Golf - Public Course · 9 Holes · Par 36
Daphne, AL
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Review of TimberCreek Golf Club's Dogwood Nine
Just off of Interstate 10 and a few miles from the eastern shore of Mobile Bay is a fabulous golf course with 27 holes that you'll really enjoy playing. TimberCreeek Golf Club was designed by Earl Stone and the first eighteen (Dogwood and Magnolia) opened for play in 1993 with the Pine nine holes opening a few months later.
Earl sculptured 27 fantastic holes through the rolling hills and tall forests of dogwoods, magnolias, and pines. Surprising elevation changes, wetland preserves, and bountiful wildlife accentuate this incredible flowing terrain creating a golfing experience truly unique from other courses in the Gulf Coast Region. Earl seemed to design the course to be demanding but fair and very fun for players of all skill levels.
TimberCreek Golf Club's courses are enjoyable and not just because they have the ability to massage your ego and offer an opportunity for you to turn in a great score - on Dogwood, I was close to a new record low until the 9th hole and I still ended up 3 over par! The conditions are excellent, the price is right, and the holes are great - and even though you can score well here, you still have to make shots. All of this is part of the reason that Golf Digest awarded TimberCreek Golf Club a 4 Star Best Places To Play award.
Each of the nines holes at TimberCreek Golf Club has its own unique personality and characteristics, for example:
All of the holes are outstanding, but the #2 handicap #7 takes the prize. It's a 534 yard par 5 with a slight uphill shot off the tee, then downhill toward a pinched fairway (thanks to a retaining wall, long skinny bunker, and marsh and lake) that dog legs left to a smallish green with plenty of slope, undulation, and a tier on the back. That's a hole that I would love to play 5 or 6 more times.
The course conditions from tee to pin at TimberCreek were excellent when we played. The Dogwood fairways are all tree lined (with a scattering of homes set back on one side of some holes), rolling, and contoured. Some are a tad tight but most are ample with a wide playable rough.
The Dogwood greens were also in very good condition and ranged from about average to a tad small. Slope, undulation, and tiers come into play and pin placement can be very challenging. They were running a little slow, around an 8 to 9, but true.
The bunkers also range in size and shape from small pot bunkers to some real monsters. The sand is inconsistent between bunkers - some have soft thick fine sand and others have gritty thin and firmer sand. We understand that the bunkers are being upgraded to the better softer sand. The lips are thin, from one to four inches tall, which means you might get lucky and roll out or you may be able to pitch your way to the pin.
The slope and rating are based on playing the Magnolia and Dogwood Nines.
Tee Box | Yardage | Rating | Slope |
---|---|---|---|
Black | 3,450 | 73.6 | 130 |
Blue | 3,091 | 68.0 | 116 |
White | 2,890 | 67.2 | 112 |
Gold | 3,174 | 70.4 | 125 |
Red | 2,403 | 66.7 | 114 |
Approximate Weekend
Rates: $39.00 to $59.00
Service is ok, the pro shop is jam packed with everything you can imagine, the grill has a great selection of some tasty food, and the practice facilities are ok.
Here's How Texas Outside Determines the Scorecard RatingThe 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!
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.
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