Bend's 2022-2024 Golf Log

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Since I religiously follow Arg's AWESOME travel log I thought I would be a copy cat and start my own golf log for the rest of this golfing season. Don't look for any craft beer pics however! I took a 4.5 year break from playing any golf (elbow tendon tears) but now I am back at it and trying to catch up. Before this winter, I only played golf 4 times between August 2017 - August 2021. It about killed me! I have already played 17 new golf courses since February 2022, so I'll start posting my rounds starting this weekend. My goal is to play 1,000 different golf courses, and I am behind (540) schedule so it's catch up time!

 

Here are the courses that I have played so far in 2022:

 

Feb:

1. Charleston Municipal (SC)

2. Wild Dunes Links (SC)

 

Mar:

3. Mossy Oak (MS)

4. Mississippi State University GC (MS)

5. Pilot Knob Park CC (NC)

6. Stryker GC at Fort Bragg (NC)

7. Wilmington Municipal GC (NC)

 

Apr:
8. Southern Dunes GC (IN)

9. Hickory Stick GC (IN)

10. Sewanee GC (TN)
11. Links at Redstone Arsenal - Warrior Course (AL)

12. RTJ Fighting Joe (AL)

13. RTJ Schoolmaster (AL)

14. Shelby Park GC (TN)

 

May:

15. Widow's Watch GC (KY)

16. Lancaster CC (OH)
17.  The Pfau Course at Indiana University (IN)

18. Sahm GC (IN)

19.  South Grove GC (IN)

20.  Fernbank GC (OH)

21. Culver Academy (IN)

22. Rock Hollow GC (IN)

 

June:

23. Cedarbrook GC (PA)

24.  Architects GC (NJ)

25. Yale GC (CT)

26. Fenwick GC (CT)

27. Copake CC (NY)

28. Hotchkiss School (CT)

29. PB Dye GC (MD)

30.  Columbus CC (OH)

31.  Streamsong Blue (FL)

32.  Crandon GC (FL)

 

I have a lot of different courses still planned out for June:

 

Arcadia Municipal (FL) rained out!

Mid Carolina GC (SC)

 

July should be interesting as well:

 

Links Lawsonia (WI)

Hawktree (ND)

Painted Woods (ND)

Medicine Hole (ND)

Links of North Dakota (ND)

Bully Pulpit (ND)

Red Rock (SD)

Elkhorn Ridge (SD)

 

August, I go back to work so I'll have to slow down a bit, but I am hoping to get a few in before the weather goes to crap:

 

Dayton CC (OH)

Connemara GC (KY)

Wasioto Winds GC (KY)

Leatherstocking (NY)

Mark Twain (NY)

Links at Hiawatha (NY)

2 more RTJ courses (AL)

Streamsong Red (FL)

Streamson Black (FL)

Donald Ross Course at French Lick (IN)

Kenwood CC (2) (OH)

Crandon GC (FL)

Bedford Springs (PA)

Musket Ridge (MD)

Whiskey Creek (MD)

Mid South Club (NC)

Asheboro Muni (NC)

Pinehurst #3 (NC)

 

I am going to try really hard for 65 new golf courses played in 2022. I won't get all of these in, but whatever I don't get I'll start working on them in 2023!

 

 

 

 

Edited April 12 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[ClarkGrswld4]

how was Pfau?

[caniac6]

Parris Island is in SC. Not far from Beaufort. I think you will like it.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

3 hours ago, ClarkGrswld4 said:

how was Pfau?

Awesome and incredibly difficult!

[Subsonic]

Glad to see you are back at it!  Good luck in your journey. We played together years ago at Virginia National (now unfortunately closed). 

[sabram]

Re: your Florida swing: Deltona is a real good design, but conditions have not been good. It's still worth playing as it's very inexpensive. You might want to consider Southern Dunes in Haines City FL. It's the best course in the Orlando area and closer to Streamsong

[hammergolf]

1 hour ago, sabram said:

Re: your Florida swing: Deltona is a real good design, but conditions have not been good. It's still worth playing as it's very inexpensive. You might want to consider Southern Dunes in Haines City FL. It's the best course in the Orlando area and closer to Streamsong

Second his recommendation of Southern Dunes…. Delray GC is an old Donald Ross in name only, but Osprey  Point in Boca Raton is much better.

Edited May 27, 2022 by hammergolf

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

May not be able to get to Orlando this time, talked the wife into staying 1 night at Streamsong on our way to Fort Myers to check in on her parents. I'll probably play Delray and Osprey the same day, it's about 2.5 hours from Fort Myers. I love Donald Ross courses.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

12 hours ago, Subsonic said:

Glad to see you are back at it!  Good luck in your journey. We played together years ago at Virginia National (now unfortunately closed). 

I remember! I liked that course!!!!! Hope you are well!

[Subsonic]

Bedford Springs is good. I liked it a lot. Nice place to stay as well. 
 

 

[hammergolf]

2 hours ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

May not be able to get to Orlando this time, talked the wife into staying 1 night at Streamsong on our way to Fort Myers to check in on her parents. I'll probably play Delray and Osprey the same day, it's about 2.5 hours from Fort Myers. I love Donald Ross courses.

I’m just trying to make sure you understand the Delray Beach GC is a Donald Ross in name only. He designed the original 9 in the early 20’s but that nine has changed a lot since then. It’s a muni in every sense of the word. It’s not terrible, but don’t want you to think your going to play an old Donald Ross gem.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

I totally understand that! Many of these older Ross courses may have lost their luster, but I still enjoy them for what they are. Many are in danger of being sold off for real estate, so I'll play them while I still can. I have played almost 50 Ross courses.

[caniac6]

If you like Ross courses, check out Palatka Golf Course. My father played it, and said it was a fun old muni by Ross. It has been rated fairly high in some recent public course rankings. Palatka Florida Just looked it up- Ranked #29 in top 30 munis according to Golf.com

Edited May 27, 2022 by caniac6

[hammergolf]

1 hour ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

I totally understand that! Many of these older Ross courses may have lost their luster, but I still enjoy them for what they are. Many are in danger of being sold off for real estate, so I'll play them while I still can. I have played almost 50 Ross courses.

When I lived in Delray, there was a developer that wanted to come in and buy the place and restore the original Ross design but the city nixed it.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

I drove up to Indianapolis today and played Sahm GC (one of Pete Dye's earliest golf course designs) as well as an older course from 1902 that is scheduled to be permanently closed soon, South Grove GC. Both courses are very walkable. I have played almost everything around Indy with the exception of a few private courses, Crooked Stick, Broadmoor (hopefully I can find my way onto those soon) and a few others. Indy has a ton of really good public courses. Don't go out of your way to play either of these two, but Sahm is a nice little golf course. Pace of play was great. Sand traps were trashed, greens held and were fairly quick. Caught a lucky pic of the Air Force Thunderbirds flying over for the Indy 500.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

On 5/27/2022 at 7:33 PM, caniac6 said:

If you like Ross courses, check out Palatka Golf Course. My father played it, and said it was a fun old muni by Ross. It has been rated fairly high in some recent public course rankings. Palatka Florida Just looked it up- Ranked #29 in top 30 munis according to Golf.com

Palatka is on my list of courses to play in Florida, maybe I'll play instead of Deltona!

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

I was hoping this little course would go out business so I wouldn't have to play it, but I am glad that I did. I have avoided playing here for years without ever having seen it. There are only 2 courses here in the Cincinnati area that I have left to play, both courses at Kenwood CC. It's taken me 30 years to play them all! Today I played a 2198 yard, 9 hole course over on the west side known as Fernbank GC. It has 5 par 3's and 4 par 4's. It was actually more fun than I thought it would be. Many of the holes had "shared fairways" and "cross over" fairways. It was actually a pretty cool layout on a fairly limited piece of land. A few of the par 3's were tough, all of the greens were fairly small. There are no tee times here at all, wear anything you like, lots of cut off t shirts, maybe you get a golf cart, maybe you don't, fivesomes are no problem, great snack bar and lots of cold, canned beer! Honestly, if it were closer to me I would play it more. About as unpretentious as it gets. We paid less than $50 total for 2 nine hole rounds w a cart, a 16oz. Miller Lite,  a bottle of water and 2 hotdogs w chips.

Edited May 31, 2022 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[Subsonic]

I LOVE places like Fernbank!

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Tomorrow I step up my game from Fernbank GC to the number 3 ranked nine hole golf course in the world, Culver Academy. Stay tuned. 

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Wow, Culver Military Academy golf course is so good. It's easily in my top 5 out of the 531 I have played so far. It's ranked as the 3rd best nine hole course in the world. I could play here, and no where else and be happy. It's walking only, unless you have your own golf cart, but there are not any golf cart paths at all.  It was pretty hot and humid today and the course is a bit hilly, the layout is fantastic with an awesome flow to it. Awesome piece of land l, especially for typically flat Indiana. Greens were super fast too. If you ever get the opportunity to play here do so! 

Edited June 22, 2022 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

After I played Culver, I drove 45 minutes South (on my way home), I stopped and played at Rock Hollow GC in Peru, Indiana. I have wanted to play here for a long time, but at 3 hours from Cincinnati I just have not made the trip until today. And, it was not a let down after playing Culver Academy. Rock Holllow is a great golf course in it's own right. Great layout, pretty tough on some holes, and really in awesome condiition. Only $52 with a cart and a logo golf ball! The course was pretty empty too, I played through a single and 2 groups and finished in 2.5 hours or so.

Edited June 1, 2022 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[Subsonic]

Those courses both look fantastic!  

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

4 hours ago, Subsonic said:

Those courses both look fantastic!  

They were really awesome, both easily in my top 20 out of 531 golf courses played. It was a great day for sure.

[Subsonic]

I could play a course like Culver for the rest of my life and be perfectly content.  

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

12 hours ago, Subsonic said:

I could play a course like Culver for the rest of my life and be perfectly content.  

There would be NO NEED to play elsewhere!

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Well I cannot play Twisted Dune in NJ next Friday as they are having an outing all day. That sucks, I'll have to play it on another trip.

Edited June 22, 2022 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[Argonne69]

40 minutes ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

Well I cannot play Twisted Dune in NJ next Friday as they are having an outing all day. That sucks, I'll have to lay it on another trip.

 

Have you played Shore Gate? 

 

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

5 hours ago, Argonne69 said:

 

Have you played Shore Gate? 

 

Nope. It's an option as is Seaview Bay. Also thinking about skipping South Jersey this trip and playing Centennial GC in New York. Possibly Great River in CT. 

 

I'll be on the road Sunday at 11.

[Argonne69]

9 hours ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

Nope. It's an option as is Seaview Bay. Also thinking about skipping South Jersey this trip and playing Centennial GC in New York. Possibly Great River in CT. 

 

I'll be on the road Sunday at 11.

 

Seaview is closed next week. The LPGA will be on the Bay course for the ShopRite Classic. I assume the Pines course will be closed as well.

 

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Well, I think I have it all worked out. I'll be missing out on one course, but it isn't one I wanted to play over Twisted Dune in NJ (Westport Longshore). I made my Yale tee time for Tuesday which allowed me to play Twisted Dune on Thursday.

 

Here is my 5 day quick trip!

 

Sun - Cedarbrook GC (PA)

Mon - Architects GC (NJ)

Tue - Yale GC (CT) am, Fenwick GC (CT) pm

Wed - Copake CC (NY) am, Hotchkiss School (CT) pm

Thur-am 9 holes TBD, Twisted Dune GC (NJ) pm

Fri - TBD am

 

The Supra is all packed (it's tight!) and I'll be rolling out today!

 

 

Edited June 5, 2022 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC