So this is the only course on the RTJ Trail ranked in the Top 100. I’m a bit surprised by this because I think a few courses could be on the list, but an excellent routing seems to be the defining trait that moved raters to give it a high score. With twelve holes on the lake, the decision to not come back to the clubhouse allowed the course to be its best self.
(The opening hole sweeps up the hill with impressive scale, emphasizing the major elevation change you’ll encounter at the Links.)
Before teeing off, the pro told us that the Links was 4-5 shots harder than the Lakes. It didn’t help that the greens were all redone last year, and several of them weren’t receptive to golf shots. This was very frustrating because you could hit a great shot and have it bound over the green. The course finds multiple ways to take the golfer down to the water. There’s several doglegs that start inland and bend at the shoreline. It seemed like the routing did everything possible to finish with a green at the water. There was also marshland on the property which comes in play. Several green complexes I felt were over the top, and had the contouring in the center so a safe shot would take a precarious bounce. The player is almost forced to take an aggressive line to the pin.
(The par five second hole plays downhill and finishes with the green pressed up against the lake. Long hitters can use the short grass short to bounce onto the green. Anything right or left however will find the hazard.)
(The par three third plays along the lake to a green contoured with bowls front and rear. Pick the right stick and the ball will funnel to the hole.)
(A hole that many consider one of the best on the course is the par four fourth. There’s an option to go straight or to cut over the lake. I wish the approach was easier so the reward for gambling off the tee was rewarded with an easier approach. Now it’s at a diagonal with bunkers bracketing the middle half. It’s a very difficult hole.)
The inland holes are not as exciting as the lake ones. The terrain is more severe and has good deal of elevation change. Both one and fifteen are slogs and play significantly uphill. The sixteenth is a filler par three whose job is to keep the course flowing. The seventeenth however is a fine hole with a jaw dropping plunge off the tee. On the front, the seventh has a three tier green that is set low left to high right. If you hit the upper tier with the pin in the lower tier, then you have a remote chance of keeping it on the green with your putter.
(The par five sixth is a fine risk reward hole where the player can challenge the marsh fronting the green.)
(The par three eleventh is another hole set in the marsh. It’s all carry to a green laid out diagonally with a bunker set in the front middle.)
(The uphill fifteenth turns around the trees and climbs significantly. A huge bunker complex guards the entire green. Laying up and hitting wedge maybe a better play than conquering it with brute strength. Very few balls will find the green and being long leaves too difficult a shot.)
This is the one course I’d like to see again just to see if it was as difficult as it was when I played it. It possesses a beautiful setting that I imagine would be perfect on a summer day. I think the pro is spot on and it’s at least 4-5 shots harder than the Lakes. Toss in the added strokes from water balls, and I’m willing to say it can be up to 10 strokes harder. The fact that the PGA Tour was here for three years and always played on the Lakes tells me which course is the better of the two. Still, the Links (horrible name btw) is a pretty damn good course. I give it a 6 (very good)(worth driving two hours to play).
(The best eighteenth hole on the trail belongs to the Links. The drive is over a corner of the lake and then the approach is to this elevated wide green. While close to fifty yards wide, it’s only twenty ish yards deep. Being long is very common. It’s a very difficult hole.)
(The par four thirteenth has an awkward dogleg to the left where a central fairway bunker dictates play from the tee. (think it stymies the shorter player while the longer guy will go over it anyway) The approach is all carry over the water. This picture is from the cart path.)
(The fourteenth plays to this awesome bunkered green. The fairway is sloped towards the water so one must be able to hit from a sidehill lie unless you find one if the flat areas. Note the beautiful par three ninth green in the background. It’s a 150’ long peninsula that extends into the lake!)
Grand National Lakes Course:
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