball.   😉

[geochitown]

I think Shepherd’s Crook would benefit from a couple of net cages for people to warm up their full swing  

 

examples of range-less courses with nets

 

Sunset Valley

Steeplechase

Big Run (ha!)

Dunes Club

 

 

[geochitown]

I dug and found the drawing I saw on Shepherd's Crook facebook page.

 

 

Edited April 21, 2023 by geochitown

[DavePelz4]

In Atlanta for a few days and got out to play the Lakemont Course at Stone Mountain Golf Club.  Would put this course down as one of the top 10 I've played in terms of the uniqueness and variety of the hole designs, coupled with the use of elevation, water and other natural features like rock outcroppings. Fun to play such a different course.  Teeing off at 12:30 on a Sunday would lead one to think this is going to be a 5 hour round, right?  Nope.  In fact, we played the first 9 holes in 75 minutes but after the 11th hole, we ran into 5 groups on a single tee box.  And to add to that, one of the groups was actually a 7-some.  Company outing with a lot of people who clearly didn't play much, if any golf.  One of the gentlemen had his 4 clubs in a plastic garbage bag...that's a new one.

 

Found a ranger who proclaimed that it was impossible for so many groups on a tee box.  We went back to the pro shop, and heard the ranger call in his findings. Yep, there were 23 people on a single tee box.  We asked the pro shop if we could replay the front 9 and they graciously sent us on our way.  Finished the 2 time on the front in 45 minutes so we basically played 20 holes in a bit over 2 hours.

 

While the design was wonderful, the conditions were scarily inconsistent.  Some greens were punched and sanded and a sledge hammer would have been an appropriate putter. Others were lightening fast and yet others were non punched and butt ugly slow.  Hmmm...what's up Super...man?

 

Played with rental clubs and need to comment on the TM carbon face driver.  Holy Cheese Whiz, is that face HOT. It had a Ventus shaft in it and it was nearly impossible to hit a fade and believe me, I tried.  Not sure if it was set up for draws but that's what happened.  Took 3 holes to realize that instead of starting a tee shot at the left side and let it drift back. I needed to do the opposite.  The guys I played with thought I was back on the senior steroids as the tee shots were flying.  Might need to go see what reality is on a monitor although the price tag is quite the deterrent.

 

Elgin CC on Saturday for our 3rd comp round.

[geochitown]

shepherds screenshot.pdf

1 hour ago, geochitown said:

I dug and found the drawing I saw on their facebook page.

 

shepherds screenshot.pdfshepherds screenshot.pdfshepherds screenshot.pdfshepherds screenshot.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 19, 2023 by geochitown

[chisag]

1 hour ago, DavePelz4 said:

we ran into 5 groups on a single tee box.  And to add to that, one of the groups was actually a 7-some.  Company outing with a lot of people who clearly didn't play much, if any golf.  One of the gentlemen had his 4 clubs in a plastic garbage bag...that's a new one.

 

 

... Amazing what some courses think is appropriate without any due diligence. Quite a few years ago we were playing at Carillon behind an outing that was also a wake and should have already been off the course sit was a shotgun start. Seems the dearly departed was a big time partier and wanted his wake to reflect that. Many playing had never been on a golf course, the cart girls were from Hooters and in uniform and most everyone was drunk, as in falling down drunk. First hole we knew we were in trouble when the cup was filled to an overflow with Pepperidge Farms Goldfish. Finally someone drove their cart into the lake ON PURPOSE! and the police were called to get them off the course and we got a raincheck. 

[ldchristopher]

Highlands of Elgin this morning with Bear. $38 to walk on a weekend when every other course is charging prime rates. So that was tough to beat. Such lovely Spring weather, with high 30’s temps and some graupel on the last few holes. We finished in 2:50 and were off the course before the snow came though. It pays to play early. The course was quite lush but not wet. The greens had been punched and sanded but were running with good pace and were pretty smooth. With the cold temps and wind in my face on 1, I played from the Golds. Probably should have played the combo tee though. The par 3’s were all teed forward with the regular Gold box closed. It was playing under 6300 with that setup. Anyway, ball striking was back to normal. Only one birdie on 15 but only two bogies on the front and none on the back for a 73. 

[Shriner]

Wow, a round to remember yesterday at Maple Meadows.  First, thank you to DuPage County Forest Preserve for realizing this is April in Chicago and weather will be volatile.  We planned to go to Bloomingdale but they said they were closing early...thank goodness we called before showing up. 

 

We got pummeled by little hail balls on hole 7 and then again on 11.  It was so fierce on hole 11 that we started walking backwards to avoid getting pelted in the face.  Yet somehow, it was one of our favorite rounds of all time.  We had the course COMPLETELY to ourselves.  There was a foursome making the turn when we showed up and one brave single was on the course and that was it.  6th round of the year and those were far and away the best conditions of any course we played.  Fairways were tight and greens were fast even with the hail balls.  MountainKing said Oak Meadows was in great shape so I am not surprised, but this was real nice.  

[geochitown]

6 minutes ago, Shriner said:

Wow, a round to remember yesterday at Maple Meadows.  First, thank you to DuPage County Forest Preserve for realizing this is April in Chicago and weather will be volatile.  We planned to go to Bloomingdale but they said they were closing early...thank goodness we called before showing up. 

 

We got pummeled by little hail balls on hole 7 and then again on 11.  It was so fierce on hole 11 that we started walking backwards to avoid getting pelted in the face.  Yet somehow, it was one of our favorite rounds of all time.  We had the course COMPLETELY to ourselves.  There was a foursome making the turn when we showed up and one brave single was on the course and that was it.  6th round of the year and those were far and away the best conditions of any course we played.  Fairways were tight and greens were fast even with the hail balls.  MountainKing said Oak Meadows was in great shape so I am not surprised, but this was real nice.  

Any signs of renovation work at Maple?  Maybe that’s still in its formative stages 

[Shriner]

17 minutes ago, geochitown said:

Any signs of renovation work at Maple?  Maybe that’s still in its formative stages 

 

Nothing whatsoever.   Honestly, I like the course other than the 8th and 12th holes.  Curious to see what they do with it...

[geochitown]

25 minutes ago, Shriner said:

 

Nothing whatsoever.   Honestly, I like the course other than the 8th and 12th holes.  Curious to see what they do with it...

I don’t think anything drastic is being planned. There was an interview last summer about it between Ed Stevenson and Greg Martin. 

[geochitown]

Here is the info from the website