I've been playing Riverside at least twice a week, for 16$ riding its the best deal in town as far as I'm concerned. Greens are well kept, fairways are nice as well. My only ***** is our rounds often slow down behind some asshats who play 3 balls each, only letting us play through after we ride their asses half way through the back 9. I would have loved to play the course back in the day, it seems to have been chopped up when ACC moved in, but its still a fun course with a good variety of holes. Kizer on Weds
I'll be out around 4:30, we went pretty late last weds and got carts for <20$. We barely finish it up but its nice to play at sunset, at least for me.
Has anybody played Wolfdancer Golf Club? It's the new course at the Hyatt Lost Pines Resort outside Bastrop. Playing this Friday with my brother for his birthday. I'll update the thread afterwards.
Have not, but will be interested to hear about how it is shaping up. Be sure to have some tip money for the forecaddy..
Vicerous - I loves me some riverside. Haven't been out in a while, but for a city course, they really do a good job on their greens, which is my big thing.
Kizer is in amazing shape. Fairways are green and plush. Couldn't believe it. They are seriously watering that place. Greens are almost fully recovered from aeration a while back. They are green and roll very nice. shot a 79. Not bad after not playing for 6 weeks.
Good to hear Kizer is in good shape, I'll be out in an hour. At 100+ on the course, its gonna be nice and chilly... On another note, I played Hancock yesterday... ya, don't.
I really like Riverside as well, but are they still hardcore about bringing your own beer? Last time I played there we stopped by the truck at the turn and grabbed some more brews. A guy from the clubhouse hollered at us , but we ignored him. We get to the 10th and he comes hauling *** up and confiscated our cooler. Of all the courses I've played around Austin, they are the only ones to ever do that.
Played Circle C this morning. Hole 11 is closed and 12 was shortened a bit. That said, the course is in better shape than any I have played in the last few months(Teravista, Avery Ranch, Falconhead). The greens rolled very nice. We went ahead and replated hole 2 so we could get a full 18..
for any students, star ranch is the best deal for me. course is really nice, wide open, and you get unlimited range and a cart with gps for 17 (me and my boys joined for only 29 a month). well worth the drive out there if you alternate drivers. cant really beat averaging like 22 a round for that course.
Have to corroborate what Huffhines says about Kizer. Played Sunday afternoon (god DAMN was it hot) ... Kizer has grass everywhere, the greens are not only holding approaches but they've got great grass and they're being mowed, so they roll quick and true. Go play ...
Wolfdancer (Hyatt Lost Pines) - Friday August 18th Played two Fridays back with my brother and his father-in-law. Oh, and a forecaddy. That was my first time ever using a forecaddy and it was a nice, if unnecessary, indulgence required by the discounted green fees my wife hooked us up with. The pro shop, facilities and staff are first rate, although the fact that speakers were playing Huey Lewis and the News on the driving range was a little bothersome. Oh well, they switched to Willie soon enough. The layout of the course is fairly forgiving off the tee box, but a good test into the green. I think they do this so the "resort player" won't complain about never hitting a fairway. The fairways were wide, but had good bunkering which f'd my 18th hole. <sigh> oh well <sigh> The par 3's provided a good mix of distances, ranging from 3-iron to wedge. (I made a triple of the hole I took wedge into, sadly.) Bermuda fairways and greens were in good shape, and the course has no OOB. That's to speed up pace of play as everything was lateral. I liked this. A lot. All in all a good mix of holes. Several short par 4's that were all nicely protected. The par 5's were three shot holes, for me at least. This is a step above Teravista, Shadow Glen, Avery Ranch, etc. I'd compare it more to Cimmaron Hills up in Georgetown. I'm not sure it's worth the $165 for non-guests that they are charging, but if you can get on at a discount or as part of business, then definitely do so.
Traffic - how were the greens? One of my huge pet peeves is to pay that much money for golf, and to have the greens be less than spectacular (and they need to be fast).
capnamerca - the greens were good from a putting and chipping standpoint. I've definitely putted better, but these rolled very true. They were not fast; I think they are keeping the grass a little longer during the summer. One additional comment about the greens - they held approach shots only okay. It wasn't like hitting onto concrete or anything, but I think there is still some softening needed and that'll probably come with time as the course matures.
I played Wolfdancer last Saturday and loved the course. The music on the practic tee annoyed me as well. I like to start concentrating when I'm hitting range balls and 8 am is too early for the music they were playing. The course is beautiful and has a nice mix of elevation with views and then a flatter course on the back nine. The course is around 7200+ from the tips, so the big hitters and lower handicap players will find it challenging enough. From the short tees, it is still a fun course for those who do not golf very often. They are tons of fairway bunkers. I can not emphasize that enough! Also, be prepared for several long par 4's. These are offset by 2 par 4's that can be driven off the tee if you have a big stick. The greens were fast and did not hold for ****. Even a spinning wedge shot would not hold on the approach. Several greens are very gimmicky (you have to see it to understand). Give the course 2 years and it will be very different. Several BIG complaints, though. First, the forecaddy assigned to us was terrible. Because the first few holes are on a hill top, it is hard to judget distances. The caddy was wrong an average of 25 yards on our approach shots the first few holes. Not to mention, that he misread at least 7 greens badly. After about 8 holes, he fessed up to this only being his second loop, which pissed me off. He was also without a yardage book, which is completely unacceptable. My other compaint is that the round took over 5 1/2 hours to complete. With forecaddies, no OB, and carts, that is completely unexcusable. If you are an Austinite, tell them and you will pay only $125 a round (for non guests of the resort). Overally, it's a great track. They just need to work out some kinks and the place needs to mature and then it will probably be on the of the 10 best courses in the Austin area.
anyone played Avery Ranch lately? I'm supposed to play out there next Friday and was wondering what sort of condition it was in.
I gotta tell ya for $125, they better do a HELL of a lot better than "top 10 in the area." I don't know if they don't understand or don't care that the average round in the area is 30-40 bucks and the top end courses charge rack rate of 70-80. Why the hell would I drive an hour to pay 80 dollars more than Star Ranch? I guess the SA market is mroe expensive, so they may get some from that, but their rates are totally LOL to me.
Got to play LakeCliff yesterday, out in Spicewood. It's a private course, but the "club" is affiliated with Barton Creek Spa + Resort. Course is quite short, measuring only 6800 from the tips, and we played the middles. I didn't hit more than 7 iron into a green all day, and can't tell you how many wedges I had. All par 5s were reachable. That said, the course is WELL bunkered, and water comes into play quite often. If you're hitting it straight, you can score ... if you aren't, you can still get lucky and survive, but trouble is there. Greens were EXTREMELY soft - we were backing up NXTs. However, greens were also the nicest I've played on all year. They has some spotting, but rolled as smooth as a baby's butt. I shot 74 (par 71) with three lost balls on the backside. If you can get on the course, you'll really enjoy it. Highly recommended, if a bit on the shortish side. I'd REALLY like to play it with the wind up, two steps off the back edge of every tee.
Any recent info on Avery Ranch or Teravista? I'm taking a couple of out-of-staters for a round on 09/15.
Got a quick question for everyone. I was driving up 183 going north right around the YMCA near East MLK and noticed a public golf course sign. I went back again the other day on my way north and saw it, it looked pretty nice, but I can't find any records of it online and google earth shows nothing Am I seeing things or is there some truth to my visions?
Played Riverside yesterday. Great rates, and the course is in great shape for late summer. The greens were the fastest I have ever seen there. The Harvey Penick place is a 9 hole with 4 par fars and 5 par 3's. It also has 3 par 3 practice holes.
Just played Riverside tonight and on wednesday. Two 86's to finish off my first 4 months of play. Greens were in pretty good shape, course got a little backed up but for 17$ cart I can't complain too much. Might be playing Star Ranch sometime this next week, will report.
