Grapevine Golf Course - Mockingbird Course

Grapevine Golf Course has 27 holes of some very good golf.  The Dallas Morning News rated it #19 of the “Top 25 Best Daily Fee Courses” and Avid Golfer rated it in the “Top 50 Public Courses” as well as a “Best Value Under $50.”   On the weekends all three nines are in play and the pro shop determines with two nines you’ll play during your round.  During the week, one of the nines is out of play for maintenance. 

Byron Nelson and Joe Finger designed the original 18 (Mockingbird and Pecan) which opened in 1979.   D. A. Weibring was hired for a major expansion and modernization renovation project for the original 18 and to add an additional 9 holes which opened as Bluebonnet in the fall of 1999. 

Each nine has its own unique personality and characteristics but common to all three are excellent conditions, white soft sand bunkers, memorable and fun holes,  reasonable rates, and low flying aircraft on their approach to DFW.   Each nine has 4 sets of tee boxes and regardless of which nines you play, the course is a little short at 6983 yards.   Mockingbird is the flattest, Bluebonnet has surprising elevation changes, and Pecan is the hardest and demands accuracy off the tee box and on a number of the approach shots. 

Mockingbird offers you an opportunity to score well and have a very relaxing and enjoyable round.  The fairways are ample, the first cut is wide and playable, and there’s not a lot of trouble.  The scorecard shows water on 8 holes but it really only comes into play on 5 holes.  The fairways are all tree lined and if you really spray the ball, forget about it and get out a new one.  

There are some very fun holes on Mockingbird that you’ll want to come back and play again, for example:

#3 looks pretty straightforward and easy from the tee box – it’s only 386 yards but you need to nail the approach shot to avoid a huge deep swale and bunker on the left side

#5 is a 524 yard sharp dog leg left with a bunker in the middle of the fairway which means you need a good tee shot to avoid the trees on the left and the bunker and to position you to head toward the green on a narrow fairway with trees, a bunker, and water along the left side

#6 is a short 319 yard par 4 but water on both sides of the fairway and a big bunker where the fairway turns right means you better choice the right club for your tee shot or you’ll add a stroke to you score – and the approach also demands accuracy to avoid the two bunkers, mounds and trees behind the green, and the water along the right side

#9 is a beautiful finishing hole to a well protected uphill green

When we played in October, the fairways were just starting to go dormant but they were still in near perfect condition.  They are ample off the tee box and the first cut was wide and playable – after that you’re history.  Most of the fairways are flat with a minimum amount of contour.  They are all tree lined with no homes along any of them. 

The TIF Eagle greens are average to large with both slope and undulation.  We thought they were pretty fast (11 or so) when we played and very true.  They held the ball well, rolled smooth, and were pretty easy to read. 

The bunkers on Mockingbird are about average size and depth and they are filled with soft white sand that’s thick.  The lips aren’t that high and we found getting out of them was not a problem. 

Bottom line – Mockingbird is one of the those tracks you love to play when you need to have a fun, relaxing, and low scoring round at a very reasonable rate.   A great nine.

The slope and rating are based on playing the Mockingbird and Bluebonnet nines.