- "Great course"
 Better than good, but not perfect. Fairways are like carpet. It's just a real pretty course from the tee box. Greens were recently aerated but roll true and are not slow and not overly fast. Another week and they should be perfect. Traps had sand but many look liked they just suffered from a pretty bad storm. Rakes were out, but looks like not many are using them. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Great shape. Fairways, greens and tee boxes are darn near perfect, although the greens are a bit slower than they look. Bent Grass so they may be not pushing them as we head into the hottest part of the year. Noticed the same thing at Glen Oaks last week. They've taken out hundreds of trees, really opening things up. There are still thin and bare areas due to this, but not where it counts. $33 and paid a $17 cart fee for a second round...36 holes in 4.5 hours. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
 Tee to green in excellent shape. An number of holes have hard-pan dirt off the fairways and some first cut, but this has pretty much always been the case. Greens had been aerated fairly recently but were rolling well and in another week should be darn near perfect. Great layout and not an easy one by any means. Donald Ross designed front nine and George Cobb designed back nine, 'nuf said. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Deer Brook is a real gem. Some maintenance work going on this Monday (aerating some fairways and teeboxes) but overall a great experience. This one is well worth the drive from CLT. The only thing that I do not like, and this is one of my huge pet peeves, is marking of hazards and areas which should be, and now can, be marked "penalty areas" to speed up play and so players can know what their options are. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
 $31 was after sharing a Buy one/Get one coupon. Not really a BOGO as you still have to pay a $20 cart fee, but still better than the current $42 rate. (Side note: Many courses have raised their prices, I think because they are setting 15 +/- minute tee time intervals instead of the usual 8 or so minutes. So the typical $25 round at the likes of Traditon, Emerald Lake, Divide, etc. are now almost twice that). Tradition is in fine shape. Fairways are filling in well and the greens, fairly recently aerated, are rolling true. The cups are turned upside down, so the ball doesn't fall below the lip and everyone gets their own cart (at no additional fee). Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Ballantyne is in a good a shape as I have ever seen. Fairways are near perfect. A couple tee boxes have some bald spots. Green are in very good shape. They do raise the cups now, but I heard from someone who lives just off the course they might be changing that to allow the ball to drop into the cup. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Olde Beau is in great shape...They had just aerated and sanded the greens but I can't fault them for that. I didn't see the "aeration alert" on Golfnow when I set up the tee time. Fairways, rough and teeboxes all were all lush and full. Funky, funky course that makes you think through every shot. Well worth the drive. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Nothing's perfect, but Tillery Tradition is in great shape. Beautiful course giving a Mountain-like experience. Fairways were fantastic and unlike many places, the rough was full and lush. More like a second cut and not punitive. Easier to point out what is wrong than what is right...Of course the traps are not in pristine shape as, just like everywhere else, they are being a bit ignored since the rakes have been pulled off the course. Full of sand, but they haven't been groomed since what looks like the last big rain. I recall one teebox being a bit bare. The greens are fast and true, but most have some sort of weed on them which didn't alter any putts. I imagine they will spray for those soon. This is going to become more than a once a year course even though it is 1:15 from me. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
 Tee to green in very good shape. The new greens (well, new to me...about a year old now) are in very good shape as are the areas around them, the fairways (some crabgrass spots) and the tee boxes. The rough is, for the most part, crabgrass and kept short giving the course a wide-open look. They also took out a load of trees as everyone does when putting in the TIF bermuda greens. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Normal wear and tear allows for a lot of thin/bar spots down the edges of the cart path, but we did have a tough summer and early fall with little rain and high heat. Tee to green in excellent shape. Some penalty areas improperly marked (red when should be yellow). Quick round, good price, very good conditions. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
Better than good, but not perfect. Fastest greens I've played in a while. Place is in great shape. Worst score in a LONG time, but it certainly wasn't due to conditions. Place will be closing before too terribly long. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
 A little disappointed in Glen Oaks, but temper that with higher expectations. Probably as in good a shape as most anywhere around, but I can't recall seeming weeds on that course before. Also, the greens were in great shape, but rolled slow for some reason. Didn't look to be shaggy at all, maybe the gravity is different in Lincoln County? Tees traps and fairways all in good shape, except for the afore-mentioned weeds. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Mooresville is looking and playing great. Some of the best greens in the area, right up there with Warrior. When they were rebuilt they were too hard and fast, but have settled down. Fairways, rough, tee boxes all in excellent shape. One of the best practice ranges, chipping greens and putting greens in the Metro area. Read The Review
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- "Average"
For the most part the fairways were in good shape. The greens had been top-dressed with a sand that had numerous small pebbles in it. Ball marks all over, not unlike Emerald Lake. The traps looked good. They had put a lot of money into clearing trees and maybe just don't have enough now to keep it in the shape I remembered (last play 11/17). Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
 Where it needs to be good, it is very good. Where it doesn't, not so much. Greens, fairways and teeboxes are in great shape. Sandtraps have a lot of gravel in the them, or at least the two I was in and others I observed walking by. Much of the cartpaths are so broken up as to be very uncomfortable, if not dangerous, to ride on. Outside of the fairways and some rough are a lot of bare areas, but this has always been the case. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 The good - Couple of fairways have a few bare spots that make you scratch your head, but none seemingly in play. Otherwise they are lush and beautiful. Greens and fringe are magnificent. Some of teeboxes have some sand repair going on, but overall in great shape. The bad - The traps are thin, hard and have rocks. There are thins and bare areas, particularly at the cart paths but they shouldn't come into play. The ugly - they took out a large number of trees last year and those areas, not in play, are not very appealing. They did, however, have a number of people out working in the heat on these. Bottom line, tee to green as good as it gets. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
Always a pleasure to play Deer Brook. Always in excellent condition, particularly this time of year. They had sodded a large section of the par 5 fairway, but it doesn't seem an area reachable by driver nor likely for a lay-up. Some issues with unattended ball marks on the greens, but those are player's faults, not the course's. Fairways, teeboxes, greens all in great shape. Wasn't in a trap, but they looked just fine. Greens were a bit faster than those I've played anywhere else around Charlotte this year. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Overall in very good shape. Greens were a little slower than they looked, but with all the rain we got in May and dry conditions that followed, they might have been giving them a break. Putted true and looked great. Fairways and tee boxes in great shape but oddly enough, some fairways had what looked to be ground up hardwood mulch spread on them. Maybe to hold moisture? Maybe to add alkaline? Didn't affect play at all. Some thin areas by the cart path. Now the sand traps...Looked great and you could tell there was plenty of sand in them but it was pretty compacted. Maybe they never fluffed them back up after May rain. Great for hitting out of fairway bunkers but my club would bounce and I'd skull the ball around the greens. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 Weekday Senior rate $35, replay $15, Played 36, 80 and 83. Course is in great shape. They had dressed the greens not too long ago but they were putting great and the sandtraps showed issues from some recent heavy rain (ponds, etc. were bloated) but you could tell there is fresh sand in all of them and maintenance was out raking them back into shape. Tee boxes, save #10 that gets little sun, were for the most part great and the fairways, rough and fringes were very good. Well worth playing. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
 Some might rate it average, but am giving them credit for the work being done. Issues - Most tee boxes have little if any grass. On one, we teed up just outside the designated teeing area, just to have some grass. They are, for the most part, well sanded so they are definitely working on them. The rough is fairly thin and had been aerated maybe not so recently. Again, they are aware of it, working on it and ask they you drive the carts in the fairways not the rough. Fairways and greens are in excellent shape, no complaints whatsoever. I guess they re-did the greens since the last time I played. They used to be so crazy fast that if your approach was above the hole you were screwed. Rolling very true now. Great practice area. One thing, and this is becoming a pet peeve of mine - Not a single red or yellow stake or line anywhere on the course. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 The good, the bad, and the ugly.
The good - Course is in excellent shape, perhaps in part due to lack of play because for what seems like forever they have had #10 either totally closed or at least shortened due to neighborhood construction. #11 was shortened for some time too due to rebuilding of tee-boxes. I know I avoided it for more than a year.
Sister course to Stonebridge and Edgewater and it shows in it's condition. Greens are fantastic. Hardly a blemish. The fairways near perfect except for some approach areas with multiple divots that haven't grown in, maybe due to the recent lack of rain? Bunkers look to have been recently re-done and are in great shape. Tee to green as nice as anywhere around, or better. Best $25 conditions out there, for sure.
Holes 5-11 are like playing a mountain course with elevation changes seldom seen around here.
The bad - Afore-mentioned construction. Not on the tees, fairways or greens but they are building a surrounding neighborhood. Just a bit distracting. Have to follow a maze to get to #1 and #10. Really only affects #s 11 and 12.
Didn't see any marks/designations for penalty areas. No red or yellow stakes or lines anywhere. There are a number of holes with areas of very thick vegetation just off a short area of rough that could/should be designated a penalty area to allow for a drop rather than stroke and distance for a lost ball. Or just hit it in the fairway, I suppose.
The ugly - 12 on a par five with 5 penalty strokes. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
So since I use these review so much, I determined to start writing my own. Why I have the three worst scores in a row of all year as soon as I do is embarassing.
Tradition is in great shape. The greens are in excellent condition, a bit slower than they look but receptive a roll true. Some of the old Tradition broccoli is still in the fringe but it looks like they figured out how to hold it back. Fairways are all in great shape and most all tee boxes are as well with the exeption of #15 which has almost none for some reason.
Seems Pinnacle Properties is doing a pretty good job of turning around the likes of Birkdale, Skybrook, Tradition, etc. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
Really very good conditions, but not perfect. Some spots in the fairways that didn't make much, if any, difference. I think an earlier review mentioned a lack of sand? Traps were well sanded and full. Greens were in fantastic shape as were teeboxes. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
First time at Warrior since the re-do. VERY impressed. The new greens are as perfect as anything around. A little slower than you might think for the way they look, but not shaggy. Perhaps kept a fraction long to keep them healthy. 95% of the fairways are perfect, just a couple spots here and there. Traps look great. I was in a couple and they played well ... Not fluffy, but compacted and raked. I was afraid they were thin, but they weren't. All the tee boxes were as good as any. GPS wasn't on, but I use my own so didn't even ask about it. Might have just needed to flip a switch. For the most part there is a nice 2nd cut, but the third cut can be pretty bare or overly thick. I expect this to be the next priority. Definitely well worth the trip (40 mins) and even the cost. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
First time here in years. Subtle changes for the better that maybe those who play it fairly regularly might not notice. They've cleaned up a not of the tree areas, maybe most notably on #18. Greens were fantastic, not fast but in great shape. Fairways and rough were in very good shape as were the teeboxes. Forgot how tricky this course can be. Senior rate starts at age 55. Very enjoyable. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
Fox Den was acquired by the ownership of Stonebridge, and has now been re-branded as "Larkin Golf Club". Fox Den has always been a favorite - GREAT layout, always good condition but maybe no pristine. Looks like the Stonebridge folk will work to make it as nice as their first. You can see some changes already...New granite tee markers, big improvement in the sand traps (edging, etc.) and overall the conditions are excellent. There is a gap between Good and "Perfect" but this is better than good. Tees and fairways are excellent. Greens are a little slow, but it looks like they had punched them fairly recently. Am looking forward to seeing what the new owners do for what is already one of my top 10. Read The Review
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- "Average"
Maybe a lesser rating due to all the fairways just being plugged. Even then, better than Carolina Trail days. It will take a while to get this course back to the shape it should be in. Greens were in pretty good shape for the most part, but many had large patches of sandy issues, one a 3 inch deep, 3' x 3' or so hole. Some teeboxes were just crabgrass, but it does look like they have been working on the weeds. Certainly working on traps with many showing new samd and well-raked, but others just mud and dirt. What was strange was that there would be a nicely re-done trap next to a trap that was a total wasteland hole after hole. Perhaps they are going to fill some traps in? Otherwise, why not have entire holes fixed?
Like the layout and can see improvement, but not there just yet. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
$25 for 18 holes (Sr. Rate - 55+) on a Friday is not too shabby, particularly for one of the best conditioned courses in the area with one of the nicest layouts. Seemed slow - played in a twosome and there was a fivesome out there and a very cute cart girl everyone was flirting with which slowed things down - but it only took 3.5 hours. I rate this place up there with Verdict Ridge, Carolina Lakes, etc. Playing lousy, so don't laugh at my score, please. Read The Review
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- "Average"
Always liked Rocky River from a layout perspective and the rates are fine. I am playing in a Tues PM nine-hole league over there and although the fairways are in really good shape, something went wrong with their upgrading of the greens. No one can get a ball to hold on them and the place just isn't designed for hitting short and rolling up with many greens just elevated enough that the ball stops in front. Verdict Ridge and others changed to the Verde strain and don't have this issue. Even after heavy rain, it's like trying to stop a ball on a pool table. Takes the fun out of an otherwise really nice course. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 "Perfect" is much closer than "Good - normal wear and tear". Some rough is still a bit thin, but the teeboxes, fairways and greens are in excellent shape, perhaps the best I've seen this year so far. Hadn't been to Red Bridge in perhaps a year and am very impressed with how it's grown in. Always liked the layout. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
Gotta give 'em props...Best condition this course has been in in a long time. Except for two, greens are in great shape and faster than I ever remember for Birkdale. Fairways in excellent shape. Many traps still need work, but many more are full of new sand. Maybe they are taking the money they aren't spending on other courses and spending it here? Read The Review
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- "Great course"
Played Friday for a $30 GolfNow fee. Excellent conditions. Fairways and Tee boxes in fantastic shape. Greens are very, very firm. Need to hit up and roll, vs. shooting for the pin. Had my worst 9 holes in 3 years, but not due to the conditions by any means. Another thing - seems not many are aware that they are re-opened. We didn't see much of anyone (2PM tee time) until the final two holes. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
I Live in Huntersville. Normally play Verdict Ridge, Glen Oaks, Fox Den, Birkdale & Skybrook (although am not a fan of CT mgmt's lackadaisical attitude towards conditions),Rock Barn and Warrior, sometimes Red Bridge. River Oaks is now definitely added back into the rotation. Have played here often, back through when it was Buffalo Shoals National, but gave it up a couple of year ago when there was no grass anywhere but on the some tees and greens. Had read that new management was making great improvements and saw a recent good review here so gave it another chance today. Fairways were all in really good shape, greens the same for the most part. Certainly hardpan in a lot of the rough and some on some fairways, but if you'd seen this place a couple of years ago, you'd never believe it now. Traps were in great shape. Where it's thin you can see where they are planting to make it better. Definitely one of the best layouts within an hour of Charlotte (10 minutes from 77 off 40 at Statesville - JUST off
I40 Exit 141)...I'd put the layout itself up against the Jones course at Rock Barn. Read The Review
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- "Worth playing"
Course is in good shape...Never has really had a manicured look, but fairways, rough, tees and greens are all looking good. Fun course to play. Took advantage of an $18 coupon on Golfnow.com. 2.5 hour pace. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 One of my favorite courses. Fairways, tees and greens overall in very good shape. There is some crabgrass poking up on some greens which they will need to get working on, but may be afraid to kill now due to the heat. Teed off at 3PM and finished at 5:15 and was slowed by one group who wouldn't let me through for two holes. Hosted the Marshall U. Athletic Booster Club golf outing there the next day. They do a wonderful job with outings at the best rates in the area. Head pro TJ Congleton just left Emerald Lake about a week or two ago...Not sure where he went. Read The Review
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- "Below average"
The Club Pro had a playing lesson for a 10-12 year old boy and just jumped around from hole to hole, seemingly ending up in front of me every third hole or so. I'd pull up to the blue tees, they would be on the front tee with no one in front of us and go ahead and play, making me wait while the kid slapped it around. Also, informed the pro shop that their water hazards are improperly marked in a couple of places (red stakes where there should be yellow) and they just brushed it off, even commenting that the stakes don't make any difference in the type of relief one takes. All the Carolina Trail courses dropped off dramatically in maintenance once they came under their management. Weeds, thin spots, unmarked GUR, poorly if at all marked hazards, etc. Ask me how I feel. Read The Review
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- "Great course"
 First review. As an intro, my girl calls me a golf whore because I will do it anywhere, anytime, with anyone whether I am enjoying it or not. I play public courses because I'd rather play 50 different places before I return to play any one twice...Variety is the spice of life. Figure I've gotten enough info from this site, so I might as well contribute.
First time at Edgewater and it is now in my top 3-5 in the area. People complain about how far away it is, but that depends on perception. Took me a little over an hour from Huntersville, so P'ville, Matthews, etc. can't be all that bad. Excellent layout with wide fairways and interesting holes, not just the same old 380-400 straight par 4s with a bit of sand. Greens were in excellent shape, a bit slow but that's ok. Ball bounces a LOT in the fairways, but that'll take care of itself after their aerated a few times. $30 after 2PM and a 2.5 hour round on a Sat afternoon means I will make this trip again. Read The Review
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