Gulf Shores Golf Club

Reveiw and Rating of the Golf Shores Golf Club in Gulf Shores Alabama

Formally known as the Golf Club At The Wharf, this course  was built in the 1960's and was the first golf course in Gulf Shores and remains one of the most popular with locals and tourists.  In November 2005, the course closed to undergo a complete $5 million renovation by Jay and Carter Morrish who were also the original course architects.  The renovation lengthened the par 71 course by 300 yards and added numerous water features,  enhanced the fairways, created new bunkers, and added some new card paths. 

The Gulf Shores Golf Club is a classic 1960's southern design with traditional straight fairways with what you see is what you get – no tricks, no gimmicks, and no gotchas!  As such, if you can keep the ball in play you're most likely going to have a fun, relaxing, and low scoring round. 

However, like most Morrish designs, you are going to encounter some devilish bunkers that are strategically placed and larger than normal.  However, they are now missing some sand which I seemed to take home with me in my pockets, shoes, hair, and other orifices from spending so much time trying to get out of these monsters! 

The Gulf Shores Golf Club is a par 71 – the front nine is par 35 – with five sets of tee boxes and yardages ranging from 4790 to 6812 yards.  But beware, we were told by the head pro and the starter that we should add 400 to 500 yards because the course plays much longer than the yardages on the scorecard and you don't get much roll. 

The Gulf Shores Golf Club is one of the courses that doesn't have any real unique or memorable holes but does have a couple that are really fun to play and will make you want to play another round to see if you can master them.  For example:

• #2 a 443 yard par 4 with a sharp dog leg left along a tight fairway with water on the left and a tough approach to a raised green with significant slope back to the water
• on #7 (a 595 yard par 5 and the #1 handicap hole) I spent a lot of time in the bunkers (I felt like I was on the beaches of Gulf Shores but the ocean was missing as were the beach chairs and Pina Coladas) – the fairway twists and turns through a minefield of 7 bunkers offering several risk reward shots to try and carry the bunkers instead of following the fairways (I took the risk with no reward) to the green
• #16 is short (379 yards) but  fun and offers an option on the second shot to follow the narrow fairway around the lake to the dog right green or try a risk reward shot to carry the lake and try for a birdie
• #18 is a 526 yard par 5 that will make you want to play Gulf Shores Golf Club again –  water follows the fairway from the tee boxes to around in front of the green which requires a precise shot to fly the water and bulkhead and avoid the two bunkers on the backside 

The bunkers are typical of a Jay Morrish design – steep and deep and all shapes and sizes – and most are huge and strategically placed.  For example, on 14 there are three monsters that cross the fairway and are about where your tee shot wants to land or #1 which has a huge bunker in front of the green preventing a bump and run plus one on each side and one in back of the green.  And #7 has a minefield of 7 bunkers, one of which is in the middle of the fairway about 90 yards out.  Practice your bunker shots before you head out.  The good news is they are in great shape and have soft fluffy sand. 

The greens on the front nine are about average size (28 to 32 yards deep) mostly oval, slightly raised, and have some slope from back to front.  On the back, they seemed to have a little more variety in size and shape and had more undulation.  Gulf Shores Golf Club greens were in very good condition, ran true, held the ball well, and rolled about 9 or so.  We had some trouble reading the subtle breaks.

The fairways are mostly tree lined with a few holes having some homes on one side.  Some fairways are side by side.  Most are flat with little to no contour but ample with a playable rough – miss them and you're in trouble.  The back nines has some fairways with ripples and contour.

Bottom line – a good quality course where you can enjoy a fun and relaxing round and score well if you pick the right tee boxes and avoid most of the bunkers.