Played Payne's Valley today. Wow! What a great course. Very fun to play. Weather was near perfect on the front but it got really windy on the back 9.
I birdied the second hole, which was a 215-yard par 3, and then I hit a 7-iron to 2.5 feet on hole 7 for my second birdie of the front nine. Had a double chip and several three putts but the still turned the corner at 40.
On the back side it was a 2- to 3-club wind and it was against us on all the uphill holes. It got pretty brutal. The 13th hole was downhill and downwind, andmi hit a drive to about 25-30 yards from the front of the green. There were no bunkers and the fairway was pretty close cut, so I putted my second shot, which was fun. Lipped out the birdie putt on the high side.
Ended up in impossible fairway bunkers on 17 and 18; salvaged a bogie on 18. Missed at least five putts on the high side by less than an inch. Shot 46 on the back for an 86 total. All in all, not horrible.
The 19th hole was playing 135 but into a stiff wind. I hit a knock-down 7 iron pin high but about 18 feet left. Had a tap-in par.
If you are not familiar with the 19th at Payne's you should Google image it. It's beautiful. The cart ride from the 19th back to the clubhouse goes through water, next to several waterfalls, and through a cave. Fantastic.
Overall, as a destination course this one is highly recommended. About as much fun a golf course as i could imagine. Fairways are mostly open and the edges slope towardmthe middle, so you can pretty much just slap a driver on every hole. There are three extremely downhill par 3's that are a blast to play.
One of the best golfing experiences i've ever had.