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I've always liked this course, there are some interesting holes, conditions are decent for a muni. But they have to do something about the rough, it is way too thick. If you hit it in there you might not find it, much less be able to hit it. Really detracts from what otherwise is a nice playable course. Rough is just unplayable.

Came out here to Hot Springs Village not knowing what to expect. Now I know - expect awesomeness.

The course is currently in very good condition tee to green. Greens were a little soft and slow today.

Fabulous layout. Challenging but not impossible holes, some elevated greens (1-2 clubs extra to reach par-5 #1, par-4 #9, par-3 #12 and par-4 #18) but also a couple of beautiful downhill approaches to greens with water hazards on one side (#4 and #16) and downhill par-3's (#8). Some great par-5's layouts. I especially liked #12 with a creek that splits the hole twice, requiring a drive placed left/short of hazard, then a layup across the hazard to the right side of the fairway, then another forced carry to the green.

Friendly service in the clubhouse, good quality driving range (new-ish balls, hitting surfaces not too thin) and a pretty reasonable price for the quality of the facility puts this one on my return (and bring a friend) list.

This is why you don't use the five star rating lightly - so when you do use it it can mean something. This is a five star course. Everything you see right away is top shelf from the large, amphitheater-like grass driving range to the amazing two-tiered putting green. The starter was friendly and helpful. Warned me it was cart path only, and at this course that really means something because the layout is expansive and, shall we say, not at all flat. At #11 we were told the 90 degree rule was now in effect which helped a good deal. Finished in about 4.5 hours.

Course itself is hard to find fault with. Fairways were soggy in some places from recent downpours. Dry areas hadn't been mown in awhile (obvious reasons). Course winds up and down along rolling contours surrounding a lake. #9 and #18 greens are side by side at the near end of the lake, making an awesome spectacle when on either tee box. All the par-3s require some kind of carry to an elevated green, except the last #14 where the tee is the part that is elevated (take one club less). The presence of the lake results in a few greens being pretty close to the water, but only on two of them (#4 and #18) do you actually have a true forced carry over water. But on many occasions you'll have the opportunity for a bad hook or push to put you in the drink.

All in all it shows that the architect was given a great piece of property and resources with which to do a proper job. Even details like the quality of the cart paths, the on-course rest rooms, the frequency of water stations, etc. Everything contributed to the superior golf experience.

If you get a chance to play here, do not miss it.

Played this course on getaway day after a 4-day stay in the area. Wanted a low-key place where I could get in a fast round. Pace of play could have been worse I guess, but the course itself didn't really live up to its reviews. Yes the greens were pretty good, but that's really all I can think of as strengths of this course.

The golf course is shoe-horned between a housing development and Horn Lake Creek. Neither comes into play at all - you only see the creek maybe on one hole. But there's barely enough room for a golf course on the land available. Many holes are barely 300 yards - I hit lots of hybrids off the tee - and in many places the tee box for the next hole is uncomfortably close to the previous green. We were stacked up a little bit, sometimes a group finishing one hole with two groups on the next tee, and the lack of space made this situation pretty uncomfortable. I don't really enjoy teeing off in front of the previous group, or in some cases players on the previous green!

The course design attempted to compensate for the lack of space between holes by sculpting large mounds as barriers. Unfortunately the tightness of the layout meant these mounds were definitely in play, and wayward drives could result in very awkward sidehill lies.

As for the layout, I can think of one memorable hole, the par-5 #13, a nice dogleg par-5 with a huge bunker preventing any attempt to shorten the hole, and an elevated green - actually a double-green shared with #15. The cart path actually tunnels under this green - another testament to the cramped nature of this course, and maybe the only memorable feature of an otherwise unremarkable golf course.

Stopped here on a drive from DC to Memphis. Not too far north of I-40 I found this place. Pretty impressed at the quality and value here.

The outstanding feature of this course is the layout, especially the holes clustered in a valley below the clubhouse - #9, #10, #11, #17 and #18. #9 and #17 are strong par-5's with daunting tee shots and approaches. #11 is a pretty peninsula par-3. The dogleg #10 features a severely downhill tee shot - plenty of landing room, but you have to figure out how far you're going to hit it to find your proper aiming point. And #18 is a beautiful and challenging finishing hole, with a (dry, at the time I played it) creek bed along the right edge of the fairway ready to swallow a wayward drive (which I barely avoided).

In addition to a terrific layout, the greens are top notch, firm and fast. Fairways and tee boxes in good shape. A few places in the rough had some dead patches from cart traffic - maybe some better traffic management would help there.

Tee shot on #1 and second shot on par-5 #11 are totally blind, you really need to drive up and do some scouting (and make sure it's safe to hit).

Grass driving range is a plus (but it was a little shaggy), nice big chipping green to practice on.

Overall the experience was a memorable one. Very glad I stopped off here.

Stopped here on a drive from DC to Memphis. Always on the lookout to play a Pete Dye course. But I have to say there isn't a whole lot of what I think of as Pete Dye to be found here. I think that might mostly be due to the location and terrain.

The course occupies a narrow tract of land along the banks of the New River. Front nine goes out and back downstream (north) from the clubhouse, back nine goes out and back upstream (south). Almost no elevation changes (#6 tee box is up on a small hill) and the water really doesn't come into play much (just guard against a bad push or hook on the riverfront holes).

Dye is known for his creative green complexes, and while these were not mundane, I wouldn't call them vintage Dye. I missed a lot of greens and had some tricky chip shots, but nothing too severe. No railroad ties or deep bunkers here.

Conditions were good, greens fairly soft but rolled true. Fairways in good shape . Rough was pretty benign. Sand in some bunkers was a little compacted.

All in all it's a good course, but just didn't provide that "wow" kind of experience.

I play this course a lot. Last year the greens got a little beat up during the summer months. Right now the course conditions are about as good as I've ever seen them, which is quite good indeed. Greens hold well but are pretty fast too. #11 green still has a bit of a poa annua infestation but the rest are fine. Most of the traps have good sand. Fairways are excellent. Rough is pretty thick and if you hit it in the gorse forget about it.