Settlers Bay Golf Course- Wasilla, AK

This is the only housing development course in Alaska and the course uses that tidbit of information in it's advertising, though this writer is not sure if saying your courses is routed through houses is really a good thing. But that aside, the course is not bad. It has some up and down spots, as most do, but as a whole, it is a fair course. However, it must be said that having the range and first tee occupiying the most scenic part of the property might not have been the best way to route the course. On the front nine, the houses are generally not obtrusive, only coming into play on a single hole. However, on the back nine, they are more in play, indeed it seems that one hole was even altered due to homes being built. This course is certainly not the best course in Alaska, but it'd not a poor choice either.

Holes to Note

Hole #1: Par 4, 429 yards

Occupying the finest piece of ground on the entire property is never really a good thing for the first hole. However, this one does. The hole itself is not a bad hole, quality dogleg left that plays substantially downhill off the tee and overlooks Pioneer Peak in the distance. The best play off the tee is to play to the inside of the dogleg, over the depression. This widens the fairway and shortens the approach. The shot to the green is uphill to a modestly defended green that has some decent interest. Good opening hole in general, but sadly, the scenery never again comes close to matching that from the first tee.

From the tee, the hole opens up nicely for the player with the mountains providing a beautiful backdrop.

From the fairway, the player is left with this uphill approach.

From up close, the interior movements and fall-offs are visible

Hole #7, 630 yards

Playing downhill from just below the clubhouse, this is the longest par 5 on the course. On colder days, this hole would play as a real monster. The hole plays dead straight and really just requires the player hit two solid shots in order to be left with a reasonable shot into the green. But the green is one of the best this writer has played in the state. It sits as a biarritz green (which just warms the heart, naturally) and can be approached either from the air or on the ground, as it should. The green certainly makes up for the otherwise average nature of the hole.

From the tee, the player is not shown any options. The play is simply to hit the fairway as far off the tee as possible.

On the second shot, though it cannot be seen here the proper play is down the left side of the fairway, leaving a better angle into the green. It should be noted that the cart path crossing the fairway is a real eye sore. Why do courses do that?

Once closer to the greenm the bunkers that protect the putting surface are visible. This green is not a 100% biarritz green because it is aligned at a slight angle from the fairway/approach, but it is very close.

Here, the central valley and the front and rear plateaus are visible. The front pin, as usual, offers it's own unique challenges for distance control. The ball seen in the picture roughly a yard off the right fringe landed perhaps 5 yards right and 1 yard long of the flag, then released out to 35-40 feet from the cup. One has to wonder how many of the golfers here recognize the similarity in the green contours?

Hole #13: Par 4, 313 yards

This hole is of note only because it is a very poor hole. The golfer, upon leaving the 11th green, is not given a direct route to the tee. He must walk down to directly in front of the teeing area and then back about 75 yards to get to the back tees. Once there, he finds a teeing area that could have its own postal address. The tee is situated between the back decks of two nice homes and might actually draw a crowd to watch during a tournament. From there, the hole plays downhill. There is a bunker situated on the right side of the fairway roughly 250 yards off the tee. The best play is to play as close to the bunker as possible, or over it for the longest players, to leave the best shot into the green.

From the back tee, there seems to be little room for error, though the opening is slightly wider than it would appear. The bench visible by the forward tee pad is roughly where the player arrives after leaving the 11th green before walking back to the tee. The target bunker is visible in the center of the image with a house directly behind it.

On the second shot, the golfer is confronted with one of the worst hazards this writer has ever seen. The bunker sized hazard on the right is not a bunker, it is a fronting pond. This green is one of the highest points of the course, so there is no need for the pond from a drainage perspective. It is simply there to inflict severe penalty on the golfer. This course had significant potential to be good until this hole. From here, the course just goes downhill.

As mentioned above, the course starts off very well on the first hole and the entire front nine is generally solid. But the back nine is very lacking. Holes 10 and 11 are good, but from there, the course really staggers to the finish. 4 out of 10

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at Magnolia Grove (Short)

Same as with the Short course at Oxmoor Valley, it is difficult to really talk about a par 3 course. All the holes on this course require the player hit an aerial shot to the green. All the greens are elevated. But there is reasonable variety. Holes play as long as 215 on the card from the back tees (and can play 5-7 yards longer than that from the far back of the teeing area) and as short as 70 yards from the forward tees. For those not insistent on playing a single set of tees, every club in the bag, except perhaps the 3 wood and driver, can be used on the course. Overall, this is a good, above average, course.

Holes to Note

For the first time on this site, a tour of the entire course will be posted. This is the writers home course and he has played it 50 or more times just this year. All pictures and yardages from the back tees.

Hole #1: 174 yards

Proper distance and line are important right from the opening shot. The green is separated into three distinctly different tiers: the front part of the green is sunken, the back right portion is sunken as well. The middle tier is rather flat and perhaps two feet above the front and back portions.

Hole #2: 180 yards
Playing downhill over a wetland area, this is a semi-scenic hole. The shot requirement is roughly the same as the first hole. This green is separated into two tiers, front and back.

From the tee, the shot needed is quite clear.

The well defined rise can be seen here.

Looking back at the tee from behind the green.

Hole #3: 189 yards

A virtual twin of the second, this hole again plays downhill, over the wetlands. This green has less movement than the 2nd, however. 

Hole #4: 215 yards
This hole is the longest on the the course and plays to a four-tiered green that is far too extreme for the shot required. The idea of the hole is good, but the green is not at all suited to the hole.

Hole #5: 137 yards
A break from the long holes that start off the round. This hole plays roughly a club uphill to a two-tiered green. Certainly a potential birdie hole if you can hit a decent shot off the tee.

The rise in the green can be seen here.

Hole #6: 135 yards

The shortest hole on the front nine plays to a green on the same level as the tee. This green, while also highly undulated, fits the shot required, unlike the 4th green. This hole, depending upon the pin position is likely the easiest hole on the course. When the hole is cut center left any shot within a 10 yard wide semi-circle right of the hole will funnel right down to the cup.

Today, the hole is cut center left, as described above. Beyond the bunker, the green is shaped like a bowl, feeding shots to the hole.

The shadowing from the trees gives definition to the rise that separates the front part of the green from the left-center. The mound just left of the prominent pine tree shows the location of the rear dividing tier.

Looking from the rear of the green, the bowl is more clearly seen.

Hole #7: 190 yards

This is one of the few holes on the course that might actually require the player to shape for ball from the tee, at least when playing from the back tees. When the hole is cut in the back portion of the green, as in this picture, a fade off the tee will give the player easiest access to the hole.

Hole #8: 178 yards
This hole has one of the largest greens on the course, if not the largest. This green would be far better suited on the 4th hole. There is perhaps 10 feet of rise from front to back with 4 distinct tiers. The back left portion of this green also acts as a funnel for shots. This hole, due to the fantastic green, is likely the best hole on the course.

From the tee, the tiers are visible to the player. Any shot on the wrong tier above the hole will leave a very difficult putt.

The tiers are well defined and severe.

Hole #9: 160 yards
This hole plays sharply uphill, roughly a club and a half. Prior to a renovation in 2011, there was a huge put bunker directly in front of the green. Shame it is no longer there. As with most greens, this one has several distinctive tiers.

Hole #10: 173 yards
From the back tees, this hole can either be simple or a real terror. To a front hole location, the shot is easy, the rise that separates the front and back tiers is roughly 3 feet high and serves as a major backstop. To the back location, however, there is no room for error. A miss short and left will roll down to the front tier. A miss short and center will go into the bunker. Any shots long or right will deflect down a steep hill and leave something of an impossible up and down.

This shot most certainly did not end up in an ideal location and anything other than an outstanding putt will likely result in three putts.

Hole #11: 192 yards

Just a standard hole here. Tee and green on the same level, green roughly flat. One of the few holes on the course that is simple and understated.

Hole #12: 195 yards
Tough hole playing long and over the fronting bunker. Another reasonably simple shot to a green with a lower tier.

The lower and upper tiers are visible in this image.

Hole #13: 205 yards

The second longest hole on the course has a green that fits the shot. Green has a simple tier, enough movement to give interest to the hole. Would be a much better hole if the green were lowered 3 to 4 feet to allow for a run-up shot.

A simple rise separates the front and back of the green.

Hole #14: 190 yards

Another of the few holes on the course that calls for working the golf ball off the tee. The shape of the hole actually resembles as Redan and a draw off the tee is favorable. But as with all holes, a run-up shot is out of the question.

Hole #15: 110 yards
The shortest hole on the golf course is also the easiest. The bunker is virtually meaningless and the mounds on the right provide a kick onto the green. This is the final birdie hole before the final difficult stretch.

Hole #16: 192 yards
This hole plays slightly uphill to a three tiered green and over the same marsh that came into play on holes 2, 3 and 4. And in reality, this hole is a virtual copy of 2 and 3. The deep green can prompt indecision in the player having to determine how much to add to or take off the posted yardage.

Hole #17: 155 yards
This hole plays sharply uphill and to a green that slopes sharply from back to front. When the hole is cut in the front, any shots left above the hole leave a very difficult putt. This green also has several different levels, but they are a bit more subtle than the levels on some other greens.

Here you can see the 4 tiers. This image is taken from the back of the green, the green has tiers back left and right, then two tiers falling down towards the front of the green.

Hole #18: 170 yards

The closing hole plays a club uphill to a green that is semi-blind from the tee. Regardless of where the hole is cut, the player is unable to see the bottom of the flagstick. This hole is a fair closing hole, but nothing spectacular.

The 18th green has some interest, bringing difficulty to the final hole.

Overall, this is a solid course. The yardages are varied and as said before, can be extremely varied for players who play from all different tees. But without the ability to play the ball on the ground at least a few times, the shots get slightly repetitive. That coupled with a couple of over the top greens, detracts from the course a bit. But this course is still solid. 4 out of 10

High Quality Nine Hole Golf Courses: A Rarity

Everyone has played a nine hole golf course from time to time. But how often are those courses really that good? While these little courses certainly have a place in the world of golf, most of the time they are nothing special and simply give golfers a place to play. Of course, there is nothing wrong with that. Golf Digest published a list of the top 25 nine hole golf courses two years ago. If we are to assume the list does, indeed, rank the true top 25 nine hole courses, then it is rather indicative of the average quality of these courses nationwide. This writer has played two of them: #3 ranked Northwood and #24 ranked Annapolis Golf Course.

Northwood is an old Alister MacKenzie design in northern California. This course does have some interesting greens and some of the holes have quality shot values. But in other places, the trees have encroached on the course so much that it is virtually unplayable. The playing corridor on 9 is 25 yards wide. Not the fairway, the entire playing corridor, from the trees on the right to the out of bounds stakes on the left. The trees greatly effect turf quality as well. This course is not bad, just average; 3 out of 10 on the Johnny B. scale.

Annapolis Golf Course...well, to put it as nicely as possible, this just is not a course you would recommend to your friends. The fairways have no turf grass, only weeds mown to an inch in height. The greens are near perfect circles occupying the otherwise huge original green pads. Bunkers no longer have sand, only weeds. For the real student of architecture, the course is so good as to nearly brings tears to the eyes. But for a normal golfer, this might be the worst course he will ever see. The course was designed by Charles Banks, who learned design from Seth Raynor. The pedigree is outstanding. But the course has fallen into such disrepair as to completely prevent any interface with the architecture as it sits. Again, I fully assume due justice was done in coming to the conclusion that this is the 24th best 9 hole golf course in America. Given that is the case, it speaks volumes to the mediocrity of 9 hole courses in America.

One other course off that list worth a note is Pottawatomie Golf Course in Illinois. While this writer has not played it, another writer on Wegoblogger31.blogspot.com has ranked the course #305 out of 330 courses played as of this writing. Pottawatomie was ranked #15 on the 9 hole courses ranking.

Given these three examples and other 9 hole courses played, it would seem to be, sadly, the case that 9 hole courses are generally of a lower quality. That is not to say there are not good ones, indeed The Dunes Club in Michigan and Royal Worlington and Newmarket are widely acclaimed by a large number of people. But those seem to be great outliers.

This is quite sad really. 9 hole golf courses that are of high quality would be a great way to get golfers onto high quality golf courses without having to spend 4 or 5 hours on the course. The courses would also take up less land, making them cheaper to own, which should lead to lower costs passed on to the golfer. That would seem to be a winning combination, lower cost to the golfer and faster play.

Of course 9 hole courses exist everywhere. Some were originally designed that way. Some, like Annapolis, were designed to be part of an 18 hole facility, but only 9 were built. Some are what remains of a course that once had 18 holes, but for whatever reason had to close the other nine holes. But few are of solid quality.

Indeed, Northwoods is the finest 9 hole course this writer has played. But in an overall ranking, probably fits somewhere around 125 of 183. The other courses fall below that, some far below. It's quite sad that so few of these courses are built and maintained at even an average quality. Of course, the market yields this, few people want to play 9 hole courses, they even have a stigma, deserved these days, of being low quality courses. It would be great to see attitudes from golfers and operators change to allow for more of these little courses. The game would not suffer if that happened.