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Very disappointing experience. I've played The Home Course several times, the last time about four years ago. I remember it as a beautiful, lush, and well-maintained course with an appealing layout, which provided a great round of memorable golf.

I was enthusiastic to return for a round when the exceptionally low rate for a tee time was offered. At that time (about a week before), the weather was forecast to be 78 degrees and 6 mile an hour winds — PERFECT! I'm a fair-weather golfer, so I was good to go.

Unfortunately, the weather changed dramatically in the two days before my round to rainy, very windy and cool (around 60 degrees). I made an appeal to both Golf Now (two days ahead) and directly to the course (the morning of) to see if I could switch the date, as rain, thunderstorms and windy conditions were in the forecast for the day of play. Neither were ready to make any exceptions, so I was stuck with the tee time, or would forfeit my (fortunately modest) payment.

It was also a 1-1/4 hour drive each way to the course and back home, so I didn't want to drive that far only to play in dubious weather and poor conditions and perhaps not get a full round in.

Once at the course, I was paired with three others who also booked the time (I was a single, so am always at risk of a questionable pairing). Unfortunately —and with no blame to either Golf Now or the course —, it became clear on the first hole of play that the others couldn't stop talking while I was addressing the ball at the tee, on the approach, or on the green, which made it impossible to concentrate and get into a rhythm. When I made an appeal to them for some normal etiquette about that (we're talking about 10 or 20 seconds of quiet — then they could talk all they wanted!), they wouldn't agree, which made things tense. So much for that.

We played on and I did my best to tolerate it, but felt uncomfortable for most of the remainder of the round (at the end of the round, one of the other players revealed to me that he had only been playing for a year or two and didn't realize that it was proper etiquette to keep quiet when someone was preparing to make a swing). Anyway...

Never felt comfortable or concentrated because of the conflict and consequently didn't play very well (too much in my head!). And while it fortunately never did rain during the round (though it did just before), the winds were a BIG factor — around 25mph for at least 8 holes and a bit less for the others. I'd hit a drive straight out, and the wind would take the ball 50 yards right or left! Not much fun.

Also, the condition of the course was not as impressive as I remembered from past visits. Also worth noting is that it is not an easy walking course, as there are several holes that have very long distances to walk to the next tee (though that was not an issue for me, as I had a riding cart).

The net result: I probably won't be returning any time soon to play there again. If I'm going to drive that far for a round, I'll likely opt for Gold Mountain, which is only a 5-minute longer drive from my home and I KNOW I'll have a great time there.

This whole experience could have easily have been flipped to a positive one if Golf Now and/or the course could have made a one-time exception for a reasonable request. You have one chance to impress a customer, or risk losing their business ahead. Customer service is EVERYTHING! Anyway, live and learn...

My preferred golf course under an hour drive north of Seattle, mostly due to the interesting design and layout with lots of hills. Also, perhaps the best value for the money in the area — worth my 45-minute drive to get there! Much busier in the morning than afternoon, so I typically go as a single in the early afternoon and rarely have to wait more than 15 minutes to get paired with someone, and the pace of play is usually pretty good. Each and every hole has a distinctly different character and personality, making for an enjoyable experience (the "split-fairway" par-4 14th hole is particularly interesting!). Greens aren't particularly fast, but still challenging and fair. Only real negatives: quite a few tee boxes aren't level, sand traps are more "dirt" than "sand" and therefore more difficult to hit out of, and several fairways are extremely bumpy and can hurt your lower back when driving a cart (cart is recommended) if you don't pay attention. But the city of Stanwood will apparently be spending about $500k to improve the course over the next year, which should resolve some, if not all, of those issues. Otherwise, the course is reasonably well-maintained, there's great forest scenery, ZERO homes adjacent for a truly nature experience, and a friendly staff. All-in-all, I always enjoy playing Kayak (though wouldn't recommend it in the winter due to drainage issues; also, beginners might find the course too challenging)!

The GolfNow offer was irresistible! I'd played Avalon several years ago and liked it then. My return reconfirmed my enjoyment of the course. Nice layout with three distinctly different sets of nine holes (this time I played the North course — my favorite of the three nines; and the West course — nice, but I think I like the South better). The greens are pretty fast with tricky lines and take some getting used to, and three-putting can happen easily (the practice green provides a good preview of what to expect). Very easy walking course, though a cart was included with the offer, which I took advantage of. Their play-all-day offer is also a great value. While it was just over a one-hour drive for me each way (from Shoreline, just north of Seattle), it was worth the drive. I went as a single and was fortunate to be paired with another friendly single who also took advantage of the GolfNow offer, had a great time playing together and spoke about what a great deal it was, which made the outing all the more satisfying! Completed the round, then the rains came an hour later, so it was good timing. All in all, a great day of golf!