Houston Golf Options

[Steve Kohler]

I'll be traveling through the Houston area later this month, with time for just a round or two.  I've never played golf in the area.  I've searched some of the old topics here on GCA, but most discussions are 10+ years old.


Should Memorial Park be at the top of my list?
Is it worth pulling some strings to play Carlton Woods?
Where else would you seek out a fun, interesting round?

[David Ober]

The Fazio Course at Carlton Woods is a blast. Played a tournament there from the tippy tips at just under 7400 yards and it was very playable and fun—even for a short knocker like me.


I highly recommend it.


And it's a chance to play on perfect Zoysia fairways—where every lie is like the ball is on a very short tee.

[Philip Gordillo]

Not an expert in Houston golf by any means but check out Gus Wortham for another public option.  The course is on the former site of the Houston Country Club.  Played it last summer and it was in great shape and the land was surprisingly interesting for the area.

[Steve Lang]

   Steve,


Set up an account for Memorial Park tee time... and good luck, but I'll note that I've historically gone out and just done walk on both before and after the renovation, but that can certainly be risky ... but starters will fill a tee time without hesitating.  Note course is closed Tuesdays, yes you should take it in if possible.


As Philip mentioned, playing the Gus can be fun, and definitely a lot easier to get tee times than Memorial!  Historic place... a little funky locale, but if you're flying into Hobby Airport on south side, its on the way into downtown.  I haven't seen it since Baxter Spann's 2018 reno... (Baxter did previous reno of Memorial back in 1996), have heard some positives but can't confirm like Philip.


If you're flying into/out of IAH on north side, and the timing fits, you may want to consider Cypresswood, Tradition course on immediate north flank of airport off FM1960 to get a taste of convenient Houston golf.     Or on a lark, head east of airport on FM1960 to play Tour 18 in Humble. which you may fly over depending on the wind direction.


You'll need a member for Carlton Woods, Fazio or Nicklaus... or Champions, or Woodlands CC (sorry I'll be out of pocket late Feb early March)...


So next question is where you're working or visiting, "greater Houston" is 40 miles N,S, E, & W from downtown center... sundown is now a little after 6 PM...

[Steve Kohler]

  Steve,


Set up an account for Memorial Park tee time... and good luck, but I'll note that I've historically gone out and just done walk on both before and after the renovation, but that can certainly be risky ... but starters will fill a tee time without hesitating.  Note course is closed Tuesdays, yes you should take it in if possible.


As Philip mentioned, playing the Gus can be fun, and definitely a lot easier to get tee times than Memorial!  Historic place... a little funky locale, but if you're flying into Hobby Airport on south side, its on the way into downtown.  I haven't seen it since Baxter Spann's 2018 reno... (Baxter did previous reno of Memorial back in 1996), have heard some positives but can't confirm like Philip.


If you're flying into/out of IAH on north side, and the timing fits, you may want to consider Cypresswood, Tradition course on immediate north flank of airport off FM1960 to get a taste of convenient Houston golf.     Or on a lark, head east of airport on FM1960 to play Tour 18 in Humble. which you may fly over depending on the wind direction.


You'll need a member for Carlton Woods, Fazio or Nicklaus... or Champions, or Woodlands CC (sorry I'll be out of pocket late Feb early March)...


So next question is where you're working or visiting, "greater Houston" is 40 miles N,S, E, & W from downtown center... sundown is now a little after 6 PM...

Some good recommendations here that I'm looking into.


I'll be in Nacogdoches for a few days for some family obligations.  I have limited free time for that leg of the trip, but have been advised Pine Dunes and Crown Colony are the best options within a reasonable distance of Nac.


I'll be in Houston proper for a couple days as well, staying near the Galleria.  The sprawl and travel times are no joke.  Memorial's tee times 10 days out already look pretty slim/nonexistent.

[JohnVDB]

If you're flying into/out of IAH on north side, and the timing fits, you may want to consider Cypresswood, Tradition course on immediate north flank of airport off FM1960 to get a taste of convenient Houston golf.     Or on a lark, head east of airport on FM1960 to play Tour 18 in Humble. which you may fly over depending on the wind direction.

I was going to recommend the Tradition course also.  I haven’t been there since I worked a Futures Tour event there in 2000, but I remember it as a really interesting course.

[Jeff Shelman]

I don't have a ton to add, but the new Memorial Park seems cool.


Champions is a great vibe and worth trying to see. Carlton Woods Fazio is quite good and fun.

[Steve Lang]

Steve,


From Nac, Crown Colony in Lufkin is definitely closer and barely off 59 on your way south to Houston... has been well regarded over many years and a good Von Hagge/Devlin example,  Can't speak to recent condition but good bones.  If I had to choose, and logistics not an issue, definitely prefer Pine Dunes.


If you're going to be in Galleria area, might as well just try a walk-on at Memorial, even if you just get front 9 in... worst case, head over to Little Pappasitos on Richmond for some fajitas and brochette shrimp...

[Joe Zucker]

I haven't played much in the area, but I would not get too excited for Crown Colony.  I played there in July 2020 and was not too impressed.  There are some interesting holes and the big mature trees have a nice look, but there has been a lot of green shrinkage and it feels really choked off in some areas.  There is a par 5 on the back (15?) that has a diagonal hourglass green between two bunkers where the green has shrunk down considerably.


I would rank it a Doak 4 or 5.  A pleasant course, but a little tired these days.

[Jeff Schley]

Being in energy, a common complaint of colleagues working in Houston is that there are no great classic courses for them to play, much less join as a private.

[Steve Lang]

  Jeff, Your friends looking for this kinda view?1 of 3 A view of the old clubhouse at Houston Country Club when it was at the site of Gus Wortham Golf Course. Courtesy of Houston CC


Ross only built two courses that I know of in TX, Sunset Grove CC in Orange and River Oaks CC in Houston.  Not surprising for an area that in summer is like living in a dog's mouth.  Where do your energy biz friends live and play??


Per the old Dallas tv show,  all the smart/rich oil people lived in Dallas and their dirty refineries were along the Beaumont/Port Arthur to Corpus coastline...


from a forum post:

Old Money

River Oaks— The ultimate old money neighborhood, it’s the richest neighborhood in Texas. This is where ALL the billionaires live, like Houston Bel Air and Beverly Hills rolled into one.

Remington/Broad Oaks/Southhampton—Rice University area of old money

Tanglewood—Old money near The Galleria

Memorial—Massive area of mansions and estates, like Preston Hollow in a Pine Forest, a little like parts of Buckhead West

University/Bellaire—this is yuppie ville, very pretentious but not that impressive.

New Money

The Woodlands—Massive development with some wealthy areas

Sugar Land—Ditto, but with more minorities

Clear Lake/Kemah—Ditto Shout out to Galveston that has tons of Old Money Mansions.

Really Houston only cares about Old Money

Read more: https://www.city-data.com/forum/general-u-s/2741145-you-city-what-neighborhood-does-old-2.html

[Jeff Schley]

Steve,
My friends aren't billionaires that's for sure.
One guy who is a exec. for an oil company lives off Kirby which I think is old money there and very nice neighborhood. The others live in the Woodlands and work in the energy corridor.  They play at Champions, Carlton Woods and then Bluejack on the weekends. 

[Steve Lang]

Jeff,


I'm in The Woodlands too... I can see why they are bored  with those venues, kinda like a diet of Wendy's Doubles and Triples. 


You know, we keep our really new money people locked up behind the gates/fences at both Carlton Woods courses     


Sounds like they need to go down-market a bit to experience some classic regional conditions     

[Tom_Doak]

Ross only built two courses that I know of in TX, Sunset Grove CC in Orange and River Oaks CC in Houston. 

River Oaks was a Ross course?  I went over to see it while we were working on Memorial Park, but it's 99.5% Fazio now.

[David Ober]

Ross only built two courses that I know of in TX, Sunset Grove CC in Orange and River Oaks CC in Houston. 

River Oaks was a Ross course?  I went over to see it while we were working on Memorial Park, but it's 99.5% Fazio now.

Tom, how do you rate the Carlton Woods Nicklaus and Fazo courses? Are they 5/6? 4/5? I prefer the Fazio to the Nicklaus, but I really do enjoy the Fazio course quite a bit.

[Tom_Doak]

Tom, how do you rate the Carlton Woods Nicklaus and Fazo courses? Are they 5/6? 4/5? I prefer the Fazio to the Nicklaus, but I really do enjoy the Fazio course quite a bit.

I haven't seen them.  River Oaks was literally the ONLY other course I saw while we were working on Memorial Park.  I was intending to get up to see Bluejack National [which I'm surprised has not been mentioned here] the week of the Houston Open, but I was having too much fun at the tournament.

[David Ober]

Tom, how do you rate the Carlton Woods Nicklaus and Fazo courses? Are they 5/6? 4/5? I prefer the Fazio to the Nicklaus, but I really do enjoy the Fazio course quite a bit.

I haven't seen them.  River Oaks was literally the ONLY other course I saw while we were working on Memorial Park.  I was intending to get up to see Bluejack National [which I'm surprised has not been mentioned here] the week of the Houston Open, but I was having too much fun at the tournament.

I would be surprised if you didn't really enjoy Carlton Woods Fazio. Nice width off the tee. Playable for all types of players. Doesn't play super firm because of the Zoysia, but it doesn't play soft, either. It's been a while since I played it, but it kind of reminds me of Bandon Trails. Anyone else get that vibe?

[Steve Lang]

David,


You kidding about CW Fazio is like Bandon Trails???  More like a brother to Fazio - Fallen Oak in MS ... 


The CW courses are fun, a treat for most, Doak 5/6's... somewhat big and beefy, designed into the residential corridors provided... while Tiger at BlueJack reused most of the C&C Blaketree bones...

[David Ober]

David,


You kidding about CW Fazio is like Bandon Trails???  More like a brother to Fazio - Fallen Oak in MS ... 


The CW courses are fun, a treat for most, Doak 5/6's... somewhat big and beefy, designed into the residential corridors provided... while Tiger at BlueJack reused most of the C&C Blaketree bones...

Played it only twice in the Carlton Woods Invitational 8 years ago. Just remember loving the place -- and the tournament. The homes seemed to all be far removed from the action except maybe on a couple holes. Had a wonderful woodsy feel to it that on some holes reminded me of Trails -- though in a completely different setting, obviously.


Would definitely not say it's as good as Trails, for sure, just that many of the holes had the same feel to me. Also, if I remember correctly, big greens that were fun to putt and some really excellent holes stood out to me, including the 450 yard 5th,  the 10th, with a tough, uphill approach into the prevailing wind, the 575 yard par 5 11th, the long par 4 15th, the par 3 16th, and the par 5 17th.


Agree that Tom would probably give it a 5 or 6.


Being from Southern California, I don't get to play much golf surrounded by "woods," I'm sure I overstepped with my comparison to Trails -- which is one of my favorite courses ever.

[Phil Burr]

Surprised that the Ross/Fazio discussion re River Oaks skipped over Joe Finger.  Didn’t he design the course there where his routing was subsequently reversed a la Eugene CC?

[Doug Bolls]

I spent a little time last fall playing some Houston courses - I play mostly public access courses.
Wilderness GC in Lake Jackson is on my list - a Jeff Brauer course that gets very good ratings.
I enjoyed Longwood GC in cypress (NW Houston) - 27 holes in and among the pine trees.
If you're interested in playing where the PGA played, Golf Club of Houston in Humble hosted the Houston Open - it's public.  A little long for me - and frankly kind of boring for my taste - not much variety hole to hole.  I enjoyed it but wouldn't go back.
Blackhorse club in Cypress looks interesting - their website leads me to look out for mucho water.
 

[Angus Moir]

I went to college here a few years ago...


Walden on Lake Conroe was memorable


Lochinvar if you know someone


Bear Creek muni was a good test


Champions if you know someone


Cheers

[Lou_Duran]

Memorial is my #1 priority in the Houston area.  Hope to play it in 2021,


I think that Carlton Woods is one of the top 36-hole private clubs in the nation.  Haven't played the Nicklaus course since it was renovated.  The update to the Fazio course was very good.


Westwood flies under the radar.


I'm pretty sure that Bear Creek closed following the last big flood and has not re-opened.


Crown Colony was once the highest rated course in Texas by the Dallas Morning News.  Residential development and lower maintenance budgets have had an impact, but it is still of consequence.


Ditto for Pine Dunes in terms of where it once was and what I experienced in 2019 when I was there last.  If travel time is a consideration, I'd give CC the nod.


Have no idea how the weather of the past 10 days will impact playability for the rest of the month.   

[Casey Wade]

Hey!  Don't forget us lonely public golf course near Bluejack!  High Meadow Ranch!  Steve Lang has played here many times!  We aren't near the Galleria, maybe 40-45 minutes.

[Lou_Duran]

Hey!  Don't forget us lonely public golf course near Bluejack!  High Meadow Ranch!  Steve Lang has played here many times!  We aren't near the Galleria, maybe 40-45 minutes.

Wow, here's a voice from a long time ago.  Hope all is well.  HMR is definitely worth the drive.  How are things there?