Made it out to Bella Collina for the Moose/GK outing. Today we had the honor of playing the Royal Lytham, and Carnoustie nines. Thank you Johnny for pairing three GKer's together. We played from the b... Continue »

Made it out to Bella Collina for the Moose/GK outing. Today we had the honor of playing the Royal Lytham, and Carnoustie nines. Thank you Johnny for pairing three GKer's together. We played from the blues at 69.5/131/72, playing just over 6000 yards. When we arrived we were handed a letter from a membership chair. This is something I have never seen happen before. I decided that I should buy a hat in the clubhouse after leaving mine in the car, after being treated so kindly. I took a quick gander around the clubhouse and the locker room is very clean with amenities like a a hot tub and gym.

The layout of the course is challenging with tight windows, and very small greens. There are few holes where you can play from another fairway (if you are off) and many of your shots are affected by severe elevation changes and some late afternoon winds. The tee boxes were fine, a few uneven lies but nothing too bad. The fairways were in great shape for this time of season, the rough was cut back but in hittable conditions as well. The greens have some work being done to them. Lots of ground underwork around the edge around almost each green, gave way to some unique shots. I usually would say something negative about this as I typically putt from that area, however today this did not effect my game. I appreciate a course fixing every hole and not just a few at a time. In a few months this course could be pristine. If I lived nearby and was considering joining a private course, Bella Collina would be high on the list. The positives: 27 holes that are not easy but are fun, a killer clubhouse, some excellent views. The downs: small range, small practice green, small greens, small shot windows. Either way you look at it, Bella Collina was a great time and I would love to play here again, highly recommended.

I played today in an SCGA outing. This was my second event and was really looking forward to it. All the staff was very friendly and made us feel welcome. I was paired with a great twosome for our 9:3... Continue »

I played today in an SCGA outing. This was my second event and was really looking forward to it. All the staff was very friendly and made us feel welcome. I was paired with a great twosome for our 9:30am tee time. They have a small driving range, chipping and putting greens. The carts are basic with no GPS - good thing I took mine.

Any of you who have read my reviews know that I really like courses with some elevation changes and the occasional blind shot, but this course is ridiculous. There are blind shots over hills onto downhill fairways that are so narrow and winding they look more like a toboggan run. The turf is (almost) dormant Bermuda which rolls forever and there is no rough to stop the balls from going OB. I lost 6 balls today and my partners did about the same. There are uphill holes that require you be part mountain goat if you end up short of the green. The greens were insanely firm and fast. Not being familiar with the course and the breaks made putting extremely difficult. It was just exhausting physically and mentally. One and done!!