Ellsworth Meadows Golf Club

Great course overall. The only complaint I have is the inaccurate yardage markers and hole maps. Make sure you have a gps with u or your destined for frustration. Staff courtesy was far beyond expectation.

Fairways were lush even though a bit waterlogged from recent rain. Have to deal with Mother Nature. Greens were fastest we played all year. Will definitely play this course again.

After hearing some mixed reviews on Turkeyfoot Lakes, I decided to check it out for myself. From the beginning, it was one unfortunate event after another. I can't blame it all on the course, but certainly can blame a good portion. When I arrived for my morning tee time, as a single I found out that the course was just opening up due to morning frost. I completely understand the need for this to protect the grass, and also understand that the weather is beyond the course's control. What I don't understand is that if you have groups lined up around the clubhouse and on the first tee, you would send them off five minutes before a single's tee time (especially a tee time at the top of the hour- what I mean is if you have a single with a scheduled tee time at 10:00, tell the guys waiting you are going to open the course at 10:00, not 9:55. If the single shows up on time let him go first, if not then your first group just putted on the practice green for 5 extra minutes and aren't slowed down or inconvenienced in the least bit). As suggested by the gentleman working the "pro shop" counter, I skipped the first and second holes and teed off on number 3. (As an aside, I used quotes around pro shop because I felt like I had to walk through the kitchen to get to a small counter with tees and a register.) After trying to squeeze through a traffic jam around the first tee box of approximately 8-10 carts, I had a hard time finding the third tee trying to follow the tiny map on the score card (since I did not see a starter). When I got to the third tee, I couldn't find any tee markers so I simply chose the box which seemed appropriate. I soon found out why there were no tee markers- it was their "fall golf", which apparently means I wasn't supposed to use the actual tee boxes but makeshift ones that looked like they'd been mowed by a team of goats. Some were squeezed in the three foot gully between actual raised tee boxes, and some were impossible to find (hole 5), because it was located at a 45 degree angle from the actual fairway tucked behind mounding on the back of the 4th green and no signs pointing you in the right direction. I felt like it was a place a poorly struck tee shot would be played from the normal tees- you almost had to shoot through a gap in the trees over waste area to a green almost completely blocked by more pines. There were at least four holes that I remember that the pins weren't in the green, which makes picking a line off the tee difficult to say the least for a first time player, not to mention having a target for a range finder or point of reference for approach shots. To top it all off, my cart was running out of gas (bear in mind, I was the first one to use it that day, even though you never would have guessed by the amount of garbage inside when I got in) coming up hole 16 and barely limped in- I left it short of the green on 16 and picked it up coming back up 18 and walked in between. Another gripe I have about the course is the scorecards. They are laid out vertically to squeeze 27 holes onto a card the size of an 18 hole scorecard, and you need a magnifying lens to read the yardages squeezed into the tiny spaces. Nearly impossible to decipher club selection off the tee from the scorecard, it was worth little more to me than a piece of paper to write my scores on. Not to mention how grossly inaccurate the yardages were from the "fall tees" and how useless my range finder was without flags in pins. By the time I finished 18 (actually much earlier), I had no desire to even double back and play 1 & 2.

To give an honest opinion on the course, disregarding the poor experiences I had and only taking into account the golf course itself- I would say it could be an o.k. course if conditions were ideal. It is more gimmick than challenge, though. Probably better suited for the regulars who know all the little dips & gullies and nooks & crannies, and shorter hitters who prefer a somewhat less traditional test of golf. Number 3 is a nice hole, a longer par 4 with an uphill approach (made especially difficult with no flag on the green). Number 4 is a reachable par five, with trouble down the entire right side and trees tight on the left and a couple well placed bunkers to catch any errant approaches. Number 6 is a nice par 5 with an elevated tee that will be out of reach for all but the biggest hitters with some great bunkering and a fairway that pinches in as you approach the green. 13 is a tough par 3 with the green well below your feet, water short left, bunkers guarding the front corners, and a green that is severely sloped. Some holes that I didn't care for were (but not limited to) numbers 5, 9, 10, 14, 15, 17, 18. Number 5 from where I played was an absolute joke, as I said before. Number 9 green is almost right on the road, with a cart path to help balls find their way across the road if you miss the green right. Number 10 could be possibly the worst golf hole I have ever played. It is a dinky little par 4 with a strange fairway split at a 45 degree angle. The fairway is separated from the green by a raised sand berm with shrubs growing on top that is like a hedgerow wall blocking the green. I honestly thought it was another green that didn't have a flag with a row of shrubs behind it when I stood on the tee box, wondering why it was so short. Probably would be better as a long 200+ par 3 than the silly hole it is now. I actually birdied it- 3 iron off the tee, 58 degree flop over the shrubbery, and long, lucky uphill putt. Number 18 is so close to being a great finishing hole, if there weren't blacktop and clubhouse about 10 feet behind the green to kill someone with a long approach. A longish par 5, with a deep gully protecting the green to swallow up approaches that don't get up to the green.

All-in-all, Turkeyfoot is an o.k. (at best) course- at least on the day I played. I will probably come back sometime when conditions are better in the spring or summer to give it another chance, but I will be in no hurry after my first experience. I won't be going out of my way to recommend the course to others, and will offer my experiences as a warning of what potentially awaits. If anyone wants to give it a try, do so, but I would suggest waiting for a hot deal from GolfNow.com. It is just not worth paying anywhere near full price for- in fact I just looked at their website and nearly choked when I saw their regular rates.

Great course with challenging elevation and doglegs - especially when it is wet. This course gets soaked when it rains and the rough is impossible when wet.

The course was just in terrible shape , a swamp . No ranger to enforce pace of play , five and half hours to play 14 holes . The final straw were the kids with their dads taking 45 minutes on one hole , and the group behind them hitting balls off beer cans. I have never walked off a course , let alone while winning the front and up on the back ,just couldn't take it anymore. The topper was that I informed the assistant pro , who never looked up from him pc in clubhouse and tells me it was winter rules and was rude. Don't waste your time or money on this place it's just all bad.

The day I played the greens had been recently aerated, which is normal for this time of the year. However the course was still fun to play.

I have played this course several times and it never fails, the people at the pro shop are lacking in basic customer service skills. I will say that the person working the snack counter was very cordial! I'm not sure why anyone would want to bother dealing with the rudeness and abrasiveness from the pro shop employees! Additionally, they have nobody on the course to enforce pace of play. It took two hours to play six holes and we finally just left since the foursome in front of us refused to offer to let us play through...Get a ranger out there to enforce the pace of play!

Course was in very good condition with fast greens, Was a pleasure to play.

Course was ridiculously overbooked. The starter even told us that they were squeezing in walk-ons between scheduled tee times. Waited at least 5 minutes to tee off between each hole, sometimes even longer. Also, had to wait between shots frequently. Guy who checked us in at counter clearly dismissive and put-off by our questions. This is the first time I've been there this year, and I won't be going back.

Good shape with few others on the course on this day. The club was in good shape with nice greens.

Got started just after a thunderstorm, so played without others on the course. So a normally 4-1/2 hour round was completed much faster.

Very nice course for the money. Greens were in great shape. Pace of play was VERY slow. We were a twosome behind a slow threesome. At the turn we were passed by a foursome who was also slow and did not invite us to play through. So you get players like that there.

Ellsworth is manicured as well as most country clubs!

Elsworth Meadows offers a great challenge for golfers of all skill levels. The course offers a variety of challenges including strategically placed hazards and a few blind tee shots. The greens and fairways are well maintained and the course is not easy, however, you never feel a sense of being overwhelmed by the course. If you are long off the tee, there are a few holes (especially if you are playing the white tees), where the driver may need to stay in the bag.
The course is relatively flat, therefore it is a great walking course. There is a driving range and two separate putting greens for practice which gives you an opportunity to warm up prior to your round, or work on your swing after you've been around the course.
You will not be disappointed with any aspect of the course if you play it.

Super layout with challenging holes and greens. 1st time players will want to play this course again after getting to learn the greens and some of the holes. Super value for the price purchased on Golfnow.com.......would like to see the pace of play improved but that's the same at nearly all coureses now a days.

Always enjoy playing Ellsworth Meadows. Very well maintained course and is a fair test of your shot making abilities.

While just looking at the course it doesn't appear that difficult, however the course is tricky hard, with small greens, and very well placed traps.

The course was in good condition and generally provides a moderate amount of challenge with sand traps, water and fast greens. The greens were very firm and seldom left ball marks on approach shots. Once we passed a very slow playing foursome on the fourth hole, we breezed through the rest of the course.
All of the staff were very cordial. We would have liked a marshall on the course just to make sure the pace of play for the first few holes, but we worked that out.
It had been eight years since I last played the course and I was not disappointed. I will definitely be back.

It's in beautiful shape and a good challenge. Greens have a lot of slope and could be considered a bit unfair.

All season the course played well. This was a good day without any problems.