Pros:
(1.819 Rating) A heavily wooded compact niner.
- SHOT SHAPING - I am completely baffled as to why this is called a links course in the course name. Links, by golf terminology, means open park land or coastal sand dunes. Nothing could be further from the truth here. 8 of the 9 tee throws I'd classify as heavily wooded. I appreciated the amount of thought I had to use at the tees. Except for hole (7), every tee shot out here must be well crafted.
- CHAINS - Pro 28 DISCatchers.
- NAVIGATION AND SIGNAGE - Good enough. Only simple numbered and painted 4x4 tee markers for my play in late summer of 2020. The posts are fairly easy to spot after finishing a basket. Perhaps a couple 2-minute transition mistakes will happen for first timers, but I just don't see how someone could get lost for an extended period of time here without already being inept at navigation anyways. No course map on site for my visit.
- QUICK PLAY - It took this fast solo player 23 minutes to wrap this one up on an empty course.
- LOCATION - One of 3 courses that can be bagged in the area in just 75 minutes.
Cons:
Nothing major wrong. It's a small footprint with homogenous terrain.
- LACK OF CHALLENGE - Although scoring will vary substantially, overall it's not that tough, and rec players should be able to break par on average. The near complete removal of the undergrowth makes saving par much more routine. Skilled players will likely have them all birdied in 5 rounds or so.
- AMENITIES & EXTRAS - Other than nice baskets, the other creature comfort items and amenities are absent or below average. There was no tee seating or community board present yet. There aren't any multi tees, multi-basket placements or a practice basket. The tee pads are indeed concrete, but on the smallish side. 99 percent tree shading is a big plus though.
- UNIQUENESS - This is a 4 acre park. It's extremely flat. If Google satellite is picking up any terrain change on it's topography maps, it's likely a large downed tree. In addition, the park is 100 percent wooded with an older canopy that looks and feels the same from beginning to end. I applaud the designers who managed to get this layout squeezed in here in and still muster out a layout that has a few twists and turns to it. Eight of the tee shots are tunnel shots with an almost identical backdrop. I like the fact that some go right and some go left. A couple play relatively straight too. There are also a couple of small 4s with ideal placement areas.
- PARKING - I have no idea where it is. I just parked on the grass by basket (9).
Other Thoughts:
My favorite of the 3 courses in town as it was the only one I really had to think about where I needed to place my shot. I liked the shade provided by the canopy and the easygoing feel to it. The park size and lack of defining elements will unfortunately hinder its growth from going much further. As it sits, Overall I think this would qualify as an average niner. Not really worth driving more than 25 miles out of the way to play. For players in Mobile thinking about heading here, they better either be baggers or just be looking to loosen up the arm before hitting Graham Creek.
- NATURAL BEAUTY - This is probably one of the stronger aspects, however I'd still only place it around average. Lots of fully wooded plays without manmade structures in view. However, the vegetation lacks the vibrancy and healthy appearance of many other fully wooded courses I've played recently. It had a bit of a boggy feel to it too, although there was no standing water here when I played. The course also looks similar through-out.