Review: Raystown Golf Resort (Part 2)

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

The tenth hole is a very short par 4, playing just 265 yards up the hill slightly to a small green protected by a single bunker left. This green is pretty obviously a very tempting target, and while there's some tall grass well right, you have to hit a very poor tee shot to bring that into the equation. A little draw with a driver is the ideal shot to reach the green. Obviously, anything can happen, but you won't find a better opportunity for birdie than right here.

The tenth hole.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is 175 yards and plays over a deep valley to a green carved out of the hillside. There are two bunker, one on each side, and the green itself possesses a surprising amount of back-to-front tilt. Especially close to the front; that front hole location you see in the pictures was borderline impossible. My tee shot was to 10 feet right, and the putt ended up at least 5 feet below the hole. Fortunately I made the comeback putt, but still, it's a bit of a shock after seeing so many essentially flat greens.

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is a mid-length par 4 that plays much shorter than the yardage indicates, thanks to a tee shot that plays dramatically downhill to a fairway 50 feet below. Dense trees protect the right side, and a large bunker pinches in from the left, so while it's certainly tempting to hit driver when going so far downhill, this fairway is actually relatively narrow. A bit of restraint could help. Even a 3 wood will still leave a wedge second shot. The green here is small and fairly narrow, with sand on both sides.

The twelfth hole.

The twelfth green.

The thirteenth hole plays parallel with the previous hole and is virtually the same length. And since landforms don't just abruptly end, that means the golfer has to go right back up the same hill they negotiated on the previous hole. The first 250 yards here are quite flat, with a large bunker right providing a suitable hazard on the tee shot. From there, the last 150 yards climb straight up to a medium-sized green with bunkers on each side. It's not a tremendously difficult hole, it's just unexpected having to hit an iron up such a big hill. But hey, any sort of memorable feature is better than no memorable feature, right?

The thirteenth hole.

Approaching the thirteenth green.

The thirteenth green.

The fourteenth hole is 200 yards and plays downhill (not as much as the twelfth) to a large green, perhaps the largest on the course. It's also the most well-bunkered, with three bunkers in front and left, and one bunker right. The green itself, while not exactly thrilling, has enough subtle breaks to it to make putts interesting.

The fourteenth hole.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is the first par 5 we've seen in quite a while; there hasn't been one since the first hole. At 535 yards, it's not short, but neither is it particularly long, and the downhill tee shot will give you a few extra yards. There's a large bunker left, but beyond that the tee shot is quite open. If you hit a good drive, you have a choice on the second: Either go for the green on the far side of a small pond, or lay up and leave essentially a full wedge on the third. It's a tough decision when you've hit the best drive of the day and have just a long iron into the green, but unless you have full confidence in your long irons or fairway woods, laying up really is the smart choice. The green itself is pretty standard, with bunkers left and long.

The fifteenth hole.

Approaching the fifteenth green.

The fifteenth green.

I don't know how the sixteenth hole ended up here, but it pretty clearly does not belong on a golf course that has, up to this moment, been kind, gently, and frankly pretty easy. This long par 4 plays 455 yards through an extremely narrow corridor, with trees and tall grass hemming in on both sides. A creek also approaches from the left, though I'm not sure one could get to it on the drive with so many pine trees between you and it. This would be prime time for a cautious long iron, but there are two problems with that: One, the hole is 455 yards, and two, the hole is a nearly 90-degree dogleg, with the turn coming nearly 300 yards out. If you want a view of the green in two, you have to use driver and thread it through all the danger to a fairway that can't be much more than 20 yards wide.

Oh, and fun fact for people who hit a bad drive or lay up on the tee shot anyway, accepting this hole for the par 5 that it really is (to be fair, it does say par 4/5 on the scorecard, but the fact that the par 4 is even an option is mind-boggling), there's a pond cutting completely across the fairway right after the turn, which you can't really see since the hole is so low profile. It's not difficult to clear, but the fact that its there at all is just insult to injury.

Anyway, let's say you manage to hit that all-time drive and have a clear second shot at the green. It's honestly not much easier than the tee shot. The green is propped up and on the far side of a narrow gate of trees, requiring a fade to access as the tree on the right leans over, dominating that half of the green. The creek also lurks left, giving you even less space to breathe. So, it's either execute or you're pretty much dead for both shots. Five is honestly a great score here, and even six isn't terrible. This hole is that tough, and by tough, I mean incredibly, ridiculous dumb.

The sixteenth hole.

The sixteenth green.

The seventeenth hole emerges from the tree-lined corner that the previous hole inhabits and is a mostly pleasant mid-length par 3 with a relatively shallow but wide green. There are two bunkers, one left and one right. There's a pond short, but with 15 yards or so between it and the green, there is space to work with. Can't say I'm a huge fan of the pond, since its location means its mostly there to annoy higher handicappers, but after the previous hole I'll give it a pass. 

The seventeenth hole.

The eighteenth hole is 550 yards and plays parallel with the first, running in the opposite direction. For my round, that meant the hole was straight into the wind and 100% out of reach in two. There's a small bunker right and the creek lurks left, though you'd have to hit a pretty big hook to reach it. There aren't any additional hazards further up the fairway, so the second shot is just about advancing the ball as far as you can. A good lay-up will leave a wedge into a medium-sized green with bunkers front right and left. Not a particularly exciting closing hole, but it does give you the opportunity to walk away from the round with a birdie.

The eighteenth hole.

Approaching the eighteenth green.

The eighteenth green.

So, what is there to say about Raystown Golf Resort? It's definitely not a good golf course, nor is it in particularly good shape. It's not as bad as the pictures make it look; the grass was brown but present, and the greens weren't any less healthy than any other public course. But it's also not a completely boring golf course, especially once you get past the first few holes and elevation change starts to play a role. And of course the sixteenth hole is in a league of its own in terms of being insane. 

Simply put, this is precisely the sort of laid-back golf course you'd expect to find in rural Pennsylvania. Most towns of a similar size will have a golf course just like it. That's fine, but as the new name implies, the owner has greater ambition than that. But why would someone vacation here, when they most likely have a golf course at home that's just as good or likely better than this one? And it's not like this course will be cheaper than what they have at home; walking here cost $40, which isn't exactly pricy but neither is it anywhere close to a bargain. 

There's another problem: I played here on a Sunday afternoon in mid-September on a day where the high was 80 degrees and there wasn't a hint of rain in the forecast. In other words, absolutely ideal golf conditions. And yet, by the time I was halfway through the round, I was quite literally the last person on the course. At 4 PM on a weekend. Never in my life have I experienced anything like that. I know we're not talking about a densely populated area, but no one at all? It was bizarre. It also made the long drive up strangely worthwhile. There's nothing quite like having a golf course to yourself. Obviously, it's not something I plan on doing regularly, but if I (or anyone out there) ever want your own golf course playground for an afternoon, Raystown Golf Resort is a prime choice.