Golf Courses
- Thread starter thuisman
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Jester Park near grimes is a nice one that is run by Des Moines Parks and Rec and it is really nice and fun course. Grandview is an alright course in Des Moines that is relatively short with some tough greens to putt.
Des Moines, Iowa Golf Courses
My favorite - Legacy in Norwalk, IA
I do golf league at Beaver Creek just North of Grimes. It's a decent course, nothing special, but do have 27 holes.
My favorite - Legacy in Norwalk, IA
I do golf league at Beaver Creek just North of Grimes. It's a decent course, nothing special, but do have 27 holes.
Depends on your price point/skill level.
TCI in Polk City, Harvester, and Legacy (Norwalk) are tough courses with the first two being in the $65-$85 range.
Briarwood in Ankeny is a good course. Both it and the Legacy are more like $50 (includes cart).
Waveland, Jester, and Beaver Creek are more affordable ($30 w/o cart) with Beaver being the easiest of the three. Waveland and Jester are two of my favorites because they let you walk, even on the weekends.
Copper Creek in Pleasant Hill is pretty nice but short and in the same price range as the one's above.
A good deal if you don't mind a little drive is Lake Panarama National in Panora. Tough course, usually in good shape for around $40 (including cart).
TCI in Polk City, Harvester, and Legacy (Norwalk) are tough courses with the first two being in the $65-$85 range.
Briarwood in Ankeny is a good course. Both it and the Legacy are more like $50 (includes cart).
Waveland, Jester, and Beaver Creek are more affordable ($30 w/o cart) with Beaver being the easiest of the three. Waveland and Jester are two of my favorites because they let you walk, even on the weekends.
Copper Creek in Pleasant Hill is pretty nice but short and in the same price range as the one's above.
A good deal if you don't mind a little drive is Lake Panarama National in Panora. Tough course, usually in good shape for around $40 (including cart).
Briarwood in ankeny is nice too. It is pretty beat up this year because of the winter and flooding.
Des Moines Parks and Rec runs Waveland, Blank and Grandview. They do not run Jester Park. I'm not sure who does, but it's certainly not DMPR.
I like playing AH Blank, but as others have said, there are quite a few other decent courses around. The muni courses (Blank, Waveland and Grandview) are probably your best bang-for-the-buck, and they are certainly (with the exception of Grandview) nice courses.
Willow Creek isn't too bad either, but it's fairly boring parkland golf.
I personally stay away from any public course that starts with a "W" - Waveland, Willow Creek, and Woodland Hills. Grandview's not a good course, but almost everthing else in and around Des Moines are nice courses. Veenker in Ames (ISU's course) is great.
Waveland is a GREAT public course. It's also the oldest municipal golf course west of the Mississippi. Willow Creek isn't bad, and since it's got 2 9s and an 18, you can almost always get on. My only complaint is that the layout is rather simplistic. Woodland Hills isn't horrible, but it's dated.
I give Grandview a pass because:
A. It's dirt cheap...mini golf costs more sometimes
B. it's only one year younger than Waveland
C. It's really easy, and that will make you feel better about your game.
I know I'm in the minority with that opinion - Waveland just doesn't fit my game. The course is short, narrow, tree lined at the edge of the fairways, with loads of blind shots. I'm long and a little erratic. You do that at Waveland and you're in the trees - having to take a drop. I'd at least like the opportunity to make up for a poor shot.
Unfortunately a lot of the public course in the DM area got hit pretty over the winter and now with the floods. Some of the private clubs suffered some loss as well; Wakonda Club is closing in August to redo all of their greens because they lost a couple and decided to just do them all. With that being said, if you are looking for low end muni courses, try Waveland. Its cheap, but still challenging. If you want tougher, more expensive go with TCI. Other than that I'm not a big fan of any other public courses in the area, so my taste is tainted.
For the long and erratic I think Jester is a great fit. You need to hit driver on most holes but if you spray it around a little you can still find it and hit it. Not always an open shot but at least not a lost ball in the woods (a la #3 at Waveland).
That said, I like Waveland alot. If you can keep it in play you can score there but if you are off it punishes you for it.
That said, I like Waveland alot. If you can keep it in play you can score there but if you are off it punishes you for it.
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Control is what golf is all about, IMO. I really enjoy courses where I never have to pull out a driver. I CAN be long, and somewhat straight, but golf is about control, not distance. I'd rather be 250 in the fairway than 300 2 fairways over. If you're all over the course, you deserve to lose strokes. If you're playing the course like it's laid out, and making decent shots, you should score well.
Courses where you feel obligated to pull out driver on every Par 4 and 5 are boring to me.
I'd say you are definitely in the minority about Waveland. It was at one point a top 100 public course in the US, is the pretty much continual home of the DM Men's championship, and was voted best golf course in Des Moines in 2007 by Cityview (runners up were Willow Creek and Jester).
That's where we differ. I believe a golf course should be a test of many facets of the game, not simply control. And I personally enjoy a course that gives you the opportunity to attone for a slightly bad shot, and gives you choices and options. There's a big difference between being two fairways over and five feet off. There are many holes at Wave where if you're five feet off the fairway you're dropping and taking a stroke. To me, that's not enjoyable.
Believe me, I know I'm clearly in the minority with my opinion.
Why are you dropping if your just in the trees? If you lose your ball, (unless there is a water hazard or lateral water hazard marked) you need to be returning to where you hit your previous shot from, taking a stroke and distance penalty.
Stroke and distance is for OB. Unplayable lies is a drop and stroke along the line of flight, no closer to the hole.
