Meadowbrook Farms Golf Club

Meadowbrook Farms Golf Course was designed by the legendary PGA Tour champion Greg Norman and opened in 1999. Since then the course has won a number of well deserved accolades, including: Golf Digest ranked it among Texas’ best courses in 2001, it was voted Houston’s best course by Houston Sports News in 2000, and Avid Golfer awarded it one of the Top Courses in Houston. The excellent layout meanders through hardwood trees, along small creeks, around some lakes, and through some wetlands. The terrain is flat to very gently rolling and the fairways are lined by trees, homes, and/or native prairie grasses and wildflowers. This imaginative course starts by weaving in and out of the trees, then through open ground except for the deep prairie grass roughs (has a links look and feel), and then back through the trees. You'll play around the lakes, across the creeks, and over or beside the wetlands.

The fairways are in very good condition, some are narrow, and all include something that can cause you a problem if you miss them. The prairie grasses that line a lot of the fairways are out of bounds and will devour your ball – keep your driver in the bag if you have a tendency to spray the ball. The front nine is a great track in very good condition but has nothing that is real unique or exciting and it doesn't seem that challenging, if you can keep the ball in the fairway. On the front, you should have a good round.

The back nine is fantastic with some fun and challenging holes and a great finishing hole that helps make this nine very memorable. On the back nine you'll find some huge bunkers, beautiful blue lakes, tree and prairie lined fairways, and greens that are tucked among the trees and well protected. Number 12 for example is a 555 yard par five that requires a good tee shot to avoid the water on the right or the large fairway bunker on the left. The second shot needs to favor the right side and be well placed to avoid the trees that will block your approach to a small protected green.

The fairways are flat to gently rolling, in excellent condition, and use GN-1 which is a Greg Norman developed turf. When we played in December the greens were in excellent condition, very true, a little fast (10 on the Stint Meter), and gentle sloping – all of which made putting pretty straightforward. All of the green sod-wall bunkers had recently been redone and were perfect – soft, deep, white sand. The white signs that you see in the picture were there because of the new sod around the bunkers. The fairway greens were in the process of being redone.

If you are in the Houston area, Meadowbrook Farms is a course you need to add to your must play list.