Colony Creek Country Club Review

Texas Outside Rating: 7.6

Golf - Semi Private Course · 18 Holes · Par 71
Victoria
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Colony Creek Country Club Review

Colony Creek Country Club Golf Course is a semi private course that was built in 1985.  The course is short (5104 to 6328 yards with 4 tee boxes) and a fairly traditional and straightforward layout with the flag and what you're up against visible from the tee box.  

With one exception, none of the holes are unique or memorable but what makes this course fun as well as challenging are the fairly tight fairways, water that can come into play on 14 holes, out of bounds areas, strategically placed bunkers, and very challenging greens.  

Some of the holes we particularly enjoyed include: 

  • #4 is the #1 handicap - a 515 yard par 5 with a tight fairway and two strategically placed bunkers on the right waiting for your drive (got mine) and two bodies of water along the left side that lead to a raised green guarded by a bunker on each side
  • #11 is a 191 yard par 3 that requires an accurate shot to hit and hold the green and avoid the three big bunkers surrounding it
  • 16 is a short 161 yard par three but its to a somewhat small green with little room for error thanks to water that horseshoes around three quarters of the green
  • #18, a 488 yard par 5 is fun - a tight fairway with water off both sides at the tee box and a very challenging approach to the green thanks to a bunker on the left and water on the right

When we played in January 2012 Colony Creek Golf Course was undergoing a lot of changes to try and recover from the harsh winter, severe drought, and record heat that had played havoc with the greens, fairway, and rough.  As such the roughs were very rough with bare spots and a lot of ground under. repair, the fairways were playable but not in normal condition, and some of the greens had damage around the fringe. We talked to a couple members who told us that thanks to the weather this was the worst condition they had experienced but the course's management team was doing all they could to restore the condition back to normal. 

My guess is that normally the conditions would be around 8.5 which would make for a much more enjoyable, scenic, and fun round.  But don't let today's conditions discourage you from playing - the course is playable and gives you an opportunity to turn in a good round. The back nine seemed to be in much better condition. 

The fairways range from let-er-rip off the tee box to tight and narrow - with the back fairways being a little more forgiving.  The front nine fairways have a lot of contour and mounting are very gently rolling.  The rough is wide but miss that and you're in a back yard, wet, or out of bounds.  Some of the fairways are lined with nice homes on one side and some have home on both sides, and others are lined with a scattering of trees. The back nine fairways seemed much flatter and in much better condition, same for the rough. 

The greens are mostly huge and all have some severe slope, undulation, and a couple have saddles.  When we played they seemed fast (maybe a 10.5 or so) and coupled with the slope, three putts were common for us.  Stay below the pin.  They ran true and held the ball well.  Some were raised and stopped the ball dead in its tracks and all but one green have at least one and typically two big bunkers protecting them.  

Speaking of bunkers, they range from huge to some pot bunkers and most have a manageable lip.  In some cases we actually hit in the bunker and rolled out - but the fringe around the bunker was tough! The front nine bunkers were in excellent condition with soft fluffy and thick sand.  The back nine bunkers had thin packed gritty sand, not near as nice as the front.  

Bottom line - a pretty good traditional layout, lots of water, challenging greens, and a fair value - give it a try!

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Course Slope & Ratings

Tee Box Yardage Rating Slope
Blue 6,002 67.1 117
White 5,605 68.7 120
Gold 6,328 70.6 125
Red 5,104 71.0 121

Course Information

Course Architect:
Dick Watson
Greens Type:
Mini Verde
Greens Condition
7.5
Greens Difficulty
9.0
Fairway Condition
7.0
Bunker Condition
8.0
GPS:
No
Walkable:
Easy
Course Map
Beware of water on 14 holes and the 38 sand traps.

Texas Outside Rating

Overall Rating:
7.6 out of 10
Beauty:
7.5
Difficulty:
8.0
Variety:
7.5
Fun to Play:
7.5
Value:
8.0
Condition:
7.5
Front Nine Rating:
7.5
Back Nine Rating:
7.8
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FEES & AMENITIES

Approximate Weekend
Rates: $26.00 to $40.00

Service is ok, the pro shop has the basics, and the practice green and driving range are adequate. Although we didn't go in, the stand along club house looks impressive and is home to a pool, bar, and restaurant.

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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.