We are making the same trip at the end of July and looking forward to it. Played mid south and talamore in November and conditions were brutal.
Definitely need to come check out holly ridge man, it’s one of the top sleeper courses in the triad I think.
I would add River’s Edge to Sunset list. It’s my favorite in that area.
Have you played it lately or know what condition its been in? I’m going that same weekend and I’m pretty sure that is where I’m going to play. Do you have any pointers about the course?
Second Holly Ridge—that’s in my rota of courses to play when I visit family in Jamestown (Jamestown, HR, Bryan Park).
Are you asking about Rivers Edge? I played it last week and it was in decent shape. Not great but certainly playable.
Yes, Rivers Edge.
Played Farmstead 3 weeks ago for $45 bucks at 1 pm on a Saturday- didn’t see one person for 18 holes, such a treat. They punched the greens earlier that week so it should be prime when you go. Such a nice change of pace not having any houses on the course- unique for this area!
Do you like Farmstead or River’s Edge better?
Curiousity for my Charlotte folks - grew up playing Raintree CC when I was young. What’s the perception of the course/membership/vibe out there? Been a few years since I’ve been there so just wondering.
Anyone here a member at Prestonwood in Cary? I was a member at Duke last year, but a friend is moving down from Boston to Apex and we’re considering joining Prestonwood since it would be pretty much equidistant for us (I’m in Durham). It seems like a pretty decent deal, but I heard that it’s really busy and tough to get a tee time. Anyone have thoughts on that or the club in general?
I don’t know how hard it is to get a tee time on there but it’s not real cheap to join. When I inquired last year, it was $20K initiation and $595/month.
I looked into joining there recently and came very close, ended up joining elsewhere. I spoke with a couple of different people who worked at Raintree and they were really great, helpful, and even offered me a virtual tour - the only ones to do so. A brother of a friend of mine joined around that time and has been very happy with it - he hasn’t found single area to complain about.
All in all, I think I would have joined Raintree if it wasn’t for the location - no way am I dealing with Providence Road multiple times a week!
dizzamn
If you’re under 40 it’s 10k (or 600/year) and $357 per month
I’ve played the Preston courses, but my favorite course in Cary is MacGregor Downs. I’m biased since I worked there for a number of years, but even in high school before I worked there I liked the MacGregor course better. Obviously a different sort of club, smaller membership and only 1 18 hole course. They may be on a wait list for membership at this point though, back when I worked there they got bought by Concert Golf, and their thing is smaller clubs. Might be worth at least an inquiry to see if it fits what you’re looking for.
Concert also owns 12 Oaks in Raleigh, so I’d also ask about reciprocal access, I imagine they probably have something set up so you can travel to their other clubs.
If you’re looking for a more coastal feel, Rivers Edge definitely gets the edge with the backdrop on the Shallotte River. 9 (Arnie’s Revenge- brutal par 5), 17 and 18 are beautiful holes running along the river. A fair amount of blind shots make it somewhat fluky the first time you play it, but it’s a fun, beautiful layout. Farmstead is a more traditional layout with the whole course right there in front of you, and the Par 6 18th hole where you tee off in South Carolina and the green is in North Carolina.
The views and surroundings of Rivers Edge from their website are what got me. The fact that there are a lot of blind shots kind of turn me off; if I knew I would play it more than once on this trip I wouldn’t care, but one round this is a negative. I could do some pre-round research/buy the yardage book to combat this.
If you grab a yardage book, you’ll be perfectly fine. Enjoy!
Wow, that’s surprising. If you’re going to drop that kind of money there are several places around town that are much better from both a course and social aspect that are in the same ballpark and/or cheaper. I’ve only played one round at Raintree and i wasn’t a huge fan.
I think that number was for Prestonwood, raintree doesn’t have a high initiation fee if I recall, maybe a couple thousand