Off the Fringe, “Golf’s best short read.” The award winning newsletter, sent twice monthly, that provides an unconventional perspective on the golf world.
Golfer Bob
Westminster
2009-07-14
$16 (cart included), played on Tuesday, July 2009 at 10am
Westminster National changed hands about two years ago, and changed names in 2008. It is now Westminster National, formerly named Bear Creek Golf Club. New owners have improved a number of things about the course, so they get an A+ for effort.
Having said that, I personally do not care for the layout and design of the course. There are some nice holes, but there are also many more poorly designed ones, and some major redesign will be required to make it more playable in my view. But it is cheap... Our group of travelling seniors played here 7-14-09, for $20 with the Tee Time book, which is a good deal.
The course is only 20 years old, but feels much older, since most of the greens are quite small, and most are crowned, a la Donald Ross: very common to land a good shot on the green and watch it trickle off. Fairways range from wide open to very tight, bunkers are reasonable in size and number, and there is enough water to keep it interesting. Very few holes run parallel, although it is a compact course, and cartpaths frequently cross over each other...it can be confusing to someone who hasn't played here before.
A few exceptions to the small greens are #9 and #18, which were recently rebuilt to provide a better landing area, as both are carved into sides of hills, with water between them. Also, #16 is a HUGE green, at least 100 feet deep and about 40 feet wide.
Aside from the design issues, the course is in excellent shape, so the new owners are doing very well. Tee boxes were well-maintained, and level. Fairways are very nice, and the rough is not too punitive. Greens are pretty good, but I thought, a little slow, although with the slope on them, I suppose we should appreciate that. Bunkers were in poor shape with LOTS of rocks. Pace of play today was painfully slow: took us 5 hours and 20 minutes, and there was no Ranger, so we just had to suffer.
Pro Shop staff was very nice and got us in and out quickly. Snack Bar attendant was also very capable.
Overall, Westminster National is an OK neighborhood course, but not as good as it could be.
Would travel: 0-10 Miles, Not Vacation Worthy
Bottom line: Worse than average course for the area
Condition of Course, Price, Ambiance, No Houses on Course
$16 (cart included), played on Tuesday, July 2009 at 10am
Westminster National changed hands about two years ago, and changed names in 2008. It is now Westminster National, formerly named Bear Creek Golf Club. New owners have improved a number of things about the course, so they get an A+ for effort.
Having said that, I personally do not care for the layout and design of the course. There are some nice holes, but there are also many more poorly designed ones, and some major redesign will be required to make it more playable in my view. But it is cheap... Our group of travelling seniors played here 7-14-09, for $20 with the Tee Time book, which is a good deal.
The course is only 20 years old, but feels much older, since most of the greens are quite small, and most are crowned, a la Donald Ross: very common to land a good shot on the green and watch it trickle off. Fairways range from wide open to very tight, bunkers are reasonable in size and number, and there is enough water to keep it interesting. Very few holes run parallel, although it is a compact course, and cartpaths frequently cross over each other...it can be confusing to someone who hasn't played here before.
A few exceptions to the small greens are #9 and #18, which were recently rebuilt to provide a better landing area, as both are carved into sides of hills, with water between them. Also, #16 is a HUGE green, at least 100 feet deep and about 40 feet wide.
Aside from the design issues, the course is in excellent shape, so the new owners are doing very well. Tee boxes were well-maintained, and level. Fairways are very nice, and the rough is not too punitive. Greens are pretty good, but I thought, a little slow, although with the slope on them, I suppose we should appreciate that. Bunkers were in poor shape with LOTS of rocks. Pace of play today was painfully slow: took us 5 hours and 20 minutes, and there was no Ranger, so we just had to suffer.
Pro Shop staff was very nice and got us in and out quickly. Snack Bar attendant was also very capable.
Overall, Westminster National is an OK neighborhood course, but not as good as it could be.