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3.6
172 Reviews (172)
5 Stars
25
4 Stars
81
3 Stars
48
2 Stars
9
1 Stars
9
Conditions
3.2
Value
3.9
Layout
3.5
Friendliness
3.8
Pace
3.7
Amenities
3.3
82.0%
Recommend this course
141 out of 172 reviews
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About

Holes 18
Type Semi-private
Par 72
Length 6728 yards
Slope 129
Rating 71.6

Northern Hills Golf Club is an excellent traditional course with well placed fairways and greens. Lovely old trees make ball placement critical to a good score at Northern Hills Golf Club. The 18-hole, 6,627-yard golf course is situated on approximately 130 acres that will prove interesting and challenging to any level of golf abilities. First time visitors or repeat guests to Northern Hills Golf Club will enjoy expertly maintained greens and new water control systems.

Northern Hills Golf Club members have first crack at better tee times, especially on weekends, but this is a super course for visitors to play during the week.

Course Details

Year Built 1969
Golf Season Year round
Architect Joseph Beleau

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes - included in green fees
Clubs Yes
Pull-carts Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Caddies No
Golf School Academy Yes
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Metal Spikes Allowed No
Walking Allowed Yes
Dress code Proper attire required

Food & Beverage

Food & Beverage

Available Facilities

Clubhouse, Meeting Facilities, Banquet Facilities

Available Activities

Swimming, Billiards

Reviews

3.6
172 Reviews (172)

What Golfers Are Saying

The 19th Hole is Great For:
Drinks 23
Brunch 8
Watching the Game 8
Course Challenges Include:
Bunkers 20
Water Hazards 15
Forced Carries 12
This course/club is great for:
Locals 34
Seniors 21
Walkers 17
This Course's Location is:
Convenient to the City 33
Near the Airport 30
In the 'Burbs 9

Numbers based on reviews tagged with attribute.

Advanced Filters
Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 157
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Texas Advisor
Top 100 Contributor
Perfect weather
Walked

Course is in good shape

This course has received some good TLC the past few months. With the recent Covid-19 closure, ACGT has aerated all their courses. Northern is recovering the best from the aerating. In a week or two, the greens are going to be immaculate. It is very walker friendly. This coure is good for players of all skill levels.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 94
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Top 250 Contributor
First Time Playing

Surprising delight

Northern Hills surprised me. There was a few inches of rain the day before so the course was wet. Really wet. Surprisingly good though. All ACGT courses are getting better and better. Easy walk. I walked. Open during the coronavirus pandemic. Greens were fast. Fairways were average. Seem to be getting better. The layout was nice with a mixture of long and short par 4s/5s. The par 3s are mostly all beasts of holes. 175+yds from whites. Played behind a 5some on a Sunday afternoon. So, it got a little slow for my twosome on the back 9. Great ACGT course with some different elevations.

Conditions Average
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 109
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Top 250 Contributor
Minnesota Advisor
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart

Former Country Club, Good Value

Northern Hills Golf Course is part of the Alamo City Golf Trail, the municipal golf courses of San Antonio, Texas. The course is set in the northern part of the city, but there aren’t any real hills on the course, although the terrain does have rolling slopes in some areas. The course has four sets of tees ranging from 6,602 yards to 4,987 yards. The middle men’s tees have slope of 121 and rating of 70.1, so the course is moderately challenging. We played the course the first week of December, and conditions were quite dry, with mostly dormant grass on the fairways and greens and no leaves to speak of on the sparse tree cover. Despite this, the greens were moderately fast and rolled true. The biggest problem for a golfer from the Upper Midwest was making the adjustment to the Bermuda grass that seemed to be everywhere on the course, especially gnarly around the greens and making chipping a real guessing game. The round begins with a real risk-reward par 5, 475 yard dogleg left hole with a pond forming the inside edge of the dogleg. Hit a long shot hugging the right edge of the pond and you’ll have a long iron or fairway wood to reach the green. A shorter, safer tee shot may require a second shot over the pond to the fairway, but you’ll have a good chance of being on the green in three putting for birdie. Subsequent holes have fairly straight or slightly bent fairways to moderate size greens, most of which have at least one or two easily avoided bunkers placed around them. The back nine begins with a dogleg right 494 yard par 5. Staying left on the tee shot is imperative in order to have a decent second shot to set up a short iron or wedge approach. The 343 yard par 4 12th hole requires a decision to either lay up short of a water hazard that lies about 200 yards from the middle men’s tees or to risk carrying the hazard in order to set up a short iron or wedge approach. The long green was one of the more difficult greens on the course. The course is unusual in that both nines end with a long par 3 hole. The 18th is 190 yards from the middle men’s tee. Carry the lone bunker on the front right and you’ll have a good chance of ending your round with a birdie. Northern Hills was established as a private country club, and the course still maintains a country club vibe, especially the clubhouse and pro shop. The course is a good value and we’ll be playing there again when we return next winter.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Average
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 11
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Not worth the money

Overpriced golf course! Pace of play extremely slow. Back 9 under construction.

Conditions Fair
Value Poor
Layout Fair
Friendliness Good
Pace Fair
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 13
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
3.0
First Time Playing
Windy weather
Used cart

Meh

Was a nice and pretty open track, but the back 9 was under construction. It would've been nice to be notified of these repairs beforehand, either through the booking site or the staff. Won't be going back until all repairs are complete, so maybe next year.

Conditions Fair
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Fair
Pace Fair
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Fairly Easy
Played On
Reviews 157
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Texas Advisor
Top 100 Contributor
Previously Played
Perfect weather
Used cart

Doesn't drain really well

The course is in great shape despite being winter. The greens are super nice, and roll pretty fast. The negative thing is that the course had a lot of muddy areas and little ponds scattered throughout, but it hasn't been raining that much lately in San Antonio. Word of advice, steer away from Northern Hills during rainy season. However, when the weather is nice and dry which is 90% of the time in San Antonio, then Northern Hills is a gem.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
d184b637-9e39-516d-b298-c2dcbdea3c79
Commented on 05/03/2019

Hi there, thanks for being a Local Golf Advisor. Can you drop me a line thru this form? I'd like to get in touch with you about an invite to an event. Thanks!

https://www.golfadvisor.com/contact-us

Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
2.0
Previously Played
Perfect weather
Used cart

Five Hour Round

Let's start with the customer service, or lack thereof. Simply put: They are not very friendly nor hospitable. I've played this course many, many times - and I've encountered various staff members; they all lack the bare minimum Hospitality/Customer Experience Skillset. (This includes the Starter)
Moving on to the Pace of Play: Ridiculously slow and crowded. Now, most golf courses face the challenge of finding the right balance of scheduling and managing pace of play. I get it, you get it, we all get it. I expect courses to be proactive and at least have a Marshall. As the title suggests, we finished in 5 hours. My recommendation: there are other courses in San Antonio that have better course management - - Sure, they're in a higher price point....but thats a non-issue nowadays, when you have Re-sellers like GolfNow and TeeOff offering great deals --- Play somewhere else.

Conditions Fair
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Poor
Pace Poor
Amenities Poor
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 157
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Texas Advisor
Top 100 Contributor
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart

One of the top munis in town

I don't get why there were bad reviews on this course. Maybe it was in real bad shape a couple of years ago. All I know is that this is one of the top muni's in San Antonio. It was perfectly groomed. The greens were in amazing shape. IMHO, this ranks up there with Willow Springs, Riverside, and Cedar Creek. There are a lot of pro's to this course: it has a driving range, it's pretty wide open and fairly forgiven, real nice elevations all throughout, good confidence builder as it is not extremely difficult, GPS on the carts, and really good food at the 19th hole. Disregard all the bad reviews from the past, this course is a must if you want to get good value for your money.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 99
Handicap 20-24
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Texas Advisor
Top 250 Contributor
Previously Played
Perfect weather
Used cart

A Well Run Muny

We play here frequently and this is one of the better run Munys in the area.
The course is usually in good shape despite issues with a recent tornado and flooding from
heavy rains.
The Proshop here has some of the best employees in town. Kieth D has always been helpful
and so has every other person who works here.
The course is laid out so that you are challenged with different shots on every hole.
The #1 hole is a par five that has a lake on the left. Some big hitters can carry the lake and
will wind up with a great chance for a birdie. The rest of us will have to get as close to the lake without going in.
Holes 2, 3, and 4 are easy but the greens are small and very tricky. Holes 6 and 7 are long
and uphill. Hole # 8 is set up to roll left and OB.
Hole #10 is difficult par 5 with a 45 degree fairway to the right and lots of grass bunkers.
Hole 12 is long carry over water on your second shot, or a risky tee shot on the right that
comes close to OB.
Hole 13 is a long uphill into the wind with a small elevated green.
The last hole is an uphill par 3 that plays into the wind at 180 yards.
Northern Hill was a private club until a few years ago. It was the site of the AJGA qualification playoffs for many years.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

Highly Recommend!

Had a very enjoyable experience. Staff was very courteous and went out of their way to be helpful. Greens were in great shape but difficult to read without previous experience on the course. Teed off on time and no waiting all day. Very nice experience.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Average
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 99
Handicap 20-24
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Texas Advisor
Top 250 Contributor
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

A Good Test of Golf

This is a tricky layout with hidden water hazards
and ninety degree driving holes.
There are a lot of surprises for the first time players.
Number one has a surprise pond if you draw your tee
shot. #4 has hidden pond on the left, #10 has fairway
that dives to the right and requires an iron from the tee,
and hole 12 has a long carry over water or a blind shot
on the right.
The greens are smooth and the fairways are
smooth.
#18 is an uphill par 3 that appears as an afterthought.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 8
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Average weather
Used cart

Mixed review

Given all the rain, the course was in decent shape. Still soggy fairways in many places so it was cart path only. We planned on that, but not the SLOW foursome in front of us. By the time we got to 10, they were more than a hole behind. By 15, they were probably 3 holes behind and wouldn't invite us, a twosome, to play through. A marshal finally got there on 16. He was great. Check-in was terribly slow. Close to 10 minutes to check in one group in front of us. That left us short on warm-up time. Greens are excellent.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Fair
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Northen Hills

Course was in good condition and the greens were quick. Only problem there was a 5 some in front of us. They let us pass on number 8 and the round speed up. Overall good layout enjoyable to play. Thanks

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Fair
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 34
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
First Time Playing
Good weather
Used cart

good find

well received at the pro shop. the starter was very helpful. the course is nice and in good shape. we found it strange to see so many 5some play. but the pace was still good. we would play it again

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Don't Go

When we arrived there are two staff members trying to figure out something on the computer. They totally ignored me for at least five minutes. When we began playing the threesome in front of us continue to hit at least two balls slowing the pace tremendously. They completely dropped out of play and started playing again on the whole behind us. The threesome in front of us at that point when completing putting would stand on the green and talk rather than move off the green so others could shoot. The entire experience was so bad that we only played nine holes though we paid for 18. We will never play northern hills again.

Conditions Fair
Value Poor
Layout Fair
Friendliness Poor
Pace Poor
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Average weather
Used cart

Avg course good for higher handicaps

I have played Northern Hills many times as it is one of my local courses. Previously private, it has recently become a "Muni" or municipal course and that is not an improvement. It has always been a fairly easy course having wide fairways and a course that does not play very long. Since becoming a "Muni" the greens fees have increased and the course has become more crowded. Additionally, they have cut back a lot trees and made an already easier course somewhat pedestrian and boring more tuned to the very high capped weekend golfer. The course has always been maintained decently with less readable undulating greens. I prefer my greens with very large but readable undulations. The carts have been improved slightly now equipped with a yardage identifier. The new club house staff is as friendly, as were the last. The "19th Hole" café is unchanged with the same competent staff.

In short, the new "Muni" Northern Hills course is very average. Previously, I found it more desirable because it was easy on the wallet, less crowded (allowed for play at your pace, fast or slow) and the course was challenging enough. I can no longer recommend it with the current price, crowd and pedestrian course play. Silver Horn, also close by, is a more challenging and prettier course with a better café. Prices and crowd are now comparable.

Best hole on Northern Hills is #17 (Par 5) with a double level green.

Enjoy and Best wishes

Conditions Good
Value Fair
Friendliness Good
Pace Fair
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 3
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Well maintand

The course was in very good shape and as nice of a day it was I was surprised that there wasn't more people than there was. Will play again.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 24
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Price was good

Price thru GolfNow was good. Course is in OK condition.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Excellent weather
Used cart

Difficult greens

Nice course that has it challenges for all types of golfers. Fairway was in pretty good shape as well as the greens. However I found the greens extremely difficult to read, resulting in some 3-putts. My co-players experienced the same, so I wasn't alone.
The par 3s were also very long, so almost impossible to hit the green in one shot, if you aren't a really good player.

Conditions Average
Value Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 6
Handicap 25+
Skill Beginner
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Great fairways and challenging greens

Northern Hills is a great golf course, very well maintained. The fairways are soft and the ball is floating on the grass, the design is nice with some long par 4, the greens are fast and challenging.
The green fee is fair and the course isn't crowded.
I will be back as soon as I will find another offer.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
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