ckielt

As the title says, the staff were engaging and helpful. The Starter was the BEST fellow I have run into in quite some time, trying to find a way to get me, a single, out as early as possible. Although I stuck with my original tee time and joined the 2some also signed up for that time, he tried everything he could to see if fit with an earlier time. Pro Shop staff was friendly and engaging as well. The course is relatively short, with quite a few blind shots (at least on the front 9 --- more on that later). I was initially encouraged by the reminder on the cart's screen about making sure one moved along and kept up the pace of play. Unfortunately, the pace was upwards of 5.5 hours. I called the pro shop to inquire about a ranger, and subsequently one came out to tell our group that the whole course was backed up. Sigh. So I simply gave up after 9 holes, and won't be returning. Slow play is a cancer for the game, and anywhere that simply gives in to it as Crystal Springs did that day simply doesn't deserve my business.

Played Teravista for the first time on June 19th around 11a. Check-in was easy, and grabbed a large bucket to hit before I played. The shot tracer capability at the range was terrific, a real plus. The course was in very good shape, with greens, fairways and rough all with plenty of grass and properly maintained. Bunker sand was also good, although they could use some raking care by the players leaving an excessive number of footprints. I liked the course. I would suggest a few things, like getting the range balls off number 1 and 18 as the normal process. Tough to pick out a shot among all those white range balls (maybe change over to yellow like other tracks have done). Also, the pace of play was very slow. We played in about 5.5 hours, and I know it was mid-day on a Sunday, but the time was agonizing. One member of our foursome finally mentioned to situation to a ranger who promptly spoke to some of the groups ahead of us and suddenly the pace of play quickened, allowing us to finish in 5.5 hrs instead of the 6 hours and 18 minutes we were on track for before the ranger intervened. The course isn't inexpensive, and so I found the most frustrating aspect was the pace of play.

Had a delightful time at Sapelo Hammock (as usual). Course is in good condition, greens were in very good shape. Pace of play, thanks to the two thoughtful and gracious 4somes that let this single play through, was astonishingly quick. 2 and 3/4 hour round, 8:55a to 11:30a. The combinations of a good course, very good conditions, hot but nice weather, perfect pace of play and a great value makes Sapelo Hammock compelling.

This course was in EXCELLENT condition. Fairways, greens and bunkers were all in immaculate condition (and bunker sand was consistent and plentiful). The course is a model of what I would want to play from a conditions standpoint any day of the week. On the flip side, I played as a single at a bit after 12 noon behind a twosome and two foursomes Pace of play was, unfortunately, slow and amounted to an almost 5 hour round. I think some better tee time management so as to combine some groups so as to get some better pace of play would be an opportunity to improve the experience.

This course was in SUPER condition. Greens, bunkers and fairways were outstanding. Play was glacially slow. Waited on every shot for 18 holes.

Course conditions were excellent. Greens were outstanding. Very pleased to have tried this course
It is fair and fun.

Sapelo is a pleasure to play. It has a great many scenic holes, and the layout is very enjoyable. Some of the greens are recovering from some damage, but they did a good job of positioning the holes away from the affected areas. Course seemed a bit on the dry side, but maybe that was just a spring time change as the weather gets warmer and watering demands heighten.

I remain steadfast in my thinking that a golf course ranger's job should be to help golfers finish their round in a time appropriate for the course and not to roll up on people on the second hole of their round to ask them to slow down because " . . . it is going to be real slow out there." This course's greens are in good shape, but the rest of the place needs a lot of care ---- fairways and rough are barren of grass, and bunkers are full of rocks and have an uneven spread of sand. But my big complaint is the pace of play. It seems that Sonoma ranch thinks it is okay with a 5.30 hour round. If that's your cup of tea and you don't mind hitting off dirt and sand, well this is your track. As for me, I left after 8 because things were so slow and the only time I saw the ranger was on the second hole when he asked me to play slower.

Sapelo Hammock is set in a beautiful location among the love oaks covered with Spanish moss. I arrived early, and the staff member who was putting the carts out was extremely kind and accommodating. I played a single, the second group out following a 3some and the pace of play was terrific. The course was in very good condition and the greens were superb.

Had an 8:21 tee time, and arrived early enough where the only person other than some maintenance crew I saw at the course, the Pro Shop attendant, suggested that if I was at the tee by 8:15a I could go off. She described how to get to the tee, and after hitting a few balls (+$4 for a small bucket) departed for the tee. The first tees for both courses are nearby one another but not differentiated, so I mistakenly hit a ball off the #1 of Lake. Then the groups started to arrive at the tee and helped me sort things out. Finally did hit one off Creek #1 and was off. Pace of play was fine, until I ran into a 4some on #8. Couldn't figure out where they came from, but they let me through on the next hole. Course had a lot of standing water, I noticed, surprising given the low rain levels we have experienced. Ran into another twosome that was oblivious to my arrival waiting for them to finish. Clearly local folks, having their own golf carts, just start playing on empty holes, practicing away while paying players wait for them to finish.

My biggest gripe was the close proximity of cart paths to the greens. I knocked three shots OB on three holes off cart paths that were less than 10 yards away from the green. That's poor design and annoying. That, combined with the seemingly endless flow of cart driving members leaving their homes and traversing the golf course paths to get to the club house combined to make this a less than enjoyable round.

This place has potential, but they need to get some things in order. I was to matched up with a threesome and arrived on the tee at the time that was one group ahead of my time. I was told by the starter that the threesome was part of a group, and had gone off ahead of the foursome that was now on the tee. I was told I could go and join the threesome or wait and play as a single behind the foursome. This is lousy guest management practice. Declining these options, I was asked if I wanted to play the White 9, which, not understanding what that meant, agreed. I found out when I joined a fellow single at that 9 that the greens were bent grass, unlike the other 9s that were some form of Bermuda. So we had a pleasant 9 holes on an unremarkable White course and then proceeded to the Black 9 holes for the back. We encountered a foursome that I assume was from one of the other 9s (they had not been on the White) and waited behind them on every shot on the back 9, not a ranger in sight. This, in addition to the 4 or so holes that did not permit carts in the fairway, made for a long and frustrating 9 holes. This along with the change in greens to Bermuda made my round less than enjoyable and I won't go back.

If they wanted me to come back they should have straightened out the tee business, and had a ranger out moving things along.

Had a good time at the Preserve. Pro Shop staff were super friendly, starter was exceedingly accommodating and helpful. Course is in good shape and greens especially strong this early in the year.

Enjoyed the 18 holes today at Wil-Mar. Pro Shop Staff were friendly, helpful and provided information on the course. The starter was a splendid fellow who was genuinely pleasant and matched us up with a great 3rd. We all enjoyed Wil-Mar; its not long, even from the Blue Tees (6100+ (?)) but the bunkers were well positioned and in great shape. Greens were varied, some postage stamps and some larger real estate appropriate to the length of the hole and the par. They were fast and smooth, and a good test. We played cart path only today because of heavy recent rains, and we were able to play in 4 hours on a Sunday morning on a round that started at 10a. That pace of play, fast considering cart path only, was very fast based on my experience. We will go back!

Visited March 2014

Can't make up my mind about the Neuse. It has some beautiful holes on the back 9, and it has variety in terms of design. But there are some things that regardless of the circumstance don't sit right with me, things like OB on both side of the hole, OB on one side and red staked on the other. You need some bailout. Additionally, and I found this especially true of the front 9, I felt a little claustrophobic being surrounded by houses and the whirring sound of leave blowers for much of the day. Greens and fairways were in excellent shape for this time of the year, but I would suggest some additional work on drainage. Lotta mud and moisture for it being so dry.

What a wonderful venue ruined by an indifference to slow play. Course is somewhat isolated, so a decision to drive to AC was based on the promise of a playing a good track. Staff were extremely nice, and course was in good shape. Nice designs, though I don't think I saw a flat putt for the 9 holes my wife and I played. Local knowledge is a key to scoring well. What drives my evaluation was the VERY slow play; close to 3 hours to play 9 holes and no one seemed to be out doing anything about it. We waited on the 10th tee to see if things had improved and after 10 minutes we packed it in never to return. What a shame. Went back to tell staff about it, but no one was around. Oh well. Another reason why interest in golf is waning.