Augusta Pines Golf Club

Designed by Tour 18 Inc., Augusta Pines is a fun and enjoyable 18 holes. The course plays through mature pines, dogwoods and oaks; across and along creeks; beside some huge beautiful homes; and around 30 acres of lakes. With five tee boxes and yardages from 5007 to 7041 you can find something that fits your mood for a relaxing and well scoring round or a more challenging test of your skills.

The front nine is pretty straight forward and mostly "what you see is what you get" – which means you can score very well on this nine. The 17 bunkers, only three of which are in the fairways, and the water on 5 holes are pretty easy to avoid. The fairways are wide and forgiving and the rough should stop you from landing under the trees unless you really spray the ball.

We loved the back nine and found it much more fun, more challenging, and more scenic. You'll find fairway bunkers where your ball wants to land, dog legs, risk reward opportunities, water on 6 of nine holes, well guarded greens, and not one, but two island greens! Some of what makes this nine fun and challenging is the approach to the greens – for example, in addition to the two island greens, #10 has water from the tee box to and around the front of the green, the dog leg left #11 has a lake and wide sandy beach from the turn to the green which is also protected by three bunkers waiting for the long shots, and #16 has a small creek that goes three quarters of the way around the green. Practice your short game before you head out and make sure you study the approach shots on each of the back nine holes.

The last three holes will make you want to play Augusta Pines again. And #18 is outstanding – a lake plays all the way down the right side to the end of this 522 yard par 5 with the island green set off to the right side of the end of the fairway. If you can fly past and between the bunkers on the left and the trees on the right, you get to test your "go-for-it" attitude and tolerance for risk reward opportunities. On your second shot do you go for the island green with sand three quarters around the green or lay up further down the fairway to shorten the carry over the water?

When we played, we found the conditions of both the Baby Bermuda fairways and Tif Eagle greens to be in near perfect condition and the rough cut thin and playable. The greens seemed a little smaller than normal, a tad fast, very true with minor slope and some undulation, and they held the ball OK. Augusta Pines pays a lot of attention to detail and the course is well landscaped and maintained. For example, the lush tee boxes had few divots, hardly any broken tees, and didn't require a hammer to set your tee in the ground.

As you drive in, get ready for a "wow" as you approach the 100,000 square foot stately white antebellum mansion style clubhouse which houses the well stocked pro shop, Savannah’s Steak and Seafood Company, and some offices. This is one of those courses you want to keep playing because it offers good conditions, fun holes, and an easy and relaxing round. You should go out of your way to play Augusta Pines.