CraigCline

Nice golf course. I'd first played it 18 years ago, and recall its many water features as being both very "natural" -- and very beautiful as well. Now, the water features have been "let go" -- Mother Nature appears to be reclaiming them; to marsh and wetlands. I'm all for Mother Nature, but I think that course management should have done a lot more to keep the beauty that once existed, versus letting green algae-type plants overtake the waters. The waters of Heron Lakes aren't nearly as attractive as they were in the younger days of the course.

Also, people need to be more responsible in fixing their ball marks on the greens. Far too many weren't fixed well, and many not fixed at all.

Meadowlawn is a short course, but a nice walk. You can play a quick nine here; no par 5s, and a decent test of your short game, mostly.

Really a fun and beautiful course, with a lot of elevation changes. For most golfers, this would be a difficult walk; particularly because of some lengthy distances between holes. I highly recommend a golf cart. Pace of play was about 4&1/2 hours, but the course isn't easy -- and it was quite full of players that day (Friday). Unless you've a really good golfer, I'd suggest the "white" tees -- they'll give most of us quite enough of a challenge. The blue tees are decidedly harder.

I enjoyed the course. For some reason, play was slow. I think it had to do with some groups ahead of us who were tied in to some kind of money game, and pretty darned slow as a result. Our round took about 5&1/2 hours, whereas it should have taken no more than 4&1/2. The Marshall came up to us and suggested we were a bit behind, which we were on one hole. But usually we were waiting to hit; and sometimes for quite a while. The Marshall should have been moving the guys ahead of us. They were the slow players. I don't think this is common; just happened to be the case that day (a Saturday too).

Very nice course, with a few "tricky" holes that demand you know where you're going and how to get there. I didn't look into getting a layout book for the course in the pro shop; maybe there is one. In any event, ask the pro which holes need "advance information" in order to play them well.

For example,on one of these couple of holes, I hit a perfect 3-wood right at the 150 yard sign, but there is a severe downslope just beyond that sign; so I went into the pucker brush unwittingly. So I should have hit, at most, a 5-wood. This is a hole where the course apparently wants you to hit a second shot of about 150 yards. So hit to the sign and stop there -- you don't want to go into the pucker brush, and you don't even want to try to hit off the severe downhill lie that results if you go very far past the 150 yard sign!

I've played McNary G.C. a number of times over the years, and always enjoy an outing there. The only negative is that there are homes along the course; occasionally in danger of my errant tee shots! Not really, though, as you'd really have to be pretty far off to actually hit a house. Still, it can be done!

My wife and I played what is known as "Spring Hill" to us. The course was in very good condition, and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves (except for the ever-present mis-hits, but that's not the course's fault!)

Santiam is a nice course and easily walkable. The greens were in great shape, and so were the fairways.

I also played the Payne Stewart course, and Branson Hills -- both VERY worthy. Ledgestone was my favorite, as it is just GORGEOUS, and very playable, though challenging.

Very nice golf experience; a great deal at golfnow's pricing!

Fun course, but really quite difficult because of its ups and downs and uneven lies. I advise you to take a cart. Unless you are in excellent physical condition, it is very difficult to walk this course. The course is indeed unique, though, and I recommend your playing it if you are anywhere near Bend, OR., especially at golfnow's prices.

Nicely maintained "executive" type of course, with par 3s and 4s. Very easily walkable. Built as part of a homes and apartments development, though the residential proximity is not significantly bothersome.

Of all the courses I have played in Hawaii, this one is my favorite. It is "Dye-abolical," but I love the gorgeous "Mother Nature" around which it was designed. It is like playing in Jurassic Park! This course is on my "Top Five" list of all courses I have ever played anywhere.

The course is visually attractive, and I like the fact that it has no houses or other development around it. The owners need to take better care of it, though. The course tends to get wet and mushy in the winter months, and the lack of a sanding program really shows up during that time. Also, the owners should apply more water to the course during the summer months, as the course suffers sparse fairway and rough conditions in various areas. The course is quite popular and gets a lot of play, so I would think that the owners could afford to give the course the maintenance and improvements that it deserves. The clubhouse is very nice, built in the Southern tradition, and overlooking holes 1 and 10. It's a fine place to have a brew and popcorn (free) or other food after the round, while you watch other golfers tee off.

Visually attractive and a lot of fun. An excellent value for the money, and an excellent design job by Graves.