Valhalla

[Mike H]

I just got back from playing Valhalla GC for the first time and I came away very impressed.  I thought there was a lot of variety between the holes and it was a challenge yet very fair.  What is everyones opinions on Valhalla?

[Matt_Ward]

Mike:

When you say "impressed" -- can you give a 1-10 number with 10 being perfect ?

One other thing -- would you have Valhalla among your personal top ten courses ?

Final question -- have you played other Nicklaus courses and how do they stand when held against Valhalla ?


thanks,

[Mike H]

Matt

First off I have not played a ton of upper echelon courses but I am trying to change that so I would give Valhalla a 7.  I have been keeping a list of top courses I have played and I would have Valhalla as my 5th favorite course thus far.  I have played other Nicklaus courses and would rank it behind Muirfield Village of the ones I have played.  I felt it had a different feel off the tee than other Nicklaus courses I have played.  It seemed like there is more of a risk reward off the tee as you could try to hug a side of the hole but typically that side would have more trouble.

[Andy Troeger]

I think Valhalla gets a bit of a bad rap because it was the "4th major" course in 2000 along with Augusta, Pebble, and The Old Course. While it may not match up to that trio, I think its a very strong course. Having played quite of few of Nicklaus' designs, I have Valhalla at #3 behind Muirfield Village and Castle Pines. I think there are probably a couple others that I haven't seen that I would put ahead of it as well. I think its a very reasonable course for the bottom half of the US Top 100.  With all that said, its probably a better course for the good player than the average/weak one, but you can say that about the vast majority of major championship venues. Most of the holes do offer alternative routes that don't have forced carries, with a couple exceptions.

[Steve Kline]

I've played it 3 or 4 times (several times before the Ryder Cup renovations and once since) now and I would give it a 6 or so out of 10. It doesn't even sniff my top 25. There a couple of holes I really like (2, 15). Most of the rest are okay but nothing spectacular. The holes (more like greens) that were altered for the Ryder Cup are downright awful. They are soooooo out of character with the rest of the course. And, the changes to the 6th hole are dreadful. We played one up from the tips and you had to nut a drive and then hit hybrid or 3 wood. But no matter what tees you played from you were going to have 210-240 yards to the green. In the latest renovation the green had pushed back something like 50 yards. The member I played with said everyone hates the hole now because it is extremely difficult with no options for playing it more easily.

It's usually in good condition and much better than my home club so I typically play it whenever I'm asked. However, the member (who is a vendor for my company) just took me to French Lick for three days of golf with the opportunity to play Valhalla at the end and I passed even though it was directly on my way home from French Lick. My vendor is also a member at a really cool nine course in Louisville called Owl Creek, which I'd like to get back to before Valhalla.

Mike - I'd choose to play at your club, NCR, before choosing to play at Valhalla.

[Ronald Montesano]

I presume that, since Valhalla is a high-end, private facility, the great shining bear himself was on site with frequency.  I played a new course of his firm this summer, where I was told he made not one visit.  Guess what?  The course probably benefited from his absence.

That stated, I have always like what I've seen of the Norse Kingdom on television, both in PGA champ and Ryder Cup play.

[Jon Spaulding]

I enjoyed the course, from a test of golf standpoint, not a beard pulling standpoint. I'd give it a Doak 6, better than average Nicklaus.

The property on the front side is quite good, the back seemed like an odd choice. Put the 2 together and one comes away with a sense that the course could have been better.

Most importantly, and at the end of the day, playing here really beats hanging out with Mayhugh if you're in that area.