Hill Country Golf Club - Lakes Course

Review of Hill Country Golf Club Lakes Course – San Antonio

Hyatt Hill Country Resort has 27 holes of some of the best golf in Texas. The three nine hole courses play through more than 200 acres of diverse terrain with tree lined and rolling fairways, tranquil lakes and ponds, wooded ravines, hillsides, and dry rock creek beds.  All three courses at Hill Country Golf Club were designed by Arthur Hills and he gave  each of the nines it's own unique challenges, personality, and character:

• the Oaks Course is the hardest of the three thanks to tight fairways, forced carries, and dog legs plus you need to place shots and work the ball to score well – here is a link to read our review of the Oaks Course
• the Creeks Course is the easiest thanks to wide and forgiving fairways and easier approach shots to the greens – read our review of the Creeks Course to lean more
• the Lakes Course is the middle of the road course and offers several risk reward opportunities

Although each nine is different, here is what is common to all three nines:

• they are all well maintained and manicured
• the greens and fairways are in very good condition
• each nine takes maximum advantage of the terrain
• the pace of play is excellent
• with 4 sets of tee boxes, you can find a yardage that fits your game and handicap
• the GPS is excellent and beneficial to helping you decide where to try and place your shots
• service is impeccable with an experienced, friendly, and helpful staff
• you'll have a fun and memorable round on any of the nines
• all are open to the public with a fantastic rate for locals with proof of residence and a good stay and play package
• the 19th hole Cactus Oak Tavern has good food, cold drinks, TVs, and a pool table

The Lakes course typlifies what golf is all about – great conditions, excellent service, challenging but fair holes, scenic beauty, lots of variety, some very fun holes, and an excellent 19th hole.

Arthur Hills did an excellent job of leveraging the gently rolling and heavily treed terrain, meandering rock creek, and four lakes to present you with nine holes with lots of character and challenges. Some of challenges that make this nine fun are sharp doglegs, narrow slots, some small landing zones, elevated and well protected greens, four lakes, bunkers, and a dry creek bed. This nine is fair and doesn't beat you up, but it does require excellent club selection, good course management, and some target golf – you may want to leave the driver in the bag on a few of the holes.

Some of the holes that we really liked include:

• #5 is a fun 336 yard par four with a fairway that is pinched into a figure 8 thanks to trees on left and a bunker on the right and then the approach (the green is set way off to the left) is over a dry creek to a 28 yard long severe sloping green with a lake on the left, grass swales on the right, and mounds in the back
• #6 is the #2 handicap hole and it's a beautiful 563 yard dogleg left par 5 that offers a tee shot with an excellent risk reward opportunity if you want to shorten the hole and rip it across the lake to a narrow oblong fairway (watch out for the strategically placed trap and the rough and the lake on the left and OB if you're long) – survive that and you then have to cross a rock creek and position you shot to avoid a huge tree blocking the approach to the green which also has a bunker on the left and the lake on the right – this is a shot makers hole
• #8 is a 560 yard par 5 that horseshoes left around the trees and the tight fairway is lined with 5 bunkers on the right side

Like the other 18 holes, the conditions were excellent when we played in early November and the entire course is very well maintained and landscaped. The fairways on the Lakes nine are tight but manageable and in near perfect condition. 

The greens are about average size with manageable slope and contour.  They held the ball well and ran true but were a tad slow.

The bunkers range from small to good sized with shallow to deep lips.  They were wet from a rain when we played and all of the bunkers will be renovated starting in December.

This is a fun, but challenging nine that you will want to play again. Although it's got its challenges you can score well if you think your way through the course.

Slope and rating are based on playing the Lakes and the Creeks. If you play the Lakes and the Oaks the slope from the tips is 136 and the rating is 73.7, which makes this combo of nines the toughest.

The Hyatt Hill Country Resort & Spa is fantastic and it has a very good Stay & Play Package.