THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 29, 1996 TAG: 9607080200
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: Hampton Roads Golf Report: Living on the Links
LENGTH: 590 lines
According to the National Golf Foundation, Hampton Roads has a serious shortage of golf courses, ranking 259th out of 309 metropolitan areas surveyed in 1995.
Avid golfers didn't need to see those statistics to know that area courses are overcrowded. But that's only part of the problem. While most of the region's courses are serviceable, few are of the four-star variety.
Not far away, however, are a number of championship-caliber public courses. We've researched a dozen first-rate courses that are within relatively easy driving distance - trips you can easily make in a day. Try these courses as a treat, maybe a couple times a year - maybe more if you have the time and money. 1. THE COLONIAL
WILLIAMSBURG - Famous for its old-fashioned heritage, Williamsburg now has an old-fashioned golf course in The Colonial.
It's a radical concept: a new course with tree-lined fairways and no housing development in sight. And Mother Nature, not earth-moving equipment, fashioned the aesthetically pleasing layout.
Tradition-rich Williamsburg has a traditional gem in The Colonial. Purists will love it.
Although it's an infant - the course opened in May 1995 - The Colonial received good press this winter. It was listed by Golf Magazine as one of the top 10 new courses in the United States, and by Golf Digest as one of the top 10 public courses in Virginia.
``We wanted a golf course that had traditional shot values and a traditional look,'' course architect Lester George said. ``By that, we wanted a golf course that looked 30 years old when it opened.
``We didn't do a lot of earth moving here. We let the land dictate routing, like they would do on old courses.''
George received design consultation from PGA Tour player Robert Wrenn, a Richmond native. Together they integrated deep ravines, wetlands and thick woods into a par-72 layout that provides as much challenge as you want.
There are five tee boxes to choose from. Play it from the tips, it's 6,809 yards. The regular men's tees are a manageable 6,282 yards.
The course is not tight, but there is significant trouble with water and sand everywhere. The large, undulated greens are in great shape, but the fairways are patchy in spots as the course is still evolving.
Colonial Williamsburg offers tourists a chance to step back in time. The Colonial offers golfers the same pleasure.
- Steve Carlson
Summer rates (carts included): $65, $45 (from 2 p.m.-4 p.m.), $35 (after 4 p.m.); all fees include cart and practice balls - walking is optional for same fee. Specials: $25 juniors 17 and under, $40 seniors and women on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): Two balls
By the numbers: yardage, 6,282 (from the men's tees); slope, 127; rating, 70.5
Phone: 804-566-1600 (tee times available 12 months in advance)
Only at The Colonial: If you want a real warmup and don't want to hit the range, try the three regulation practice holes - a par 3, 4 and 5. Cost: $14. The practice course is located near the teaching center, which features indoor and outdoor practice areas, club fitting and repair and a golf library with book and video rentals. 2. KILN CREEK
NEWPORT NEWS - Kiln Creek Golf and Country Club isn't what it used to be.
The semi-private, links-style course has added a new nine holes, and integrated them into the original 18. Anyone who has played the course in previous years will notice new holes on what is called the Championship Course.
But the new holes blend perfectly with the existing ones. Four holes on the front nine and five on the back are new, while the original front nine is now a separate nine called The Creek Course. Architect Tom Clark returned to design the additional nine, which opened in April.
``He kept the vision and philosophy of the old 18 and mixed in the new nine,'' pro Rick Evans said.
The Championship Course gets the bulk of play at Kiln, but the Creek Course is actually the more taxing test. Two trips around the Creek produces a higher course rating than the Championship.
``It's not like the Creek is some after-thought executive nine,'' Evans said.
Clark moved a ton of dirt to sculpt the layout characterized by mound farms and an abundance of sand.
It's a nice course, but one that never lets you forget you are in the city - houses line many fairways, Interstate 64 runs alongside a portion of the course and planes from nearby Newport News/Williamsburg Airport frequently soar overhead.
The par-72 Championship Course does not play long from the regular men's tees, and most of the trouble is avoidable. The 6-year-old course provides a test, but not the stiffest one most golfers will face.
The semi-private course has a country club flavor to it, with excellent clubhouse, locker room, swimming pool, tennis and fitness club facilities. A 16-room hotel sits adjacent to the clubhouse with rooms overlooking the course, and packages with golf privileges are available.
- Steve Carlson
Summer rates (carts included): $67.29 Monday through Thursday, $77.79 Friday through Sunday (includes practice balls); cost of replays is cart fee of $17 for 18 holes, $9 for nine; 9-hole Creek Course $30.45 Monday through Thursday, $40.95 Friday through Sunday for nine or 18 holes.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 35 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): Two balls
By the numbers: yardage, 6,181 (from the men's tees); slope, 119; rating, 70.0
Phone: 804-988-3222 (tee times available one week in advance)
Only at Kiln Creek: The course has experimented lately with a device called the rangefinder that measures distance to the pin. For $3, a golfer will be given what looks like a camera. Each flagstick is equipped with a reflector unit. Point the viewfinder at the flag, wait for a beep and the hand-held unit displays distance to the hole. Hitting the shot that far is up to you. 3. GOLDEN HORSESHOE
WILLIAMSBURG - Mike Strantz. Remember that name.
Once a young colt in the Tom Fazio design stable, Strantz has broken from the pack in designing this, his maiden, Hampton Roads offering.
The idea behind Stonehouse, which has been open 10 days, was to create a mountain-atmosphere course out of a piece of property about 20 miles from the Colonial Village.
Not only did Strantz accomplish the feat, he did it in such opulent style that you'll want to take along your camera and a fresh roll of film. It's that gorgeous.
The first hole ends with a green that's the focal point of a TPC-style amphitheatre and the lowest point of a gradual tee-to-green plunge of six stories.
The par-3 third hole, with its intricate stonework and gurgling stream, so dazzled the editors of Golf World magazine that they featured it on the cover of their Architecture '96 edition in May.
Strantz says his aim is to create 18 individual works of art. Bulls-eye. Some holes are framed with billowy sea grass. Some fairways are lined with deep, cavernous bunkers set into steep banks.
Greens are balanced precariously on bluffs and ridges, or are framed by hills and slopes that give the player little in the way of a target, yet plenty to admire aesthetically.
This course is not for walkers. There are long distances between most of the holes. That gives one ample time to reflect on the birdie that got away or the family of beavers hard at work on their new home.
The Gold Course at Golden Horseshoe is still the standard by which all Williamsburg golf should be measured. Stonehouse, that young whippersnapper, will soon give it a run for its money.
- Jim Ducibella
Summer rates (carts included): $75 weekdays, $95 weekends (includes yardage book & practice balls). Special: $60 on weekends, June 22-Aug. 25 (except July 4 weekend).
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): Two sleeves
By the numbers: yardage, 6,112 (from the men's tees); slope, 133, rating, 71.4
Phone: 800-990-8994
Only at Stonehouse: Legend has it that Blackbeard the pirate used Stonehouse as a hideout during one of his many escapades up and down the Virginia coast. 4. THE SOUND
HERTFORD, N.C. - At The Sound Golf Links, it all starts with the driver.
Find a driver - or volunteer to be one - get a group together and head south on Route 17.
Awaiting you at the end of a short trip is probably the most reasonably priced, high-quality golf course around. You can play 36 holes on a weekday for $45.
And it's not that crowded. Course manager Kent Craft said on a slow day at The Sound, maybe 30 people tee it up. One hundred golfers constitutes a busy day at the course that opened in December 1990.
You might be surprised to find where those golfers come from.
``Most of our play comes from the Norfolk, Chesapeake and Virginia Beach area - I'd say 80 percent a year,'' Craft said, adding that the rates have to be low to lure people to the remote outpost of Hertford. ``We are out in leftfield a little bit.''
The par-72 course's natural beauty hits it out of the park.
At least five holes offer breathtaking views of the Albemarle Sound. Spanish moss dangles from the trees. Marshes are traversed by wooden cart-path bridges. A picturesque marina abuts the 16th green.
It's an enchanting place, but the golf course can rear the ugly head of a blowup hole at any time.
Water or wetlands come into play on 15 holes. The No. 1 handicap 7th is one-third carry over marsh, requiring a placement shot to the fairway and then another shot over marsh 10 feet shy of the green.
The course is short (5,836 from the white tees) but accuracy and prudence are rewarded - and often demanded. On several par 4s and 5s, the best play off the tee is an iron to the landing area. A short hitter generally is not at a disadvantage here.
- Steve Carlson
Summer rates (carts included): $30 Monday through Thursday, $35 Friday through Sunday and holidays. Specials: replay nine, $7.50; replay 18, $15; Juniors 16-and-under, $5 discount; group rate for 16 or more $26 Monday through Thursday, $32 Friday through Sunday; for 24 or more $24 Monday through Thursday, $30 Friday through Sunday.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): Two sleeves
By the numbers: yardage, 5,836 (from the men's tees); slope, 119; rating, 67.8
Phone: 800-535-0704 (tee times available four months in advance)
Only at The Sound: The sign at the first tee warns golfers ``For your own safety, do not enter marsh areas.'' In other words, take a stroke, don't take on a snake. When cart-path bridges were being built over the marshes, Craft says someone with a pistol or shotgun stood guard to kill snakes - rattlesnakes, water moccasins and copperheads - that came near the workers. 5. KINGSMILL - RIVER
WILLIAMSBURG - The lure of The River Course at Kingsmill remains the same: Play the course the pros play.
For 15 years, The River Course has hosted the Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic, a PGA Tour event that this season changes its name to The Michelob Championship.
The River Course, however, has made few changes over the years and some of those were scrapped as the course returned to its original form. Kingsmill experimented with a new 18th hole, then returned to a close resemblance of the original. Same with the third hole.
Those who've seen this par-71, Pete Dye-designed course on television every summer can identify with some of the signature holes: the par-5 15th guarded by a deep ravine to the right of the green, the par-3 17th that runs beside the James River and the par-4 18th that looks as if a couple flatbed trucks are buried under the green.
But if you haven't played this course, chances are you haven't seen two of the area's most-challenging and exciting holes: the par-5 third and the par-4 eighth.
The 486-yard third hole tempts the big driver to go for the elevated green in two shots. Otherwise, the golfer is stuck with an uphill and difficult pitch shot.
The eighth hole - water to the left of the fairway; an elevated and well-protected green - is so punishing that during tournament week it often draws the kind of crowd that frequents auto races: The double bogeys can be as entertaining as the birdies.
This is a course that can be tamed by the mid-handicapper. The high handicapper, though, is in for a tough time. There are just too many tee shots requiring considerable carry and accuracy.
The thrill for the weekend golfer is obvious: You know Jim Gallagher Jr. reached the 15th with a 5-iron the year he won, but do you have enough gusto to pull off the same shot?
- Rich Radford
Summer rates (carts included): $115 for daytime visitors, $85 for overnight guests of Kingsmill Resort.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 55 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): One sleeve
By the numbers: yardage, 6,022 (from the men's tees); slope, 129; rating, 69.7
Phone: 804-253-3906
Only at The River Course: If you are bold enough to tee it up from the pro tees (6,784 yards), the tournament's single-round record was set in 1994 when Bob Lohr shot 10-under-par 61. Five other golfers have shot 62. 6. STONEHOUSE
WILLIAMSBURG - Mike Strantz. Remember that name.
Once a young colt in the Tom Fazio design stable, Strantz has broken from the pack in designing this, his maiden, Hampton Roads offering.
The idea behind Stonehouse, which has been open 10 days, was to create a mountain-atmosphere course out of a piece of property about 20 miles from the Colonial Village.
Not only did Strantz accomplish the feat, he did it in such opulent style that you'll want to take along your camera and a fresh roll of film. It's that gorgeous.
The first hole ends with a green that's the focal point of a TPC-style amphitheatre and the lowest point of a gradual tee-to-green plunge of six stories.
The par-3 third hole, with its intricate stonework and gurgling stream, so dazzled the editors of Golf World magazine that they featured it on the cover of their Architecture '96 edition in May.
Strantz says his aim is to create 18 individual works of art. Bulls-eye. Some holes are framed with billowy sea grass. Some fairways are lined with deep, cavernous bunkers set into steep banks.
Greens are balanced precariously on bluffs and ridges, or are framed by hills and slopes that give the player little in the way of a target, yet plenty to admire aesthetically.
This course is not for walkers. There are long distances between most of the holes. That gives one ample time to reflect on the birdie that got away or the family of beavers hard at work on their new home.
The Gold Course at Golden Horseshoe is still the standard by which all Williamsburg golf should be measured. Stonehouse, that young whippersnapper, will soon give it a run for its money.
- Jim Ducibella
Summer rates (carts included): $75 weekdays, $95 weekends (includes yardage book & practice balls). Special: $60 on weekends, June 22-Aug. 25 (except July 4 weekend).
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Lost ball factor: Two sleeves
By the numbers: yardage, 6,112; slope, 133, rating, 71.4
Phone: 800-990-8994
Only at Stonehouse: Legend has it that Blackbeard the pirate used Stonehouse as a hideout during one of his many escapades up and down the Virginia coast. 7. WILLIAMSBURG NATIONAL
WILLIAMSBURG - There is no award for the most player-friendly golf course in America. If there was, Williamsburg National would be a strong candidate.
There are just 36 sand traps on this 5,900-yard brainchild of Jim Lipe from Nicklaus Design Associates. None were positioned directly in front of the green, enabling the high-handicapper to skull or mishit an approach and still be rewarded.
In place of the sand, Lipe has positioned grass bunkers in strategic places. The lips are low and they're easier to play from, at the same time giving the impression that you've been punished for an errant shot.
Greens are mostly deep, wide and well-conditioned. Pin positions are more than fair.
Clearly, this was a course designed with the tourist in mind. There's no reason not to play a round here in four hours, plenty of time to get to the Colonial Village or back to the hotel for a dip in the pool or to hit Busch Gardens with the kids.
That doesn't mean the course is easy. Each hole has five separate tee boxes. As you might expect, it's a far different course from the whites than from the blacks (6,953 yards).
Example: Water shouldn't come into play off the white tees at the par-5 third hole. From the blacks, however, there's a 200-yard carry just to reach the fairway.
Lipe occasionally teases you. The scorecard says the par-3 eighth hole plays 113 yards; it's more like 85-90, over water. Hit too much club and you face a pitch onto a green that slopes away from you and towards the water. It may also be the smallest green on the course.
The par-4 15th is just 280 yards long - but it doglegs left, goes uphill and is not necessarily as easy as it would appear.
All in all, the course is fair, but challenging, for players of all handicaps. Open less than one year, Williamsburg National is a welcome respite from some of the daunting Colonial courses where not having your ``A'' game means not having any fun.
- Jim Ducibella
Summer rates (carts included): $76; $65 starting July 1. Special rates with newspaper coupon: $61 ($55 starting July 1), $45 after 2 p.m.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 10 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): One sleeve
By the numbers: yardage, 5,900 (from the men's tees); slope, 114; rating, 67.7
Phone: 800-826-5732
Only at Williamsburg National: The brilliant life-size portrait of Jack Nicklaus and his legendary golf swing that is prominently displayed in the clubhouse grill was painted by Williamsburg artist Dan Moncure. 8. NAGS HEAD
NAGS HEAD, N.C. - If venturing to Nags Head Golf Links, bring your knockdown shot or prepare to be knocked down.
With prevailing winds howling off Roanoke Sound, this par-71 course doesn't have to be long to play long. It has Mother Nature in its corner. Golf Digest went as far as to call it the ``longest 6,126 yards you'll ever play.''
Four holes - Nos. 5, 9, 15 and 18 - border the Sound and were it not for the golf condos and beach houses weaved between holes, the winds would be that much more menacing. If you don't hit the ball low, you're at the winds' mercy.
The course lures challengers into a false sense of security at the first tee: A non-threatening, downhill, 292-yard, par 4 from the back tees. The wind usually blows at the player's back and long hitters can easily drive the green.
By the time the course turns into the prevailing wind at the fourth, the danger is noticeable. The 349-yarder can play 100 yards longer when the 25 mile-per-hour winds kick up.
After nine holes in this natural wind tunnel, the Links Grille is a refreshing sight and often offers a catch of the day - grilled tuna anyone? - or fresh seafood chowder while making the turn.
There's little need to pull out the driver on the back nine and no need on the par 4s unless you're going for it. Plus, three holes on the back side start with blind tee shots. The penalties are severe, but success is rewarded.
Until last summer's British Open, the general consensus was that links courses such as this one weren't made for reckless players. Then John Daly tamed St. Andrews by going long.
Nags Head Golf Links advertises itself as a Scottish Links-style course. But as Daly proved, that doesn't mean you have to play it safe.
- Rich Radford
Summer rates (carts included): $75 (7-9 a.m.), $60 (11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.), $45 (after 4 p.m.). Special weekend rate: $60 (through Aug. 25, except July 4 weekend)
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): One sleeve
By the numbers: yardage, 5,717 (from the men's tees); slope, 126; rating, 66.9
Phone: 800-851-9404 (tee times available 12 months in advance)
Only at Nags Head: While the fairway sprinkler heads give yardage to the greens, one in the middle of the tee-ball landing area at the 513-yard 13th hole has no numbers. It reads ``Only Daly.'' If you must know, it's 281 yards to the green and the shot must carry a lake. Can big hitters ignore the challenge? 9. KINGSMILL - WOODS
WILLIAMSBURG - After lulling visitors into a state of security with a tame front nine, the back nine of The Woods winds up and down the rolling hills behind Busch Gardens, supplying as many twists and turns as ``Drachen Fire,'' the roller coaster that can be seen from the road leading to the golf course.
Anheuser-Busch Properties asked Kingsmill's resident PGA Tour pro Curtis Strange to help design the resort's third championship course and Strange put his personal stamp on it.
Five of the greens on this par-72 layout are guarded by water. Two of the par 4s - the 292-yard fourth and the 261-yard seventh - can be driven, but punish the gambler who strays. There are ravines everywhere and most require a near-vertical recovery shot.
Strange still holds the course record at St. Andrews - 10-under-par 62 at the game's birthplace - and there's a touch of St. Andrews at The Woods Course. The par-3 12th and the par-4 15th share a green with a sand trap smack in the middle. Hitting onto the wrong half of the green almost guarantees three putts.
Strange, in cahoots with architect Tom Clark, has created a course Golf Magazine dubbed one of the ``top ten new courses available for public play.''
With no bordering houses, this is a delightful break from the golf course-community hybrid. Anheuser-Busch Properties wanted it that way: pure golf. Still, the top of a church steeple stretches over the treetops near the par-4 third. A little prayer may be in order since water runs down the right side of the landing area.
- Rich Radford
Summer rates: $115 for daytime visitors, $85 for overnight guests of Kingsmill Resort.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 55 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): Two sleeves
By the numbers: yardage, 6,393 (from the men's tees); slope, 116; rating, 70.0
Phone: 804-253-3906
Only at The Woods Course: When Walt Disney released ``Pocohantas,'' critics ripped its historical inaccuracy. The rolling landscape the animators portrayed was lampooned by those who claim the Jamestown-Williamsburg area is much flatter. But the back nine here looks like something right out of the movie. There are a number of archeological dig sites clearly marked throughout the course, making one think John Smith may well have been exploring these very hills. 10. THE CROSSINGS
GLEN ALLEN, Va. - The Crossings is full of surprises.
No, that handsome brick building you can see from I-295 and I-95 isn't the clubhouse. It houses the Southern Insurance Company of Virginia, and provides a backdrop for the second green and third tee of an interesting 6,229-yard, par-72 course.
Yes, The Crossings once was the auxiliary course for members of Hermitage Country Club. It's also been called Ethelwood and Halfe Sink.
Owned and operated by LinksCorp, The Crossings refers to itself as ``one of the Commonwealth's top 10 public golf courses.'' That's likely true.
It's a course that gets a lot of play and, except for some bare spots on fringes and occasional tee areas, holds up beautifully. The fairways are lush enough, the greens equally well-manicured.
Often, The Crossings gives you choices. At the 346-yard, par-4 fifth hole, you can opt to hit your tee shot directly over a corner of the pond and slice off some yardage, or take advantage of the ample bailout area to the right. If you choose the water, you've got a 200-yard carry before hitting dry land again - and that's from the whites.
There are four other holes on which water can play a significant role. The most spectacular is the 14th, a 381-yard par-4 in which water hugs the left side before veering right and intersecting the fairway just beyond the average player's usual landing area. Bail to the right and face a long-iron shot 180 yards over that water to the green.
Although there are plenty of trees lining the fairways, they seem spaced in such a way as to give the wayward player a shot back into play. There are lots of elevated tees, giving you one picturesque view after another, particularly on the front nine.
There are 39 bunkers on the front nine alone, 71 in all. Most have an abundance of soft sand that give the weekend player fits. Several are big enough to force you to play long sand shots to small, firm greens.
Bottom line: This is no ordinary public course. In the past, it's been considered challenging enough to host qualifying for the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship. It takes just one tour around to see why.
- Jim Ducibella
Summer rates (carts included): $39 weekdays, $45 weekends. Specials: 18 holes walking, $27 before 9 a.m. weekdays & after 2 p.m. every day, $33 weekends; after 3 p.m. (carts only), $29 weekdays & $35 weekends.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 2 hours
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): One sleeve
By the numbers: yardage, 6,229 (from the men's tees); slope, 123; rating, 69.7
Phone: 804-261-0000
Only at The Crossings: The land on which the course stands was the northern border of the Chickahominy Swamp during the Civil War and a favorite hiding place for outlaws. It also was a staging area for troop movements during the Civil War. And, no, the man in the logo is not Robert E. Lee. It's J.E.B. Stuart. 11. HELL'S POINT
VIRGINIA BEACH - Hell's Point is the priciest public course in South Hampton Roads, but you get what you pay for. It is also the nicest.
After opening in 1984, it was named one of America's 100 best new courses by Golf Digest. Carved out of the brackish lowlands of the Sandbridge region, Hell's Point boasts one of the most appealing settings of any area course. The landscaping is seamless with the course's natural beauty.
Even though its rates are higher than other area public courses ($40 weekdays, $48 weekends), Hell's Point is a bargain for a championship-caliber layout. The course was in sub-par shape briefly last year after a bout with sodium in the irrigation system, but it's back in country-club condition.
The course is as challenging as it is beautiful, and uts a premium on driving accuracy. Don't miss the fairways or the little red devil will stick his pitchfork in you and you're done.
Hell's Point is not long, but the fairways are narrow and water is a serious factor on a third of the holes. Trees and marsh-like ditches are waiting for errant shots on virtually all the holes.
A few holes are target golf, with exacting landing areas. A confident low-iron player can afford to keep the driver in the bag on five or six of the non-par-3s.
Three of the par-5s are very reachable in two, so the devil will tempt you to bust one off the tee. But if you are struggling with the driver, that can be trouble.
The greens are larger than most and have a lot undulation. But because they are so true, the can instill confidence in the shorter putts.
Even though the course is in Virginia's largest city, it does not get a lot of traffic, even during tourist season. If you're looking to treat yourself to a quality round of golf at a reasonable price, Hell's Point could be your ticket.
- Carl Fincke
Summer rates (carts included): $40 weekdays, $48 weekends. Special rate: $29 after 3 p.m.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 40 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): Two sleeves
By the numbers: yardage, 6,030 (from the men's tees); slope, 122; rating, 69.7
Phone: 721-3400 (tee times accepted one week in advance)
Only at Hell's Point: Twelve years after earning its ``new course'' honor in Golf Digest, Hell's Point still is highly rated. In the magazine's May issue, Hell's Point was the only area course nominated for consideration as one of the best 75 courses in America. 12. SEA SCAPE
KITTY HAWK, N.C. - There are British-type golf courses and there are fakes. Sea Scape Golf Links is for real - a quirky, maddening test of creativity and self-confidence, without the bother of trees or green grass.
Squeezed comfortably between beach homes and scrubby sand dunes, and measuring just 6,062 yards from the men's tees, Sea Scape looks like an easy par-72. On paper, that is.
Then you walk outside into the comically unpredictable winds that rage across Roanoke Sound and the Atlantic Ocean, and the game really begins.
To the average beach-going tourist, Sea Scape is not a pretty site. Much of the grass is brown and matted. There are no island greens, no fountains, no trendy clubhouse restaurants.
To golf connoisseurs, however, Sea Scape is a welcome wind-swept moonscape, a refreshing change of scenery and tactics from the drearily handsome, mechanical target-golf tracks that now dominate the sport.
If anything, Sea Scape is variety. The twisting, rolling layout by former Masters champion Art Wall features five par-5s - including the bedeviling 5th hole, a hard-driving dogleg left, just 426 yards long - and five par-3s.
Creativity is a must. Not only because of the ever-changing crosswinds, but also because of lumpy fairways and hidden pot bunkers, which can turn a perfect drive into a frustratingly difficult approach shot from a twisted, funky lie. You truly use every club in your bag.
Many of the tees and greens are elevated, offering lovely views of the ocean from 15 of the 18 holes - while also bringing the wind into play more often than not.
Sea Scape is not as renowned or fancy as other Outer Banks courses, which can be a good thing, especially for golfers who prefer a less crowded, more laid-back round.
Like links courses in Britian, where golf originated, Sea Scape does not pretend to be anything it's not. It can be as tough as nails on a windy day, which is almost all the time, but can be as mild as a kitten on those rare calm days.
Either way, a player is treated to a true Scottish experience, wind-burn included.
- Scott Harper
Summer rates (includes cart): $60 until 11:30 a.m., $50 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m., $40 after 4 p.m.
Drive time from I-64/Route 44 intersection: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Lost ball factor (for the weekend hack): One sleeve
By the numbers: yardage, 6,062 (from the men's tees); slope, 123; rating, 68.1
Phone: 919-261-2158 (tee times available 12 months in advance)
Only at Sea Scape: The winds can be cruel. Take the 150-yard, par-3 seventh hole, which runs near Roanoke Sound with a lake in front of the green. One day, into a strong wind, a crisp 6-iron was short and in the water; the next day, with a little wind, a solid 8-iron went over the green into deep, weedy rough. by CNB