Hawthorne Valley is an old east side golf club that sits on the border of Solon and Bedford Heights. It wasnt as prominent as some of the other clubs that dot this part of town, but it was still highly regarded as a great golf course. It reminds me a bit like Mayfield CC in the sense the clubhouse sits high on the hill while the golf course plays down in the valley. A creek intertwines with many holes but is more like a spectator than a participant as it only influences play on a few holes.
The first four holes are all par fours. They set a brisk pace of play and the player needs to strike the ball well to get off to a good start. The first plays straight downhill with trees both left and right. You want to be ready to play or you'll make bogey right away. The creek is 70 yards short of the green and poor drives need to be laid up to it. The second is a fine par four that is a blind dogleg left. A draw is the perfect shot from tee. The green is elevated and severely slopes left to front right. It's a common sight to see downhill putts since most players try to feed ball in from the left. Missing this green leaves a very tough up n down.
After a couple holes that should be good birdie opportunities, the player arrives at the first of four very good par threes. The fifth is classic Ross. The green is spread across an elevated shelf and the player needs to have correct club and shot selection to get close to pin. It's a beautiful par three. The par five sixth is next and it is a ninety degree turn left. It's another beautiful hole and probably best to setup a short iron third as the elevated green is very small. Seven is a lovely downhill par three that is well bunkered. Then the eighth follows with one of the city's finest par fours. It's 440 yards and plays downhill from the tee. The green is cut just beyond a roll in the hill. This roll flows into the putting surface and influences the strategy and shot shape of the approach. It's possible to take advantage of the roll, but not gauging it properly leaves a tricky recovery. A high draw comes in at a good angle and is a good shot. It's a great par four. The ninth is a pretty hole whose green is etched into the base of the hill nicely. It's well bunkered and is a good way to end the front nine.
The back nine starts off much like the front with a par four down the hill. Ten however is much shorter with a yawning bunker guarding the green. I personally like how the green is lower than said bunker thus making distance control a bit tricky. There had been some alteration to the back nine with a new pond built on opposite side of the fairway of eleven. This addition is makes eleven a terrible hole. The C shaped hole now is a crapshoot as you may be blocked out by the trees as lay up to the hazard. Maybe by cutting back the inside dogleg branches, the hole can be salvaged to be a neat little par four.
The next six holes are the key to a strong finish. Twelve is an uphill par three set in a small bowl. The front of the green is pinched in by a large tree on the right thus a fade is shot of choice. Thirteen is a gambling par five that follows. The fairway doglegs ninety degrees right around a fescue strewn hill. Big hitters can take on the hill and carry it, setting up an iron approach. It's still reachable if the ball is driven past it, but it's a 220ish shot. Truth be told, thirteen is only birdie hole on the back. There is a lot of pressure to walk away with a four.
The fourteenth is a long nasty par three where few people can actually hit the shot required. The volcano green is just a pedestal from the 200 yard tee, and the height needed to hold it belies most people's talents. The forward tees makes this a much better challenge. Nonetheless, if you're up on that hill, consider laying up. I ve made several pars this way. Fifteen is a nice par four. It d be better if the creek on the right was cleared of all the trees and vegetation. Then the tee shot would be quite the challenge. Sixteen is an excellent par four. The fairway cants to the left and a high draw can get some extra yardage which is needed for this 460 yard beast. The approach is unbelievable! The ball is above your feet, the green is downhill, and there's no bailout anywhere! Take your par and run!! Seventeen is a long par four that completes this stretch. The unfortunate water hazard from eleven comes into play on the left for the approach. With OB guarding the right, some may consider the second shot over the top. A good drive does take the sting out of the it, but it's still a round wrecker.
Eighteen is a necessary evil. After both one and ten played downhill to the valley, I guess it should come as no surprise the last hole plays up the same hill. It's really a slog of a hole!! Only the longest of drivers will view the green for the approach. Everyone else will be hitting a blind shot. It maybe one of the worst ending holes on a good course I've played.
Hawthorne Valley is regarded as one of the top ten public courses in the state. It's hard to argue with this, but I would put it just outside of it. It just needs a little bit of cleaning up. It's still a very good golf course and I truly love playing here. I've seriously considered joining here for a summer membership. (6 rating)
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