Chester W. Ditto Golf Course

$24 million renovation and renamed Texas Rangers Golf Club opening summer of 2018

Chester W. Ditto Golf Club, which is owned and operated by the City of Arlington, has been a local favorite since it opened in 1983 because it’s typically in very good condition, is a very fair layout, and the pricing is reasonable. 

We were pleasantly surprised when we played in November 2011 – Chester W. Ditto Golf Course has an interesting mixture of some wide open ” holes coupled with a few that demand accuracy and precision, plus some surprising elevation changes, very good conditions, a fun and playable layout, and a tasty BLT and Philly Cheese Steak – I need those carbs to keep me on my game. 

A lot of the holes are straight ahead, flat, with wide forgiving fairways, and what you see is what you get!  A few other holes are tree lined with contoured and rolling fairways and both elevated tee shots as well as uphill shots to the green – some are a tad tight off the box as well as on the approach.  What makes it interesting is you’ll play some wide open side by side flat fairways where if you spray the ball either way you’ll most likely have a good recovery shot from the other fairway and about when you get comfortable with some easy pars, you’ll encounter two or three holes with tight tree lined fairways with gullies, roll and slope, and ups and downs.  After that beats you up and you lose a couple balls it will open back up for some par or birdie opportunities! 

We thought that the back nine was much more interesting and fun with lots of elevation changes, some challenging holes thanks to water and narrow fairways, and a little tougher greens.  The noise from all the traffic on a busy street was a little annoying

Chester W. Ditto has some fun holes like:

• #5 a short by tricky 381 par 4 with a landing zone pinched by a bunker and trees on one side and water and trees on the other followed by a carry over a rolling fairway and deep grass gully to a slightly raised green
• #6 requires a precise 155 yard shot from an elevated tee box to carry an intimidating natural area to a green guarded by a big bunker
• #10 has a dramatic elevated tee box and huge carry downhill and across a lake then back uphill to a green guarded by water
• #15 demands accuracy off the tee box (you may want to leave the big dog in the bag) to land safely on a narrow fairway with water and natural area on the left and a deep dirt ravine on the right and then you need to head uphill along a narrow tree lined fairway to the green

Speaking of the greens, they were in very good condition when we played and ran at a good speed around 9.  They range in size from average to pretty large and all shapes and sizes including one that is a tiered figure 8.  Most have a small amount of contour and all have minor to some severe slope (primarily around the fringe) – the breaks can be subtle and a little difficult to spot.   A 6’ to 8’ fringe surrounds the greens and most of the time it was very puttable. 

The fairways were also in excellent condition (pretty soft and plush and green) despite the severe drought, record hot temperatures, and harsh winter.  We aren’t big fans of side by side fairways and there are several of them at Chester Ditto Golf Course – I do however love them when I really spray the ball, miss the golfers playing the other hole, and find that I have an excellent shot back toward the green!  The scorecard shows 11 holes with water which really only comes into play on 7 or so of the holes.  The fairways are a pretty good mixture of long and wide and short and tighter.

Of the 29 bunkers, all but seven are guarding the greens.  The sand is soft and fairly thick and the lips can be tough – 1’ to 3’ feet! 

Bottom line – if you can stay in the fairways on the tight tree lined holes and read the breaks, you’ll most likely have a fun and relaxing round with a good score.