Review of Hyatt Hill Country Resort - Oaks Course

Hyatt Hill Country Resort - Oaks Course
Texas Outside Rating: 8.5
9 Holes - Golf - Resort Public
San Antonio
210 647-1234
Website
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Online Tee Times Stay & Play

Date Played: September 26, 2008
Front Nine Rating: 8.5 Stars
Back Nine Rating: Stars
Approximate Weekend Price Range: $49.00 to $135.00
Brief Description:

Hyatt Hill Country Resort has 27 holes of some of the best golf in Texas. Each of the nines have their own unique challenges and character. Although each nine is different, here is what is common to all three nines, each nine is:

well maintained and manicured
greens and fairways are lush and in near perfect condition
each nine takes maximum advantage of the terrain
pace of play is excellent
with 5 sets of tee boxes, you can find a yardage that fits your game and handicap
the GPS is excellent and needed
service is impeccable with an experienced, friendly, and helpful staff
you'll have a fun and memorable round on any of the nines
all are open to the public with a fantastic rate for locals with proof of residence
the 19th hole Cactus Oak Tavern has good food, cold drinks, TVs, and a pool table

The practice facility is excellent and the Hyatt seems focused on making their course the place to play for families, ladies, and juniors. Clinics and player development programs are available for all ages.

Here is a link to the review of the Lakes Course and the Creeks Course. The Hyatt Hill Country Resort & Spa has a very good Stay & Play Package and the resort is fantastic -read our review of the Hyatt.

The Oaks course is named after all the oak trees that line the fairways. This nine is the most challenging of the three courses and it requires you to shape your shots and carefully manage your tee shots and approach shots. Most of the holes are tight and narrow with dog legs and a dry creek bed meandering through the fairways. The greens were in excellent condition and a lot of the approach shots are tight and to a small well protected green.

The Oaks course is a little short at 3438 yards and the slope and rating listed below are if you play the Oaks and Lakes course for your round. You'll find this nine fun and somewhat challenging and requiring good club selection.

Texas Outside Scorecard for Hyatt Hill Country Resort - Oaks Course
Beauty:
Difficulty:
Variety:
Fun Scale:
Value:
Condition:

Other Good Information:

Designer/Architect: Arthur Hills
Beware of water on 3 holes and the 15 sand traps.
Service is outstanding. The golf staff is focused on making sure you receive the best service and enjoy a memorable round.
Condition of the greens is 9.0 and the green difficulty is 8.0 out of 10.
Walkable: Yes
GPS: Yes

Course Yardage, Slope, and Rating:

Tee Box	Yardage	Rating	Slope	Par
Gold	3,438	73.7	136	72
Blue	3,276	71.7	134	72
White	2,931	68.3	121	72
Red	2,332	67.8	118	72

Here's How Texas Outside Determines the Scorecard Rating

The Texas Outside rating scale ranges from 1 to 10 – a perfect 10 course would be something like this: links along a cliff overlooking the Pacific ocean and bordered by tall trees; lush fairways on rolling hills with lots of natural hazards; water (which is crystal clear) on most of the holes; immaculate greens (but they are undulating and tough); lots of variety and character (each hole is completely different and includes blind shots, elevation changes, doglegs, and significant challenges); perfectly manicured traps with the whitest and prettiest sand you’ve ever seen; a nice club house with great food and a 19th hole; a GPS; plenty of beverage carts or your own cooler and ice; and it only costs $40 bucks! What this means is that you probably won’t find any 10s in Texas – try Cabo San Lucas, Pebble Beach, or some of the Hawaii courses!
Texas Outside rates courses on the following:

Beauty – tall trees, rolling hills, beautiful houses, waterfalls, and similar stuff would score high; a 1 would be flat, bushes or cactus instead of trees, and some grass but mostly weeds
Difficulty – a straight, 300 yard par 4 with no traps or hazards, no out of bounds or water would probably get a 1; if it is a 460 yard par 4 over two ravines, with water along one side, natural hazards on the other, strategically placed traps or that dreaded tree right in the middle of the fairway, we are talking a 10.
Variety – what would you give a course where all the holes looked and played exactly the same (“I thought we just played that hole!”); were side-by-side, which is good for finding or dodging other people’s balls, but not much fun; and you can see the flag from every tee box? That’s right, it gets a 1.
Fun Scale – a 10 is where you walk off the course and say “now that was fun” and you can’t wait to get back, or you immediately turn around and play another 18 holes
Value – a 5 is $50 to $60, a 10 is $20 to $30, and 1 is $200 or so – of course all of this is dependent upon how you liked the course. For example, if a run down, boring municipal course, with six players on each hole was only $10; it would still get a value rating of 1.
Condition – this one’s pretty easy – what condition are the fairways. A 10 commands very lush perfectly manicured fairways, compared to a 1, which has fire ants, weeds, and more dirt than grass!
Condition of Greens and Difficulty – very hard to read greens with lots of undulation and tough pin placement, rate very high on the difficulty scale. Condition is self-explanatory.

All of the above determines the overall score for the golf course. In other words, we like courses that are pretty, fun, very challenging with a lot of variety, and fairways and greens in excellent condition – all for $40. We also tend to play the courses that are affordable for the masses, which means in the $30 to $80 range. We rate hard and we haven’t found a 10 in Texas yet – don’t worry we haven’t given up and we’re still looking.