On our way from Lexington to Pawleys Island about a week ago, my father and I stopped by Ballyhack, Lester George's newest project outside of Roanoke, VA. It was the first day for regular rounds, as VaTech football coach Frank Beamer held an outing of about 50 players. Mr. George, along with Jonathan Ireland and Aaron Dooley were as hospitable as could be, allowing my father and me to take a cart and drive around the course. Here are some of the pictures I snapped.
The opening tee shot is pretty visually imposing, which gives a good idea of what's to come.
Number 2 is a par five with tons of options. Standing on the tee, my dad and I debated what might be the right play.
From the left half of the landing area, it seems like a layup closer to the gnarly-looking right-hand bunkers will yield a better angle...
...which is borne out, given this imposing view from the left side of the second landing area.
This big, deep bunker guards the front of the green and is typical of the bunkers at Ballyhack: true hazards.
Number 3 is a par 3 that weighs in at 251 yards from the tips. Luckily, it seems possible to run the ball up, as long as you don't stray too far left.
The 4th is a split-fairway par 4 with a lower and narrower right side, from which the angle is better and the shot is shorter.
Five was a cool hole featuring a blind tee shot with some big turbo-boost slopes. But a severely uphill second to a two-tiered green awaits.
Number 6 is a shortish par four, Cape-style...
7 is a clever par 3 where it's all carry if you go straight at a pin on the right half of the green but it may be possible to bounce it in from the left.
The 8th is probably the narrowest tee shot on the course, with a split fairway and a big tree looming in the stream that guards the landing areas and the green. The aggressive tee shot is over the mountain to the right, it seems.
The front nine closes with a par five where the tee shot should stay short of that bug bunker off to the left, where the fairway pinches in.
The approach is to another two-tiered green, this one a smallish affair with helping slopes at the back. For all the tough bits at Ballyhack, a player can score if he/she takes advantages of certain elements.
The 10th is the second consecutive par five, and a visually dramatic one at that. The green sits up above a copse of deep bunkers with only distant trees and mountains as a backdrop, so perhaps it qualifies as a semi-skyline green?
Number 11 is an uphill par 4 to a green benched into a hillside. I like holes where the player sees everything from the tee, but the green becomes more obscured from the fairway.
12 is a rollicking par 4 to a green guarded by a little pot bunker that is not at all out of place in terms of setting and style.
13 is the first par 3 on the back and the first hole to the massive double green.
14 is a par 4 that seems like a hybrid of holes 6 and 11, with a green similar to that found at number 9.
Number 15 is a par 5 that returns to the double green. A tee shot played to a peninsular part of fairway can provide a look at the green in two. Otherwise, it's most likely a three-shot hole.
The 16th is the longest par 4 on the card, but with a downhill tee shot to a huge fairway, it is less intimidating than others.
The penultimate hole is Ballyhack's shortest, at only about 155 yards from the tips, over a ravine to a smallish (by Ballyhack standards) green.
Finally, the 18th hole at Ballyhack is narrower off the tee than most, but its situation between two hills makes the fairway play wider than it is. Then comes the much talked-about green, of which I'll give you a few shots.
What struck me the most about the golf course is that it seems a consummate members' course. Playing it the first time is probably overwhelming with all the options out there but as one plays it more and more, hole strategies start to come together and things start to make more sense. I like that in a golf course, and I imagine many people will agree.
Tons of pictures, I know. But there are a lot of great views out at Ballyhack, so I didn't want to leave much out. Thanks again to Lester George, Jonathan Ireland, and Aaron Dooley for being so friendly and hospitable to my dad and me on the first really busy day out at Ballyhack. It was as much fun as I've had on a golf course without playing it.
Cheers.
--Tim