A couple Pinehurst questions

[DrVegas]

My golf group (12 guys) is headed back to Pinehurst this summer (Mid July) for our annual trip. Previously we have stayed at Pinehurst resort but this year we are doing an airbnb and playing other area courses (current rota Southern Pines, Pinewild Holly/Magnolia, Tobacco Road, Pine Needles, Longleaf).  

 

Maintenance - We are avoiding Mid Pines and Mid South because they are doing maintenance the week prior to our trip.  Southern Pines and Pine Needles have maintenance scheduled approx. 2 weeks before our trip.  Does anyone have any experience on how quickly the courses bounce back after summer maintenance?  I'd love to add back Mid Pines and/or Mid South but worry about the proximity to the maintenance schedule.

 

Cradle - Previously played the Cradle while staying on Pinehurst property and would love to get on this summer while staying off property.  I understand that you have to call the day of.  Anybody have experience with how hard it will be to get a late afternoon/evening tee time for a group of 12 in July?

 

Playing #2,#4, #8 - I have read the new rules that state that only resort guests and members can play 2/4/6/7/8/9.  Is there any hope as a single showing up to clubhouse day of and getting on 2/4/8 if there is a last minute opening?  Previously missed out on 4/8 due to maintenance and would love another crack at #2.  

 

Thanks!

[Atwsc7]

We have been going to MP/PN for about 8 years now in June, July, or August. 2 years ago we went 3 weeks after the aerated the greens and they weren't all the way back yet. They were extremely soft and slower than normal since they were still recovering. The greens didn't play firm and fast like they usually do, but they did roll smooth.  I would recommend going the first week in August. They always punch the greens up there the last week of June. Give it a month to get back to normal.

Edited January 3 by Atwsc7

[Drwoods2017]

No chance at getting on 2/4/8 as a single day of. They don't allow it as those times are open to members.  It used to be you could take what was left but not anymore.

[2Bogey]

Is 5 hours a safe guess for pace of play in late June on #2? Any gimmicks we should be aware of at RDU? We’re trying to play early morning and take off late that evening. Thanks. 

[DrVegas]

I think 5 hours is very reasonable time frame.  When we played #2 in 2022 it was under 5 hours and got the sense that the caddies do a good job of keeping everyone on pace.

 

 

[StudentGolfer4]

@DrVegasRDU is a very easy airport. We did what you're planning, played late on arrival and early on departure. Since you are playing on arrival it wouldn't hurt looking into ship sticks. They’re awesome and practically zero chance of a mishap with your clubs. Are you guys flying direct to RDU or have a connection in ATL or CLT? 
 

Cradle wise, it’s really just dependent on who is there that week and the weather. My guess is everything’s going to be even more busy than usual post US Open but maybe not. If you can’t get on the cradle be sure to still use the putting course. Our groups alway loved it. 
 

Like Woods said, no chance on 2,4,8, or 10 as a non resort guest. 
 

@2Bogey5 should be fine. Not too much time is spent looking for balls but it’s slow around the greens. Our caddies told us 4:45 is pretty standard though. 

[Jhan76]

Would it be better to play #7, #1 or Pineneedles?

[TGrant]

Jhan76 - Pine Needles by a landslide. 

[krtgolfing]

8 hours ago, Jhan76 said:

Would it be better to play #7, #1 or Pineneedles?

 

Another vote for Pine Needles.

[islesmb]

10 hours ago, Jhan76 said:

Would it be better to play #7, #1 or Pineneedles?

Pine Needles easily.

[Florida Gator]

I’d put Pine Needles as one of the top 3 courses in the area along with #2 and #4, its that damn good.  Mid Pines, Southern Pines and Tobacco Road are the next tier.  Dormie (if you can get on), #9, #8 are the next tier.

 

Side note:  #3 is the shortest Word not allowed whooping you’ll ever get, the original Ross holes are equals to any on #2 but with smaller greens and open to the public.  If you have a tournament coming up and need to inflate your index, I’d suggest a week’s worth of rounds on #3 because it will definitely to the trick and may make your short game much better in the process.

 

RDU is the easiest airport to fly in and out of.  I have pre-check and live 10 minutes away, and have honestly gone from my driveway to THE GATE with only 2 carry-on bags in less than 30 minutes.  That time included taking off my 10” steel toes boots I had on for a field visit at my destination , and parking my truck.  

[vandyfan]

Question on Pinehurst No. 2 and the wire grass/sandy areas. I randomly got invited last minute to go to Pinehurst (tough life) and I am playing #2 this weekend. I have played some of the other Pinehurst courses but never No. 2. The fairways seem fairly narrow (like 30-40 yds) but if you include the sandy areas with wire grass the landing zones are closer to 60 yds. My question is how penal is the wire grass/sandy areas? Do you still hit driver most everywhere or is there a decent chance the ball gets completely swallowed by wire grass plants?

[TGrant]

Driver mostly everywhere. If you are a decent ball-striker the sand can be not-so penalizing. Lot of hard-pan which in all honesty is pretty easy to strike off of. You wont lose any balls. The chance of a ball getting caught in a plant is low, but does happen. Now the greens are a different story ... 

[Drwoods2017]

They've added additional plants in preparation for the US Open.  We played #4 over new years and our caddie was talking about how its made the course play a lot harder. It used to be pretty wide open and you could miss in the waste area but it sounds like thats got a lot harder. 

[ND2005]

1 hour ago, vandyfan said:

Question on Pinehurst No. 2 and the wire grass/sandy areas. I randomly got invited last minute to go to Pinehurst (tough life) and I am playing #2 this weekend. I have played some of the other Pinehurst courses but never No. 2. The fairways seem fairly narrow (like 30-40 yds) but if you include the sandy areas with wire grass the landing zones are closer to 60 yds. My question is how penal is the wire grass/sandy areas? Do you still hit driver most everywhere or is there a decent chance the ball gets completely swallowed by wire grass plants?

 

The wire grass is fascinating. It's not as penal as you would think. My caddie just told me to pretend it isn't there and hit a fairway bunker shot. Worked out pretty well most of the time. 

[ChrisSP]

6 hours ago, vandyfan said:

Question on Pinehurst No. 2 and the wire grass/sandy areas. I randomly got invited last minute to go to Pinehurst (tough life) and I am playing #2 this weekend. I have played some of the other Pinehurst courses but never No. 2. The fairways seem fairly narrow (like 30-40 yds) but if you include the sandy areas with wire grass the landing zones are closer to 60 yds. My question is how penal is the wire grass/sandy areas? Do you still hit driver most everywhere or is there a decent chance the ball gets completely swallowed by wire grass plants?

 

Hit driver everywhere. There's not an intimidating/scary tee shot on the golf course. I mean, maybe take 3-wood off No. 7 if your miss is a hook and some people opt to lay back a bit on 13 to hit a full shot into the green.

 

But there's tons of room to play off the tee and if you do hit one in a sandy areas it's pretty rare to not have a shot you can advance somewhere near the green at worst.

[StudentGolfer4]

I think part of what makes the wire grass and waste areas so great is the randomness. Generally I think that area is easier than a fairway bunker but it’s possible to be in a terrible spot as well.
 

I was fortunate to have decent lies from those areas but others in the group were not so lucky. One guy took an unplayable because it nestled down between 2 patches of wire grass and he didn’t think he could hit it back to the fairway. Another guy had his ball sitting up so high that he went straight under it and popped it up about 20 yards. Even if it’s in the sand it’s not uncommon to have wire grass to contend with on the backswing or follow through. Our caddie estimated the lie was problematic about 20% of the time. He also said it frequently happens where the same player gets every bad lie in the group while the other 3 have no issues at all. 
 

The fairways are fairly wide but they play significantly smaller than their size. The turf is firm and without any rough to stop your ball from going into the waste areas they aren’t quite as easy to hit as you would think. 

Edited March 1 by StudentGolfer4

[vandyfan]

15 hours ago, StudentGolfer4 said:

The turf is firm and without any rough to stop your ball from going into the waste areas they aren’t quite as easy to hit as you would think. 

 

To me, who is used to 40-50 yd wide fairways, they don't look easy to hit at all!

[vandyfan]

I will answer my own question from playing Pinehurst No. 2, overall I did see it as a fairly open golf course. The wire grass is kind of like rolling the dice and where you can have a really easy lie or be almost unplayable all depending on your proximity to the roots of the wire grass. What was interesting is if you miss WAY left or right you were generally fine (as long as you stayed in bounds, because you were on pine straw. Just barely off the fairway seemed to be the most dangerous spot. Loved Pinehurst No. 2, can't wait to go back. 

[GolfnGatorNC]

On 2/29/2024 at 12:52 PM, vandyfan said:

Question on Pinehurst No. 2 and the wire grass/sandy areas. I randomly got invited last minute to go to Pinehurst (tough life) and I am playing #2 this weekend. I have played some of the other Pinehurst courses but never No. 2. The fairways seem fairly narrow (like 30-40 yds) but if you include the sandy areas with wire grass the landing zones are closer to 60 yds. My question is how penal is the wire grass/sandy areas? Do you still hit driver most everywhere or is there a decent chance the ball gets completely swallowed by wire grass plants?

Now you might get lucky and have a decent shot from the waste areas, but I would still plan on half a stroke + each time.  What did you think of it?

[vandyfan]

25 minutes ago, GolfnGatorNC said:

Now you might get lucky and have a decent shot from the waste areas, but I would still plan on half a stroke + each time.  What did you think of it?

 

Well I might be biased because I had one of the best back 9s out there I have had at ANY course, ever...but I liked it. It is plenty wide and I only got completely stymied by wire grass once and I missed probably 5 fairways. I don't think I missed a fairway where I thought I hit a really good drive. As for the wire grass, overall, I MUCH prefer that vs. super deep rough. Gives you a bit of rub of the green sometimes but also allows for normal shots as well and everything in between. The greens were not as crazy as I thought they would be (probably rolling 11-12) but I am sure they will be much faster at the US Open. I had a spiritual experience for the last 11 holes but that equal parts course, setting and the fact that I was playing completely over my ability tee to green. I shot 32 on the back 9 which....I have never done in my life. 

 

The only possible downsides I would give No. 2 is that the designs of the holes are a little bit more nuanced vs No. 4 so a lot of the holes kind of run together in my mind (that may be sacrilege) and I am always a bit cost conscious. That doesn't mean it is not a fantastic course but it is definitely a more subtle beauty out there. For me, there are more memorable holes on the back vs the front (though I must say hole #4 was absolutely stunning). I would play it again but the price tag is a bit eyewatering, I must say. For me, I think I like No. 4 better when I consider the cost as well. The par 3s on No. 2 were stunning but I was less impressed with the par 5s. They were not bad just not particularly varied or interesting. I think I had almost the exact same approach distance into 3 out of the 4 par 5s. 

[GolfnGatorNC]

44 minutes ago, vandyfan said:

 

Well I might be biased because I had one of the best back 9s out there I have had at ANY course, ever...but I liked it. It is plenty wide and I only got completely stymied by wire grass once and I missed probably 5 fairways. I don't think I missed a fairway where I thought I hit a really good drive. As for the wire grass, overall, I MUCH prefer that vs. super deep rough. Gives you a bit of rub of the green sometimes but also allows for normal shots as well and everything in between. The greens were not as crazy as I thought they would be (probably rolling 11-12) but I am sure they will be much faster at the US Open. I had a spiritual experience for the last 11 holes but that equal parts course, setting and the fact that I was playing completely over my ability tee to green. I shot 32 on the back 9 which....I have never done in my life. 

 

The only possible downsides I would give No. 2 is that the designs of the holes are a little bit more nuanced vs No. 4 so a lot of the holes kind of run together in my mind (that may be sacrilege) and I am always a bit cost conscious. That doesn't mean it is not a fantastic course but it is definitely a more subtle beauty out there. For me, there are more memorable holes on the back vs the front (though I must say hole #4 was absolutely stunning). I would play it again but the price tag is a bit eyewatering, I must say. For me, I think I like No. 4 better when I consider the cost as well. The par 3s on No. 2 were stunning but I was less impressed with the par 5s. They were not bad just not particularly varied or interesting. I think I had almost the exact same approach distance into 3 out of the 4 par 5s. 

Great back 9!  Congrats! 

 

I enjoy the greens since I have a high ball flight and can hold them.  They will probably temper the speed increases after the last US Open there where they burned out by Sunday and the speed was unplayable at times. 

 

I like both nines, with holes 4 & 5 being my favorite combo, then 16 and 18.  Nothing being in the front greenside bunker on 18 looking at the clubhouse and everyone looking back at you lol! I'll hit it fat purposely every time after watching my buddy thin one into the clubhouse (yikes).  I agree too that the holes kinda run together but that changes after playing it more than a few times.  The cost can grab you but going with a member helps a little.

 

[StudentGolfer4]

16 hours ago, vandyfan said:

 

Well I might be biased because I had one of the best back 9s out there I have had at ANY course, ever...but I liked it. It is plenty wide and I only got completely stymied by wire grass once and I missed probably 5 fairways. I don't think I missed a fairway where I thought I hit a really good drive. As for the wire grass, overall, I MUCH prefer that vs. super deep rough. Gives you a bit of rub of the green sometimes but also allows for normal shots as well and everything in between. The greens were not as crazy as I thought they would be (probably rolling 11-12) but I am sure they will be much faster at the US Open. I had a spiritual experience for the last 11 holes but that equal parts course, setting and the fact that I was playing completely over my ability tee to green. I shot 32 on the back 9 which....I have never done in my life. 

 

The only possible downsides I would give No. 2 is that the designs of the holes are a little bit more nuanced vs No. 4 so a lot of the holes kind of run together in my mind (that may be sacrilege) and I am always a bit cost conscious. That doesn't mean it is not a fantastic course but it is definitely a more subtle beauty out there. For me, there are more memorable holes on the back vs the front (though I must say hole #4 was absolutely stunning). I would play it again but the price tag is a bit eyewatering, I must say. For me, I think I like No. 4 better when I consider the cost as well. The par 3s on No. 2 were stunning but I was less impressed with the par 5s. They were not bad just not particularly varied or interesting. I think I had almost the exact same approach distance into 3 out of the 4 par 5s. 

Heck of a back 9! Congrats. 
 

My pinehurst trip was part of a package so it’s tough to say how much I actually paid for #2 but I do recall a $200 surcharge. Was there a surcharge for #4? I think at one point there was but with #10 opening soon that may be changing I’m not sure. 
 

I agree about #2 being more nuanced and 4 having a few more memorable holes due to elevation and views. I think #2 is clearly the superior course but I wouldn’t want to play it daily because of the difficulty around the greens. I also agree a bit on the par 5s. 5 and 16 I really like but 10 doesn’t do much for me. I think 8 is a good half par hole due to the green but as a par 5 it seems odd. I’m pretty sure it’s a par 4 for the open. 
 

The stretch of holes on #2 from 3-5 (I’ll go ahead and throw 6 in there to include a par 3) is the best stretch of golf I have played anywhere. 

[cubuffs]

17 hours ago, vandyfan said:

 

Well I might be biased because I had one of the best back 9s out there I have had at ANY course, ever...but I liked it. It is plenty wide and I only got completely stymied by wire grass once and I missed probably 5 fairways. I don't think I missed a fairway where I thought I hit a really good drive. As for the wire grass, overall, I MUCH prefer that vs. super deep rough. Gives you a bit of rub of the green sometimes but also allows for normal shots as well and everything in between. The greens were not as crazy as I thought they would be (probably rolling 11-12) but I am sure they will be much faster at the US Open. I had a spiritual experience for the last 11 holes but that equal parts course, setting and the fact that I was playing completely over my ability tee to green. I shot 32 on the back 9 which....I have never done in my life. 

 

The only possible downsides I would give No. 2 is that the designs of the holes are a little bit more nuanced vs No. 4 so a lot of the holes kind of run together in my mind (that may be sacrilege) and I am always a bit cost conscious. That doesn't mean it is not a fantastic course but it is definitely a more subtle beauty out there. For me, there are more memorable holes on the back vs the front (though I must say hole #4 was absolutely stunning). I would play it again but the price tag is a bit eyewatering, I must say. For me, I think I like No. 4 better when I consider the cost as well. The par 3s on No. 2 were stunning but I was less impressed with the par 5s. They were not bad just not particularly varied or interesting. I think I had almost the exact same approach distance into 3 out of the 4 par 5s. 

Congrats on the back 9, that is lifelong memory and talking point right there.  I agree with you on 2 vs 4, will be in the area to watch my Son in a college tournament this weekend (Forest Creek) and now may have to see if I could stay a night and get on either.

[vandyfan]

12 minutes ago, cubuffs said:

Congrats on the back 9, that is lifelong memory and talking point right there.  I agree with you on 2 vs 4, will be in the area to watch my Son in a college tournament this weekend (Forest Creek) and now may have to see if I could stay a night and get on either.

 

Hope it works out for you! A few things to note, the clubhouse is under construction (mostly interior) to get ready for the US Open AND the range is blocked off as they are constructing hospitality at the moment. They have a 30 foot high net that is about 20 yds in front of you on the range currently. So you can hit balls, you are just hitting them into a really big net. Also, it looks like they are installing a second set of railroad tracks along the road so it is a little hairy getting from the No. 5/No. 3 side of the property back over to the main clubhouse. Still highly recommend. 

[TGrant]

Vandyfan - Did you have a caddie? 

[vandyfan]

On 3/6/2024 at 10:35 AM, TGrant said:

Vandyfan - Did you have a caddie?

 

A guy in my group did but I did not use him. I ended up tipping him at the end more because I was just in a good mood after making 7 birdies. I don't really like the idea of someone carrying my bag or pointing out lines on a putting surface. Yes they read the putts a lot better but I kind of want to figure it out on my own. And I am cheap.