DHamster123

I'm not sure what the TexanPa lady is talking about, but this course is a true test of golf. The drag racing noise can be faintly heard in the distance, but it is MILES away, and has nothing to do with course conditions at this challenging course. The design and condition are much better than most "traditional" courses, with some gorgeous holes, elevation changes, shot-shaping requirements, serious challenges, and outstanding greens. I play many courses in Md, Va, and Pa, and other than Penn National, this course has perhaps the best greens of any regional (public) golf course. The greens are excellent, but the rest of the course is also very well maintained. The Superintendant and grounds staff obviously know what they are doing. The other staff members are very friendly, professional, and accommodating. One fairway and one bunker were in need of some attention, but otherwise this course is in great shape, and is a very fair but challenging test of golf. The driving range is irons only, and maxes out at about 210 yards, which is a small detraction, but otherwise, I definitely recommend the Chesapeake Rising Sun course.

I've been going to Penn National a few times a year for several years, and it's always a first-class experience. It's almost an hour and a half drive from DC or Baltimore areas, but it's always worth the drive. If you're on their e-mailing list, you can get good deals, and sometimes play both courses for less than greens fees at some "higher end" courses in Maryland. The Founders course is a traditional tree-lined course with some beautiful vantage points of water and elevation changes. Iron Forge is more links style, and a little further from the clubhouse. It's probably my very favorite course to play. It's gorgeous, very challenging but not unfair, always in impeccable shape, and often we're practically the only ones on the course. Since Penn National is a "retirement community," I think most of the "members/residents" probably prefer the more traditional Founders course, which is also always in impeccable shape. The staff members are always friendly, from the bag drop to the starter to the pro shop to the restaurant staff to the beverage cart. They usually run very much on schedule, and I don't believe I've ever played a "slow" round on either course here. The conditions are outstanding, from the tees to the roughs to the fairways to the greens. And many times during a round, I've seen Marshalls or other staff members going to open greens and repairing ball marks. I've played a couple hundred courses, and I've never seen that anywhere else. In fact, the greens at both of these courses are among the best I've ever played. They really care about the golf experience at Penn National, and it's very apparent every time we go. The food is always great too. It's a dry county, but they welcome golfers bringing their own alcoholic beverages and coolers that fit on golf carts. I've never had a bad experience here, and I can't say enough good things about Penn National. Highly recommended!

Played both GlenRiddle courses in a weekend event, and probably won't ever play here again. The trend with many golf courses in recent years is to let them decline year after year, and either pretend it's intentional or blame it on the weather. I prefer this course to War Admiral, but it's still overrated. Some of the staff members are very good and seem to understand why they're there. Others have no clue at all, and don't realize that they are in a service industry. In fact, the gentleman who seemed to be in charge of the event seemed to be a genuine jerk. As with most "beach" courses, they go out of there way to offer services that require a tip from the golfer. But by the time you've paid the outrageous greens fees, bought a few drinks or sandwiches, tipped at the bag drop, tipped at the snack stand, tipped at the beverage carts/stations, tipped the kids to clean the clubs, tipped to store the clubs (this event happened to be a 2-day event), it becomes a very expensive outing. Not that I mind splurging occasionally, but for this amount of money, I expect the course to be in pristine condition. It wasn't. I expect the staff members to be nice and courteous. They weren't, with a few exceptions. I expect the food to be very good. It wasn't. I expect the distance markers to be accurate. They weren't. I expect some well-designed holes (versus awkwardly quirky ones). They weren't. As I said, it's better (and more playable) than War Admiral, but I won't be back.

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.

When my buddy said he booked us at Glade Valley for a Saturday morning, I wasn't particularly excited. I thought I had played this course 20 years ago, and I remembered it being a cow pasture. I was wrong. I hadn't played the course, and it was definitely no cow pasture. The pro shop, marshall, starter, and snack shop employees were all very friendly, and if the practice green was any indication, my putting was in trouble. When we reached the first green, it was indeed lightning fast, and my putting ended up being indeed in trouble for the entire 18 holes. The greens were generally among the best I've seen in many years. The entire course was in excellent shape (with the possible exception of a few tee boxes), and the greens were sensational. As the starter said, the course presents a fair test, but it can eat your lunch if you don't play smart. He was right. I didn't play smart, and the course ate my lunch. It seemed like nearly every green was small and very narrow from front to back. As a result, the approach shots are brutal. And once you're on the green, putting can be brutal and lightning fast, but they roll as true as any greens in the entire region. Most of the fairways are fairly wide and generous, but after that the course can "eat your lunch." As a first-time player, this course seemed more challenging than the 120-ish slope would suggest, but perhaps after a few rounds it won't be as challenging. All in all, it was a very nice experience, and we will definitely play it more often.

There are quite a few 4 and 5 star reviews here, but I tend to agree with the guy from Rising Sun who suggested it was overrated. I can't give it 1 star, but I certainly can't go higher than about 2.5 stars. When I booked my tee time, the "gentleman" on the phone was about as friendly as a box, and when I checked in with the pro shop, same thing. I never understand when unfriendly people work in the golf industry. They deal with people every single day, and they deal with recreation every single day. That's got to be a pretty good gig. If you don't like it, go get a job elsewhere. The clubhouse is impressive from the outside, but inside, it looks like they're already letting the place go. And every trash can I found inside was overflowing, and looked like they hadn't been emptied in weeks. My golf cart struggled the entire 18 holes, and appeared to be a bit older than the course itself. As for the course, it too seemed like they've already let it go. Since it's fairly new and has good reviews, I expected it to be in pristine condition, but it was far from pristine. Many many ball marks on greens, and many places that seemed to need a little attention. The grass in almost all fairways seemed to be a mix of about 8 different grass types, with lots of spotty patches. Again, not what I expected. Pace of play was slow considering the number of golfers. Some of the bunkers were in better shape than most courses, and the overall layout is interesting, and appealing to the eye. But some holes play exceedingly difficult from the respective tee markers, and there are probably too many blind shots for my taste. Overall, it was a challenging course, but it was also mostly a disappointment.

I played this course twice years ago, paid about $30, and was disappointed, mostly because some of the squirelly hole design just detracted from the golf experience. Lately I keep receiving emails about a membership offer, that on paper, seemed appealing. I'm so glad I didn't take that deal. This course is ridiculous! I got several more emails recently, with big banner ads advertising a Sunday am shotgun start for $75, and since I had heard a few good reports about the course lately, I signed up, thinking it was a tournament. It wasn't. So let me get this straight: $75 for a course that has horrendous tee boxes (under repair); only mats to hit off on all par 3's; disease on all grass, whether on fairways, greens, rough, or common area; gruff staff people who were apparently more concerned about the event in the afternoon; clump after clump after clump to hit out of; many many bad spots and unrepaired ball marks on almost all greens; not a single RAKED bunker; no beverage carts during the entire round of golf on a beautiful summer Sunday; difficulty getting someone in the kitchen area to wait on us at the turn, thus losing our position to the group behind us; sandwiches with old tuna salad mix and even older bread (I threw away the 2nd sandwich); sprinklers that inexplicably came on and drenched us on one green in the middle of the round; a groundskeeper who continued to hose down one green and leave the fire hose on the green as we hit our approach shots; and other groundskeepers and tournament people (for the afternoon event) who interfered and distracted us off and on throughout the round. I'll NEVER go back!

This used to be my "home" course, and I just went back for the first time since I moved. Still love this course. The facilities are excellent, and they serve both Diamond Ridge and Woodlands courses. The Woodlands course is significantly more expensive, but I think Diamond Ridge is the better course. The pro shop staff is always friendly, as are the starters, the marshals, and the kitchen staff, and the groundskeepers here are fantastic! They do a great job, and they are respectful of the golfers, which inexplicably isn't always the case. There's a large practice putting green and an enormous practice putting green, along with a driving range and a well bunkered chipping green between the driving range and #10 tee. The course is deceptively challenging. In recent years they have gotten rid of some trees and some natural growth areas that has made the course more accessible for most golfers. But it's still challenging. I would say the front 9 is tougher, but the back 9 has three consecutive holes that are as tough a 3-hole gauntlet as I've played (# 11,12,13). But birdies can be had on the back. There are plenty of water coolers on the course, and the clubhouse is nicer than most. The tees, roughs, bunkers, fairways, and greens are all in very good shape year to year. For those of you who prefer to walk, the front would be a tough walk, but the back isn't bad at all. The superintendent does a great job. It's a bit of a squirrely drive to get there, but it's worth the drive.

I've been playing this course with my buddy for the last 2 or 3 years, almost weekly. It's a bit of a hidden gem. In fact, several of the Montgomery County courses are hidden gems. Most people prefer Hampshire Greens and Northwest, but I prefer Laytonsville, Poolesville, and Little Bennett. This course has some relatively easy holes, especially #1, #8, #14, and #17. But it has a good variety of different looks and elevations, shot-making holes, long and short holes, easy and challenging holes. The only awkward ("squirrelly" hole) is #7, which is an L-shaped tee shot across water. The back nine is fairly tough, especially #10, #11, #15, and #18, all of which are long-ish and more difficult than average (for the average golfer). The staff is always friendly and helpful and efficient. The driving range is so-so, and the food is so-so, but the pro shop staff is great, the starters are great, and the course conditions are always great, considering the amount of play they get and the lower greens fees (especially if you get the Mont Co card). All in all, this is a very underrated course, and the greens keeper does a great job.

I booked in advance for an outing for 2 business colleagues who were going to be in town. The gentleman I spoke with on the phone was excellent. He was helpful, and arranged to reserve a set of golf clubs for one of my vendors. He was honest, and said that the set wasn't great. It ended up being a decent set of irons, with terrible woods, all of which were surprisingly dirty. Even if they're beat up, I would have expected them to be cleaned, but they looked like they hadn't been cleaned in years. No big deal. When I got there early that morning, the young gentleman in the pro shop was again excellent. Friendly, helpful, and even carried the rental set out to the cart. He directed my vendor to the restaurant area, and said there were complimentary breakfast items and coffee. As my vendor started to pour coffee from an empty coffee pot, the young lady barked -- yes, I said barked -- "that'll be 2 bucks." My vendor was clearly offended, and told her that he was told by the young man in the pro shop that it was complimentary. She corrected us, saying that they were for a specific group, and that the coffee was $2. I wasn't happy about her attitude, and since there was a misunderstanding among the staff, and the coffee pot was empty, she could have been nice and apologized or attempted to fix things, but she didn't. I would suggest to the GM there that she was in the wrong line of work. The starter was very nice, as was the Marshall. The practice range faces directly into the sun, so on bright sunny days, it's tough to hit range balls and see where the balls go to gauge your hitting, but it is natural grass, a plus. Some of the course was in okay shape, but the greens were really rough. It may be the most ball marks (and unrepaired ball marks) I've ever seen on a course, and I've played a ton of courses in 40 years. Pace of play was really slow for a weekday morning session. Even though we had an "almost beginner" in our group, we kept pace with the twosome in front of us, and they were slooooow! A foursome with a beginner should never have to wait for a twosome when there's no one in front of the twosome. After our round, we sat at a table in the restaurant area, and waited, and waited, and waited for someone to give us menus or offer to take our order. Since no one ever came to our table, we finally got up and left and drove to a real restaurant. The friendly pro shop guys, the starter, and the Marshall, were the only highlights of our golf day. The lousy condition of the greens and the slow pace of play, and the unfriendly girl in the restaurant area, along with no service in the restaurant area, were the unfortunate lowlights. Two to two and a half stars.

It was the first visit for each person in our foursome, and we now understand why we got such a discounted rate (< $60). First and foremost, 50% of the course is in deplorable condition. The bunkers and waste areas are in horrendous shape, with acres and acres of semi-permanent standing water and/or mud and/or hard-pan. When this course was designed, I imagine all the enormous sand traps and hazards and waste areas were probably the best around. Now it's easily the worst I've ever seen. I played a course near my home a few years ago that had all but closed down, and even it had better sand traps and waste areas than this course. The roughs were generally horrible throughout the course, and have obviously been neglected for years. The tee boxes were okay, and the fairways were mostly okay. In all fairness, the greens were generally excellent. The trend these days seems to be, with both cheap municipal courses and expensive resort courses, to focus almost all maintenance efforts and resources on the fairways and greens, which I happen to think is a huge mistake for the game. In fact, one player in our group suggested that this course may be intentionally going more Crenshaw/natural, but we eventually all agreed that it wasn't an intentional transformation, but just one of neglect. Another complaint about our experience would be the lack of a beverage cart. On the most beautiful day of the year, we never did see a beverage cart from 1:30 to finish. We got food at the turn, and it was very good. The sandwiches and wraps were big and very good. But no beverage cart on a beautiful summer afternoon at a beach resort course? Really? And other than the elderly gentleman who served as starter, I can't say that the staff was particularly friendy. In fact, when we reached about the 15th hole, the Marshall made a beeline toward us from the distance, right up to the other cart in our group, with a scowl on his face, and said, "Do you have something in your cart that doesn't belong to you?" We were shocked and confused by his accusatory tone, and said we didn't think so. He said someone left a pair of sunglasses in a cart from the previous day, and then he drove off. Seriously?? As for the rest of the facilities, it was a mixed bag. There doesn't seem to be nearly enough parking, but we finally found a spot on the street in the adjacent community. When we dropped off our bags, there was no one to take the bags or put them on carts, so we walked back from parking and took care of our own bags. The clubhouse is beautiful, and the pro shop is better than average, for whatever that's worth. The driving range is adequate, but there is a nice putting green and a separate chipping green. Of course, when we finished our round, there were a couple of guys right there to go through the motions of cleaning our clubs for tips, but they were nowhere to be found when we started our day at Bear Trap. All in all, it was a mixed experience here, but because of the horrendous conditions of much of the course (minus the greens), this was a very disappointing experience for us, and we probably won't be back soon.