Golfers in Austin, TX

[mgoods23]

Anyone here a member at Lost Creek CC? I’m in south austin and can no longer stand the 5 hr rounds at the muni’s. I’m in between joining there or onion creek

[epmonies]

Anyone here a member at Lost Creek CC? I’m in south austin and can no longer stand the 5 hr rounds at the muni’s. I’m in between joining there or onion creek

 

I’m sure members will chime in but I consistently play both as a guest.

 

LC is a shorter track even from the tips and it’s not really a bombers paradise. OC has 27 holes, more variety, and the north course setup is probably nicer than LC in my opinion. Only thing you’ll have to deal with is the semi-private nature of Onion with times posted on golfnow, etc - whereas, LC is completely private.

 

They’re fairly similar in pace of play so it’s prob going to come down to price and course layout for you. I know a lot of people that don’t like LC’s quirky, shorter setup.

 

Good luck!

 

/ep

[duffer987]

Anyone here a member at Lost Creek CC? I'm in south austin and can no longer stand the 5 hr rounds at the muni's. I'm in between joining there or onion creek

 

I'm sure members will chime in but I consistently play both as a guest.

 

LC is a shorter track even from the tips and it's not really a bombers paradise. OC has 27 holes, more variety, and the north course setup is probably nicer than LC in my opinion. Only thing you'll have to deal with is the semi-private nature of Onion with times posted on golfnow, etc - whereas, LC is completely private.

 

They're fairly similar in pace of play so it's prob going to come down to price and course layout for you. I know a lot of people that don't like LC's quirky, shorter setup.

 

Good luck!

 

/ep

 

I really enjoy Onion Creek, good old-ish school layout. That said I was playing elsewhere with a member or a member's mate and he was talking about the flood plain issues and all the homes the city was looking to buy around the course and the flooding issues the course has had in the past 5 years. Apart from the long drive from N. Austin, that had me put the brakes on.

[mgoods23]

Thanks for the reply’s, the are almost the same exact price and roughly the same distance from me. When I inquired about a membership at LC, they mentioned they have around 400 golf members which seems like a ton to me

[epmonies]

Thanks for the reply’s, the are almost the same exact price and roughly the same distance from me. When I inquired about a membership at LC, they mentioned they have around 400 golf members which seems like a ton to me

 

Wow, that's actually a lot higher than I thought as well. In my mind, the more the merrier and good opportunities to meet other decent golfers. I personally prefer LC but again, I don't think you can go wrong with either! Let us know what you decide.

 

/ep

[raholland71]

I'm totally down with another get-together. I wish I would have been able to make the last one especially since I had to duck out of the last one and Lakecliff is indefinitely closed.

[hackman162]

Thanks for the reply’s, the are almost the same exact price and roughly the same distance from me. When I inquired about a membership at LC, they mentioned they have around 400 golf members which seems like a ton to me

 

Wow, that's actually a lot higher than I thought as well. In my mind, the more the merrier and good opportunities to meet other decent golfers. I personally prefer LC but again, I don't think you can go wrong with either! Let us know what you decide.

 

/ep

I am just getting back into the game after a 7+ year layoff. In that time I moved here to Austin. I have inquired to both LC and OC about memberships. LC got back to me right away. I have yet to hear back from OC. I don't really live to close to either course, but LC is only 10-15 minutes from the office. I will schedule a tour there at some point in the not too distant future.

[epmonies]

I'm totally down with another get-together. I wish I would have been able to make the last one especially since I had to duck out of the last one and Lakecliff is indefinitely closed.

 

I’m thinking we’ll do something in the March timeframe. Keep you posted.. and agree, total bummer on Lakecliff!

[Rezzy]

My friend said although ACC is his recommendation, he said that it is more old money and stuffy. He has only played there twice and is acquaintances with 1 member so don't want to put 100% stock in that opinion. I am not a big walker for golf as I have some plantar fasciitis, UGH! Comes and goes, thus takes away consistent walking options.

 

I have been looking at Twin Creeks and it comes with reciprocal playing priviledges 2x's a month at these places below, any feedback on them?

Reciprocal Club Privileges

 

 

 

The Sister Club Reciprocal benefit affords Golf Member and Spouse cart fee only access two (2) times a month at each of our Dominion Golf Group Properties. The benefit also includes half priced golf Guest fees, along with Fitness, Social and Dining club privileges. All tee time reservations are made through your Club’s pro shop 48 hours in advance.

 

Onion Creek Club

Onion Creek Club, located in Southeast Austin, is Austin's most historic golf club. Founded in 1974 by three­ time Masters Champion, Jimmy Demaret, and golf legend, Jimmie Connolly, Onion Creek Club has built a rich tradition of understated elegence based on quality and family values. Known as a shot­maker’s course, Onion Creek by design, plays at both a championship level and a Member level, providing an enjoyable challenge to golfers of any age or handicap.

www.onioncreekclub.com

 

The Dominion Country Club

The Dominion Country Club is an exclusive private club collocated with one of America’s top ten private gated communities. Located in the peaceful wooded Texas Hill Country just 20 minutes from San Antonio, the Club offers the very finest facilities, service and amenities.

www.the-dominion.com

 

River Place Country Club

River Place Country Club is nestled in the Hill Country with a championship 18-hole, Tom Kite designed signature golf course, surrounded by the awe-inspiring beauty of nature combined with a multitude of exceptional recreational activities.

www.riverplaceclub.com

 

Lantana Golf Club

Lantana Golf Club is nestled in the gently rolling hills of southern Denton County and is characterized by its unique architecture and breathtaking natural setting, inspired by the beauty of the Texas Hill Country. Designed by the world renowned team of Jay and Carter Moorish, Lantana's course maximizes the wooded terrain and natural beauty of the land creating an unparalled setting.

www.lantanagolf.com

 

Bridlewood Golf Club

Bridlewood Golf Club is located in the rolling hills of southern Denton County. The signature golf course is known for its great beauty and equal challenge at every level of play. Measuring 7,000 yards from the championship tees, the course tempts golfers with 25 acres of lakes and meandering Timber Creek. Bridlewood is the first daily fee golf course joining the Dominion Golf Group portfolio.

www.bridlewoodgolf.com

 

Bridlewood is no longer part of the Dominion Group. Twin Creeks is my home course and I enjoy it and the reciprocal courses. It's a good deal to me with a strong men's league at TC.

[Rezzy]

There's a good opportunity to check out the UT Golf course next week on President's Day. It's a charity scramble with good prizes and a lot of fun. The event is open to the public.

[Luke.Sutton]

I’m a member at LC and am happy to answer questions. I feel like LC is more of a true country club and much more private than OC. OC has been devastated with floods and the course never really recovered. We have a very active young membership and there is always someone to play with. Guys nite out on Wednesday’s is also a blast as well as the men’s locker room/bar. LC has a new super in the past 2 years and if you have been recently you should come check it out. Conditions are perfect and I would say are better than any super high end club in town. Winter is a great time to join and they usually run specials. Give me a shout if you would like for me to take you out sometime. I’d be happy to set something up.

Luke

[email protected]

[mgoods23]

Thanks! I’ve already taken a tour and played the course, really like it and the facilities. My only concern is pace of play with so many members. Could you shed some light?

[pearsonified]

No disrespect to the members here, but Lost Creek is a terrible golf course and a terrible club in general.

 

From a golf perspective, Onion Creek is MASSIVELY superior in every way—27 holes (with 9 from Coore and Crenshaw), wildly exciting greens (especially on the C&C holes), and better/more consistent turf conditions.

 

On top of that, membership at Onion gets you reciprocal privileges at both Twin Creeks and River Place.

 

IMO, TC and RP are not on Onion's level (though I'm sure TC will have some vocal defenders of the extremely penal layout), but it's nice to have 3 course options with your membership.

 

The best non-touring PGA pro in America, Omar Uresti, plays out of Onion Creek because the wild greens require you to bring your "tourney-level" game every time out.

 

With all of that said, I still prefer the Roy Kizer/Jimmy Clay/Morris Williams muni triumvirate because of the lower annual cost and course variety.

 

I know people tend to scoff at munies, but the 3 I listed above are some of the finest municipal courses in the country, and each is a wonderfully unique test of golf.

 

Like other commenters, I hate the 4hr+ rounds that now seem to be the norm in Austin. The solution, however, is not to overpay for quicker rounds at dying clubs.

 

Instead, the solution is to get the Austin City Council to quit jerking off to walking trails and nonspecific parkland construction (yay green open space with nothing but a couple of empty soccer nets and another empty playscape!) and to accept the fact that golf is a worthy public expense in a community with a 365-day golf season.

 

In fact, there is an open meeting for the 2018 Bond commission TODAY at 3:00pm at Austin City Hall.

 

The public will be permitted to issue opening statements at the beginning of the meeting, and I am planning on going to say my piece about Austin's high rate of rounds-per-year on the 4 main municipal courses and the need for more golf resources.

 

Right now, the city seems committed to keeping the stable of courses to the same number we have now (does not address the ever-worsening pace of play problem) and only possibly updating Lions Municipal, assuming the TX State Legislature more or less "commands" the city of Austin to keep the course as a historical landmark.

 

If you are an avid Austin golfer, I would sincerely appreciate it if you could show up and advocate for the Decker Lake proposal, which would bring 2 more world-class public courses and a junior course to the area.

 

These improvements are badly needed in a city that will not benefit from yet another empty soccer park.

[Luke.Sutton]

Lost Creek is definitely a quirky course. Both have pluses and minuses. Me peronally I’m just closer to Lost Creek and wouldn’t ever consider Onion mainly because I hate i35. Last time I played there about half the course was closed and a bunch of the greens were completely destroyed. This was about a year ago. I honestly joined LC when the Oak Hill range by my house closed and I no longer had a place to practice.

 

Lost Creek pace of play is usually 4hrs. Tourneys are kinda slow as well as the men’s league. Weekday afternoons the course is completely empty. I never have a problem playing when I want. You can always walk up and get out within a half hour.

 

Don’t join a club for reciprocal benefits but just to compare the two Lost Creek is club Corp so you get Hills Flintrock, Barton Creek Lakeside, Onion, River Place off the top of my head. 2 rounds a month total at local clubs and unlimited when you travel. Plus a ton of great cousrses when you travel. Ive played Pinehurst#9, bunch in Atlanta and Dallas.

 

Also agree with the above poster and I hope we get more great golf courses in Austin. Decker project seems to have fallen apart and Lions is just stagnant even tho Crenshaw has offered a free re-design. David Edel’s course in Liberty Hill that was to be built with unused Alister MacKenzie plans has seemed to have fizzled out also (El Boqueron).

 

I do not agree that Lost Creek is a terrible club and course. The clubhouse was recently renovated, there is a very active young membership and a it’s a great place for me to play. The mens locker room grille is the best in town. The second blue tee box does cross over the first green and cart path which is kinda dicey and there are a couple tight holes in the back. The fact that you question the conditions though tells me you never play LC. It’s better than Barton/Spanish/ACC, I play those places often. Greens are perfect miniverde and fairways are lush 419.

[duffer987]

^Thanks for your posts Luke :)

From what I've read generally about Club Corp courses, is that they're packed relative to independent clubs and that they really do feel more corporatey than clubby.

I'm guessing wanting to get early Sat/Sun tee times means getting in with existing groups that go out early?

 

Personally I think OC is a class layout and an excellent fun/challenge mix, but I was put off by the more regular flooding and the toing and froing with the city about how to deal with it. If you have recip with it, you should give it another go, it was in good shape when I was there a couple months back.

[jsanatx]

It was a little windy out there today (Kizer)

[duffer987]

^That's cool :)

I went out for a walk around the block today (currently on golf IR) and was thinking I'd loved to have been playing at Kizer or Bluebonnet today.

[scott_Donald]

how is wolfdancer shaping up??? thinking about where to golf start of April...

 

Mainly based in Houston but usually visit my friend in Austin for the day and play wolfdancer...

[mgoods23]

It was a little windy out there today (Kizer)

 

Clay and kizers greens are in phenomenal shape right now

[golf.suLLy]

how is wolfdancer shaping up??? thinking about where to golf start of April...

 

Mainly based in Houston but usually visit my friend in Austin for the day and play wolfdancer...

 

Played WD last Wednesday. Back 9 fairways were aerated and some greens had some patches, but that's pretty picky. Overall it was a solid play.

[duffer987]

Heads up that Austin Skins is having an event at the Golf Club of Houston on March 18th if anyone is interested.

Two-ish weeks before the Houston Open, so it should be in good nick.

[Luke.Sutton]

^Thanks for your posts Luke :)

From what I've read generally about Club Corp courses, is that they're packed relative to independent clubs and that they really do feel more corporatey than clubby.

I'm guessing wanting to get early Sat/Sun tee times means getting in with existing groups that go out early?

 

Personally I think OC is a class layout and an excellent fun/challenge mix, but I was put off by the more regular flooding and the toing and froing with the city about how to deal with it. If you have recip with it, you should give it another go, it was in good shape when I was there a couple months back.

 

I’ll be back to OC for sure...

 

Tee times on weekend mornings at LC are doable if you book online a week or so in advance. It’s a 4HR round... usually isn’t noticeably slow like some public’s I used to play a ton. I haven’t seen a private club here that’s wide open on the weekends yet. Any suggestions??

[duffer987]

^Thanks for your posts Luke :)

From what I've read generally about Club Corp courses, is that they're packed relative to independent clubs and that they really do feel more corporatey than clubby.

I'm guessing wanting to get early Sat/Sun tee times means getting in with existing groups that go out early?

 

Personally I think OC is a class layout and an excellent fun/challenge mix, but I was put off by the more regular flooding and the toing and froing with the city about how to deal with it. If you have recip with it, you should give it another go, it was in good shape when I was there a couple months back.

 

I'll be back to OC for sure...

 

Tee times on weekend mornings at LC are doable if you book online a week or so in advance. It's a 4HR round... usually isn't noticeably slow like some public's I used to play a ton. I haven't seen a private club here that's wide open on the weekends yet. Any suggestions??

 

No I'm a public course hack, so I wouldn't know. I wouldn't expect any course to be wide open on weekend mornings. That said I've found early (pre 8am) slots around here do go along at a good clip, as you'd hope that early.

[sco77y]

What’s the best public practice facility? Anything besides Clay/Kizer?

[larryw]

What’s the best public practice facility? Anything besides Clay/Kizer?

 

Public ranges in Austin leave something to be desired. I haven't been out here in a few months but you might check it out. It used to be a nice place.

 

http://www.drivingrangerr.com/

[sco77y]

Thanks Larryw, I’ll check it out

[pearsonified]

Clay/Kizer has by far the best public practice facility with all-grass tees all the time. The range faces east, and the hitting area is wide enough that you can work diagonals to use the prevailing winds (75% S, 25% N) however you want.

 

Morris Williams has a decent range, and they are more aggressive about overseeding the grass tees with lush rye in the winter. This range faces west, and it's my favorite place to practice when the wind is coming out of the north.

[scott_Donald]

how is wolfdancer shaping up??? thinking about where to golf start of April...

 

Mainly based in Houston but usually visit my friend in Austin for the day and play wolfdancer...

 

Played WD last Wednesday. Back 9 fairways were aerated and some greens had some patches, but that's pretty picky. Overall it was a solid play.

 

perfect thanks for the reply so in 6 weeks it should be in good condition...

 

well so far for the 5 days golfing it will be Wolfdancer(Austin), Golf Club of Houston, Blackhorse North, Wildcat and hopefully Cypresswood tradition if it is open in time....

[duffer987]

What’s the best public practice facility? Anything besides Clay/Kizer?

 

Public ranges in Austin leave something to be desired. I haven't been out here in a few months but you might check it out. It used to be a nice place.

 

http://www.drivingrangerr.com/

 

They started using new balls recently (unfortunately, they are still the yellow 'limited flight' ones) which is a plus.

I like that spot cause it's just a practice facility, so if you go when it first opens or during the work week before 6pm ish, it's pretty empty. Chap running the place is nice too.

Two bad bits: it stays soggy too long after rain due to being down in that valley/depression and if the wind isn't helping to blow it the other way, it can down right stink from the bark mulch/land fill place beside it

[raholland71]

Where is a good place to get club work done? I dropped off my irons and wedges at Golf Galaxy to be regripped this morning at 9:30 and the guy in there said he would "see if he could get to them today because he had 6 sets to regrip and a reshaft in front of me and he leaves at 6"

 

That sounds like a solid 2 hours worth of work to complete in 8 hours