parmaster222

I have played many rounds at Battle Ground over the past 17 years. Pleased to report it is in very good shape and that the current staff (both in the clubhouse and those taking care of the course) are doing an excellent job.

It has been a good year for growing grass, for sure, but many were concerned about what would happen to BG's conditioning when it became Lafayette's muni this year. Not sure how many more rounds they've had than normal, or what the budget is for keeping the course nice, but they are getting the job done in 2013.

Battle Ground is not a visual stunner, being mostly flat and fairly straightforward. It is a very good test of golf, though. The small greens will test the short game, and the par 3s have always been pretty salty from either of the back two sets of tees. Add in a generally quick pace of play, and you get a good value for the dollar.

The former Frankfurt Country Club, now The Golf Preserve, is a short course, tricky and tight in a few spots (10 and 18), and is fairly priced at around $20 with a cart.

The greens were medium to medium-slow, but smooth and receptive. The fairways were shaggy and rough very long and thick, but that was likely thanks to a lot of rain in the past week. There was definitely a premium on hitting fairways with the rough so high, but I even caught a couple fliers from the fairways since they were more like light rough. Again, I give them a pass on that due to all the rain.

The Golf Preserve has a couple of salty par 3s from the back tees to keep it interesting. Very small greens all the way around require accuracy and good distance control with the short irons. The putting surfaces are fairly flat and easy to negotiate.

The Gold Preserve could stand to put up signs reminding players unfamiliar with the course to bring their drivers across the walking bridges that lead to greens and next-hole tees. This happens on two holes and nobody likes trudging back across the bridge to get the driver from the cart, then back across the bridge to the next tee, then back across the bridge to the cart. Signs would be an easy, cheap improvement.

This is not fancy golf by any stretch, but it is a sporty, small-town course that represents a decent value.

The Ravines has always been a study in underachievement. It's a layout with decent potential but they have never invested the money necessary to really make it nice. The greens are usually in good shape at moderate speed, but the rest of the course is rough as usual. Weeds abound, bunkers are in terrible shape (just hard dirt, not sand), and the grass on the tee boxes looked about like my front yard. No, actually, my yard looks a lot better.

The Ravines remains a place to get your game well and shoot a good score. If you aren't finicky about conditioning, at $25 with a cart it's a decent value. Any more than that, and you wonder why you paid it.