Heritage Hill Golf Club (Shepherdsville, KY)

Located just south of Louisville, Heritage Hills oscillates between being ranked one or two on the state’s best public course list. It plays over rolling farmland while dipping into forested terrain with rock outcroppings. Designed in 2007 by Doug Beach, it was selected by Golf Digest as one of the top ten new courses in 2008. 

(The drop shot par three eleventh plays over natural creek bed to green split in two by a rise in the middle. Club selection is critical to hitting to the appropriate section. It’s a real stunner. 181/158/129)

This is the second course I’ve seen this year designed by an associate of Jack Nicklaus. The first one was Rick Jacobson’s Bear Trap Dunes in Delaware and now it’s Doug Beach’s Heritage Hills. I mention this because I see similarities between all three men’s work. The fairways are very wide off the tee and become more challenging the closer one gets to the green. It’s like a funnel and Nicklaus has used this philosophy for years. The approach is typically the key shot and the player who can work it both ways into the green has the advantage.

(The par three second drops down to this angled green surrounded by trouble. A draw is the shot of choice…
…the view looking back shows the beautiful setting the course plays in. It’s a long par three that wastes no time challenging the player. Note the internal contours with today’s pin on a high spot in the center. 214/194/168)

The routing is very good, and the spots where the holes dip into the wooded areas are the highlight of the round. From two through five, the course plays next to the Salt River and gives off a really cool vibe. Several rock outcroppings makes this feel almost like a hike and the wildlife seen by the water adds to that feeling. The front nine has a 3-3-3 configuration with an equal amount of par fives, fours, and threes. One does not play the same par hole twice in a row until the back nine. 

(How can the tee box on the par four third not excite you?! The walk up the stone steps is plenty cool…
…the view from the back tee is pretty awesome. The drive plays through a chute. The tee box below is where I played, and the fairway bunker was more of an aiming point as I easily carried it…
…the fairway doglegs slightly back to the tree line and the green is well bunkered in front. A par is a good score. 435/423/393)

(The par three seventh plays over rolling terrain to a green tucked atop of a knob. The wind is a major concern as the distance is quite challenging…
…this view shows the extreme amount of slope short of the green. The bunkers on the right actually save your ball from a worse fate. Nothing on the left provides that relief. A back right pin placement should not be fooled with. 220/206/181)

The back nine plays on more open land and the holes have a pastoral feel to them. Beach incorporates more bunkering on this side and besides the gorgeous eleventh, the holes don’t interact with the forested areas any more.  In fact, the fourteenth and fifteenth holes play through some low density housing and the views stall in this sequence. The last three holes push towards a large hill where the eighteenth tee sits seventy-five feet above the fairway and has terrific views of the countryside. 

(The par five tenth has a cluster of bunkers that force the player to decide what angle he’s attempting to obtain. Laying back is the best way to attack today’s pin position. The longer player can carry the sand and take advantage of his strength. 555/543/481)

(Like the tenth, the sixteenth is a par five with bunkers crossing short of the green. Once again the long hitter has a decided advantage, but the player who can get a good angle will get a reasonable birdie chance. 538/526/503)

Heritage Hills is in excellent condition year round. The tee boxes and fairways are zoysia while the greens are bent. In the pictures, one can see the zoysia is already going dormant but it still provides a beautiful surface to strike the ball from. The reason is that zoysia is a larger blade of grass. The ball sits up on it like new driving range mat. Zoysia also requires less water to maintain so it really is a win-win for the golf course. 

(The seventeenth hole doglegs slightly right to this beautiful green complex. A mound on the right side can be used to feed the ball back onto the putting surface. I love the look of the rock which contrasts well with the other colors. It shouldn’t come into play but one never knows. 432/396/353)

(The final hole plays from an elevated tee box to a fairway that doglegs around the water. It’s not a long hole so driver is not necessarily needed off the tee…
…what is needed is a confident drive that plays close to the water to shorten the approach and to get a straightforward shot. Players who bail out right or lose it far right will be struggling to reach this green in regulation…
…the long hitter may have a chance to drive this green. Depending on the tee box, it can be under 280 yards. It is downhill and if downwind could be a very doable shot. It’s a terrific hole that finishes off the round in style. 377/359/331)

Heritage Hills is a wonderful golf course with a lot of variety to it. It has the length to handle the high caliber player and can easily host any type of state or local tournament. However, I’m a little perplexed by its status as the number one, or even number two course in Kentucky. I’m curious if it’s proximity to Louisville is what elevates it. Or maybe its championship length and conditioning gives it an edge. Comparing it to other great courses I’ve seen, it lacks the landforms to be so highly rated. Regardless, I had a great time and it is definitely worth a visit if driving South on the I-65 corridor. I give Heritage Hills a 6 (very good)(worth driving two hours to play).

(The short par four thirteenth is the only uphill hole at Heritage Hill. The long narrow green is angled just enough to make it hard to hit even with a short iron. 348/334/317)