Review: Rattlewood Golf Course (Part 2)

It's time to check out the back nine at Rattlewood, go here to see the front.

You don't often see back-to-back par 5s, but Rattlewood is an exception, as the tenth is a 520-yard par 5. After a surprisingly long carry over a pond, the fairway slopes sharply from left to right. That slope makes the second shot very difficult if you want to go for the green in two, since the green is shallow and very heavily bunkered. While some golfers may have the length to go for it, it may be wiser to bail out short and right, leaving a relatively simple uphill pitch running along the length of the green. 

The tenth hole.

Approaching the tenth green.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is 340 yards and ostensibly not drivable, but since the hole plays downhill the whole way, you can get closer than you might think (especially if you make judicious use of the cart path, as my brother and I did). Favoring the left side, flirting with the left-hand fairway bunker, will leave the best angle into the green, which is protected by a bunker front right and a steep dropoff behind.

The eleventh hole

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is a long par 3, playing 225 yards over a shallow valley. The green is quite tough to hit; it's not very deep and the bunker protecting the right side is a very major obstacle. This is a hole where you aim at the center of the green and hope things work out with the putter.

The twelfth hole.

The twelfth green.

The thirteenth hole is Rattlewood's final par 5, playing 530 yards to a fairway guarded on the left side by tall grass and O.B. The drive is generally downhill, but because the fairway slopes up the whole way, don't expect to get too much roll. Beyond that, there's not much to the hole beyond a greenside bunker front right. If you can't reach the green in two, simply leave a good distance for the third. Not the most interesting hole in the world.

The thirteenth hole.

The thirteenth green.

The fourteenth hole is 340 yards with a very wide-open tee shot. Technically there's O.B. about 50 yards left of the fairway, but that's really not much of a concern. Feel free to use driver and get as close to the green as possible, but if you do that, be sure to favor the right side. There's a bunker covering the front left section of the green, making pitch shots from the left side a tricky proposition. Approaching this green is easier if you lay back and use a full wedge, I will admit. 

The fourteenth hole.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is just 300 yards, making it potentially drivable for longer hitters. The green is hidden behind a pair of bunkers (and a couple small trees), so going directly at it is probably not a great idea. A slinging draw aimed around the right bunker can sneak on, however. If you don't have the length, favoring the right side of the fairway is a good idea, as that will give you the best angle for the second shot. The green has a fair amount of back-to-front slope and is fairly shallow, so missing long isn't a great idea.

The fifteenth hole.

The fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole is a pretty uncomplicated mid-length par 3, playing 170 yards. The green is fairly narrow, with a bunker right and a noticeable slope left. Missing the green on either side will leave a tricky recovery.

The sixteenth hole.

The seventeenth hole is a mid-length par 4 playing slightly uphill to a fairway sloped from right to left. The fairway's wider than it looks, the trees looming over the left side of the tee stop about 100 yards out, so one can miss left. The second shot is a wedge up to a green protected by two bunkers; the green is highest in the middle and falls away from that point on all sides. It's not by a huge amount, and this isn't a tremendously tricky green, but it's not simple either.

The seventeenth hole.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole is a 350 yard par 4 doglegging about 90 degrees left around mounding covered with grass and a few trees. You can get pretty close to the green by challenging the dogleg, or you can play safely with a long iron to the middle of the fairway, leaving a full wedge second. The green is on the larger side, sloped from back to front, with two bunkers left and right. It's not a tough finishing hole unless you're a colossal moron and hook your tee shot straight into the pine trees (my brother and I are both colossal morons).

The eighteenth hole.

The eighteenth green.

Fun fact: Rattlewood is actually the easiest golf course on Earth. It must be, since my brother and I broke 80 fairly handily despite us both making double bogey on the final hole. It was his new record by several shots. Everything about this course is mild. The greens aren't massive, but they're not small. They're not flat, but they're not particularly undulating. There's not unlimited space for the driver, but the playing corridors are very, very far from narrow. There are some greenside bunkers, but not too many. It's an easy course, and you know what? There's nothing wrong with that. Not every course needs to be tough. Golf is tough enough as it is. There's nothing to write home about, but there's nothing egregious or irritating either. It's a pleasantly average golf course with an average price tag ($45) that makes you feel good about your game. Sometimes that's all you need.