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Description

This course is located just 5 minutes off I-85 near the University area. It features elevated tees and greens with many hills and rolling fairways. The Tradition was designed by John Cassell, II and opened for play in 1996. This par 72 course has retained it noticeable privacy over the years and remains nestled in its natural surroundings. In the summer of 2021, the course changed over to Ultradwarf Bermudagrass greens.

Notes

Several different monthly memberships available, including reciprocity at Pinnacle Golf Properties sister courses like The Divide, Highland Creek, Skybrook, Tega Cay and Waterford.

B-Man's Take

This course doesn't offer many surprises. It's pretty much straightforward. The holes get tough mostly because of some large, severely sloped, elevated greens and too much brush in the woods causing balls to get lost. It does have 3 sets of Men's tees, ranging from 6100 yards to almost 7000. The forward White tees at 6121 yds offer plenty of challenge even with several par 4's under 340 and all four par 5's under 500. From any tee, the 528 yard par 5 3rd hole will be tough, with a ditch to carry for your second shot that turns uphill and to the right. The green was the toughest on the course -- a large, severely sloped dome. I like the 547 yard par 5 14th hole, which gives you a chance to reach in 2. All-in-all, a fun course to play.

Most Recent Reviews

• 9/4/23 - Review by Mike

  "Great course"

  I gotta say it has been years since I've played The Tradition. I remember it being a nice course, and today I forgot just how nice it was. Great public course tucked away not far off both the 85 and 485. It has a nice mix of challenges and good opportunities for scoring; most of which sadly I did not capitalize on. #1 is probably best with a hybrid or long iron; and then on #3 (if I recall correctly) you have a nice and tempting downhill elevated tee box. It has some junk about 310-320 out that a great drive may be threatened by, but it is probably out of reach for most folks. Still, if you're a big hitter that's something to consider. The rest of the course is a mix of challenges, uphill approaches, and good scoring opportunities. This may have just become one of my "home courses" to trade time. The only problem was the sand being a little hard. Their sprinklers seem to dump a lot of water into them; it's not ideal. Yet, the rest of the course was in great shape. Not a lot of pock marks on the greens. They were fast and kind of unfair to missed putts lol. Better have your putting stroke in order when you come here. Hopefully, I can get back into better scoring the next time because today was hot and dismal scoring wise.... I left a LOT out there. But warmup went so well... LOL

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• 9/2/23 - Review by jscum13

  "Great course"

  Tradition was in great shape. Greens were surprisingly pure. Real fast and minimal wear or ball marks. This course is surprisingly tight. If you hit your tee shot off-line into the trees, good luck even finding it, the woods are dense. The group lost a decent amount of golf balls. All in all, a good course that is worth playing. You can do a lot worse than Tradition in the Charlotte area. Will for sure play again.

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• 8/19/23 - Review by cswan14

  "Great course"

  Had a fun round at Tradition. Conditions were pretty great, the greens were hard and fast...so hard to stick and challenging putts, but they were in really good shape. Pace of play was pretty slow but the starter gave us warning before teeing off that it was a busy day and to make sure to keep that in mind and have fun. Staff here are always great (we saw the beverage cart 4 times during our round), and love that they have cart coolers. There are some blind driving holes that would benefit from a bell to ring once you're clear, but instead you'll have to drive up a bit to watch for the group in front to clear the landing area before you hit. I always have a good time here, and this was a first time I've seen it this slow so hopefully that's not a trend. I'll def be back.

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• 7/4/23 - Review by THE BIG SHOW

  "Worth playing"

  Played on July 4th. We had a 10:40 tee time (foursome). We started right on time, and we moved at a really good pace. I don't think we waited more than 5 mins on any tee box all day. I'd say 90% of the holes we got there and hit with minimal waiting (1-2 mins). The new greens were just recently verti-cut. Didn't have much factor in speed or accuracy of putts. Fairways were full and pretty plush. Some bunkers needed attention, i.e., 6 inch high weeds around bunker edges. and in middle of some bunkers but that's about it. For the most part the course was good for this time of year. It's been one of my favorite tracks since 2000. Check it out!!

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• 8/29/21 - Review by jlong8004

  "Great course"

  First time playing the course. From what I understand they just completely replaced the greens and did some major landscaping (removing trees primarily). I would have never guessed this past Sunday was the first weekend since they re-opened because the greens look amazing! A little grainy and slow, but roll true and no bald spots / crab grass. Fairways looked great, rough is super thick lol, tee boxes were good for the most part but some could use a trim. The layout is tight, but manageable for your average golfer, be prepared to put the driver away more than once.

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Updates From the Forum

• 04/15/21 - B-Man posted "3 Courses To Be Renovated This Year"

  Just got some very interesting and exciting news... three Charlotte-area courses will be getting new Bermuda greens this year:
  
  Harry L. Jones Sr. Course (formerly Renaissance Park)
  Tradition Golf Club
  Birkdale Golf Club
  
  Exact timing is not set yet but I should be able to confirm dates within a week or two. These will likely be summer to early Fall projects, similar to the renovation of The Divide last year.
  
  The Harry Jones renovation is one step in a long-range master plan that sounds amazing. I can't share details just yet but what I've heard so far sounds really cool!
  
  Stay tuned!
  View this thread

• 05/18/14 - scott replied to "Tradition"

  Played the tradition Today, we were pleasantly surprised by the conditions, some teeboxes were rough. The genes were in great shape, esp. Considering the disaster they were in.
  Hope the new owner group keeps up the good work!
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• 04/26/14 - B-Man posted "Statement from the new owners of the CT courses"

  In case you are not on Clickit's mailing list, they sent out this statement from the new management company of the Carolina Trail courses. I'm not sure why it doesn't mention Waterford. We already know Charlotte Golf Links is closed for good and Skybrook has got a new owner.
  
  "As you have probably heard, a foreclosure process was recently completed with respect to Birkdale Golf Club, The Divide Golf Club, Highland Creek Golf Club and Tradition Golf Club. As a result of that process, effective April 8, 2014, Romspen Birkdale LLC / Romspen Divide LLC / Romspen Highland Creek LLC / Romspen, The Tradition LLC is now the owner of the respective courses.
  
  The new owners are committed to returning the golf courses to their r! ightful place as some of the best daily fee facilities in the Charlotte area and have retained the services of Traditional Golf Management to operate the day to day business. We understand that this has been a very volatile environment and we are confident that the new ownership and management will provide the much needed stability that these clubs need. We are currently working on both operating and capital plans that will allow us to show continuous improvement in the facilities and service levels at the clubs.
  
  New membership programs are in place and special considerations are being given to those that held memberships under the previous ownership. Please contact the respective golf club for more information on the membership details (including the revised pricing for weekday sports members).
  
  We are excited to begin the process of restoring these courses to the quality that was enjoyed years ago. We look forward to earn! ing back your business and seeing you on the golf course."%3! Cbr />
  -Traditional Golf Management
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• 04/08/14 - Wulfpack posted "Carolina Trail Has New Owner"

  A Canadian lender has taken ownership of four Charlotte-area golf courses that were part of the troubled Carolina Trail group, according to letters from the company.
  
  After the foreclosure process, Toronto-based Romspen is the new owner of the Birkdale, Highland Creek, The Divide and The Tradition golf clubs, the letters say. The new ownership is effective as of Tuesday.
  
  Carolina Trail golf courses have new owner
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• 05/18/11 - DrSchteeve posted "More aeration!"

  At least these 3 Carolina Trail courses are doing "light aeration" - 1/2" holes instead of 1", still top dressing with sand - apparently to try to avoid the fungus issues they had last summer and fall
  Highland Creek 5/18
  Tradition 5/23
  Skybrook 5/31
  
  View this thread