Liberty Hills Country Club
My Review
This is heartbreaking. Liberty Hills Country Club used to be a proud country club in Liberty, Missouri. It was recently purchased by Great Life, which owns several courses in Missouri. The conditions of Liberty Hills Country Club are abysmal and is in need of a lot of TLC. The clubhouse burned down a few years ago and it still hasn’t been replaced. In its place are a couple of trailers. I used to play this once private club with my best friend of 50 years, Ken McKinney, my good friend Dee Dee Jones’ (Trotter) mom, Mildred, and her sister. I have a lot of fond memories of Liberty Hills. What they have done to this course is simply sad. This is the second Great Life course I have played and they are two of the worst. The other is in Lebanon.
GreatLife Golf and Fitness – Lebanon
My Review
I need to play GreatLife Golf and Fitness – Lebanon one more time. The course is located in Lebanon, MO. When I played it in the summer of 2016 it was not in the best condition. I am assuming I caught it on a bad day. I will try to get back this summer and rerate the course.
Hidden Valley Golf Course
My Review
Hidden Valley Golf Course is in Lawson, Missouri, north of Liberty by about 20 miles. Its in the middle of a farm community. But, the course was in good condition, particularly for a rural course. It doesn’t get a lot of play so the pace is reasonably fast. Their gruff course marshal is worth the price of admission by himself. Every time he passed our group he had an off-color joke of some kind. Someone in our group talked a little smack to him and his response was: “Hey, let’s play a new game . . . it is called Hide and Seek and go f#@k yourself.” Green fees were a about $35, which included a cart. Greens were very slow but very plush and in excellent condition. The course was fairly long for its supposed distance. Hole #10 was 608 yards from the middle tees.
Lancaster Country Club
My Review
Lancaster Country Club in Lancaster, Missouri is a very nice public course right on Highway 63. The course is mostly wide open with beautiful blue grass tee boxes and fairways. The greens, too, are very nice and are fairly slow, although they hadn’t been mowed for a couple of days and there was still dew on them. I’ve never seen blue grass in this good of condition. I actually prefer these fairways to the zoysia fairways on which I normally play; the ball sits up nicely and they are a rich green color. Hazards were minimal, however, the large lake adjacent to the course came into play on two holes. The views from the course are just beautiful and you can see for miles and miles. A special thanks to Lisa Shepherd, manager, and Herb Treece for their northern Missouri hospitality.
Old Kinderhook Golf Course
My Review
The course was designed by Tom Weiskopf and it is one of the top courses in the state. Old Kinderhook Golf Course is in excellent condition and offers an excellent test of all facets of your game. Although the beautiful fairways were fairly wide, there is not a lot of room for error; accurate drives are critical for a good score. The greens were soft, yet fast, even though they had aerated the prior week. I wish they had incorporated the lake more prominently. It never comes into play and you can only see it on one hole. Old Kinderhook Golf Course at the Lake of the Ozarks is a must play if you are visiting the lake. Also, on my wish list would be shorter roughs. They are just to long and thick in many areas for my taste. The Old Kinderhook complex offers ample lodging on the grounds if you want to make a weekend of it. You could easily spend a week at the lake and play a quality course every day. A special thanks to Steve Belton, Director of Operations & Amenities, for his hospitality.
La Plata Golf Course
My Review
La Plata (pronounced La Playta) Golf Course is a municipal-funded course located 80 miles north of Columbia in La Plata, Missouri. Contrary to most municipal rural 9-hole courses, La Plata is an 18 hole course. The back nine, which is a few years newer than the front nine has larger greens and bunkers but much smaller trees. The back nine also has more of a contoured look and feel of the newer courses around the country. Water comes into play on many of the holes. Overall, La Plata Golf Course is a very nice community course that offers golfers of all levels with a variety of challenges.
Kirksville Country Club
My Review
Per capita, Kirksville Country Club is one of the nicer courses in Missouri. The course is almost 100 years old and has gone through several evolutions. The current 18 holes was rebuilt in the mid 1980’s, when they added a second nine. While there are a few issues with turf management, the course is in fantastic condition. Also, on a per capita basis, KCC has some of the best greens in the state . . . and if you take exception to that claim, it would be difficult to argue that they are at least some of the fastest greens in the state, particularly for a rural course. They are so fast that I am confident that they will add at least 5 strokes to your game the first couple of times you play. Besides having a high quality course, the club has an excellent management team as well. They are professioanl, great at their job and very hospitable. This includes the club pro, Clint Fitzpatrick, the course superintendent, Chad Richmon and Alan Daniels, the club’s office manager.
Kennett Country Club
My Review
Kennett Country Club in Kennett, Missouri is the best course in the Bootheel, and probably within 50 miles. It is a beautiful course with tall, mature pine trees lining the narrow fairways and is very well manicured. I get the sense that the management team is very passionate about their product. When taking pictures, I always look for unique aspects that you cannot find at any other course. It is tough to find on some courses; not at Kennett Country Club. This is a great course.
Tiffany Greens Golf Club
My Review
I was born in Kansas City and moved to St. Louis in 1980. There’s a rivalry between the 2 cities. Who has the best restaurants? (St. Louis), Who has the best bbq? (KC), etc. They are both great cities; but very different. If Tiffany Greens Golf Club is any indication of the quality of KC’s public courses, I can declare KC the winner of the Best Public Courses category. Tiffany Greens is now one of my favorite courses in the state of Missouri. It is tough. It is beautiful. It is fun to play. It is well manicured and maintained. And, they are very hospitable from Kyle Hurst, their GM, to the starter. I LOVE THIS COURSE!!!
Twin Lakes Golf Course
My Review
This course, built in the mid 90’s, was definitely a surprise. It is located a couple of miles east of Kahoka and a few miles south of Iowa. I wasn’t expecting much, maybe a sand green course with dirt fairways. But, Twin Lakes Golf Course is just the opposite. It is a mirage in the middle of farm fields. The layout, although not well marked, and design is better suited to a much bigger city. The course was carved out of the hilly landscape with many mounds and undulation on the greens. It is fairly open with minimal large trees except on the parameter. The fairway and tee box grass was a thick blue grass mix. The greens are medium size with some significant slopes/breaks. If you find yourself in north eastern Missouri go play Twin Lakes Golf Course. It is a difficult test of golfing skills.