The Golf Club of Texas Review

Texas Outside Rating: 8.0

Golf - Public Course · 18 Holes · Par 72
San Antonio
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The Golf Club of Texas Review

Review and Rating of The Golf Club Of Texas in San Antonio

Located about 15 miles west of San Antonio, The Golf Club of Texas is a fun and interesting layout that was originally designed by Lee Trevino, in fact, it's the only signature Lee Trevino course in Texas  In 2015 the course went through a change in owners, a new management company, and a $6 million renovation.  The routing of the course remained the same but noted architect Roy Bechtol made several changes including:

  • clearing out almost a 1000 willow trees which made the fairways much more open and forgiving
  • the addition of an extra tee box
  • eliminating some blind shots
  • removing and improving some bunkers
  • enlarging several greens and fairways

But most importantly, premier Zoysia grass (L1F Zoysia Greens, Zeon Zoysia Tees, and Jamur Zoysia for the Fairways) was added from the tee box to the cup which made The Golf Club of Texas the only course in the US with 100% Zoysia grass - the advantage of which is a more favorable lie for the golfers because the ball sits up on the fairway like a tee plus it's more drought tolerant and lowers maintenance costs. 

The renovation softened the course significantly and made it much more player friendly for all skill levels. The course plays through 6 acres of gently rolling farmland and it's got a links-style design with a slight hill country look and feel.  Like most links courses the fairways are wide open and the greens are huge.   Shortly after the renovation a new management company was hired - Touchstone Golf which has a portfolio of excellent courses in Texas and the United States.

The front nine is your opportunity to warm up and score -  some of the holes that we really liked on the front nine included:

  • #8 is a 526-yard par 5 with a slightly elevated tee box with a carry over a natural area and then slightly left and over a creek at 130 yards in front of a green with a left and right side bunker
  • #9 is a fun 465-yard par 4 with a slight uphill shot past a very long bunker along the left side of the fairway and a slight dog leg left past a hill along the right side leading to a green with a left side bunker

We thought that the back nine was a little more fun, scenic, and challenging thanks to water on 6 holes, a couple long forced carries, a risk-reward opportunity, and 20 bunkers.  On this nine our favorite holes included:

  • #12 is a beautiful 187-yard par 3 that's all carry over a lake from the tee box
  • #14 is a 344 yard par 4 that's challenging thanks to an intimidating carry over the lake to a fairway that turns right, is split down the middle with a long bunker, and has a green guarded by 2 bunkers -  a great risk-reward shot off the tee to try and carry more of the lake to shorten the second shot
  • #18 is a great 534-yard par 5 finishing hole giving you a choice to play safe but longer on the left or shorter heading right if you can fly the bunker, and the approach shot to the green is challenging thanks to a pond on the left side of the green and two bunkers guarding the green

The fairways at The Golf Club of Texas leverage the gently rolling natural terrain creating some minor downhill shots from elevated tee boxes or slight uphill shots to raised greens.  We loved the Zoysia grass which makes for a superior playing surface.  The rough was cut short and very playable - but miss that and you're most likely lost in the natural area and small willow trees. The fairways are wide and forgiving from the tee box to the green.  Some large apartment complexes sit way back of the fairway and overlook some of the holes on the back - otherwise, it's just you and nature!  No side by side holes and no homes with barking dogs - it's peaceful and quiet except for the birds, the wind blowing through the trees and grass and some minor freeway noise in the distance.

The greens at The Golf Club of Texas are a variety of shapes and most are huge - making them easier to hit but also making for some very long and challenging putts.  You won't find a lot of slope and undulation but there is enough to make putting pretty challenging.  When we played the greens were firm, ran true, and at a good speed of around 10 or so.  Zoyzia makes the greens firm which means if you come in high you're not going to stick, so play more of a bump and run shot. Some of the greens are raised and all but one are guarded by one or two bunkers.

The bunkers range from good sized to long, skinny, and gigantic waste type bunkers!  A recent rain had soaked the bunkers making them tough to play.  They were not in very good shape and management admitted such and stated that club rules say you can take a lateral lie and not have to play out of the bunker.

Bottom line - a fun and forgiving layout suitable for all skill levels and a good value, particularly with one of the membership deals.

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Course Slope & Ratings

Tee Box Yardage Rating Slope
Black 7,137 74.1 130
Blue 6,003 68.6 122
White 5,559 67.0 113
Gold 6,578 71.3 125
Red 4,838 67.9 111

Course Information

Course Architect:
Lee Trevino - Roy Bechtol redesign
Greens Type:
Zoysia
Greens Condition
8.8
Greens Difficulty
8.0
Fairway Condition
7.8
Bunker Condition
5.0
GPS:
Yes
Walkable:
Yes
Scorecard
Beware of water on 7 holes and the 36 sand traps.

Texas Outside Rating

Overall Rating:
8.0 out of 10
Beauty:
8.4
Difficulty:
7.5
Variety:
7.5
Fun to Play:
8.5
Value:
8.5
Condition:
8.0
Front Nine Rating:
8.0
Back Nine Rating:
8.8
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FEES & AMENITIES

Approximate Weekend
Rates: $40.00 to $69.00

The clubhouse is cool, the pro shop is well stocked, the grill serves some good food, and the bar is great for a few drinks after your round. For practice, you'll find two putting greens, a chipping and pitching area with a sand bunker, and a driving range. The GPS is excellent. The staff is very friendly and outgoing.

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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.