Bend's 2022-2024 Golf Log

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I'm playing Dale Hollow this weekend, too bad you didn't get to play the back nine.  Description is spot on, it's a fun course.  Several holes that will beat you up but I never get tired of playing there.  It truly is in the middle of nowhere.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

The last Kentucky State Park Course that I played was General Burnside Island GC. I was pleasantly surprised with this place, I really liked it. The course, although somewhat compact, was really nice and flowed from hole to hole quite well. Lots of slow play here unfortunately as the place was packed, probably because it was almost 80 degrees in mid March! $25 with a cart for 9 holes. Course number 643. I have to get two more PRP elbow treatments in May so I won't be playing at all in May and June, so I'll probably play A LOT in April since I will be off from work.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Drove up to Marysville, Ohio a few weeks aho and played Marysville GC, just a fun little golf course about 30-40minutes West of Columbus, Ohio. They were making an effort to improve this place, which was great to see. Decided to drive 15-20 min away and play Mill Creek GC afterwards. 

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Played Mill Creek GC in Ostrander, Ohio. This course is home to British Open winner Ben Curtis. Super friendly staff, and another fun golf course out in the countryside of Ohio farmland. Place was packed but they were abole to get me me out without a tee time.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Last weekend I drove down to White Sulphur Springs and played in my very first Veteran Golfers Association (VGA) golf tournament. The first course we played was the Greenbrier Meadows course, and it was tough! I really liked this golf course. The Greenbrier is really a special place.

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

The second day we played the Old White course. It was excellent as well, a bit more forgiving than the Meadows course. Greens were pretty fast for April 1st. Definitely play here if you get the chance. My playing partner was from Baltimore and he was a former F-15 fighter pilot. Super nice guy too. 

Edited April 12 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Since I retired from teaching April 1st, I decided to head down to North Carolina for a few days to cross some courses off my list. First course was Occoneechee GC which is near Durham and has open play starting at 3pm. After driving 7.5 hours I jumped out of the the car and walked the front nine. Course was fun. Stuck one on number 9 to about 6 feet and made my first birdie of 2025. 

Edited April 12 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Played Duke University GC Monday morning. Some crazy, torrential rains came in and I had to move some tee times around. I stayed in Chapel Hill, I really like it around there, super nice area. My afternoon round after Duke was completely rained out. I was able to get all 18 holes in at Duke University GC as I showed up early and the pro got me out. It started raining as I was leaving the course. I think I hit into almost very trap here, quite frustrating!  I thought that the Duke course was overpriced at $140 with cart. It's a fun course to play once I guess.

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The next morning I walked 18 holes at UNC Finley GC, and although it was quite waterlogged, the course was great. It starts off with a nice par 3. The course was redone by Davis Love and I think he did a great job. My feet were totally soaked after just 3 holes. The UNC Finley course was much better than Duke's course IMO. Military discount got me down to $90 walking rate. Definitely worth playing if you find yourself nearby. This was my 650th course played.

Edited April 12 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

After my morning round at UNC Finley I drove 45 minutes to Raleigh and ate some awesome BBQ at Sam Jones BBQ in Arg's honor. The ribs were crazy good, but the corn bread was like a brick. Not edible. After eating, I headed over to the nearby NC State course, Lonnie Poole GC. It's a very tough golf course, designed by Arnold Palmer. $70 with cart, and it was path only. Definitely got all my steps in today. After my round, I headed down to the Pinehurst area for a few days. 

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A cold snap showed up so my 7am tee time at Hyland GC was gonna be chilly. It was ~36 degrees when I teed off, luckily no frost delay. Had the course to myself. You could tell that this was an older golf course, but it was in nice shape and you could tell they were making continuous improvements. There were 3-4 boring holes, but the rest were very fun overall. Worth playing if you are near the Pinehurst area. It was a balmy 42 degrees when I finished up 18 two hours later.

Edited April 12 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

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After playing Hyland GC I drove over to Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, NC to play the Ryder Course, which is on base and not open to the public (unless you do a background check and get a day pass). The Ryder course was a pleasant surprise. I walked 18 and they charged me just $14. Awesome deal! Super fun golf course and it was in really good shape. Some of the greens were a bit on the smaller side here. Fort Bragg is a huge military base, it was my first time on base here. The weather really warmed up and it was a very enjoyable walk. Pace of play was great, 3 hours. 

Edited April 24 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

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I called Pinehurst and made a tee time on Pinehurst No. 1 and The Cradle for the next day. I enjoyed Pinehurst No. 1, it was a nice walk, but not so sure that it was worth $135 TBH. Very slow play here, took almost 3 hours, 15 minutes to play 10 holes. Greens were near perfect and very fast! The Pinehurst Resort was crazy packed too, which does not lend itself to a laid back feel. 

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Last round turned out to be The Cradle, a nine hole par 3 course. They make you hit off mats. It's nine holes jammed into a very small area, nothing longer than 110 yards here. To me, it wasn't worth the $70 even though you can play as much as you want. I was supposed to play Pinehurst No. 3 the next day, but I cancelled my tee time as it was supposed to rain the next morning. I decided to head home the next morning instead, which was a smart decision as it was really pouring the next morning. 

Edited April 12 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

OK, all caught up! Monday I am playing a VGA event at The CC of Indianapolis and then the next week I am playing two VGA events at two WV courses; The Stonewall Resort and The Pete Dye GC. I'll do my best to mix in a few more Ohio courses before the end of this month.

 

Unfortunately for me, on May 1st I'll be getting another painful PRP treatment on my left elbow. We reached our deductible so need to get this done for free, I don't want it flaring up while I am in Scotland later this summer. No golf for me in May or June! I'll shoot for a July return with a few Minnesota courses, maybe a few in Florida as well. 

[Argonne69]

5 minutes ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

OK, all caught up! Monday I am playing a VGA event at The CC of Indianapolis and then the next week I am playing two VGA events at two WV courses; The Stonewall Resort and The Pete Dye GC. I'll do my best to mix in a few more Ohio courses before the end of this month.

 

Unfortunately for me, on May 1st I'll be getting another painful PRP treatment on my left elbow. We reached our deductible so need to get this done for free, I don't want it flaring up while I am in Scotland later this summer. No golf for me in May or June! I'll shoot for a July return with a few Minnesota courses, maybe a few in Florida as well. 

 

Definitely try to visit Northern Minnesota. 

 

The Classic at Madden's, Grand View Lodge (The Pines and Marsh Lakes) , Deacons Lodge, The Quarry at Giants Ridge, The Legend at Giants Ridge, and The Wilderness at Fortune Bay are all top notch. 

 

 

[caniac6]

5 hours ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

Played Duke University GC Monday morning. Some crazy, torrential rains came in and I had to move some tee times around. I stayed in Chapel Hill, I really like it around there, super nice area. My afternoon round after Duke was completely rained out. I was able to get all 18 holes in at Duke University GC as I showed up early and the pro got me out. It started raining as I was leaving the course. I think I hit into almost very trap here, quite frustrating!  I thought that the Duke course was overpriced at $140 with cart. It's a fun course to play once I guess.

I worked at Duke while in turf school at NC State. Definitely not worth that much. I also worked in Fayetteville, and I believe Ryder is a Ross course. Not far from Ryder, close to Pope Airfield, was Overhills which was a Ross course that was privately owned by the Rockefellers. I was there in the early 90s, and you could still see where the greens and bunkers were. Next time you are in Raleigh, go to Player’s Retreat. It’s a great old bar on Oberlin Ave. It has a lot of old pictures of NC State teams through the years. Parts of the ESPN 30 for 30 “ Survive, and Advance”, the story of Jim Valvano and the 83 National Championship team, was filmed there. 

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

The Stryker Course at Fort Bragg is a Ross. I think some random General designed the Ryder course IIRC.

 

For Minnesota I am looking at Chaska Town, Legends Quarry and Gravel Pit 13. And, that's if the wife allows me to play all three! She wants to go see the Prince's estate tour.

[NCLancer]

@BEND OF THE RIVER GC

 

You were right in my backyard with this trip to the Triangle (and Pinehurst) area of NC!  We live about 6 miles from Occoneechee and play there often...my wife is a proud OWL (Occoneechee Women's League) member and plays there weekly.  It isn't 5 star and a must play but it fills a niche as a course where all are welcome and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

 

The university courses are all very nice and differ from each other in many ways.  None are bargains but all 3 are gems and difficult to rank 1 to 3!

 

Thank you for your efforts and for keeping us informed of your endeavors.  Best of luck with your elbow procedures!       

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

I thought Occoneeechee was a fun golf course! Thanks for the well wishes. This will be my 10th and 11th PRP treatment. Ughhhh...

 

Yesterday I played in a VGA event at The Country Club of Indianapolis. It's a Tom Bendelow design, and pretty old; 1891!

 

Very fun golf course that was a bit rough around some of the edges, but definitely a very fun golf course. Not all that long, maybe 6500 from the tips. Was $100. Not sure what their current membership situation is. Course was well routed over a nice piece of land with good movement and good variety. 
 

This was my 16th new course so far this golf season. Hoping to get 4-5 more courses in before May 1st as I will not be touching a club for about two months! 

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Played two new courses up near the Akron area yesterday. First up was Chippewa GC. It was a very challenging golf course. The back nine was practically brutal. Conditions were pretty good, but the greens were still a little bumpy from recent aeration. They allowed walking, over 55 rate was $30, which was a steal. The course jam packed, and I was the only person I saw walking, course is hilly in some spots on the back nine. I had the best putt of my life on hole number 15, random people I played with were freaking out. Pure circus putt, it either was going in, or down off the green and 20 or 30 yards back into the fairway. It went in. Was super windy for all 18 holes which certainly did not help. 

Edited April 19 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

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After playing Chippewa I stopped at Rawiga GC (about 15 min away) to squeeze in another nine holes. Rawiga is an older golf course that had some nice land, but you could tell that the place was tired. Needs lots of dead trees removed, but that costs a lot of money. It was completely packed too. Had a birdie on number two, which is a 185 yard par three which was nice. Tough hole. They had no carts when I arrived and because I didn't berate the guy at the counter like other people did he gave me free logo ball and only charged me $17 for nine holes with a cart. Can't complain about that. It's a fun golf course, but not really worth driving out of your way to play it to be honest. It was on my way home so I added it in. Up to 558 different courses now. Monday I play the Stonewall Resort in WV and Tuesday I play The Pete Dye Golf Club, also in WV. Both are VGA golf tourneys. I am hoping to get a few more new courses in before my PRP induced break.

[CanFred]

Always love popping into this thread ever so often - looking forward to seeing your review of the Dye course in a couple days!

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

Played in a VGA event at the Stonewall Resort today. Tough and hilly Arnold Palmer designed course. Moderately tough off the tee. Course plays long. For Spring in West Virginia it was in pretty good shape. Had 2 birdies, but 3 triples. Tied for 2nd in my flight. Oh well! They put a bunch of money into the course over the past winter. Rain showed up on the last hole. Course number 559. 

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

The Pete Dye Golf Club in Bridgeport, WV. What a day, such a difficult and penal golf course, even from the middle tees. Crazy hard! This appeared to be a pretty laid back, unpretentious private club. If you are anywhere other than the fairway, you'll need a ton of luck. I'm glad I was able to play it once, but I would not want to be beat up here playing it several times per week. Pete Dye built the cooursr over the top of an old, early 1900's coal strip mine. You can even drive your golf cart through a mine tunnel, and it was a a really tight fit! Not a course that you would want to walk either. Course 660. I am going to try and play a few more courses before May 1st, as I get another PRP elbow treatment on 5/1 and 5/29. So no golf for me until July at the earliest. 

Edited April 24 by BEND OF THE RIVER GC

[Chanceman]

5 hours ago, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

The Pete Dye Golf Club in Bridgeport, WV. What a day, such a difficult and penal golf course, even from the middle tees. Crazy hard! This appeared to be a pretty laid back, unpretentious private club. If yiu are anywhere other than the fairway, you'll need a ton of luck. I'm glad I was able to play it once, but I would not want to be beat up here playing it several times per week. Pete Dye built the cooursr over the top of an old, early 1900's coal strip mine. You can even drive your golf cart through a mine tunnel, and it was a a really tight fit! Not a course that you would want to walk either. Course 660. I am going to try and play a few more courses before May 1st, as I get another PRP elbow treatment on 5/1 and 5/29. So no golf for me until July at the earliest. 

That is one very cool looking golf course. Public access?

[BEND OF THE RIVER GC]

10 hours ago, Chanceman said:

That is one very cool looking golf course. Public access?

It's private.

[mshills]

On 4/19/2025 at 7:40 PM, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

They had no carts when I arrived and because I didn't berate the guy at the counter like other people did he gave me free logo ball and only charged me $17 for nine holes with a cart.

👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

 

Few things worse than observing someone blowing up the person in the shop over cart availability, walking policy, greens fees, weather (yeah, have seen that….nice huh???), or something else totally out of that person’s control. 

[CDM]

Nice courses.  The Pete Dye club is on the list, but have not really pushed going to that area.  You making it to Kansas area, say south central 😎  If so, would feel guiliy hosting @Argonne69 and not at least offering up a round if you ever make the area. 

[mshills]

On 4/15/2025 at 3:29 PM, BEND OF THE RIVER GC said:

Yesterday I played in a VGA event at The Country Club of Indianapolis. It's a Tom Bendelow design, and pretty old; 1891!

Ever played Broadmoor in Indy? I played a qualifier there last year. Good golf course. Difficult, especially in the conditions — torrential rain at times and 3 separate lightning delays. 

 

Enjoyed it, and bummed I can’t make it back for the same event this year.