Ridge at Oxmoor Valley Golf Course

Was hesitant after a bad experience the previous day at the Ridge Course at Oxmoor Valley, but this course is 180 degrees different. Very player friendly but challenging. The conditions of the course were good for spring. The pace of play was good, as well. Would definitely play here again.

The course condition was really bad...lots of bare spots, ground under repair, mud, and crazy pin placements. We kept paced with the groups ahead, but the foursome behind us pushed us and hit into us. On the par 5's the foursome, then threesome, then us were stacked up...not playing slow. Ranger needed to help with this. Would never play this course again.

Played The Ridge course for the first time. In fact this was my first visit to play one of the RTJ Trail courses but it is my new mission to play all the courses over the next 2 or 3 years.

It was still fairly early in the season so the course was not in perfect condition. That said, the only thing a little below standard were the fairways which were a little thinner than you might expect. A simple lift and place policy took care of that though and it did not deter from my overall experience. The greens were in remarkable condition for this time of year and must be a thing to behold during the Summer.

Beauty abounds on just about every hole, to such an extent that it is difficult to pick out any distinguishing holes worthy of special mention. Each one is characterized by a spectacular view from the tee box. If I was to be really tough in my review, I would add that there were at least a couple of holes where you needed some local knowledge to avoid getting into trouble. On one hole for example, I hit my best drive of the day only to find that the ridge my ball had run over was closely followed by the end of the fairway. This sort of thing and blind tee shots are a pet peeve of mine but of course, this is just a personal preference. It is hard to imagine anyone playing this course leaving with any sort of ill feeling as a result of the overall playing experience.

The only issue I had all day was with the staff. When you first pull up there was an absence of anyone there to tell you where you needed to go and in particular where to put your clubs. Golf carts were lined up in the general area but there was nothing apparent to me in terms of where you should drop off. Then in the clubhouse, I learnt that my 8:10 tee time had been moved forward to 7:50 without any notification. The girl was adamant that I must have booked the earlier time and didn't really alter her position even after I showed her the receipt from my booking online. This meant the 30 minute warm up session I had planned was cut short significantly. Then once you get to the range, there is no signage to tell you that the range balls need to be obtained from a separate building housed by a nice old gentleman who works at an extremely slow pace. After studying his booking sheet for what seemed like and eternity, I was told I was not on the list at all and needed to go back up to the clubhouse. Eventually after explaining my predicament and the need to speed things up, he relented and gave me a basket containing precisely 10 balls! I hate to be a Debbie Downer but if my experience between getting out of the car and the first tee is anything but an rare exception, the club should really look into this. It certainly got the day off to a bad start.

Played on a busy Saturday, so busy that the bag drop wasn't manned as they are all running around. Pro shop was also very busy considering players are checking in for 2 different courses at the same time. The pro ended up coming out to help check people in which was nice. Starter on the 1st tee was nice, but he asked us if it was out first time playing, then proceeded to not tell us anything about the course or anything, just handed us a scorecard and drove off basically.

The course layout was neat, over seeded fairways and well groomed greens were a pleasure to play on. There was some bunker reno going on, but didn't affect us too much. We ran into a slow down near the turn, but it opened back up on the back 9. Finished in 4 hours and 30 min.

Love the course, staff is friendly and helpful. Played in February 2018 for first time and gladly returned. In February all was brown except the greens while in March the fairways were green and the rough just coming into spring.

The greens are relatively small and sloped, bunkers everywhere and you need a pretty long carry of the tees in about half the shots. We played from the orange tees which are longer than the 6000 yard white tees but shorter than the champion tees.

When not in the bunkers water often comes into play. With that and the challenging greens it's easy to get frustrated here, so either relax and enjoy the course or play somewhere easier.

The valley never doesnt come back to the club house after nine, so either take what you need with you or hope there is a beer cart.

One of the best courses I've ever played in my life

My first time playing any of the RTC courses. Staff in clubhouse and starter were friendly and helpful on course management tips. The course was very challenging but fair. Course and greens were in great shape. Only downside was I tee’d off at 8:30 and didn’t see the beverage cart until I was putting my clubs away on 18.

This review is for the Valley course.

It has been six months since my last visit and conditions have drastically improved. Greens have bounced back. Fairways had been overseeded but were still a bit thin.

I play this course a couple of times a month and its fun and very challenging. The tee boxes and holes are changed frequently so there's always something a little different every time you play! Holes vary from very hilly to straight shots, Only one hole has a water hazard, but that's ok. Grounds crew works hard to keep leaves off the greens this time of year. You can play a full 18 in 2 hours.

Always love playing this course and play it at least once every year as I live in Florida now. It was in great shape this time. This course is always challenging with the elevation changes and undulating greens. The people who work there are always very friendly and make me feel like I am a member there. Absolutely love this course.

Beautiful course, in great condition. Some wet spots from rain the night before, but still had a great time. Played one of my best rounds ever. Very friendly staff.

This course is unique. There is tremendous elevation all through the course. 17 of 18 greens are elevated. Course is surrounded by forest and all fairways have valleys and are undulating. It is best to stay on the fairways as the rough is spongy. Your ball will sink and it is difficult to hit it out.

The course was in great condition. The staff was very helpful. I enjoyed the speed of play. A must play if you are in the area.

Solo that was paired with 3-some and had great day on course, overall excellent shape and look forward to playing Valley Course next time I am visiting area.

Many unfixed ball marks on greens, a little bumpy also. Very rough and rutted out areas where you park to walk to green. Need lots of repair work in these areas. Some dirt and sod can fix it.

I recently moved to Alabama and got a platinum membership and trying to play all of the RTJ courses. The Valley course was the biggest disappointment. The course was rough to say the least. Crab grass in the tee boxes and the greens seemed dry and bumpy. The staff were amazing and friendly. The fairways were emaculate maybe the best I've seen yet. Something was off this was the first course I didn't stop to take photos of holes. The pace of play was horrendous. I was a twosome with a female who never played before and was catching twosomes.

This par 3 course having several set of tee boxes. From the purple tees I could use driver on the 225 & 250 yard holes. A lot of elevation changes, and plenty of wild life to enhance the beauty of the Short Course

Second time at Oxmoor Valley, first time on the Ridge Course. Got tee time via Golf now the night before on our way to Dallas. Many elevation changes, side hill lies, with fairly level greens. This course was in perfect condition and should never be one that you walk. Still get a workout with a cart. Even the young man (28 yr old) I played with, did walk, but asked to ride on a number of holes. Scoring improved on the back nine. Worth a stop anytime you are in Birmingham

This review is for the Ridge course. All in all, course was in decent shape and is still worth playing. The problem that the course is currently facing is that it is such a destination that the facility is getting heavy traffic. It's a good problem to have. However, there are so many rounds being played daily on the Ridge, and there has been so much rain lately to soften the bent greens, that the putting surfaces are becoming stressed from the combination of heat, traffic and people who refrain from repairing - or properly repairing - pitch marks. I am a little concerned that players visiting from out of town won't see the best Ridge can be. I agree with past recent reviews as well that the bunkers are in need of a facelift. I believe that bunkers should be hazards, but there is way too much sand in them and they are looking a little ragged.