Callaway Gardens--Mountain View: Pine Mountain, GA

[Tim Gavrich]

The Washington & Lee Generals will be charging back into battle March 3-4 down in south Georgia at this former PGA Tour Stop.  I found a few posts here from the past that tout it as a very good golf course--likely one of Dick Wilson's best efforts.  Unfortunately, the Callaway Gardens website doesn't seem to have much in the way of course information or pictures.  The Google aerial makes it seem like there's a lot of sand out there.

Any comments/pictures out there?

Thanks very much.

--Tim

[J_McKenzie]

Tim,

Played at Callaway last year and the Mountain View course is really good.  It's generous off the tee and there is a lot of challenge in the greens.  I don't remember thinking there was an over abundance of bunkers and the par 3's are all very interesting.  Great flow and variety.  The other course, Lake View, is also fun, although fairly short, but I thought it had some very cool greens as well. 

We were there on a golf package and although the food and service were not exceptional, they weren't all that bad and overall we thought it was a great value.  We would certainly go back.  Sorry I don't have any photos.

John

[BCrosby]

Tim -

You will enjoy Dick Wilson's Mountain Course. I've played it off and on for 25 years.

The par 3's are very good, the par 5's are better. Each presents interesting second shot choices, especially as far as you and your buddy Joe Gibson hit it. Lot's of very good holes.

I've wondered why there wasn't more movement in the greens. I'd guess it has to do with it being a resort course.

The course is a reminder of how good Dick Wilson could be. It's a shame his career was so short and plagued with so many personal issues.

Enjoy. Give my best to Joe.

Bob

[David Whitmer]

Tim,

I have been playing Mountain View numerous times a year for the last 20 or so years, so I have literally logged somewhere around 200 rounds there. I absolutely love not just the golf course, but the entire Callaway Gardens resort.

Mountain View is a great track. It does not have a large number of bunkers, but the bunkers it does have are mostly large, and very deep. The greens don't have a whole lot of movement (probably because it is a resort course, as Bob said), but there are still spots where you need to be careful. The par 3s are outstanding, with a great deal of variety. When I go there, I usually hit a 5-iron to #5, an 8-iron to #8, a 6-iron to #12, and a 3-wood or 3-iron to #16. 

It is a laid-back, friendly place, and the people there are just too nice (Southern hospitality at its finest). Please feel free to contact me should you have any other questions about it, as I know the golf course and the resort like the back of my hand!

David
dwhitmer@whitmercpa.com

[Gary Daughters]

Tim,

I played Mountain View today and thoroughly enjoyed the course.  I took my camera, but wouldn't you know the thing just wouldn't run on dead batteries.

Anyway I was very impressed with just what a solid course it is.  Has a classic sort of feel to it.  The front nine in particular seem to fit the the terrain perfectly.  Fairways are wider than I had expected.  Greens are quite small with lots of deep bunkers.  I was in quite of few of them but enjoyed hitting out of the coarse sand.  Tees and greens are over-seeded (greens putted perfectly and there's enough tilt and roll to make them interesting).  Dormant bermuda fairways were thin and did cause me some problems.

If you don't have a chance to play a practice round, be very careful with #15.  For a "signature" hole it is out of character with the rest of the course.  From a design standpoint I found it problematic.

There's a new practice complex which is pretty cool.  Clubhouse has a nifty outdoor porch with a nice view of the outstanding first hole.

Good luck.

[Tim Gavrich]

Bump!

It's that time of the year again.  The Generals will be playing in the Callaway Collegiate Invitational this coming Monday and Tuesday, March 2-3 at Callaway Gardens.  As far as Division III goes, this is about as good a field as will be seen in any tournament this year, save for the Nationall Championship in May.  Among the teams in action will be #1 Huntingdon College, #2 Methodist University, #6 Oglethorpe University, #7 Uni. of Texas-Tyler, #10 Texas Lutheran, #11 Rhodes College, #13 Emory University, #14 Greensboro College, and three other top-30 teams, as well as the Generals, who sit at #58 through the Fall season but are looking to reassert ourselves as an elite team.  If you're free and in the area, it should make for some exciting golf.

Also, the input of anyone with insights about The Mountain View course at Callaway Gardens would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

--Tim Gavrich

[PCCraig]

I played the course a couple of times around 2000.

I don't remember details, just that I liked the course alot and that it reminded me of a hilly Cog Hill #4. It's a nice time of the year to be in GA!