sonnymarini

I play Red Wing regularly. It's traditional layout through the wood of eastern Virginia. There are no houses on course so it feels old school in a good way. There's a reasonable amount of water, not a lot of sand traps, and the fronts of most greens are open so you can go right at them. There's a wide selection of tee boxes to vary the length and challenge. The fairways are good, but not lush and there's not a lot of rough. Often if your off the fairway, your in woods, usually with a shot out. It's playable for different skill levels. There's a good amount of wildlife and you'll see herons, egrets, osprey, bluebirds, and sometimes bald eagles that nest in the trees on the course. You'll also likely see F18's, the Navy base is near by. You may here gunfire from the base practice range next to the course so don't be surprised by the noises. It's the sound of freedom in this area. The course is a good value, especially during the week and for seniors.

I rated this average, only because of condition. Otherwise it could be excellent. Black Mesa is just off the highway near Espanola. It's a New Mexico desert type course. I played in early June, so it was hot but not humid. It's a challenging course with lots of changes in elevation and some blind shots. Not a lot of water. No surprise there. As others have said, the fairways and greens have many bare spots. The cart paths are dirt and in some cases, if you don't know the course, you need to think about where your going. There were also some very steep ups and downs on the cart path. Not much signage to point the way. That being said, the scenery was stunning, especially on the back nine, and the greens, aside from bare spots, were pretty good. It's the kind of course, if your visiting, you have to play at least once. A pro at another course said management had just changed hands, so maybe the condition will improve over time.

This course looks like it has potential to be really good. I've only played it twice, and both times during the winter. So winter conditions exist; not much grass, most everything brown except the greens. The greens were recently aerated and fertilized, but it is the end of that process, so the greens should be back to normal within a week or so. And they are kept in good condition. They also started to aerate some fairways, so I assume they will do many or all of them over the next couple/few weeks. I'm looking forward to the course growing some grass and greening up. The course has 3 or 4 water holes that are tricky because you can't really see the water. They require good carries, or placement, or a lay up if your not a long hitter. You'll need some good instruction on these holes and a good GPS might help to figure out the best way to play them. I'd recommend giving this course a try, especially when things warm up and the conditions improve. .

This is a nice golf course, fairly wide open, tree lined, no houses to be seen. Its not difficult, greens are usually open in front with some bunkering at the sides. Not a lot of water in play, but the last couple of holes run along a very nice looking lake. The greens looked interesting, with changes in slope and contour. It was difficult to get a good feel because they were airated a couple of weeks ago and were still sandy and a little bumpy. Putting could be the challange when the greens recover.

This course has a number of holes that require shots over the water. It's more interesting and challenging than most of the other publicly available courses in the area. the fairways and greens are consistently in good condition. Some traps may be a little thin on sand, probably due to the large amount of rain in the area this summer. The course has early morning discounts as well. It's a good value and worth a trip to play it.

This is a nice course, but you have to hit it straight. There are many tight holes with little room for error. The rough was inconsistent, and in some places so thick and deep it was difficult to get out of. There were areas roped off because of wetness, I think, and those areas were extremely difficult to get out of. I asked if they were ground under repair, but the guy in the pro shop couldn't tell me. Pace of play was slow, probably due to degree of difficulty. Most of the greens were in good shape, but the course was spreading sand or fertilizer, so it was difficult to judge the overall quality. It's a nice natural setting, without houses lining the holes.