Pros:
-Meadow Ridge is the longest and most challenging of the three tracks at Horning's Hideout. The course traverses two meadows, thick woods, and steep hillsides. It is a serene setting with amazing views, huge trees, and the sounds of nature and chains.
-Each hole has two baskets. A traditional Horning's basket is typically in a reasonable position but still demands an excellent shot. Playing the Discatcher baskets makes this a true Pro-level course, adding 80-100 feet onto most holes.
-The course design is relentless. Baskets are perched on steep hillsides and adjacent to large trees. The course is also extremely hilly and the majority of holes play blind. You mustn't let your guard down. Most every hole on the course can hit you up for a double bogey before you know it.
-Huge concrete tee pads, trash cans, and portable restrooms keep the course clean and safe.
-Excellent John Houck tee signs are large and colorful. Many of the signs suggest multiple routes, but often there is only one reasonable route.
-Best holes
Hole 12 is a gorgeous downhill woods hyzer shot, approximately 400 feet, with the basket in a dangerous position on the left side hill.
Hole 14 is a phenomenal par 4 with a long, downhill drive to a field followed by a hyzer to a basket on the hillside. This is one of the only holes that feels like a "must birdie" on the long basket.
Hole 16 is the longest hole on the course at 930 feet with a mandatory and 120 degree turn at approximately 750' before finishing downhill in a beautiful green in a wooded canyon. The mandatory is borderline silly, but I like this hole as it requires 3 well-executed yet doable shots.
Cons:
-In my opinion, holes 4-9 are not the best and brightest part of the course. They play through the back woods section and need some clean up of blackberries and other thick bushes. Hole 6 especially is absurdly uphill, with a grade of +53 feet over 280 feet of distance. Hole 7 is also very challenging, a 430 feet right-to-left turning hole through tight woods with heavy rough and steep hillsides on the right and behind the basket. A par 3 on this hole is very hard earned and a 4 is certainly nothing to hang your head about.
-I was underwhelmed by Hole #8, the course's signature hole, a 400 foot sharply downhill woods tunnel shot. It certainly is thrilling to pure the line on this hole, but connect with an early tree and you will be searching for your disc in thick rough on an extremely steep hillside.
-The short basket is visible from the tee on only 6-7 holes, and the long basket on only 3-4 holes. A property so hilly and idiosyncratic is naturally not going to lend itself to a straightforward course, but several holes here could be much improved by moving the basket 30 or 40 feet into view.
-A par 3 in which a fantastic drive reaches 30 or so feet from the basket is a good Pro-level hole in my opinion. A hole in which the best possible drive is 50-60 feet away, however, is not reasonable and a handful of holes fit this description on the course. It's frustrating when the short basket is a quality hole but the long one must be played drive, chip, putt.
Other Thoughts:
-This is such a magnificent property, but I was less than blown away by the layout. So many of the holes could be improved with small adjustments: moving a basket, removing a tree, thinning a problematic patch of rough, etc.
-$5 per person day-use fee. Quite a bargain, for the quality of the golf on private property.
-It's hard to emphasize the sheer difficulty of this course. It's like Shinnecock Hills in ball golf. It doesn't look too bad in photos, but the course is likely to hit you up for a high score. It's not a place for beginners, older players, young kids, or anyone out of shape. I'd estimate a score of Even par would be rated approximately 985 (on the long baskets). Fortunately, there are two much friendlier courses on-site.