HILLCREST

[SPY ZINGER]

St. Paul, MN (PRIVATE)

After one round, here are my thoughts about Hillcrest.

I was a little disappointed at the size of the driving range and practice facilities. Based on the size, you are unable to hit anything more than a 4 iron to see the complete ball flight. It appears the grass is well maintained on the practice area, but the targets and size are definitely negatives.

I thought the short game area was well done as well and the practice greens. I felt as though the practice green rolled pretty true to the actual greens.

I do like the layout of the course and placement of the first and last hole in relation to the practice green and clubhouse. I do like the fact that the course is very easy to walk so that is a nice option. Additionally, the pace of play was excellent, especially on a holiday weekend. It’s exactly what I would expect from a private venue.

I felt as though the greens and tee boxes were in fairly rough shape. I am not sure if the superintendent had issues this spring, but I have not seen similar problems at other courses in the area. They were definitely a disappointment for a private club.

Hillcrest does have a lot of blind shots which made shot-making a little difficult the first time around. However, I do not really see this as an issue as a home course over time. Lots of little hills and mounds which made for interesting shots.

Another major disappointment was the length of the course from the back tee’s. At just over 6300 yards, it really dampers enjoyment for longer hitters off the tee. At my current home course, I play at 7000 yards. 700 yards really made a huge difference on most of the par 4’s and all of the par 5’s.

The course is bordered by the East side of St. Paul which makes it a very convenient location from a variety of metro area locations. However, because it borders the East side of St. Paul, it makes for some interesting surroundings outside the green fence. We had an odd looking guy come right up to the fence (I believe it was on 11) and just stare as we tee’d off. Again, not a huge deal, but the St. Paul surroundings and vehicle traffic do make for some definite distractions.

[jshel]

Were the greens as good as ever? They seem to always be very good here.

 

While Hillcrest is short, there are some good holes out there. I think the fifth is my favorite. It's a strong dogleg right where you have to hit two good shots.