Charleston Country Club
My Review
Charleston Country Club is a very rural, 9-hole private country club in Charleston, Missouri. No pro shop. No carts (for rent). No people. We tried to check in but couldn’t find anyone. The course was not in great condition, but for a town with a population of 1,902 it was spectacular. If I lived in Charleston, I can assure you that I would be a member . . . assuming they would let me in.
Windsor Country Club
My Review
Although there no signs to the contrary, I believe Windsor Country Club in Windsor, Missouri, is closed and is under a major renovation.
Willow Springs Municipal Golf Course
My Review
Willow Springs Municipal Golf Course in Willow Springs, Missouri, will be an exemplary rural community course when they replace the weeded fairways with bermuda or zoysia. They apparently lost their beautiful bermuda fairways in 2014 and are trying to figure out how to best address the issue, given their limited budget. Other than the fairways, the course is well maintained with a lot of attention to detail. David Aguyll, one of two greenskeepers, is very passionate (and knowledgeable) about course management. Water or sand come into play on every one of the 9 holes. I will come back in a couple of years to play this hopefully all-around great course.
Royal Oaks Golf Course
My Review
Royal Oaks Golf Course is just outside the main gate of Whiteman Air Force Base. The front nine was built in the 1950’s when some enterprising GIs, with a passion for golf, approached the general requesting a few bulldozers so they could sculpt a golf course from the land across the street from the base. The general agreed and the rest is history. The back nine was built in the late 90’s. Royal Oaks could easily rate 4 out of 5 balls if the grasses were better. It has a wonderful layout and foundation to be a top notch course. When I was there, though, the tees, fairways, roughs and greens were quite spotty. Each hole is not contiguous with any other hole so a lot of the course is fairly tight. Many of the holes were lined with mature trees and woods on both sides. To exacerbate the layout, the course designer added many bunkers and water throughout. But, the course is still very playable and enjoyable to play.Royal Oaks Golf Course is in Knob Noster, Missouri at Whiteman Air Force Base.
West Plains Municipal Golf Course
My Review
West Plains Municipal Golf Course in West Plains, Missouri, is a nice muni course in a small city that supports a country club as well. This is a very affordable course and forces the player to use a diverse range of shots. The fairways, while a mix of many type of grasses, are wide and fairly plush. The ball will sit up rather nicely. The roughs are medium length but I had no problem finding my ball. The greens are very nice, albeit slow, and have some fairly big breaks. Most holes are very open and therefore very forgiving. There are no traps and, besides one of the biggest lakes this side of the Mississippi (I made that up but it is big), very few water hazards. The biggest concern for the course (and the city) is the spring that runs under the 10th hole (and trashes the hole) and a lack of a driving range.
West Plains Country Club
My Review
After playing so many rural 9 holes courses over the past week, it was great to play West Plains Country Club in West Plains, Missouri. It is a tough course with narrow fairways with many mature trees lining the fairway. I hit more trees than Paul Bunyan and my score reflected it. If you can keep your ball in the fairway (you are a better man than me) you have a much better likelihood of shooting well. It has a few very interesting holes, like the par 5 4th hole. It parallels the road to the left so if you aim to the right to avoid OB you risk the trees on the right coming into play. Then, it doglegs sharply to the right around a lake. Decisions. Decisions. The greens are beautiful and the fastest in the area. The tee boxes are also very nice for the most part. The biggest challenge for the club is the roughs. They were too long and inconsistent. Other than that, West Plains Country Club is one of the nicer, if not the nicest, courses in south central MO.
Shawnee Bend Golf Course
My Review
Shawnee Bend Golf Course in Warsaw, Missouri, is an average golf course that has an interesting layout. It is a 9 hole course and unlike other 9 hole courses that make an attempt to give its customers an 18 hole experience Shawnee Bend makes no attempt whatsoever. With a little TLC this course could be a good course. However, the fairways and roughs are very patchy and I ended up moving my ball a bit just to have a little greenery underneath. The clubhouse is no more than adequate. I think I was the only person on the course on the afternoon that I played which was one of few things that I appreciated about the course. I played the 9 holes in 40 minutes.
Keth Memorial Golf Course
My Review
I went to school at UCM and have played the university course, Keth Memorial Golf Course, many times over the past 40 years (am I really that old?). I try to play whenever I am in Warrensburg, Missouri even though it hasn’t been the best course around. However, the course has recently gone through a facelift and, while all of the changes haven’t taken root, it is noticeably better and will continue to improve. The biggest change is the completely transformed greens. They are very slow right now but will become much more challenging once they are able to make them quicker. The 18th hole is now their signature hole. It is a beautiful downhill par 3 with an island green.
Hidden Pines Country Club
My Review
Hidden Pines Country Club is the former Warrensburg Country Club, located in Warrensburg, MO. I played for my first time in the summer of 2015. This public course is actually a good course, particularly for a community course in a rural community, supporting two courses. While they have been considered the top course in the area, the University course, Keth Memorial, just underwent a total renovation and is supposed to give Hidden Pines a run for its money. Frankly both are good courses and should be played when you are in the area.
Deer Run Golf Course
My Review
***WARNING***
Deer Run Golf Course, in Van Buren, Missouri, is the worst golf course in the state (at least so far), maybe the country. I knew I was in trouble when:
1. The course was not showing up on my GPS.
2. The club house looks like something from the ghetto, with discarded equipment strewn around the property.
3. I thought there was no one managing the “pro shop” until the owner finally came out in white socks (sans shoes), denim cut-off shorts and a gray “wife beater” t-shirt.
4. The fairways were indistinguishable from the roughs and the surrounding area.
5. They had no score cards. They just weren’t out; they haven’t had any printed in years.
6. In fact, I do not think they have had a player there since 1996.
7. The owner said that bentgrass greens were too expensive to maintain so they replaced them with bermuda.
8. The green fees were crazy for this “course.” $20 for 9 holes.
9. There was one par 3 that had a tee box and no green in sight.
10. If Burt Reynolds and his buddies from Deliverance were going on a golf weekend instead of canoeing, this is where they would have gone. Actually, they could have gone here for canoeing too since the course is adjacent to the Current River.