talk to me about Drumm Farm, Staley Farms, Adams Point, and Winterstone.
Anything walkable? I’ve been perusing aerials and course websites, and I this is so awful I want to see it myself.
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Here’s the little bit I remember from playing each of those courses once or twice:
Drumm Farm: Another great course that has been ruined by Greatlife although the prices on that one stayed low for some reason. I haven’t been there in a year and a half so can’t speak to condition but it was decent when I was there. Kinda sorta walkable with some big walks between tees
Staley Farms: This one is worth playing just to experience the insanity of their greens. Like these are Augusta level slopey greens. They usually keep the greens really firm and fast too. Not really walkable from what I remember.
Adams Point: Don’t remember much of this one other than it was very hilly. I think it was walkable but not super friendly due to the elevation changes.
Winterstone: Probably my favorite of the 4 here. Mostly because it’s more forgiving that Staley and I could see myself playing more often. Walkable with some elevation changes but not like the other courses.
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enough said.
sounds fun, particularly in the right format. is this the one that was done by a Doak associate?
then it probably wasn’t real great. Or real bad for that matter.
sounds like a contender.
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I wasn’t aware of that but this link says that’s true: https://www.top100golfcourses.com/golf-course/staley-farms
Also is apparently Bent Grass Fairways which I didn’t remember, but I didn’t know much about golf courses then (and still really don’t)
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Never been on Staley, heard it was not walker friendly but who knows, and yes, Eric Iverson designed it fresh off his time with Doakito…
Drumm I’ve played a few times. Very much a walkable course. Best conditioning of any GL course I played, and bonus, it’s no longer in their network from what I understand. Buddy is a member there and swears by it. Fun, compelling routing and some provocative shit out there…
WinterStone is walkable but not recommended. All but two of the front nine have significant elevation changes. Interesting place. Usually in pretty good to decent shape and subtle greens…
I like Adams Pointe. Elevation isn’t too terrible. They love to send you off the back first, which has you finish on #9, easily the worst hole on the course with an insipid forced carry just before a green you are unlikely to hold in peak form summer conditties. Other than that, good conditioning, fun routing, operated by Orion, which has started to do better work with staff and management.
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Staley is very not walkable, but all the holes are all pretty solid. That 13th hole is kind of dumb and probably the worst out there, but it ends up working well enough since there’s enough room on each side of the tree to play either way. There’s lots of fun risk/reward short 4s and par 5s, and the greens are all big and wild. There’s probably a couple greens that go too far with slopes and shelves, but you’d rather have 16 awesome greens and two that cross the line than 18 boring, flat greens imo. Highly recommend checking it out if you’ve got the chance.
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some good feedback so far…thank you.
Drumm’s website still says they’re part of GL. I hope they’re not.
Staley and Winterstone are sounding the most interesting so far, I have to admit Staley piques my interest with it’s reputation, but it seems like Winterstone generally is well received.
Related but tangential to this discussion…walkable public courses for <$50 weekend, what’s out there? what’s your favorite? what’s the worst?
the ones that come to mind…
Swope
Sunflower
Dubs
Tomahawk
Heritage
OP/SA
Painted Hills
Fred Arbanas
Minor Park
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Agreed on Drumm. A couple of longer walks between greens and tees, but nothing crazy. It is a Hurdzan/Fry design and has some fun stuff. Haven’t been there in about a year as well, but it was always in pretty good shape. They have a nice patio overlooking the 18th green and a nice big room for event shenanigans.
I think that’s a fairly comprehensive list, except for Drumm, WinterStone (mentioned above), and maybe Hillcrest? The weekend walking rate at Hillcrest should be right around $50.
Eagle Bend in Lawrence is a very decent and very walkable, although not exactly in the KC metro.
Painted Hills and Tomahawk are… not good.
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Is Tomahawk walkable? Haven’t been out there forever.
I dunno, for some reason I thought it was. Never been there either.
It technically is, but there’s the giant hills you have to walk up/down on 9 and 18. Also, to walk it, you have to play Tomahawk, so it’s really not worth it.
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The walk up the hill between 3 and 4 is also ridiculous. IIRC, there used to be a marshal that would cart you up… I don’t think that’s a thing anymore, though. Other notable and ridiculous features: the mirror to see down 5 fairway, the bell on 17, and the matching downhill par 3s closing out each nine.
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Both 9 and 18 are so over the top downhill.
Also, a million blind shots on that course from what you remember. Two blind tee shots where you have to ring a bell and slow down the pace of play.
Its is a pretty area with all the hills and trees so close to Shawnee Mission Park.
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Swope will probably universally be the favorite, and Tomahawk universally the least. what about the rest?
I wish I liked Tomahawk more as we have some family history there. Fun fact: My grandpa was a member there a long time ago when it was private in the 60’s. I think he paid around $30 a month. When the county bought the course in 1974 (I think), he got a few thousand dollars and used the cash to join Milburn.
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It’s a tossup for me between Dubs, Heritage, and Fred Arb. All three are fun, walkable, and have qualities that I think set them apart from the rest.
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The center-line bunker/tree combo is so damn good. Hit the tree dead-on? Have fun, your ball is gonna drop into a bunker
What are the most unwalkable courses in KC? Canyon Farms would be my pick.
