Review: Great Cove Golf Club (Part 1)

It's time for another rousing entry in my occasional series: "Returning to golf courses I played in my junior golf days." This month, we're visiting Great Cove Golf Club in McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania, located in one of the state's numerous long, narrow valleys. I won't say I'm intimately familiar with it, since it has been something like 13 years since I played it, but I do know the course reasonably well. Partly because I have played it multiple times, and partly because there's not much to it. At least, that's how I remembered it. Who knows, maybe the years have been kind to Great Cove? Let's find out.

The first hole isn't exactly a long par 4, but at 420 yards, it's not really a short opener either. On the face of it, this is a classic simple strategic hole. Flirt with the right-hand fairway bunker to obtain a better view of the green. This is slightly complicated, however, by the presence of the course's driving range just left of the fairway. It's not the worst thing in the world – the driving range has to go somewhere – but it does lessen the strategic potential of the hole. Better to be in the bunker than reloading on the tee.

The first hole.

Approaching the first green.

The first green.

The second hole is a mid-length par 4 that doglegs right pretty significantly around a cluster of trees. The fairway is mostly blind and tilted from right to left, which makes going through the fairway into the trees beyond quite easy to do if you don't take an aggressive enough line on the tee shot. You can hit driver up over the trees right if you've got the length, and doing so leaves just a little partial wedge. For most, however, a driver or 3 wood just left of the fairway bunker is the ideal line, and will leave a full wedge second into a small green protected by three bunkers.

The second hole.

Approaching the second green.

The second green.

The third hole is 420 yards, the same as the first, though this one plays dead straight and lacks any fairway bunkers. What it does have is a 10-foot-deep dip taking up the right side of the fairway, exactly where a good drive might end up. Obviously, this is best avoided by favoring the left side. Unfortunately, the green isn't exactly set up to reward this behavior, featuring two flanking bunkers (technically three, but I doubt the back left bunker sees much action) and a not particularly interesting green.

The third hole.

Approaching the third green.

The third green.

The fourth hole is a 190-yard par 3 that plays slightly downhill to a small, well-defended green. If you're going to miss this one, short left is the place to do it; that leaves you a very simple chip and a great chance to get up and down. The green itself is slightly domed and a little bit trickier than the past three, but by and large Great Cove doesn't present much challenge on the greens.

The fourth hole.

The fourth green.

The fifth hole is a short par 5 at just 490 yards, with a fairway playing slightly right to left over pleasantly rolling terrain. Ideally, the drive favors the left side, as this shortens the hole and gives you a better angle to go for the green in two. If you're not a long hitter, be aware that the fairway slopes pretty hard from left to right in the general vicinity of a hundred yards out, so if you want a flat stance for the third, you either need to get quite close (inconvenient considering the shallow nature of the green and the bunkers front right) or leave more than 125 yards in. And that's not much fun on a hole less than 500 yards.

The fifth hole.

Approaching the fifth green.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole isn't particularly long at 160 yards, but it plays slightly uphill and it's all carry. Three bunkers line the front of the green, making an aerial approach a necessity. Beyond that, though, there isn't much to this hole. Just avoid the sand and you should be okay.

The sixth hole.

The seventh hole is 430 yards and plays straight away to a fairway with a distinct right-to-left tilt. There's no fairway bunkers, but the left side – definitely the better place to approach the green – has several pine trees creeping in quite close. It doesn't take much of a miss to be blocked out. The right side is safer but gives you a worse angle into the green, which is reasonable large and has bunkers front right and left.

The seventh hole.

Approaching the seventh green.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole isn't quite a 90-degree dogleg, but it's not too far away. The fairway bends sharply left about 205 yards out (if that), meaning you really can't hit driver unless you've got a big hook on command. Hitting 3 wood is the safe play, but the second shot will be quite long (the hole is 420 yards), uphill, and semi-blind. And while the green itself is receptive enough, two bunkers closely guard it front left and front right. It is not an easy second shot here.

The eighth hole.

Approaching the eighth green.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole is 515 yards, making it 25 yards longer than the fifth, but with a tee shot that plays significantly downhill (and very downwind for our round), I think this hole is potentially more reachable. That said, if you do want to be aggressive on the second, you need to stay left. Go too far down the right side and trees will block you out. There's a bunker about 100 yards out to give people laying up something to think about, and the green is flanked by bunkers as well.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green.

The ninth green.

That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.