Linville Ridge, Linville North Carolina

[cary lichtenstein]

Has anyone played this course and can give me a little feedback?

[John Shimp]

Cary,
Been awhile, but...

Its a very hilly piece of property with lots of great views but not a lot of great holes.  Not a particularly difficult course but nice to play. George Cobb is a solid local designer who is known for building classic straightforward courses (Quail Hollow before extensive TF redo, Bald head island).  Linville Ridge though is kind of blah given the land .  Bunkering is canned, not too memorable overall.  also, the club itself is a bit gaudy in my opinion.  Clubhouse sits far too prominently upon the mtn.  The place is an eye sore for the area really.

Across the street is Grandfather Golf and CC. Down the street is Linville Golf Club.  Both are different from LR and each other.  If possible it would be an easy call to play one of them over Linville Ridge.

[Greg Tallman]

Cary,

Look back to the post where you were asking about a summer mountain club.

Linville Ridge is certaibnly the bottom of the barrel in the area as far as golf goes. Nice club, wonderful clubhouse and views... golf is average at best.

As noted by John - Grandfather is head and shoulders above Linville Ridge in terms of golf and if you reference the other thread was my #1 suggestion to you for a summer mountain club. It is excellent and has always been run well. The presence of Linville Golf Club down the road is a major plus.

Also in the immediate are is Diamond Creek(Fazio) and Elk River(Nicklaus). Though I have not seen Diamond Creek in person(photos only) I would have to suggest it would be better than Elk River which in my opinion is not that good of a golf course, better than Linville Ridge but not great by any stretch of the imagination.

I would classify Grandfather as borderline great... (albeit I would likely have a list of 200 or so in that category).

Linville is a wonderful place in the summer. Highly recommended.  

[Bryan_Pennington]

Cary,

Greg and John are fairly accurate in their assessment of Linville Ridge verses the other options in the Linville area.  However, I have always enjoyed playing Linville Ridge, especially in late summer and early fall, as the conditions are generally excellent.  Linville Ridge is clearly not in the same league of course with Grandfather or Linville CC, but it is a great change of pace and I have always enjoyed the course as a fun place to play.  Go in late September / early October and you will play some of the fastest / firmest greens you will ever play (with lots of movement).  You really should play Linville CC, Linville Ridge, Grandfather and Elk River to judge for yourself.

[Jim Franklin]

Cary -

I have no idea about Linville Ridge, but am playing Grandfather G&CC in a month. I can't wait. When are you going to be there?

Jim

[John Shimp]

I played Diamond Creek 2 wks ago.  It has by far the most difficult set of Fazio greens I have ever played (maybe only 10 fazio courses in my experience though).  The course is kept in fantastic condition and gets little play.  I found driving the ball very easy for the most part but from there on in the course plays tough.  I enjoyed it more than I expected eventhough I didn't play particularly well.

Diamond Creek is a different animal though from the others being discussed.  there is residential potential there but no houses have yet been built.  Membership is small at around 170 now.  Clubhouse and facilities are really nicely done.  The club is far more secluded than the other 4 mentioned here (LR, linville, GGCC, and Elk River). The result is no road noise from 105 which is actually quite an annoyance for LR, Linville, and GGCC, and nice views.  Not the best walking course though.

[Greg Tallman]

John,

The road noise never really bothered me at GGCC, even on my favorite hole... the 15th which is as close as any to the road. Perhaps on the fifth green and sixth tee but other than that it never really bothered me...

As for Diamond Creek I can only assure that you will receive the finest service imaginable from the staff (which used to be at Grandfather)

Jim Franklin - Just remember that if you get above the hole on #3... as Elmer Fudd says be carefully, be very, very careful. Particularly if hole is on the front half of the green.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Cary


How about Fazio's Mountaintop GC in Cashiers?

Any comments from those in the area?

www.mountaintopgolfclub.com/golf/course.php

Steve

[Lawrence Largent]

Linville golf club in my opinion the best in the area followed by Grandfather. Diamond Creek is nothing compared to the hoopla that surrounded the construction of the course. DC is just another high priced beauty course that Fazio sticks his name too. A good friend of mine just played Mountian Top over Labor Day weekend. He said a little more evelation change than the cares for course overall was just so so but the service and little extra things were off the charts. Biltmore Forest in asheville could be one of the greatest hidden gems in the US.

Lawrence

[Allen_Rebstock]

If your looking for a great place to stay and great food while in Linville, check out the Eseola Lodge which gives us access to Linville Golf Club,a don't miss if you are in the area.