July 2006

I recently had the good fortune to play the golf course at Mineral Mound State Park in Eddyville, KY for about the fourth time. I made the trip down with 3 friends from western Kentucky, Bill Knapp, Ronnie Bourland and Steve Miller.

It was H-O-T ! Around 100 degrees with the heat index and very humid, even for the Ohio Valley in the summer. We teed off at 9 am and it was already sweltering.

The first hole is a fairly safe par 5 of 471 yards fron the #2 tees. Steve and I would have preferred the tips, but the other two guys aren’t long hitters, nor are they big ol’ boys, so we moved up a set to help them out and make it playable for them. There’s a ditch thru the fairway about 219 out from those tees, with about a 271 carry, so be aware of the yardages for safe tee shots when you play. Our buddy Bill snuck in a birdie putt and won a skin on us there.

TIP : If you play a Kentucky State Parks golf course, spend the dollar for the yardage card. You’ll be dead-meat without it.

The second hole is a fairly benign par 4 of about 371 yards, but there’s trouble left, so favor the right side and take a birdie putt from the middle of the green. Par’s a good score here, even though it’s only the #7 handicap hole.

Number three is a very deceptive 137 yards. I’ve eased a 9-iron over the green and into the woods several times, so play for the front third of the green and take your par and run.

Hole number four has to be the toughest hole in the state. I’ve tried driver, I’ve tried 3-wood, 3 iron hybrids…everything but the fairway, which I’ve never tried before. This is the toughest fairway to hit I’ve ever had the displeasure of playing. There’s no advice I can give you here except bring several golf balls, because the second shot is not any easier…nor is the third into the world’s toughest par 5 ! 510 yards of pure agony and it looks as tough when you get to the green ( finally ) and look back towards the tee box. We had 3 7’s and a snowman ( mine ). How’s that for a foursome on one hole…29 strokes.

Number 5 is a downhill par 4 of about 336 yards, with a landing area out about 200-225 yards. Any more and you’re on a very steep slope down to a green that’s fronted by an inlet of Lake Barkley. Short and right beats long or left. Par’s a great score and will win you a skin for sure.

Hole #6 demands you to play middle to left side of the fairway, as the right side slopes off to the woods.

Number 7 is an uphill par 3 of about 157 yards and it plays longer than the yardage..for me, anyway. right’s better than left.

Having hole #8 as the number 1 handicap hole is an outright joke. It’s a fairly easy 414 yard par 4 and offered no real problems.

Hole #9 is a severe dogleg right par 4 of about 363 yards and you do not want to hit a straight ball here if you’re gonna hit it over 250 yards. A 220 yards, faded 3 wood or hybrid is just right and leaves you an uphill shot of around 140-150 yards and a fairly easy par.

TIP : Take plenty of cold drinks and ice when you leave the clubhouse as you don’t go right past the clubhouse after 9 and the water jugs on the course are usually not filled. We had four very thirsty, very hot guys who found out the hard way about their lack of keeping the water jugs refilled on the course.

The back nine is basically out on a peninsula in Lake Barkley and you have views of the water on every hole. You hear the sounds of people and watercraft, you get a nice lake breeze and it’s totally different from the outward nine. This nine alone is reason to play this course and it’s worth the drive from anywhere.

Hole #10 is gorgeous and fun. It’s a 450 yard par 4 with a downhill, dogleg left tee ball to a rock wall the bisects the fairway. Then it’s uphill to the green and a par 5 is a great score.

Number 11 is a short risk-reward par 4 of 273 yards, uphill and a draw works very nicely here. I drove the green and won a skin here. That was my first time using driver and I’ll be doing that from now on.

#12 is a great little par 3 of about 148 yards. If the pin is up, hit to the right and a slope will kick the ball left towards the flag.

TIP: The Kentucky State Parks use 3 colored flags - red is front, white is niddle and yellow is back.

Number 13 is a reachable, 445 yard par 5. You need a draw for your tee ball or a well placed second shot to get it home. You cannot see the green from the fairway and must run it over a well-placed fairway bunker on the corner to hit the green. Five is a good score, but the green feeds the ball to the hole and you can get a birdie here with a good tee ball and a good approach.

Oh, yeah, the drive is over water to a perpendicular fairway, so that does make it a wee bit tougher !

#14 is a very tame par 4 of about 359 yards and should not be the #2 handicap hole. ‘Nuff said.

#15 has an uphill landing area about 200-225 yards away, then plays straight downhill about 100 yards or less, to a small green and is another short, risk-reward hole that makes golf fun.

Number 16 is a downhill par 3 of about 148 yards and plays about one club short..maybe a club and a half if you go after it hard. A par is a great score and will get you a stroke or two over your playing partners if you just play safe and watch them implode. I did.

#17 is a tricky dogleg left par 4 of about 336 yards and the tee ball is the key. You need to carry the bunker on the left and stop the ball in the fairway. A high draw or straight 3 wood that sits down quickly is a great play here.

Number 18 is 367 yards of fun. Mostly because you’re glad to have survived a great golf course that ate your friends for lunch, while you used these tips to score like knew what you were doing ! Nice straight drive up the hill about 270 yards leaves you out about 100 yards. Make sure to carry the ball all the way to the flag and beyond, as the view doesn’t let on to the false front and a chip shot that you didn’t want after 3-4 hours and 75-100 strokes.

Now run to the clubhouse and demand that they let you play again at a reduced rate. We did, after going in to Eddyville for a great lunch at the Bluegrass Grill. 3 different meats and you can choose 3 veggies from a list of 7 or so. Great sweet tea, great cornbread and great service for about $7.25 !

It’s well worth your time to travel to the Land Between The Lakes area of Kentucky for vacations, golf, food and fun.

For more info, check out these links :

Explore Kentucky Lake

Kentucky Lake

Land Between the Lakes

Grand Rivers

Great golf, tremendous scenery, friendly people, dang good food, extremely fair prices. That’s just a few of the phrases that come to mind after having played Dale Hollow’s fairly new golf course.

I drove down ( 3 hours ) and got there in time for a 2 PM tee time. My friend Ken Collova from Lexington ( KY ) had business in the area, so we jumped on the chance to play this jewel.

We played it from the tips, 7023 yards, and the first hole was a little 376 yard downhill par 4, like a lot of the holes on this visually stunning jewel of a golf course. We both bogeyed, me with a 3 putt and Ken with a wedge that went over the green and down into what could only be described as a wooded ravine. If you visit, be sure to look behind the first green and check out this scenery. Daniel Boone would’ve been at home down there !

The first par 3 hole was #3 and from the tips it was 240 yards, all downhill and almost all carry. My local pro, Mike Franklin had told me to hit 4 iron and believe and that’s what I did. I hit it and it sunk about 3 inches into the front part of the green when it came down like an asteroid ! Ken tried 3 iron and went long, into the woods and took a 5. Don’t go long here, as there’s really a landing area that you can’t see from the tee and you can hit about 50 yards short and be fine for a pitch on and putt for par.

Here’s a shot to show you what the green and the landing area looks like. From 240 yards above, you can’t see this at all.

And for a view from the tee, click here.

The fourth hole was a 533 yard par 5 and I hit driver and 3-wood to about 20 feet and 2 putted for a nice birdie. It was extra sweet with Ken’s bogey and me grabbing a couple of strokes.

Here’s a view from where my ball sat before that 3-wood. Tell me that ain’t a long way and a great view !

And here’s shot of some of the natural stone that the golf course architect, Brian Ault, left in place while designing this true test and true delight of a golf course.

This shot show’s you that even though the view from the tee’s sometimes looks tight, there’s actually a very w-i-d-e o-p-e-n golf course down below that is a real treat to play. This shot’s from the fairway back towards the tee on the par 5 12th hole, 618 yards of fun and beauty.

The 15th hole is 194 yards, all carry and with some of that natural stone left in place to terrorize you to no end ! I cut a hybrid 3-iron in to about 25 feet and 2 putted for a very fortunate par. Poor Ken was a tad long and left and took a double bogey.

And here’s the prerequisite shot of The Travelling Golfer, in his UK blue hat, after 18 holes, 7023 yards, 3 hours and 15 minutes and more strokes than I wanted to remember. That’s 250 lbs of Hillbilly Golf Star out of control !

The guys in the Pro Shop, Bruce and Kent, were two of the friendliest guys and most helpful guys you’ll ever meet. The food at the Mary Ray Oaken Lodge was absolutely fine ! Good catfish and smooth sweet-tea ! The people along Highway 90 are also very nice, so stop in and visit some of the general stores and local shops.

I will be going back for their Stay-n-Play, Tee’s-N-Zee’s golf package…very soon.

There’s a reason that they were ranked #8 in Kentucky by Golf Digest Magazine in 2005 and ranked #6 in the Best New Affordable Public Courses category in 2004 by Golf Digest Magazine.