Advice on Great Southern Golf Club

[Andy Stamm]

Does anyone know how Great Southern Golf Club is in Biloxi? Was it hit by Katrina? Has it come back? Most of all, is it worth a play if in the area? I'll call tomorrow, to ask the shop, but I'm hoping someone has some intel.

Thanks.

[Bill_McBride]

Andy, I live less than two hours east and have played most of the courses over there, haven't heard of Great Southern.

The courses I would recommend are Grand Bear (Nicklaus), Shell Landing (Davis Love) and The Preserve (Jerry Pate).  I hear good things about Fallen Oak but "affordable" isn't one.

[Mark Saltzman]

In my travels to Biloxi I have played many courses in the area, but I haven't heard of Great Southern either.  I really enjoyed Fallen Oak, but as Bill pointed out, it's pretty pricey (and I think you have to stay at the Beau Rivage to play there, but this may no longer be the case).

If I had to pick one course, I would probably pick The Preserve.  Lots of nice elevation changes, and some interesting short par 4s.

Hope this helps,

Mark

[Jeff Zeagler]

I played it pre-Katrina and found it to be pretty forgettable.  Course has a lot of nostalgia (PGA tournament held there in the 40's or 50's) but when we played it the course was in very poor condition and quite short.  Perhaps Katrina offered an opportunity for a "re-do".  Sits across the street from the Gulf of Mexico.

[Andy Stamm]

Thanks all for the advice.

I'm not even sure the course is still in existence. I'll update when I have more info.

The course is/was actually in Gulfport, so not exactly Biloxi. The club was started in 1908 and supposedly updated by Donald Ross in the 1920s. Here's a quote I found:

In 1999, Great Southern was renovated by Brian Curly, who took pains to keep Ross' square greens

So we'll see...

[Sam Morrow]

In my travels to Biloxi I have played many courses in the area, but I haven't heard of Great Southern either.  I really enjoyed Fallen Oak, but as Bill pointed out, it's pretty pricey (and I think you have to stay at the Beau Rivage to play there, but this may no longer be the case).

If I had to pick one course, I would probably pick The Preserve.  Lots of nice elevation changes, and some interesting short par 4s.

Hope this helps,

Mark

Where was the elevation change at The Preserve? The course had a couple of cool short holes but overall I didn't think that much of it. I wish I'd played Shell Landing instead.

[Mark Saltzman]

Sam,

Just going from memory, I remember a nice uphill dogleg right par five on the front (4 or 5) and then 10 was well downhill, 18 well uphill.  Maybe I shouldn't have used the word "lots," but there are certainly "some" nice elevation changes.

[Andy Stamm]

I've done some more research, and the club is open. It was hit by the storm but has been repaired. I don't know the extent of the damage or repairs. I may play it because I'm close and it's old and cheap. It was started in 1908 and maybe redone by Ross in the 1920s. In this part of the world, that's ancient.

Does anyone know anything about the Ross connection? Specifically if it was or wasn't done by him? If I have a look, maybe I can hazard a guess.

[Brad Tufts]

Hey Andy,

Could you take some pictures when you are out there?

I've always been curious about this one, as there is clearly some mystery about its origins, existence, storm-weathering, etc.

It seems like there is some good history, and the location would be to die for if it was closer to the golf hotbeds in Florida or on the East Coast.

Thanks,

Brad

[Andy Stamm]

I did make it out to Great Southern on a beautiful afternoon. The course is intriguing. For the most part it's on featureless flat land. But, the greens and greenside bunkering were definitely done by someone who knew what he was doing. Every green is a push up, and they are very rectangular. There are some very interesting angles and levels to them. There were a number of lost bunkers, which was unfortunate.

The conditioning was pretty poor, but the greens were in good shape. The soil is sandy and there were some nice sandy waste areas where grass wouldn't grow (usually because of some trees). Changing rough to sandy areas would really add some definition the holes. The location is fantastic; it's right across the street from the gulf. The course isn't on much property right there, most of it is back a little bit and 9 holes are on the other side of a train track.

I have know idea about the Ross affiliation, although I am intrigued. I could see why someone would think that, but overall the land is so flat that it's never going to be a 'great' course. It is a nice old course, and I'd love to see more green contours like some of the greens there.

I don't know how the club got the idea that there were originally square faced greens, but I personally doubt it and they seen a bit overdone.

Brad,

I didn't see your post until after I'd played, and I'm not much with the camera. There are a few greens that would be worth a look though. I'm attaching a picture a friend took. There are 2 great horizon greens on the course that have the gulf as the backdrop (the removal of the palm trees would really help the effect though). Somebody did a great job laying out this hole. There are actually 2 roads and a big beach between the green and the gulf, but you sure can't tell from the fairway. The green is a good one because it is sloped back to front and (I think) predominantly into the wind. Going after that back pin is a challenge because just over is on the road, OB.

OK, so now that I've written that I realize I don't know how to post a picture. Can anyone help???

[Andy Stamm]