My 1997 trip to CDC was the most fun I've ever had playing golf. I met my father and brother for our annual trip. I arrived in a somber mood and sleep deprived as I had been up all night preceding my departure from Phoenix following the news coverage of Princess Diana's fatal accident. Teeth of the Dog is a course everyone should play in their lives. It's easily top 5 in my personal best. Dye Fore did not yet exist, so we played the Links course once for the sake of completeness and played 8 rounds at Teeth over little more than 72 hours on property. 36 holes on arrival day, 36 the next day, 54 the day after that and a final 18 on departure day. It was late August/early September so the resort was deserted. 18 holes rarely took more than 2 hours and our package included unlimited golf.
Tee shots on 12 & 18 were played across the runway, and a hook off #9 tee (#18 as the course was played today) could easily land on the runway and roll for a mile. The only way to get closer to a 727 was if you worked for an airline or on a jetway. It was an awesome and utterly unique feature in a world-class golf course. I understand they left pavement to be carried on #12 & 18 - can anyone confirm if that is true?
It's all too rare that one gets to play a course of this caliber enough that you feel like you really know it. How many of us have played a great course once or maybe twice, but are so overwhelmed by the venue, surroundings, aura, history, etc. that it's all too much to take in?
For what it's worth, it wasn't, at least in 1997, a place I would have taken my wife for a romantic getaway. Accommodations were not oceanfront or oceanview; beach was man-made with an ugly artificial breakwater; there was no restaurant on the water where you could dip your toes in the sand, etc. CDC is (or at least was) an amazing sporting retreat, but not a honeymoon spot.