(The awesome 204 yard par three eleventh is slightly elevated with a pair of bunkers guarding the front and a sandstone bottom creek on the right. Often times into the wind, a wooden club is needed to reach the green. Par is an excellent score.)
Sammons’ history goes back nearly 100 years. In 1892, the Santa Fe Railroad Company damned Bird’s Creek to form Lake Polk. This resulted in the Lake Polk Association. In 1922, a nine hole course was established and the association became the Lake Polk Golf and Country Club. In the ‘50s, it expanded to eighteen holes and thirty years later the city took over.
(The 318 yard third is a true cape hole. The player must pick his line and carry the ball to the fairway. Bailing out too far left brings the huge tree seen in the picture into play, more than likely forcing a layup. It’s a birdie opportunity, but it requires two confident shots. Not an easy thing to do when one realizes that it’s an automatic reload if you don’t make the carry!)
When the city took the course over, it was known as Temple Country Club. What happened next is a prime example how reality is stranger than fiction. When TCC closed, Temple mayor, John Sammons, was able to get a bond issue passed in an election, and used this money to purchase the land from the railroad company. Unfortunately, only nine holes was on this land, and the other nine holes was owned by landholders who didn’t want to part with it. Sammons found a way by purchasing land on the other side of railroad tracks, and this gave the city enough to make eighteen holes.
(The 197 yard fourth is all carry to a green on the other side of the lake. Long is the only bailout while a bunker short will keep your ball dry. Often times the tees are moved up and the hole plays between 157-175 yards. Regardless how long it’s playing, a par is golden any time.)
The city then had to get an architect, and not liking what was being proposed to them, settled on having 3x Temple Country Club champion John Sammons design the course for free!!! That’s right! The mayor of Temple designed the golf course!
(Look at the green of the 522 yard first hole. It’s pushed up with beautiful rolls cascading away. The bunker is entirely surrounded by fairway so balls don’t stop when they’re headed for it. All these little things captured my eye when I drove by, and I was enraptured to play it.)
In 2007, the course was renovated and last year the greens were switched to Tifeagle, however, Sammons routing and most of his design remained. The course takes full advantage of the lake, and six greens rest alongside it. Bird Creek flows thru much of the property, and golfers must contend with that on seven additional holes. Together, there’s thirteen holes with water, and with the hot Texas sun baking the fairways nice and firm, the player must constantly think about his shot.
(The 465 yard par four eighth has water short left of the green. Deemed the toughest hole on the front, a par is gaining a full stroke on most players.)
Many of the bunkers were taken out during the renovation, and in their place, tight fairway grass was used. It’s interesting to see how the shot values change. Now low bouncing shots can be played, and players aren’t required to hit a shot that has to stop quickly. It opens up the course to be played by a wide variety of skill levels, and I don’t think the low handicapper has it much easier. 
(The tee shot of the 454 yard tenth is played to an island fairway. The water flows diagonally before cutting across. Big hitters must pay special attention not to hit it thru into the hazard. An open green rewards a good drive and can lead to a three.)
(This is the drive on the 495 yard par five fifteenth. The player who can draw it by the lone tree will get a good kick forward and a chance to reach it in two shots...
...it looks simple but the creek waits just short of the putting surface. Look at all the room to miss long. For good players, it should be an easy birdie, but that expectation adds more pressure to both the tee shot and approach.)
The wind is an ever present hazard at Sammons. It blows consistently, and when you calculate that with the firmness of fairways and greens, all the water hazards, it equals up to a cerebral challenge as much as a physical one. 
(The 179 yard seventeenth is played across the lake to a peninsula green. There’s a back tee that I doubt is in play too often that lengthens the hole to 237 yards! Note the long wooden bridge. Several of them are located throughout the round. Obviously a three is a great score.)
(The 179 yard seventeenth is played across the lake to a peninsula green. There’s a back tee that I doubt is in play too often that lengthens the hole to 237 yards! Note the long wooden bridge. Several of them are located throughout the round. Obviously a three is a great score.)
The city of Temple is located between Waco and Austin. It’s home to many of the families stationed at Fort Hood, and is the reason why I found myself in the middle of Texas. The city did themselves a great service. This area is growing and Sammons Park is a huge asset for the community. It’s a well designed course, and I believe it will challenge as one of the best once the Tifeagle greens mature. Surprises like Sammons make me love golf. I give it a 6 (very good)(worth driving 2 hrs to play). For less than $25, it’s a terrific value.
(The 332 yard eighteenth is a short par four that will keep the player on his toes. Like ten, it’s an island fairway with the lake pushing up to the landing zone....
...the green is encircled by water with short being he most in play. It’s just a short iron in, yet any type of miscue can find trouble quickly. It’s one of the better short par four ending holes I’ve seen.)
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