Nashville, TN Golf

[pigpenblues]

My wife and I are moving from Baltimore, MD to Brentwood, TN late May 2021. Due to my schedule in Baltimore I was unable to join a club and find a solid group to play consistently with. I would like to do that in Nashville, but most clubs have long waitlists. Any recommendation on the metro pass, clubs to join, or leagues to play in. I have never really held a handicap but I am consistently shooting in the mid 70's. Any advice or recommendations is greatly appreciated. 

[pricebbt]

I wouldn't recommend the Metro pass, as most of our muni courses are pretty underwhelming and rounds can be extremely slow on the weekends. If you're looking for public options, Hermitage and Gaylord Springs are the two best in the area and offer annual passes. Hermitage has 36 holes. Both are a pretty good drive from Brentwood.

There will be a ton of private options around Brentwood. Nashville Golf and Athletic or Vanderbilt Legends Club are primarily golf-only clubs with few other amenities, but you'd be able to find some competitive games there. I'd imagine both have waiting lists right now though. Full disclosure: I'm a member at Vanderbilt Legends. 

Old Natchez, Governor's Club, or Brentwood CC would be options in a similar price range and location with more amenities (pool, tennis courts, etc).

 

At the far high-end of the budget range would be Troubador and Golf Club of Tennessee. Need to own property at Troubador, and I think GCTN has a waitlist, but those are the best of the best around here.

 

Happy to answer any other questions you may have.

[Abh159]

I have some family that recently moved to the Brentwood area (a cousin to be specific) and he just went through the same thing you're about to. I was with him a few weekends ago and he filled me in on his experience.

 

Basically he said that he looked at 7-8 private clubs south of Nashville. I believe the were Nashville Golf and Athletic, Legends, Brentwood CC, and there were several others but the names escape me. He said all had waitlists and all had initiation fees ranging from $15k - 100k. Unfortunately, he said none of the clubs could really give him a decent time table on when a spot may open up so he went ahead and got on the waitlist at one (don't remember which) and bought an annual pass for Gaylord in the mean time.

 

Not sure how helpful that is, but good luck in the move / golf club search.

[pigpenblues]

Thank you for both responses. All the clubs that I have checked in with have long wait lists. I think what I am going to do is buy the Gaylord annual pass and play as much as possible. What is the toughest public course in the area? I looked at Legends since my wife is doing her fellowship at Vanderbilt we get a small reduction. Also, I am not sure any of you have played Kiva Dunes GC in Gulf Shores, AL, but that is my home course. Here is me hitting a 1 iron during Hurricane Sally.

 

 

[daleste11]

Kiva Dunes is a great track and play it every time I go down to the coast. As for clubs, I am in the same boat having just moved to the area in October (from Memphis and was at Spring Creek) and still don’t have a home; on the waitlist at NGAC, but 46 people ahead of me which is less than exciting. When you get in the area, hit me up and we can commiserate together at Gaylord or Hermitage - if you try and play at Franklin Bridge, give yourself six hours for the round. 

[smashdn]

I was going to say maybe Hermitage.

[8overpar]

3 hours ago, smashdn said:

I was going to say maybe Hermitage.

I’m guessing Presidents Reserve from the back tees would be tough. Gaylord was a challenge too from the way backs. That course always bites me especially the back nine. 

[Morety]

Hopefully this post is allowed, but I work for the group that purchased King's Creek in Spring Hill TN last year out of bankruptcy.  The course will be rebranded tomorrow morning as the Towhee Club, named after a bird native to the property.  We have renovated the course to have all new TifEagle greens, redid all the bunkers to improve drainage and new sand, and have replaced all of the bridges on the property.  We have also gotten a new fleet of golf carts and tore down the original clubhouse and are under construction on the new clubhouse, restaurant, and event pavilion, which will be open this winter.  I would encourage everyone to come check it out, as it will remain a public course in the Nashville area.  

 

www.towheeclub.com 

[daleste11]

@Morety just played Kings Creek today for the first time. New clubhouse drawings look good, new sod is coming in and bunkers are good; watch the goose grass on the back nine greens as it’s coming in a couple spots. Also what are you going to do for players club/ memberships beyond what they currently offer? 

 

[8overpar]

9 hours ago, Morety said:

Hopefully this post is allowed, but I work for the group that purchased King's Creek in Spring Hill TN last year out of bankruptcy.  The course will be rebranded tomorrow morning as the Towhee Club, named after a bird native to the property.  We have renovated the course to have all new TifEagle greens, redid all the bunkers to improve drainage and new sand, and have replaced all of the bridges on the property.  We have also gotten a new fleet of golf carts and tore down the original clubhouse and are under construction on the new clubhouse, restaurant, and event pavilion, which will be open this winter.  I would encourage everyone to come check it out, as it will remain a public course in the Nashville area.  

 

www.towheeclub.com 

Live in Spring Hill and playing it since I moved here in 2005, it's a fun track. 

[nitram]

Considering your situation I'd use the discount at Legends as it has 36 holes and the best practice facility besides GCOT. Gaylord is great for public but can be hit and miss on traffic. You may be one of ten golferes on Tuesday @ 10:00 and a senior snail's pace on the weekend. If and when you can access GCOT it's a wonderful experience but the commute from Brentwood on a daily basis would suck. Greystone in Dickson (west of you) is another option and is a fantastic course and would be my preference to Gaylord. Belle Meade is another older/shorter course that has a waiting list from Mt. Jjuliet to Memphis. And finally if you want to really go private with a pool and such, I'd get on the list for The Governor's Club.  It's not the fanciest but offers everything you want closer to home.

[Morety]

20 hours ago, daleste11 said:

@Morety just played Kings Creek today for the first time. New clubhouse drawings look good, new sod is coming in and bunkers are good; watch the goose grass on the back nine greens as it’s coming in a couple spots. Also what are you going to do for players club/ memberships beyond what they currently offer? 

Glad you made it out there today!  As of now, that's all we have planned for memberships, as we want this to be a true public course. 

 

 

[me05501]

Has anyone played the Peter Jacobson-designed course in Sparta? River Watch or River's Edge or something? 

[golfgoob]

8 hours ago, me05501 said:

Has anyone played the Peter Jacobson-designed course in Sparta? River Watch or River's Edge or something? 

It's Riverwatch and I have. It's been a few years since I've played it but it's a great course. Zoyzia fairways. I would play it more but it's too far from Knoxville but it's worth the trip once or twice a year. 

[pigpenblues]

Thank you for the influx of information and helpful advice! I would definitely be down to play some @daleste11. My biggest concern with joining a waitlist club is the strong likelihood that I may be moving in 3-4 years. So, waiting 6-15 months to formally join a club may present some problems. For now I think Gaylord is my best bet but I will see how traffic is from Brentwood. If it intolerable I might be SOL for the time being. 

[me05501]

12 hours ago, pigpenblues said:

Thank you for the influx of information and helpful advice! I would definitely be down to play some @daleste11. My biggest concern with joining a waitlist club is the strong likelihood that I may be moving in 3-4 years. So, waiting 6-15 months to formally join a club may present some problems. For now I think Gaylord is my best bet but I will see how traffic is from Brentwood. If it intolerable I might be SOL for the time being. 

 

Makes sense. 
 

Seems like the biggest traffic issues in Nashville result from all the major interstates being routed right through the middle of the city. You can avoid that snarl by driving outbound instead in. 

 

For instance if you live close to I-24 you can easily get down to Murfreesboro, Manchester, Winchester or Sewanee for a round. I'm sure there are similar options going east or west on I-40 and I know there are some if you go south on I-65. 

 

 

[Abh159]

12 hours ago, pigpenblues said:

Thank you for the influx of information and helpful advice! I would definitely be down to play some @daleste11. My biggest concern with joining a waitlist club is the strong likelihood that I may be moving in 3-4 years. So, waiting 6-15 months to formally join a club may present some problems. For now I think Gaylord is my best bet but I will see how traffic is from Brentwood. If it intolerable I might be SOL for the time being. 

 

 

Why not go ahead and get on the waitlist? I assume not every club makes you put down an initial payment just to join the waitlist so what's the harm in doing it? The longer you go without doing so the more people you'll have in front of you. Sure you might be 40th now and looking at a 1 year wait, but if you wait 6 months to get on the list you might be 75th and looking at a 2 year wait...

 

If my golf life has taught me anything it's that I'll take a private club over a semi-private one 100 times out of 100. You can only play so many 5 1/2 hour rounds behind a bunch of tourists before you go insane and want to join a private club. 

[cleverprimate24]

Native Nashvillian here, my Dad is a Old Hickory Member and I worked at Belle Meade from HS into College, so lots of free golf growing up. Broke my back right as I was aging out of free golf at Old Hickory. 

 

Finally able to play a bunch last summer, and got a Metro Pass. ($575) I want to speak in favor of 3 Muni Courses: Harpeth Hills & Ted Rhodes are both great layouts, and Two Rivers is solid. Outside of H-Hills the greens aren't very challenging, but tee to green they're quality courses. The others are quite Mickey Mouse, good for beginners, but not for a single digit golfer. 

 

That being said, my wife and I are looking to upgrade as well. The finalists are Legends & Old Natchez, we're also interested in Hillwood but it's a stretch financially. 

 

I Iive next to Ted Rhodes, so even with a membership elsewhere, I plan to re-up my Metro Pass. I'll use it to walk a quick 9 after work. 

Edited May 4, 2021 by cleverprimate24

[kywldcts1225]

I haven’t seen it mentioned, but Temple Hills is in the Brentwood area.  I’ve never played it, but friends say it’s nice.  It’s Club Corp so you’d also have access to Bluegrass in Hendersonville and all of the other Club Corp benefits.  Westhaven is in Franklin...it’s pretty upscale and I believe it has a fairly large initiation fee.  I’ve been out there though and it’s really nice.

[pigpenblues]

Great input from all! The main reason I am put off by joining a long waitlist is due to my wife's job. She is doing a fellowship and in 3 years we may be moving again. So joining an extensive waitlist doesn't make much sense. @daleste11 let's play a couple of rounds together when I finish my move at the end of the month. Going to test the drive from Brentwood to Gaylord/Hermitage. If those are doable then I will prolly do their annual pass. 

[Mr. Grumpy]

With a couple of exceptions, Nashville/Brentwood/Franklin area public golf is underwhelming. Hermitage, Gaylord, and Greystone are better than the rest. Franklin Bridge, McCabe, Two Rivers, Ted Rhodes, Shelby etc. are just golf with a regular "g". 

 

Bad news - More and more people are moving here and travel from one side of the area to the other is a chore and a half. It ain't quick and often not worth a 5 hour round. 

That said, I live in Franklin work in Nashville and consider Greystone in Dickson my home course - it's 50 min one way from my house.

[nitram]

16 hours ago, Mr. Grumpy said:

 

That said, I live in Franklin work in Nashville and consider Greystone in Dickson my home course - it's 50 min one way from my house.

And it's a damned good golf course.

[pigpenblues]

Since, I live in Brentwood would it make sense travel time to look at courses south of the city? Murfreesboro area seems to have some clubs that have decent offerings. 

[me05501]

Man...sounds like it is really tough up there. If I was paying club dues I'd want to be able to pop in any time for practice or a meal. Driving across Nashville isn't appealing at any time of day. 

 

Could be worse, I guess. I have friends who live in NYC and Hong Kong who basically don't play unless they are traveling outside those areas. The guy in HK bought a condo on a golf course in Phuket and it's easier for him to get there than to cross the border into mainland China to play. 

[sethdavidsdad]

On 4/30/2021 at 9:19 PM, Morety said:

Hopefully this post is allowed, but I work for the group that purchased King's Creek in Spring Hill TN last year out of bankruptcy.  The course will be rebranded tomorrow morning as the Towhee Club, named after a bird native to the property.  We have renovated the course to have all new TifEagle greens, redid all the bunkers to improve drainage and new sand, and have replaced all of the bridges on the property.  We have also gotten a new fleet of golf carts and tore down the original clubhouse and are under construction on the new clubhouse, restaurant, and event pavilion, which will be open this winter.  I would encourage everyone to come check it out, as it will remain a public course in the Nashville area.  

 

www.towheeclub.com 

@Morety you a member at Dalhouise also. It's a great track. 

We are heading to brentwood area this weekend. How booked up are you Saturday?

[Abh159]

1 hour ago, pigpenblues said:

Since, I live in Brentwood would it make sense travel time to look at courses south of the city? Murfreesboro area seems to have some clubs that have decent offerings. 

 

Outside of rush hour times you're probably slightly closer to Nashville than Murfreesboro.

 

I've played a few of the courses around Murfreesboro over the years and I'd say they are just okay. They are definitely cheaper, but they get a TON of play and are no where near as consistent with their conditioning like Gaylord/Hermitage are.

 

Honestly, at any public course in the area you're typically going to be looking at a 5+ hour round regardless of where or when you go, so you might as well do it at one of the better public options (Gaylord or Hermitage). 

[smashdn]

On 6/10/2021 at 9:02 AM, nitram said:

And it's a damned good golf course.

 

I liked it but I actually put it design wise a half notch below Legacy in Springfield.  Greystone is more scenic.

[Morety]

20 hours ago, sethdavidsdad said:

@Morety you a member at Dalhouise also. It's a great track. 

We are heading to brentwood area this weekend. How booked up are you Saturday?

Seth, yes, I'm from Cape Girardeau and a member at Dalhousie.  I know I'm partial, but it's one of my favorites!

 

Looks like tomorrow morning is booked at Towhee but afternoon is open.  https://towhee.ezlinksgolf.com/index.html#/search

[sethdavidsdad]

On 6/11/2021 at 9:20 AM, Morety said:

Seth, yes, I'm from Cape Girardeau and a member at Dalhousie.  I know I'm partial, but it's one of my favorites!

 

Looks like tomorrow morning is booked at Towhee but afternoon is open.  https://towhee.ezlinksgolf.com/index.html#/search

 

On 4/26/2021 at 3:23 PM, pigpenblues said:

My wife and I are moving from Baltimore, MD to Brentwood, TN late May 2021. Due to my schedule in Baltimore I was unable to join a club and find a solid group to play consistently with. I would like to do that in Nashville, but most clubs have long waitlists. Any recommendation on the metro pass, clubs to join, or leagues to play in. I have never really held a handicap but I am consistently shooting in the mid 70's. Any advice or recommendations is greatly appreciated. 

We ended up Playing Old Natchez, Temple Hills, and Tennessee Grasslands (Foxlands) all good tracks. Think they are all private. Grasslands was nicest and probably most expensive to join. Greens at all three were excellent. 

 

[gorthtj23]

I like many others am struggling with the country club situation in Nashville.  There seems to be an abundance of people moving there but a lack of clubs.  The clubs i have visited almost all have 1.5-2 year waitlists and are charging $100k to get in.

 

My question: are there any future golf developments planned for the Nashville area?  One would think it would take off with the amount of people on waitlists.  Any rumors or announcements out there?