Clarkbrainerd1

This was the first time that I played this course and have heard great things for the past 3 years. My wife and I decided on a late tee time with the hope the place would be quiet and we could zoom around the course quickly. Unfortunately, we were very wrong and it was very crowded and the staff had difficulty managing the amount of people there.

To be fair, it was a beautiful day and everyone was looking to get out but we teed off 25 minutes late and the range was empty with their complementary golf balls. I joined others walking out to the range to pick up balls. With a course of this reputation in the DC area I would be quite embarrassed of this sight and the general mayhem around the first tee. The front nine took 2.5 hours to complete and the group in front of us was still on the tee when we pulled up for the next hole. From what I could tell, there was no specific group that was was poor and we were playing in a foursome taking our time.

Course conditions were what you could expect of any course on a beautiful weekend day at the end of the day. Chewed up and bumpy greens but I would not hold it against the course. Some tee boxes were really bad however, mainly just dirt and mud.

Course lay out was interesting and fun with every hole memorable. This was a major positive.

I am scheduled to play in a tournament next Sunday here and expect pace of play to be much better and the conditions to be better. I am rating the course tougher due to the regard it holds among many that I talk to and play with. I would say that I am resoundly disappointed in this experience but would give it a pass because it seemed like a perfect storm of things working against the course.