[Tim Leahy]

Watching Womens NCAA team champs and golf course looks awesome and very difficult. Anybody play it? I know it is RT Jones Jr and Hanse and can be stretched to 7900 yds. It is listed as private but is it hard to get on. Greens looked frightenely fast.

[Buck Wolter]

Watching Womens NCAA team champs and golf course looks awesome and very difficult. Anybody play it? I know it is RT Jones Jr and Hanse and can be stretched to 7900 yds. It is listed as private but is it hard to get on. Greens looked frightenely fast.

I think the redesign was Kyle Phillips not Hanse

[Jay Mickle]

Now dislike trees in the middle of fairways even more. I came in late but it seemed that the green complex and fairway width were sufficient to require a well considered drive in order to have a good angle to the green.

[Paul Carey]

18 looks like a very good golf hole with a number of options off the tee.

[Dave McCollum]

Originally built in 2004 RTJ, Jr. and already redesigned?  And those slope ratings near 150?  I don't know the story, but speculation suggests an extreme site, a misguided developer, or some other major obstacles.  Don't expect this place to get many nominations to the custodians list.   

[Dan Herrmann]

Originally built in 2004 RTJ, Jr. and already redesigned?  And those slope ratings near 150?  I don't know the story, but speculation suggests an extreme site, a misguided developer, or some other major obstacles.  Don't expect this place to get many nominations to the custodians list.

Many courses across the country are dealing with crazy amounts of rain these years.   I give them a pass.   You can have great drainage but continual and constant rain during hot spells = turf damage. 

[Conley Hurst]

I've played the course a few times, but not since the Kyle Phillips renovation. From what I can tell from Google Earth, the renovation was mostly cosmetic with a couple of routing changes to make it more walkable.


The course was built by John Tyson of Tyson's foods. He told RTJ Jr. that he wanted to build the toughest course in the world. He came pretty close. Rumor has it that the course has been adjusted every few years to make it a little more forgiving. The original design was so brutal that they had a hard time attracting and retaining members.


It's fun to play every once in a while in a masochist kind of way. 

[Tommy Williamsen]

Does anyone know how the club got its name? I couldn't find anything. I guess it is a blessing if the player survives the round on such a difficult golf course.

[Michael Whitaker]

Does anyone know how the club got its name? I couldn't find anything. I guess it is a blessing if the player survives the round on such a difficult golf course.

From an interview with owner, Johnny Tyson...

“Tyson: A lot of people ask me that. When we were putting it together there were a lot of recommendations — Oak trees, Walnut trees and creeks. Then somebody suggested calling it Blessings, and I asked why Blessings? Blessings of being outside. Blessings to be with your friends. Blessings to walk in nature and the blessings to play the great game of golf. So I think we’re really blessed to be able to host the NCAA Championships.”

[Keith Phillips]

Watching this playoff between Clemson and SMU.  #1 looks like the worst hole I've ever seen - 470 par 4 with hazards left and right off the tee, and a hazard left of the green - hardly a gentle handshake!

[jeffwarne]

Watching this playoff between Clemson and SMU.  #1 looks like the worst hole I've ever seen - 470 par 4 with hazards left and right off the tee, and a hazard left of the green - hardly a gentle handshake!

If some clueless owner wants to build and operate such a course-great.
Why in the world would the NCAA's be held there..?


Oh yeah-I forgot
to "test" the players
awful
seeing balls continously rolling off into shite around the greens
and wetland/wilderness everywhere.
I'm going to puke if I hear the words "penalty area" again


Heavy sigh.
The USGA doddering fools shold be required to walk and carry 36 there before they meet to maybe reign in the equipment and avoid such perceived awfulness to "test" modern players
and given the property, maybe the multiple architects might've checked a little bit of their "creativity" at the door

[mike_beene]

A friend of mine went to support the Baylor team, without success. However, it was so steep a lady rolled down a hill and broke her arm. The walks were often around ravines and down into low areas. Tyson supposedly wants to go past 8000. A good way to kill golf. I don't watch golf to see constant drops.

[Jim Franklin]

I've played the course a few times, but not since the Kyle Phillips renovation. From what I can tell from Google Earth, the renovation was mostly cosmetic with a couple of routing changes to make it more walkable.


The course was built by John Tyson of Tyson's foods. He told RTJ Jr. that he wanted to build the toughest course in the world. He came pretty close. Rumor has it that the course has been adjusted every few years to make it a little more forgiving. The original design was so brutal that they had a hard time attracting and retaining members.


It's fun to play every once in a while in a masochist kind of way.

Tyson sounds like a fun guy to be around. Hard pass on The Blessings.

[Brad Tufts]

Among the masochist layouts, at least Koolau looks breathtakingly beautiful...this one is in the woods in Arkansas... 

[Robert Mercer Deruntz]

I cannot think of a better example of the definition and essence of a grade--- Doak 0!

[Ed Oden]

This isn't course related, but a quick shout out to fellow GCAer John Shimp, whose son Henry delivered the clinching point for Stanford yesterday.  Well done Henry and congratulations John, I'm sure you are very proud!

[John Blain]

John Cook interviewed Henry Shimp after he won his match and he is a very impressive young man, extremely well spoken. I'm betting he has a bright future ahead of him either playing golf or otherwise.

[Matthew Rose]

I read this thread, then looked up the course on Google Maps.

15 minutes later, I had a promoted tweet for Tyson chicken products show up in my Twitter feed.

The weird thing is that I didn't search for it; I found it manually.

[Lou_Duran]

This isn't course related, but a quick shout out to fellow GCAer John Shimp, whose son Henry delivered the clinching point for Stanford yesterday.  Well done Henry and congratulations John, I'm sure you are very proud!

I was wondering if that was John's son.  Appears to be a fine young man and an excellent golfer.  Though I was rooting for Texas- have been watching the Coody twins for years- I was impressed the way Mr. Shimp came right back after skanking the pitch shot into the creek.  Those top three Stanford players were very impressive.


As to Blessings, I played it before the latest renovation and found it to be among the most difficult courses I've ever played.  It compared to Winged Foot- West in difficulty, and made Bethpage- Black seem like a club course.  The course has some interesting terrain and a variety of natural features, but I don't know how it can be softened to be more fun.


Mr. Tyson is a force.  I thought after playing it- he was around the day I was there and is reportedly involved in most details- whether the course was a bit of a self-portrait.  I look forward to returning; I hear good things regarding the renovation.

[Kalen Braley]

This course was on TV again last night for an NCAA event.  It looked pretty good from the few holes I caught at the end of the telecast with plenty of width. I'm guessing the challenge is around the greens?  Anyone have any pics of the place?

[Conley Hurst]

This course was on TV again last night for an NCAA event.  It looked pretty good from the few holes I caught at the end of the telecast with plenty of width. I'm guessing the challenge is around the greens?  Anyone have any pics of the place?

Here is a hole-by-hole:


https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2019/may/17/hole-story/


The greens are definitely challenging. There are also severe hazards in play on pretty much every hole. Not much width to speak of, with a couple of exceptions. The average golfer will likely lose several balls on any given day. The course's raison d'ętre is to be as difficult as possible.

[Tim Gavrich]

Good lord - four (!!!!) rated tee boxed from which the Slope is 150 or more.


The figures from the tips: 80.9/155. But don't worry, it's a par 73 from those tees (72 from most of the others).

[Conley Hurst]

The figures from the tips: 80.9/155. But don't worry, it's a par 73 from those tees (72 from most of the others).

Are there any courses that carry a higher course rating from the tips? The Ocean Course is 77.2 and it's often touted as the most difficult in the US.

[mike_beene]

Does 1 cross 18?

[Mark Kiely]

Does 1 cross 18?

Yes. I remember watching the NCAAs live and thought the course looked like a lot of fun. Never a dull moment.

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