Review: Kingsbury National Golf Club (Part 2)

We're back with the back nine at Kingsbury National, go here if you haven't seen the front.

The tenth hole is the longest par 4 at Kingsbury, measuring 445 yards, 4 yards more than the sixth. The tee shot must be threaded between a cluster of fairway bunkers, and for the second shot, the golfer will have a short or mid iron to a green guarded by a bunker front left, and by a native area that runs down the entire length of the hole. I think this is probably the toughest hole Kingsbury National has to offer, and if you make par, you're doing well.

The tenth hole.

Approaching the tenth green.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is a short par 3, though it's a bit longer than the 143 yards that the scorecard suggests. The green is guarded by three bunkers which encircle most of the green. Even so, this is not a difficult hole, just a wedge or short iron.

The eleventh hole.

The twelfth hole is a fairly short par 4 that plays even shorter thanks to the downhill tee shot. However, this is one of only two holes on the course where trees really come into play on both sides, and as you go further, the gap between the trees gets narrower and narrower. If you hit driver, you'll only have 30 yards to work with. So it's probably better to use a long iron or fairway wood off the tee, leaving a full wedge or short iron. Hitting the fairway is important on this hole. From there, the second shot is hit over some mounding to a green protected by a single bunker on the left side.

The twelfth hole.

Approaching the twelfth green.

The twelfth green.

The thirteenth hole is a pretty plain and simple 190 yard par 3. There's no bunkers, and no hazards save for some native areas short and left that really aren't an issue in any way.

The thirteenth hole.

The fourteenth hole is a much more interesting proposition. The longest hole on the course at 540 yards, the fourteenth can be turned into a much shorter hole by cutting the dogleg. You have to carry some trees to do so, but if you're successful, you can cut 50 yards off the length of the hole. Just don't go through the fairway into the O.B. The second shot is up the hill to a blind green pressed up against more O.B. right and long, and by bunkers left and short. If you lay back off the tee, you need to get your second shot up to around the 100-yard marker, otherwise the third shot will still be blind.

The fourteenth hole.

Not much to see from the fairway.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole could use a bit of tree trimming. It's a 410 yard par 4 that plays downhill, but you have to play every bit of that yardage. As you can see from the pictures, the hole doglegs right, but the treeline hangs in quite a lot. So much so that it effectively removes a big chunk of the fairway from play, unless you hit a big fade. Not that you'd want to, as there's a native area beyond the trees, and the lone bunker on the hole guards the front right portion of the green. Your best bet is using a 3 wood and hitting it out to the left, then hitting a short or mid iron to the green.

The drive on 15 has to contend with a few trees on the right.

The fifteenth hole, now without blocking trees.

The fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole is pretty similar in length to the thirteenth, but is a bit more interesting. For one, the green is one of the best on the course, providing plenty of interesting contours. While the water short isn't a massive issue, the two bunkers short left and short right are. Also, I'd just like to point out how good the lighting is on the picture I took. There are some definite benefits to playing in the evening.

The sixteenth hole.

The seventeenth hole slices through the same bit of forest that the twelfth did, except this hole is even narrower. At 375 yards, it's about the same length as the twelfth, and once again, using a long iron or fairway wood is the best course of action off the tee. There's just not a lot of room out there, and any shots hit right of the fairway will fall away into the trees. The second shot is slightly uphill to a small and very shallow green protected by a bunker front right.

The seventeenth hole.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole closes things off with a reachable par 5, barely over 500 yards. Once you identify where the fairway is (not an easy task considering the lack of framing and the native area obscuring the view), the tee shot must thread between a pair of bunkers flanking the landing area. Do that, or better yet, clear them, you'll be left with a long iron or wood to the green. You can certainly lay up out to the right, leaving a straightforward third, or go for it, challenging the water and a group of bunkers surrounding the green. Not an easy shot, but pull it off and you'll have a good opportunity to finish with an eagle.

Not much guidance on the eighteenth tee.

Approaching the eighteenth green.

The eighteenth green.

As far as the layout, routing, and strategy is concerned, Kingsbury National is nothing special. Not bad, it doesn't commit too many big errors save for a few parallel holes on the front, but there's no standout holes. It's 18 solid but generally safe holes. However, the fact that the course was playing so firm and fast helped a lot. If you're not a golf enthusiast, that means that when the golf ball lands, it doesn't just stop, but runs out instead. That is how golf is supposed to be played, as it makes every shot more fun. Even a relatively straightforward course such as Kingsbury National benefits from proper conditioning. It makes every shot more interesting. You always have to think about how your golf ball will react when it hits the ground, you can't just blindly fire away at every flag.

As far as value goes, the round was $25 on a Sunday afternoon, which is definitely not too bad. The course was in excellent shape, as I just mentioned, so clearly the money is being used well. I've definitely paid more to play worse golf courses than this. It wasn't the most interesting course in the world, but it definitely wasn't bad. Slightly better than average, we'll call it. My brother didn't make the worst choice in the world. If I lived in the area, I'd definitely consider it a good public option. But I live in Maryland, and if I was ever to visit the area again, I probably wouldn't go for this. It's okay, but nothing special.

Review: Kingsbury National Golf Club (Part 1)

We continue our trip through eastern upstate New York at Kingsbury National Golf Club, located in Hudson Falls, an hour north of Albany. This was definitely not my first choice as far as the day's golf was concerned. My brother had to work for a few hours on Sunday, so we were limited in terms of distance and time. I had my eyes set on a course in Saratoga Springs, but my brother insisted on this course. He thought it looked interesting, and at the very least, it was less tree-lined than anything I had in mind.

As for course background, there isn't a whole lot of info out there. It's a golf course that opened in the early 90s, and was bought and renamed a few years ago. Other than that, I went into the round having pretty much no idea what to expect beyond what Google Maps could tell me. So the question is: Do I let my brother pick golf courses from this point forward?

The first hole is a reachable par 5 at 500 yards. There is a decision to be made right away: How much of the pond do you challenge? You could skirt around it entirely, but then you could only use an iron before you ran out of fairway. The more water you carry, the narrower the hole gets. Of course, there's another option if you're a big hitter, as carrying the water completely is definitely within the realm of possibility. Doing that would leave only a mid or short iron to the green. If you do lay up, a small valley cutting across the fairway has to be dealt with, and a bunker front right means that you're best off getting as close to the O.B. line as you dare. That opens up the long, narrow double green. Yes, double green, as the first shares a green with the eighth hole. Definitely an unusual occurrence, but not the first time I've come across a double green.

The first hole presents a challenge right away.

Approaching the first green.

The first green.

The first and eighth holes share a green. Definitely not something you see every day.

The second hole is a mid-length par 3 at 190 yards, playing slightly downhill to a medium-sized green guarded by three bunkers. Not the most exciting or interesting hole in the world.

The second hole.

The third hole is a fairly long par 4, playing just under 430 yards. The tee shot is completely blind, and there's no indication of where the fairway is. So you have to guess. The hole bends from left to right, and the fairway slopes from right to left, so hitting a fade off the tee is definitely a benefit. Just don't go too far right, as trees encroach quite a lot. The green is not large and is protected by a single bunker to the right.

The third hole. Picture of blind tee shot not included (for once).

The third green.

The fourth hole is a fairly short par 3, playing 165 over a ravine to a shallow green with a significant back to front slope. Missing long will result in either a delicate chip shot off a downhill lie to a green that slopes away or a lost golf ball. Missing left is okay as long as you don't land on the wrong side of the mound. Plus there's the bunker short right. Plenty to think about on this hole.

The fourth hole.

The fourth green.

The fifth hole is a dead straight par 5 playing 520 yards. The tee shot is hit onto a fairway at the top of a small plateau that falls away on three sides. Clearly the golfer will be drawn left, as the hole is open on that side, but doing so and going too far left will mean tree trouble on the second shot. The hole isn't terribly long and is reachable in two if you hit a good drive. If you do lay up though, you'll want to be at least a hundred yards out, as two fairway bunkers pinch into the fairway past that point. There's a noticeable tier on the back-right section of the green, so if the hole is back there, second and third shots become much tougher.

The fifth hole.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole is a long par 4, and it plays parallel to the previous hole. The hole is actually bunkerless, and the pond in front of the tee really isn't an issue. So while it's 440 yards, it's not a very difficult hole. Not exactly a birdie opportunity, but you'd have to work hard to get a really high score.

The sixth hole.

The sixth green.

The seventh hole is a mid-length par 4 with yet another blind tee shot. It's straight, just like the previous two holes (almost like they all play parallel to each other), but you'll definitely want to favor the left side on the drive. And you'll probably want to hit a draw as well, as the left side of the fairway slopes from left to right. If you're on the correct side, the green is deep and pretty open, though there are some bunkers left. If you're on the right side, you're presented with a shallower target perched behind a pond.

The seventh hole.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole is a short, almost drivable par 4, playing 330 yards slightly uphill. There is a fairway, but it's kind of shoved off to the right next to some trees, and is so narrow it's almost irrelevant. There's no trouble if you hit straight at the green, so why not do that? The second shot could be a full wedge or a little pitch, but either way, you have play over a bunker to the double green. Two more bunkers guard the hole left and right. It's not an easy pitch, but this is still a good birdie opportunity.

The eighth hole.

The eighth green.

This is not the easiest chip shot in the world.

The ninth hole is a 415 yard par 4, and a fairly tough way to finish the front nine. The hole doglegs left, with a pond at the end of the fairway doing a great job of discouraging the driver. Now, you can certainly cut off a bit of the dogleg, but the hole isn't tremendously long, and a 3 wood should still leave you with a short or mid iron. The pond may look threatening on the second shot, but it stops well short of the green. It's not an easy approach, as there's a native area long, but it isn't as tough as it looks.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green. The pond is a lot further from the green than it looks.

The ninth green.

That's it for this week, come back next week to see the back nine.