Report: GCA O'Bannon Creek

[John Pflum]

After was seemed like an eternity of effort and many many email messages back and forth I was finally able to meet up with "JAL", another GCAer here in the Cincinnati area.  We played O'Bannon Creek on the east side of town which used to be JAL's home course during high school. 

We had a nice, leisurely 3 hr 15 minute round.  There were a couple of birdies and a couple of "ugh, I just puked all over myself" holes but the company was great. 

JAL -- thanks for making the drive down.  I had a blast.   We will have to do it again.  I'll let you know when I have a free Sunday to make it up to Weatherwax.  I'll be interested to see how your game changes with a new driver.  The only really bad shots you hit were with that old thing. 

[JLahrman]

Thanks although for the record my shank from the sixth fairway was hit with a 4-iron, not a driver.  Also, my three-putt on #13 was executed with the putter.

Thanks again for having me, my first GCAer I've met in person.  It's good to know there are real people behind the names, and my laptop isn't just inventing all of these posts...

[John Pflum]

Thanks although for the record my shank from the sixth fairway was hit with a 4-iron, not a driver.  Also, my three-putt on #13 was executed with the putter.

Thanks again for having me, my first GCAer I've met in person.  It's good to know there are real people behind the names, and my laptop isn't just inventing all of these posts...

Yeah, well, I didn't see the shank so it never happened.  :-)  An 13 is a hole I think we would both like to have over again.  If I had played it like a person with a brain I would have saved myself at least two strokes. 

[Doug Sobieski]

John:

Sorry I couldn't make it to join you!! We'll find a day that works in the future.

Sobe

[Jeff Shelman]

How is O'Bannon Creek? That was one place in the 'Nati that I didn't play when I lived there.

[John Pflum]

John:

Sorry I couldn't make it to join you!! We'll find a day that works in the future.

Sobe

We'll have that pound-for-pound contest yet.  :-)  FTR -- I had one that was 2.07 yds/pound the other day.  Of course, I also had one that was .39 too. 

[John Pflum]

How is O'Bannon Creek? That was one place in the 'Nati that I didn't play when I lived there.

(Standard disclaimer applies:  I'm just a golfer and not an expert (or even a novice really) on architecture.)

O'Bannon is a solid golf course.  It isn't going to bowl you over with spectacular holes but is it a good all around course.  The par threes are probably the strength of the course.  There are a lot of holes where you pick your strategy off the tee -- not every par 4 (or even par 5 depending on how you want to play) is an automatic driver.  The course is always in great shape.  The greens are typically a medium speed and well maintained.  It's a very easy course to walk with really only one longish (100 yard) walk to the next tee and two hills of any consequence.  A few of the holes (2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, and 14) provide a big course knowledge advantage.  That is probably the biggest drawback of the course. 

IMO, considering price, quality, facilities, etc. O'Bannon is probably one of the best private clubs in town. 

[JLahrman]

How is O'Bannon Creek? That was one place in the 'Nati that I didn't play when I lived there.

Short but interesting.  John and were discussing why it makes a good home course.  You wouldn't call the tee shots blind, but on a lot of them (1, 3, 6, 8, 9, 13, 14, 17) you cannot see the green from the tee.  A fairly strong set of par 3s as well.

[John Pflum]

Short but interesting.  

Ha!!  Short for a long hitter like you.  Not us normal humans.  :-)

[JLahrman]

Perhaps, but every course gets interesting when I pull out my driver.  Come on now, card says 6536 from the blacks and 6063 from the blues.  It did feel longer than 6100 though, I'm sure being a par 70 with five par 3s has something to do with that.

[John Pflum]

Agreed.  5 par threes and 3 par fives.  Turn one of those par threes into a par 5 and you have a course in the 6400 yard range.