Best golf course creeks?

[Brad Wilbur]

I love the way creeks wind their way through a course, playing with your mind.  What would you consider the best usage of a creek on a course?  The creek at Marion lost a little of it's impact by the super long rough, but it still caught a few balls.  Wolf Point seems to make great use of it's creek, and I really like the 18th at Quail Hollow in Charlotte.

[Howard Riefs]

Rae's Creek at ANGC.

[Jason Thurman]

The Sheboygan River running through Blackwolf Run's courses is my favorite. It's not necessarily as influential to play as Rae's Creek, but it lurks on an awful lot of holes and it's pretty great watching fishermen and kayakers lining the course throughout the round. It's the only time I've ever played golf and been just a little jealous of people who aren't playing at the time.

[Mark McKeever]

Cobbs Creek running through Cobbs Creek GC creates some really goood holes!  

MM

[Dan Herrmann]

Mark - I've heard rumors that it's pretty good at Merion too!

I like the Conestoga River at Lancaster.

[Lou_Duran]

Muirfield Village has several creeks with running (pumped) water that are aesthetically pleasing as well as being an integral part of playing the course (they just don't flank one side of the fairway away from the playing areas).

I liked the way the large stream plays on the backside of Glen Abbey for several holes starting on the second shot of #10.  Great trout stream I am told.  The CC of the Rockies also has a cool stream which is supposed to be world-class for fly fishing.

[Terry Lavin]

The Sheboygan River running through Blackwolf Run's courses is my favorite. It's not necessarily as influential to play as Rae's Creek, but it lurks on an awful lot of holes and it's pretty great watching fishermen and kayakers lining the course throughout the round. It's the only time I've ever played golf and been just a little jealous of people who aren't playing at the time.

I totally agree with the sentiment, but it's a real river, not a creek.

[Bill Seitz]

I've always liked the creek at the Victoria Club in Riverside.  Comes into play on six or seven holes, and is in the picture (though not really in play) on a handful of others.  It cuts across the fairway on the 4th, 14th, 15th, and 18th holes, which used to make for some good strategic decisions, and led to some good pin placements on 18.  

They used to have problems with erosion on #14, but I think they've fixed that.  It's the same creek that runs through Canyon Crest CC, which sits to the west and a little higher than Victoria, but I think there's a small dam in between, which mean that CCCC would always flood in heavy rains, while Vic remained generally OK.  

[Kyle Casella]

The back nine at Loch Lomond in Scotland has a few creeks/burns that I always enjoyed. Perhaps the best is on 14, which is a short par 4 with an option to either hit a 200 yard shot as a layup or attempt to carry ~245 yards to the fairway just in front of the green. Either way, although with very different angles, you have the burn to contend with on your second shot into the green after laying up or on the carry if you try to drive the green.

The same burn also runs through 13, creating a tough decision on where to layup if you do not hit a good drive, and 10, which is an outstanding hole, before running into the loch. There is also a nice creek on the par 4/5 16th.

http://goo.gl/maps/uMz5E (google maps link to the par 4 14th)

[Bill Shamleffer]

If a burn classifies as the same as a creek, then Carnoustie.

St. Louis Country Club has a very good creek that comes into play for the 5th, 8th & 9th holes.

On the 5th, the creek fronts the green of this short par-5 with a punch bowl green.

On the 8th, the creek borders the right side of the fairway all the way to the green and then wraps around the back of the green.  The tee shot is from an elevated tee to a dogleg right fairway so that the creek comes into play in deciding how much to try to cut the corner or fade the ball around the corner, and then the creek comes into play for the approach shot to the green.

On the 9th the creek will punish a poorly hit 2nd shot on this par-5 as the creek cuts across the fairway diagonally from left to right moving closer to the green on the right, just short of the layup spot.

[Mike Schott]

The creek that runs through many of the fairways on the front at Belvedere Golf Club is an important element to that course. I believe it's in play on 4 holes.

[Joe Bausch]

Hidden Creek.

 

[Carl Johnson]

I love the way creeks wind their way through a course, playing with your mind.  What would you consider the best usage of a creek on a course?  The creek at Marion lost a little of it's impact by the super long rough, but it still caught a few balls.  Wolf Point seems to make great use of it's creek, and I really like the 18th at Quail Hollow in Charlotte.

Brad, do you understand that the "creek" on 18 at Quail Hollow is not a natural creek, but rather a man made, recirculating water feature?  I'm not questioning it's look or its contribution to the stategy of the hole - just want to make sure you understand that the "creek" was put there by man (when 18 was redesigned a number of years ago, as I recall, because I do not remember it as part of the original hole).

[Mark McKeever]

How about the Conestoga River running though Lancaster CC?  It certainly creates a couple of fun forced carries!

Mark

[Bill_McBride]

The two creeks that run through the Valley Club of Montecito are in play on a number of holes:  2, 3, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14.  It's a deep, nasty ravine and not anything you can climb into and play out of.   Dr Mackenzie made great use of the creeks.  

The same is true at Pasatiempo, where the back nine is all about the barrancas.  10, 11  , 12, 14 in the guise of a grassy swale, 15, 16, 17 and 18.  Only 13 is not affected but maybe if you drove it far enough left.........

[jonathan_becker]

My favorite is the use of Blacklick Creek at The Golf Club on the 5th and 6th holes.

[Chris Roselle]

The Saucon Creek runs through quite a few holes on the Weyhill Course at Saucon Valley.  It not only comes into play on a number of holes but also looks stunning.

[PGertner]

Kirtland CC

[Patrick_Mucci]

Wilshire's brilliant use of a creek far outstrips anything I've seen.

Merion's use of a creek is fairly limited and not unique, when compared to Wilshire.
The same can probably be said about ANGC.

While the use of a creek at those two courses is creative, it pales in scope, to Wilshire's use of a creek.

[HarryBrinkerhoffDoyleIV_aka_Barry]

Shoal Creek

[Eric_Terhorst]

Brad, do you understand that the "creek" on 18 at Quail Hollow is not a natural creek, but rather a man made, recirculating water feature?  I'm not questioning it's look or its contribution to the strategy of the hole - just want to make sure you understand that the "creek" was put there by man (when 18 was redesigned a number of years ago, as I recall, because I do not remember it as part of the original hole).

Carl, in discussing "creeks" as a design element of a golf hole, why do feel compelled to distinguish between man-made and natural?  After all, I suspect Rae's Creek is far different today due to the hand of man than it was when R.T. Jones first laid eyes on it.  

Whatever the origin of the water feature on the 18th at Quail Hollow, I agree with Brad that for its size it seems to have a remarkably powerful effect on the top-notch players who deal with it once a year.  Seems to be a well-designed and interesting golf hole--no difference to me if it was bulldozed in or there from geologic time...

[Tim Gavrich]

I really like the way Tom Fazio used creeks/rivers on a number of holes at Treyburn in Durham, NC. Same is true of Ross and Dye at the two Sedgefield courses. Boy, John McConnell must love creeks on golf courses!

[Thomas Dai]

How about the Barry Creek, whoops, Barry Burn at Carnoustie?
All the best.

[Brian Colbert]

At Butler National, Salt Creek (and tributaries) creates several shots which range from intimidating to absolutely terrifying.

[Bart Bradley]

Grandfather has some beautiful mountain creeks