Mountain Branch Golf Course

About
Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
---|---|---|---|---|
Gold | 72 | 7038 yards | 74.4 | 137 |
Black | 72 | 6570 yards | 72.3 | 133 |
White (W) | 72 | 6146 yards | 75.6 | 133 |
White | 72 | 6146 yards | 70.5 | 127 |
Blue | 72 | 5279 yards | 66.4 | 121 |
Blue (W) | 72 | 5279 yards | 70.8 | 114 |
Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gold M: 74.4/137 | 439 | 533 | 351 | 448 | 573 | 409 | 220 | 396 | 173 | 3542 | 434 | 162 | 528 | 421 | 195 | 404 | 374 | 459 | 519 | 3496 | 7038 |
Black M: 72.3/133 | 381 | 509 | 321 | 418 | 557 | 394 | 190 | 378 | 152 | 3300 | 414 | 137 | 498 | 404 | 155 | 384 | 348 | 438 | 492 | 3270 | 6570 |
White M: 70.5/127 W: 75.6/133 | 363 | 482 | 301 | 402 | 529 | 378 | 159 | 362 | 132 | 3108 | 401 | 126 | 457 | 371 | 128 | 362 | 312 | 416 | 465 | 3038 | 6146 |
Blue M: 66.4/121 W: 70.8/114 | 288 | 439 | 264 | 351 | 485 | 305 | 134 | 322 | 97 | 2685 | 343 | 101 | 410 | 301 | 108 | 302 | 281 | 343 | 405 | 2594 | 5279 |
Handicap | 15 | 11 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 7 | 17 | 12 | 18 | 8 | 4 | 16 | 10 | 14 | 2 | 6 | |||
Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 36 | 72 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
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Reviews
Course unplayable
Let me first say that this is a great course. I have played here on many occasions. When I arrived today I was told that the front nine was closed and we would have to play the back nine twice. When we started playing we understood why the front none was closed. The course was soaked. The back nine was really unplayable also. We stopped playing after nine and they did give a a rain check. They were good about giving us a rain check with no problem. Again, this is usually a great course, just don't play it after rain or snow. It doesn't drain well .
Enjoyable
After reading a lot of the reviews was very tentative on playing here. Had a Raspberry Trail day here and was well worth it. In top 5 courses I've played this year, Bulle Rock is better but not by much. They layout is fun and somewhat challenging, greens are quick but fair, and fairways are in great shape considering the weather we had this year so far. If you are up in that air on playing here look on their website for pictures, it was an enjoyable round. I would play early it does get crowded fast, if it was closer would play here more often, just gonna have to settle for trail card days here. Oh balls were not included in price someone did mention that in a previous post.
Better than Remembered
Been a couple years since I played here and I really enjoyed the beauty of this course. Unique layout, memorable holes. All the summer rain has taken its toll on a few fairways, but compared to other high end courses I play, the course is in great condition. Cart path only was a physical challenge. Windy day so club selection also a challenge.
Not what it use to be
I played this course several times years ago and found it to be worth the price. Today its not worth half what they charge, fairway grass is gone at several holes, greens very ruff, and its just a shame use to be a beautiful place to play. Harford county needs to help some of the golf courses or they will go under as its seems the case at Mountain Branch.
What am I missing here
On the surface, you would think this would be an elite course, but geez, they just dont get it.... I'm a 6 handicap, so I'm not an idiot when it comes to golf.... I repeatedly have bad experiences at this course. For one, you absolutely need a range finder... they only seem to mark the 150, if they even do that... then a few land marks here and there... i personally dont bring one, i like to do the math from 100, 150, 200 marks... absolutely cant do that there,... then if you get pushed with the slow play, or play with a fair golfer, things get worse....warning, hole number, maybe 4, driveable blind par 4, your life is in danger.... Some small things... the golf cart was not cleaned, i mean, seriously,... paying higher prices, and you cant clean a cart.... they dont seem to care about the little things... weeding, flower beds, etc... they have a couple arrogant personalities on their staff, which is never pleasant.... things never go smooth when checking in, they always have a problem "with their system"... gets old. Sadly, i live 2 miles from this course and i never want to play it.
Great Layout; Terrible Conditions
Have played golf at Mountain Branch about 10 times over the years. I have always loved the layout but the course conditions were never up to par. Played the course two weeks ago and could not believe how awful the course condition was. I first went to the range to see that we couldn't hit off grass and were hitting into mounds of dirt in the distance. That is fine I thought...it is an eye sore but it is just the range (no big deal). Then we started our round. First three holes were okay. From then on out the course conditions were the worst I have ever played on (I have a few hundred rounds under my belt). Every fairway of every hole seemed to be diseased. There was a 90/10 ratio of dirt to grass. At times it was hard to find grass on the fairway where you could move your ball. We had someone from out of town with us and just kept apologizing. There is an air of elitism at the course and I can't figure out why. They discounted the rate $10 prior to the round but did not explain why so the conditions were a surprise. $50 twilight greens fees is absolute robbery. I keep telling myself that I am never coming back but do love the layout. I think I will be following through with the not coming back statement this time.
Fun round!
One of my favorite places to play in the Baltimore area. Very fair layout with some solid scoring opportunities. Pace of play has never been a problem and the staff is very friendly. Has become a go-to for me.
Mountain Branch
Booked a day at this course through Rapsberry golf trail from our home course Inniscrone. The pro recommended it to us. Arrived and was greeted by friendly starter. Paid fee and were told range balls were included which was nice. We just went out and played. Not many people out so we started early. We let a few singles play through. We played at a real relaxed pace, which made a real nice day. After we had lunch which was a good finish to our experience . Wife beat me by 4 strokes which I didn't mind. Would like to play here again. Staff were helpful which made our day.
Some good, some not so good.
I was looking forward to my first round here. The pictures and layout looked gorgeous online, and there were a few good reviews. Let's start with the good: The gentleman in the Pro Shop was friendly. The starter, an older gentleman, was excellent, and gave us many details about where to go, how to navigate the course, pin positions, where to take the cart at the end, etc., which most starters don't take the time to do. The beverage cart ladies were excellent, friendly, professional, and even had low-calorie sports drinks, something that many courses don't have, believe it or not. The fairways, greens, roughs, and common area were not spectacular, but were generally well maintained. Now for the not as good: There was a wedding going on, which is fine, but my overall sense was that they probably focus more on events than on golf. It was a challenge to find parking, even though the golf course wasn't crowded at all, again probably a symptom of the wedding event. For a day in which there seemed to be far less golfers than expected, there were a ton of unrepaired ball marks. That's the fault of the golfers, not the management, but on a side note, I sure wish any and all golf course management would remind/demand that golfers repair their ball marks and divots, and make each golfer show them a repair tool. My biggest disappointment came with the course layout itself. I imagine that some golfers will find it quite challenging in a good way. I found it to be quite challenging in a bad way. There are too many blind shots for my taste. There are also too many "squirrelly" holes for my taste, with nonsensical layouts or split fairways or hazards in places that make you scratch your head more so than appreciate. And some of the greens are just goofy, especially on the par 3 holes. And it may be that the person who picked the hole locations for the day was in a bad mood, but almost every single pin was just a couple of paces from the fringe in the most challenging part of the green. There's a par 3 that isn't even a half a wedge swing, and the landing area is about the size of a washcloth. Just "squirrelly." And since there aren't any hole drawings at the tee boxes or on the scorecard, you're pretty much on your own to guess how best to play each hole. Consequently, my best drive of the day ended up in a hazard in the middle of the fairway. Also, the pace of the practice putting green seemed significantly slower than the actual greens, which defeats the purpose of having a practice green. I will say that 2 or 3 holes were very nice looking, including #15, for instance, but in my humble opinion, the overall layout isn't as nice as some reviews would suggest. At the end of the day, every golfer wants to walk off #18 feeling like they want to play the course again, and neither of us felt that way. All in all, the friendly staff counts for a lot for this golfer, but for the price we paid, particularly compared to the courses we typically play, I guess I expected more positives.
mountain branch
The course was great, greens rolled true and there were a lot of challenging approach shots. Definitely a course I will be returning to. Thanks for the fun time and challenging course.
Great Course - Don't be turned off by the reviews
I played this course mid-December. The conditions were perfect. The layout is great! Driving range is included. I'm not usually too concerned with the service at courses. However, at this course it was the best I have ever experienced in many years of playing golf. Don't be fooled by the reviews
Perfect November day
Hot tee time made this a good value. Twosome that eventually paired up with another twosome after playing through one foursome and one threesome. An "outing" slowed things down and the marshal said there really wasn't anything he could do. The course was in good shape. It's hard to keep the leaves off the course this time of the year, but they did a good job of that. I'd go back.
poor condition
I play 25.00 to 30.00 courses in much better shape. Charging 65.00 in the am & 45.00 in the pm is way too much. Rich F.
Great tract, in poor condition
First time playing while out of town and the facility and the layout are tremendous. However the course is in terrible shape and they blamed it on the rain and the heat. It could be lax maintenance or limited budget but currently it is over priced. I hope that the fall weather will help the course recover.
Marshals ruined our round.
Not sure why the mashalls felt like they needed to ride us for pace of play when the group behind us never had to wait. We fell back after one bad hole so i guess breathing down our neck for next next three was the best way to help out. It was a hot day and the course was not busy. I guess they had nothing better to do. Send your money at a course where the fact that you are the customer at the facility does come into play. My guys will take our outings north to PA where conditions are better and rates much cheaper.
TERRIBLE CONDITIONS
Before you spend $90 plus dollars to play this course, asked them if they have repaired the greens, and fairways. The only great thing about this course is the scenery. Most of the greens are burnt out, sandy, bumpy and horrible. The fairways are just as bad, muddy, and a lot crab grass. POOR MAINTENANCE They should give REFUNDS to anyone who paid money for this golf course. SAVE YOUR TIME & MONEY
The Course is in rough shape
The course is in terrible shape. Greens have crabgrass and many bare spots. Fairways have fungus in many key places. Many tee boxes are mostly bare of grass. A big disappointment after a great time at this course in previous outings.
Well kept course with great staff!
beautiful course thats definitely ready for the season unlike the other courses around the area. Definitely one of my favorite courses to play in.
Put this one in your rotation
Worth the drive to play this course. Great clubhouse bar and restaurant.
One of the Best in Baltimore
Mountain Branch Golf Course in Joppa, MD is always well-maintained and has a fabulous layout. Beautiful scenary combined with the ability to play this course in 4 hours makes this one of the best courses in Baltimore.