Junction Golf Course Review

Texas Outside Rating: 7.3

Golf - Public Course · 9 Holes · Par 35
Junction
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Junction Golf Course Review

Review and Rating of Junction Golf Course, Junction, Texas

Junction Golf Course opened for play in 1927 thanks to the hard work of many volunteers who raised the money to create this 9 hole course - they hauled dirt, dug ponds, removed trees and rocks and created a very interesting layout.  The course is scenic with rolling hills, a variety of trees, the bottom lands of Cedar Creek, several small ponds, and towering bluffs including Lovers Leap where ages ago two young Indians leaped off the cliff because they weren't allowed to get married!

The first 4 holes play on one side of the road and they are home to 3 challenging dog legs, out of bounds on one or both sides of the fairways, uphill and downhill shots, and ponds that can come into play on 4 holes.  Here are a couple of holes that we liked:

  • #1 is a 480-yard par 5 that takes a sharp turn right and downhill past a pond to the small heavily contoured green
  • #3 is a 387 par 4 and another dog leg right and then downhill past a pond to a turtle back green - the approach shot to the green can be challenging thanks to trees on the left and the pond on the right pinching the fairway

The last 5 holes are more straightforward and traditional as they play down and across the bottom lands of Cedar Creek.  which can come into play on three holes.  Our favorite holes here included:

  • #5 a 350-yard par 4 that requires some shot making from an elevated tee box and a downhill shot that needs to avoid a large pecan tree in the middle of the fairway plus a pond on the right - and you need to land where you'll have an approach shot over Cedar Creek to the green
  • #8 is a 163-yard par three with a tight tree lined fairway and a carry over Cedar Creek

The greens range from postage stamp size to a little smaller than average.  Some are raised and all have some minor to severe slope and contour.  They were running slow (around a 7) when we played and they were very bumpy. 

The fairways are ample to tight, tree-lined, and have out of bounds on both sides - one side is trees and the other is another fairway. They were in very poor condition with lots of weeds, ants, dirt, gravel, and dandelions.  

There are no bunkers to contend with except for 2 which has a grass bunker in front of the green.

The course is currently owned by the Hill Country Fair Association and the greens were sand from the time the course opened until the early '70s, at which time the greens were replaced with bermuda grass.  Several members and individuals have taken responsibility for doing everything they can to maintain and improve the conditions, using their own funds.  They should be commended for the sacrifices and commitment they have made to Junction Golf Course over the last couple of years.  They have done a commendable job in improving the course conditions considering the lack of funds and limited member and public golf fees!

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Course Slope & Ratings

Tee Box Yardage Rating Slope
Black 2,827
Blue 2,232 68.6 120
White 2,141
Gold 2,582 68.2 116

Course Information

Greens Type:
Bermuda
Greens Condition
6.0
Greens Difficulty
7.5
Fairway Condition
3.0
GPS:
No
Walkable:
Easy
Beware of water on 6 holes and the 0 sand traps.

Texas Outside Rating

Overall Rating:
7.3 out of 10
Beauty:
9.0
Difficulty:
8.0
Variety:
8.0
Fun to Play:
8.2
Value:
7.0
Condition:
4.0
Front Nine Rating:
7.3
Back Nine Rating:
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FEES & AMENITIES

Approximate Weekend
Rates: $10.00 to $35.00

The club house has limited to no golf supplies. There is no driving range or putting green. The carts are in good condition. The service is superb - friendly, outgoing, and courteous! If your golf game is off, break out the frisbee and play the frisbee golf course which plays alongside of the golf course.

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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.