TheClaw’s Review of The Golf Club at Ballantyne on 8/2/15

The Golf Club at Ballantyne

Date: 8/2/15 Sun Morning
Overall Rating:

"Worth playing"
Conditions: Perfect
Pace: 4 1/2 Hours
Cost: $60
Username: TheClaw
Profile: Avid Golfer (about once a week)
Handicap: 5.3
Today's Score: 82
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So they say the problem with golf these days is it is too long, too expensive and too hard. Ballantyne is a great example of a course that does it’s best to promote all 3 of those. It is pricey, even the layout is not spectacular (it is a golf course fitted between an office park). But the kicker was the course set up. The greens roll perfect and lightning fast, so as a result you would expect the pins to be in flat spots, where the ball feeds towards them to make it fun for everyone… Not here. Standing in the first fairway we watched 2 guys 4 putt, 1 guy pick up after his 4th putt, and another guy 3 putt. We got to the green and could see why…the pin was on a ridge that falls away steeply. We all 3-putted and the highest handicap in our group was a 7. Naturally this makes the round long, as on almost every green people were putting and marking, putting and marking. Also the rough was diabolically thick just off the fairway in most places. Strange to see a resort course play so tough. Some of the pin positions were madness based on the greens being so hard and fast. They just need to add the clowns and windmills next time. Otherwise the conditions were perfect, staff were friendly, but it was a debilitating round of golf thanks to the setup.