Cottonwood Creek Golf Course (Waco, TX)

Cottonwood Creek is a municipal course owned by the city of Waco. Besides being the home of the Baylor University golf team, it also has a six hole starter course for young kids learning how to play the game. It serves the community in multiple ways including a state-of-the-art fitting station that uses Doppler technology to find the right clubs for each individual. The golf course stretches out to 7135 yards and can accommodate every level of golfer including the professional. 

Cottonwood Creek was designed in 1985 by Joe Finger. His resume is similar to many of that era’s architects. He was an accomplished golfer who’s love of the game brought him to the designing side. This was my first time experiencing his work, and I enjoyed it very much. I felt the routing and the bunkering were the two best features here. The course alternated between playing uphill and downhill, keeping the golfer focused on attacking the holes that gave him a short iron approach. The bunkers cover much of the green surroundings and grab any mishit that doesn’t find the putting surface. 

(The 435/404/386 yard par four fifth is a demanding driving hole. The creek blocks your view and draws the golfer into attempting a dramatic tee shot down the left side...

...Finger keeps the front open so you can chase the ball on but notice how both left and right sides are guarded by sand and a steep fall off. Like many of the old architects, being short is the preferred leave as opposed to being hole high on the sides.) 

Joe Finger’s greens remind me of the classic courses I’ve played here in the Midwest. The proper miss is always in the front, which typically benefits the average or high handicap who come up short anyway. The good player who is flighting his ball pin high will pay the price the most since the greens are guarded by several hazards including sand, water, and swales. 

(The 601/580/560 yard par five thirteenth is all uphill with bunkers guarding each landing area. It was into the wind the day we played, making it a pure three shot hole. Finger snaked the fairway so one has to take good lines the entire way to the green.) 

(The 181/162/148 yard par three fourteenth is slightly downhill to a green framed by trees and guarded by a set of bunkers front right. A front pin requires the most skill to get close while the slope will make the rear positions easier to access.) 

While I was a big fan of the routing and bunkering, I was somewhat skeptical of the fairway mounding. In places, I felt the mounding was overdone, and a few times, I thought the fairways needed to be wider. The only hole that I disliked was the par five seventh which started out strongly with a great tee shot but whose green was lost in a maze of trees. I was 120 yards out in the middle of the fairway, but completely shut out by branches. It was disappointing to say the least. 

(The 541/505/490 yard par five fifteenth is a classic do or die hole where the final 150 yards switchbacks against the water. In tournament play, it must be the pivotal moment in the round where bold things can happen. Note the water in the bunker. Central Texas has been having an unusually rainy spring this year.) 

Since Cottonwood Creek rests upon a hill, the wind is always the defining factor between a good day and a bad day. That seems to be the overall consensus among the people who spoke to me. It’s always windy here. Being in central Texas, one better be able to play the low wind cheater. It also makes Joe Finger’s open entrances to the green more about survival than a design philosophy. Either way, it says he understands golf. 

(The 190/181/159 yard par three seventeenth is fraught with disaster. The green is protected with water short left, a bunker in the rear, and a steep swale on the right. Judging the wind is paramount to securing a three...
...bailing right, as you can see, is not the play on this hole. All sorts of misplays can happen in this swale including a ball not reaching the top and rolling back to your feet.) 

Cottonwood Creek is surrounded by an urban landscape so many of the views looking out are punctuated by buildings and other city structures. The holes that play along the boundary line have a different feel compared to the interior holes. While this is not an uncommon situation among municipal courses, Cottonwood Creek lacks a buffer that drowns out the city. It hurts the experience to say the least even if Cottonwood Creek is a strong course. 

(The 451/411/400 yard par four ninth has the high school stadium as the backdrop. Not all the views looking out are this clean. Note the short grass front and right of the putting surface. Most pin positions are accessible from this spot so players can salvage their four.) 

Cottonwood Creek is usually is fantastic condition. [Central Texas was dealt a harsh blow this past winter when a deep freeze and a storm knocked out the power grid. For area courses, it damaged greens that still haven’t recovered.] It’s a strong course with several tough holes that defend against players breaking par or their handicaps. It is Waco’s best public golf course and rightfully attracts players from all over. I give it a 5 (good)(worth driving an hour to play). I’d like to give it another shot next time I visit. 

(The 453/440/403 yard par four finishing hole doglegs right from the tee. A large bunker guards the corner so the hole plays it’s full length. It’s a long approach but the green is quite large. Two good pokes should secure a four.)