What would you improve about your course?

[Break90]

Summer appears to be with us, and the two courses at my club are in fantastic shape. Fairways like carpets, greens are in great condition and getting even better. The whole place looks and plays great.

Apart from the bunkers, which are inconsistent to say the least. Some have 6 inches of sand, some have virtually none. Can be a bot of a lottery, especially the green side bunkers as you can't always tell without doing the Brandon Grace shuffle. They are the only thing that I would improve if I could.

So how's your course shaping up for summer, what would you improve and why?

 

[Deleted member 1147]

I'd level off the tees, they have too many humps and hollows. In my opinion the tee box should be the only place on the course where you are guaranteed a perfect lie and stance.

 

[fundy]

Can I swap the clay for a sandy or chalky base?

If not then all of the fairways and green surrounds could do with overseeding and the grass being allowed to grow, lots of bare areas

 

[Crow]

Agree with Fundy re clay base and I'd also like our greens to be redone.

The course was laid out to a limited budget, "we'll have a green here, cut the grass short".
Over time the drainage etc has come on greatly but many of the greens are still without any contouring other than the lie of the land and have some silly slopes.

We recently had three new greens put in by professional course builders and they really show up how basic the rest of the greens are.

 

[Hosel Fade]

Really great actually with the new greenkeeper, keeps getting better year on year. The main thing I want is even tree clearance and limbing on a few very tight holes/areas that suffer from poor grass coverage.

I would also move the medal tee up on 9 taking it from a dumb 245 yard par 4 with a green too sloped or narrow for anyone to hit anyway all the way up to 150-160 or so and on a different angle. Par would then go down to 72 as well, I don't like it being a par 73 off whites and 71 off yellows (SSS is currently 71 from whites as well). A couple of tee boxes need widening as well as they just get ridiculously churned in the winter.

Whilst we are at it might as well shorten 5 as well to get the pars even and avoid a safety issue with people trying to drive the 4th green.

 

[Capella]

Loving ours at the moment, to be honest. Rough is a bit painfull in places, really hard to find your ball in the long grass. Yes, I know it is supposed to be harder to play from the rough, but it would be nice if you could at least spot the ball, so I'd like to see that a little bit shorter in places. Also, a few of our ponds are really muddy and develop a foul smell in the heat, so if I had money to burn, I would get a digger in and clean out the mud. Apart from that, all pretty much perfect. We pride ourselves to have the probably best maintained course in the area. Driving range and practice course could do with a few renovations (which are planned for later this year, after much debate it was decided that every full member pays an extra 200 € this year for renovations in the club house and the practice area).

Oh, and I know that my mum desperately wishes for a few benches at the tee boxes which are notorious for waiting times. I normally don't think about this very much, but I guess, for the senior players it really would be of some help.

 

[Dellboy]

Put some sand in the bunkers, Rushmore Park bunkers are a joke.

Only place I know where you end up taking a divot out of the bunkers, made up of 2 parts sand & 98 part mud.

I know some people will say "well don't go it to them" I fully understand that, but once in one I would like a fair chance of coming out.

 

[Maninblack4612]

Our course was designed in the early 1900s & it shows. Virtually all the bunkers are there to catch a bad shot, hardly any to force you to make a decision as to where to place your shot. Hit it down the middle & you're OK. Practically every green has bunkers both sides, none covering part of the green to hide the flag behind.

If I had my way, & an unlimited budget, I'd fill lot in & introduce fairway bunkers to make people think before they played their tee shot.

It'll never happen.

 

[Crazyface]

Big debate at the weekend at ours regarding the state of the area around the putting green that is front of the clubhouse, with it's lovely display of stinging nettles and weeds growing in the boarders. If only a machine with a seat could be developed for our greenkeepers to use to do this job then it would be done.

 

[Blue in Munich]

The bunkers are a bit indifferent; some good, some okay & some poor. We have got a VAT refund and there is an appeal on the interest pending, apparently the plan is to do them if we win the appeal or go to an EGM regarding borrowing the extra needed to do them if we don't. There is an ongoing programme of tee replacement & tree clearance where necessary and the greens would give anywhere a run for their money. Possibly the most important thing would be to tie the greenkeeper down to a long term contract. :thup: He is doing an absolutely fantastic job.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

The two shortest par 4's on our course, white tees, are 399 yds, so in reality all of the par 4's are 400 yds plus. I'd like a few more at a shorter distance, maybe 360-380 yds. Narrow the width of the fairway if necessary but I'd like it to have a little more subtlety and less wallop.

Similar story on the par 3's where it would be nice to have a 130 yd hole rather than 3 around the 170 mark and 1 at 160.

The actual course is in excellent condition, it just needs to be a little shorter.

 

[jamielaing]

If I had money to burn- redo every green with the sub air system ensuring all greens run the same. Short of that I'm happy. There's no hole on the course I'd change, other than removing a problematic pond. But that's my issue, not the course's fault.

 

[Deijavoo]

My course has been flooded twice in 12 years and there is now a new water feature on the left of the third hole fairway. It's not that pretty but on the plus side it does make the tee shot pretty difficult.

I would also level off the tees and turn the extra 9 hole course into an 18.

Given the problems of such large floods they're doing a great job.

 

[srixon 1]

Put some sand in the bunkers, Rushmore Park bunkers are a joke.

Only place I know where you end up taking a divot out of the bunkers, made up of 2 parts sand & 98 part mud.

I know some people will say "well don't go it to them" I fully understand that, but once in one I would like a fair chance of coming out.

At least you only got 9 holes to worry about with bunkers.

 

[jim8flog]

I would like our greens dug up rebuilt to USGA specs. We nearly did it 25 years ago but it was rejected on a cost basis.

Our greens are not bad (in fact very good for many months) but they could be good all year round. Our 9 hole course has USGA spec greens and the difference is noticeable.

 

[patricks148]

I don't think i would change any of the layout, but i would fire our course manager and get someone who listened to the members, pref someone who still played golf and could see beyond the "we have always done it this way" attitude.

Bunkers need looking at.

Too many weeds and lack of attention to detail on the scruffy bits of the course.

 

[srixon 1]

Take the bottom six feet off the bottom of all the fir trees. Still a hazard but would make the course look tidier.

 

[IanM]

Interesting to see several comments about inconsistent bunkers... that's our Achilles heal...

I also think our 8th hole, a good strong 220 yard par three from the back is visually a bit dull.... plays slightly uphill so the green and bunkers are not visible from the tee.

 

[bladeplayer]

Most Things at the min
Greens are rubbish
If you drive a ball over 250yrds ur fairway will b so narrow the pros b lucky to hit them
1st cut is about 1yard wide then its searching time
Bunkers are a lottery as to how much sand will be under your ball

 

[ScienceBoy]

Start having proper memberships and adult competitions, yes its only 1000yrds for 9 holes but I think it has more potential. Would need more back tees as only has two competition tees out of the 9. The extra length would be a nice challenged. Wouldn't change anything else though.