Great tour, Jeff. It made me feel almost like a member!
That's a little bit of a joke, as the Minnesota GCAers know. Following Jeff's lead (and succumbing to a too-good-to-pass-up Fall Tryout offer from the club), I, too, have joined Midland Hills -- at least temporarily.
If I decide, in the end, not to join, it will be a matter of time and money.
It will have NOTHING to do with the golf course, which I really, really like. It gets way too little respect, even in the Twin Cities. I liked it when I first played it (w/ Rick Shefchik, in a scramble about 15 years ago), and I like it better now.
It's a blast to play. It's a good walk, with tees and greens all closely adjacent (except 9 green and 10 tee). It allows the Ground Game on about 15 holes. It isn't overly punitive to wayward tee shots (but has just enough trees, as Morgan observed, to make life interesting). Its greens are nicely varied in size and shape and types. It has quite a few greenside bunkers that will require real skill once you're in them. You won't spend much time hunting for balls at Midland Hills (except in the fall, with the leaves on the ground).
After three plays, my only real "criticism" (tentative) is that I wish there were more hazards off the tee, such as the bunkers on 11 (a really, really good hole).
There's a lot yet to be said about the course (a very sporty course with, to my eyes, extraordinary Shot Values), but for now, I just want to note something I observed today, while driving to Racine, Wisconsin, for my daughter Rose's final college conference tournament:
Midland has four par-5s -- Nos. 5, 6, 10, and 17. They head, in order, essentially north, south, east and west.
Midland has four par-3s -- Nos. 4, 7, 12, and 16. They head, in order, essentially south, east, west and north.
Addressing a couple of points made above:
The tree on 8 is a beautiful tree and simply adds to the charm of the hole. If it weren't there, everyone would aim right at the place where it sits.. With it there, one has to choose right of tree or left of tree (at least those of us with a low ball flight must choose).
And as for the green on 8: I hit to the back of that green with a wedge a couple of weeks ago. The pin was front right. I tapped the ball ... which ended up going 70 yards back down the fairway. Greatest miss on a putt for me, ever.
To Jason's question: Is it possible to run it up through the Biarritz valley? Yes. Jeff and I played the hole last night, from the back tee. Both of us hit driver. His carried just over the valley and stopped about 25 feet short. My low knockdown ran through the valley and stopped about 25 feet short.
Alas, neither of us made the putt.