It’s possibly the worst course on the planet. I would avoid it at all costs.
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Thankfully I haven’t book a tee time yet.
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Seriously, it’s like going out in a public park that was last mowed 2 weeks ago and hitting shots. I suppose it’s better than not playing golf, but not by much.
That doesn’t sound enjoyable at all.
Karakung is a prime example of a course that should be free to juniors. Subsidize it with grant money, charity money, higher greens fees at Cobbs, or any combination of those (or other ideas). Eliminate those low lying holes that get destroyed by the creek every year and make it a 9 (or 12 or whatever number) holer. Maybe just keep the 5 hole loop on the side of the street where the range is and give the rest of that land back to the Fairmount park commission.
Incompetent, corrupt boneheads that run that city just can’t get out of the way.
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@Jim_gal agreed and that is essentially what they are hoping to do with Karakung the big Cobbs Creek restoration project.
https://refuge.nolayingup.com/t/gil-hanse-discussion/13990/30?u=macgolf
They are taking away several holes restoring wetlands and doing creek restoration & re-doing the remaining 9. There are talks that the couple holes on the side of the range would be come a short par 3 akin to cradle. I believe that there would be a highly subsidized JR program / rate but those details are forth coming.
https://refuge.nolayingup.com/t/gil-hanse-discussion/13990/31?u=macgolf
I hope they are able to meet their fundraising goals to make the plan a reality.
Edit: updated with link to more details about the proposed project & the planned routing.
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Got my first taste of Cobbs and I was pretty delighted after heading in with low expectations. While the greens were on the slower side they were in pretty good shape overall. And the rest of the course wasn’t to bad condition wise either. With the corona shutdown, recently good weather, and natural slopes the place actually has some run out to it. It was pretty fun looking at the course through the lens of what a Gil Hanse might do with it.
Highlights:
-Holes 2-6 had some awesome character with the creek and quirkinesses as well.
-The center line creek on 5 splitting the fairway. Then it wraps the left side of the green with the Septa line perched above it. If that isn’t Strapped I’m not sure what is.
-Elevated green on 7 with a view all the way down to 8
-Straight up the hill driveable 9th
-Great look to the par 5 14th with the elevated tee
-17 from the original tee up top is a beauty
18 blind tee shot, had to pick a city landmark like we were playing the OG old course in St. Andrews (I’m also laughing at this comparison)
Lowlights:!
11-13, 15 were the weaker of the bunch, just a bit bland right now but it has potential with some of the greens
I would put this course above 90% of the garbage that is flat south jersey golf (excluding shore). And you get it at much less of a cost.
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The Karakung land is very interesting, but the course conditions are horrific.
Agreed with most of this. Some holes out there that have the potential to be absolutely world class. Conditions were pretty good last week. Fairways in good shape. Greens weren’t bad but roll slow - really have to hammer those uphill putts. Strapped boys would love it. Tee boxes had been aerated so easy to peg it but they didn’t take the plugs off the tees so they look pretty messy. More of an oh well, than anything else, didn’t affect playability or enjoyment.
Routing-wise, 3 is great obviously, and 5 stands out with the split fairway. I thought 12 (7 in the original routing) stuck out as a signature hole as well. Brutish par 4 with the fairway pushing all your balls down the hill left, a monster tree protecting the green from the inside half of the fairway, and the green tucked along the left side protected by bunkers both short and long.
Biggest complains about the place are (A) pace of play is rough, seemingly no matter when you play out there, and (B) lack of facilities once you get into the majority of the property from 3 onward - no food/water/restrooms. A halfway house / snack bar out there would be a great addition…maybe in the 6 green / 7 tee / 8 green area (current 16 green / 12 tee / 13 green).
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Made it out to 3 courses over the last 2 weeks that I’ve never been to before and I found a lot to like in each one of them -
Wyncote - I’m not generally the biggest fan of “American Heathland” style courses because I feel like they’re visually almost all the same - however Wyncote is maybe the best example of this type of course that I’ve seen. It’s interesting and definitely a challenge (especially in a strong breeze one week after you first picked up a club). It’s in great condition and it’s a big boy golf course - you better bring your A game here.
Shannondell - On the complete other side of the spectrum, Shannondell is a charming walk in the park. It’s a short “full size” course (about 6000 yards) but you’ll hit basically every club in the bag and it’s in great condition. I wouldn’t want to play there all the time - I’d get bored with it pretty quickly - but as an after-work course or somewhere to learn the game, it’s great. (A BIG downside is just how cramped the whole layout is - a decent size miss can almost kill someone on the next fairway)
Raven’s Claw - A real gem in my opinion. I LOVED this course. It’s open and forgiving and the layout of the holes really vary, so you’ll never get bored. Even if you have a wedge into a green there are lots of ridges and sections to provide some good defense. It’s steep for a weekend round ($75) but I just played yesterday and I can’t wait to get back. Very underrated and a lot of fun.
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Wyncote is awesome. a hike to get to but worth it once there. Conditioning, especially the greens, is as good as it gets for a daily fee course around here. It’s tough but still playable for the higher handicap with fewer forced carries than other courses at a similar price/quality point.
Raven’s Claw is very good too.
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I grew up right down the road from it and it’s a nice public course. Sometimes the price is too much in my opinion for the quality of the course, but not a bad course. Some interesting par 3’s.
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Long time refuge lurker here but moved to Philly (Fishtown) this winter from Michigan for a job. I would consider myself a golf sicko, especially with how many podcasts I listen to, mainly shotgun start and NLU. I’ve only played Juniata because its super close and cheap but would love to check out some the recommendations you all have posted in this group with anyone in the area as a more local sherpa!
Willing to also trade Sixers tickets (no idea when) to try any local private courses too haha. Looking forward to getting to play and know one the most golf rich cities in the country! Cheers!
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Good spot light by Christian Hafer on Jeffersonville
Golf.com - Jeffersonville (muni Monday series)
Jville also got @mbrown1833 ‘s discerning approval that day.
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Was thinking of trying out jeffersonville for the first time next weekend
@samba24 I’m down to play anywhere in and around the city I’m not too far from you in Manayunk.
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tee times go quick - if you haven’t booked yet you’ll have a hard time getting a desirable weekend tee time.
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Love Wyncote…at least as much as I can recall. Randomly fell into it back in 2011, when my brother’s planned bachelor weekend to OC Maryland fell prey to hotel closures due to Hurricane Irene and we had to audible to a “stay-cation” in Philly. It falls into the category of “happy accident”, as we really had a good time there. Being a huge fan of links, it at least kinda scratched the itch.
As far as Cobbs goes, I really can’t remember much of it…partly because of the sands of time and partly because of the fact that every time I played it growing up I think it was some composite routing or dependent upon whichever course was closed at the time. So I have no idea which hole is which.
I will say I hit one of the best shots of my life there on some unknown hole, would love to know if anyone knows which. It was a par 4 with a pretty elevated tee box and initial shot into/over a valley., kind on the right with trees The green is then elevated and sits at the top of a fairly steep hill. Of course I duffed my tee shot down the hill, and had a blind approach from the right rough. Ended up jarring the 2nd for eagle. No idea how it happened, just one of those “let’s check the cup” moments.
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That’s probably current hole 13 (original hole #8, I believe). Elevated tee shot across a valley, uphill approach unless you’re long enough to cover the entire valley.
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