C2CO

A pure, classic, Scottish-style links course on an island in Long Island Sound just offshore from the Connecticut/Rhode Island border. Fabulous course! Enjoyed the straightforward easy 1st hole to warm up on but by the 4th hole, called "Punchbowl," my brain was already frazzled. The pressure and difficulty seems to increase on every hole. One great hole after another with few exceptions. Punchbowl has to be one of the 18 best holes in America; a par 4 with a blind 2nd shot that looks like you're hitting over a hill into the ocean. The holes are basically adapted re-creations of great links holes and they all have names. Not a long course but the wind makes up for the lack of length. Played in 40 mph winds the first day from the tips and the course was virtually unmanageable. I think the pro said that they have to be careful about the speed on the greens because the winds whipping in off the ocean can cause balls to roll off the greens; and they can roll a long ways! The course is surprisingly hilly. I don't think they water most of the fairways or at least not much in true links style so the course can look a bit brown as designed. It can be a challenge to keep the ball in the firm fairways. Most of the holes seem to be on the ocean or have spectacular ocean views. Just a great, great course but it really needs a good breeze to bring it to life and show its teeth. For those that prefer manicured, wind-free parkland courses this might not be your cup of tea. But for links aficionado's this is as good as it gets in the States. Fishers has to be one of the greatest course in America. Well worth playing if you can get on. It's also one of the most exclusive, least publicized courses in America which is the way the old money barons of Wall Street membership apparently want to keep it What a fabulous course! A real treat to play!

Blue is the best military course in the Nation and one of the best courses in Colorado. Not particularly challenging until arriving at the green. Then the fun begins. If you can putt at Eisenhower you can putt anywhere. Blue greens are extremely difficult. Silver even more so. Enjoy!

Thoroughly enjoyed playing Monument Hills. I had heard it was closed last year due to the drought but everything seemed good to me. It's an attractive course in the pines with minor hills and lot's of OB. We rode but could have easily walked. The course was in pretty decent condition. The greens were well-maintained. Fairly small greens with mostly minor breaks. Fairways were wide but lot's of OB not far off the fairways. A pond or two. Some small creeks for runoff. A nice course. Biggest challenge I had was finding it on my golf GPS. It was listed as Woodmoor Hills, I think... and the front and back 9's were reversed. The scorecard had the nines reversed, too. I would enjoy playing there again.

Pine Creek is a well-maintained residential course with great views of Pikes Peak, the Garden of the Gods and the Front Range. Much of the course is left "natural" to save on maintenance and water usage. Unfortunately this tends to slow down play as golfers look for their balls in knee high natural grass in creeks and alongside fairways in the rough. For example on the first hole, a short par 4, there are two creeks and average golfers who are not warmed up normally hit their balls in both creeks and spend quite a bit of time looking for their balls (usually in vain) which immediately backs up play. With the exception of the 18th hole, the course favors right handed players that draw the ball as most fairways drop away from left to right, the par 5 6th hole, the number one handicap hole being a prime example. The signature hole is probably the downhill 15th with great mountain views. The 11th green also has great views of Pikes Peak back down the center of the long fairway. The course is laid out on an east-west axis with the first 4 holes being downhill, 5 through 13 being uphill and 14 through 18 being downhill. Although the course can be walked, it's a long uphill slog from 5 through 13 and a cart is certainly appreciated, at least on these holes. Attractive homes line the course and fairways can be tight with greens slightly smaller than average. The greens normally putt at a medium speed. Pine Creek is a nice course to play, it's an attractive well-maintained course with great views, but because of all the natural areas slowing down play, be sure to allocate at least 5 hours when it's busy.