Old Kinderhook

Review and Rating of Old Kinderhook Golf Course in Camdenton, MO

I can use three words to describe Old Kinderhook – impressive, impressive, impressive.  The course is spectacular, the grounds are immaculate, the homes on the property are huge and beautiful, the stay and play lodging is outstanding, and the facilities and amenities are top-notch!  Tom Weiskopf designed a masterpiece that is the centerpiece for the 700 acre Old Kinderhook master-planned community.  The golf course is renowned for its unsurpassed drama with valleys, waterfalls, hills, trees, lakes, elevation changes, and breathtaking views as it meanders through the rugged Ozark hills.  It seems like Tom designed and built a beautiful park and then dropped a golf course in the middle of it, making use of the natural beauty!  And it is not surprising that Old Kinderhook is consistently named in Golf Digest’s list of the Top 10 Missouri Golf Courses and is also ranked #1 by Best of the Lake.

Every hole on Old Kinderhook is a joy to play, a little different than the other holes, and is challenging but fair.  During your round, you’ll encounter doglegs, elevation changes, swales and 55 bunkers, water on 11 holes, generous fairways, big greens, thick rough, and near-perfect conditions.   A little bit of everything that makes golf fun and demanding. 

All of the golf holes at Old Kinderhook are awesome but some that we really loved included:

• #6 is the shortest par 4 on the course at 344 yards but it’s also the #1 handicap hole thanks to a tight fairway and lots of trouble including two fairway bunkers and two right front bunkers and a small stream guarding a small oval raised green
• #8 is a 416 yard par 4 that may be the course’s most scenic and breathtaking hole – the tee box is around 100 feet above the narrow fairway and the second shot to the green is treacherous because it needs to carry a pond, avoid the stand of trees, and miss a big left front bunker
• #11 is a beautiful 202-yard par 3 with a dramatic downhill shot to a green with a view of the lake and a large left and right side bunker
• #17 is a 376 yard par 4 with big bunkers on the left and right of your landing zone, a tight fairway that turns right and heads uphill past another fairway bunker plus a huge deep bunker in the middle of the fairway that appears to be right in front of the green but is actually well short of the green and has a small pot bunker between it and green
• #18 is a very impressive finishing hole – a 516 yard par 5 with a stunning elevated tee shot to a huge landing zone, a dogleg right around a bunker, a lake on the left that can easily catch your second or third shot, and an approach shot over the lake or across the creek to a green with a hidden back bunker and a bunker on the left side of the green – the Old Kinderhook Lodge and the lake form a beautiful backdrop for this fantastic golf hole

The zoysia fairways at Old Kinderhook vary from tight to wide open let-er-rip.  If you miss the fairway,  a thick and challenging rough borders both sides of the fairways and can be very challenging.  The fairways were in near perfect condition.  Some huge beautiful homes sit well back overlooking some of the fairways.  The fairways and rough at Old Kinderhook are lush and plush and very well maintained.

The bent grass greens were also in near perfect condition.  They range in size from average to large and all of them have some combination of slope, tiers, or undulation.  They were running smooth and true and around an 8 to 9 on speed.  They are soft and held the ball well.

The 55 bunkers at Old Kinderhook vary from small pot bunkers to big multi-fingered monsters.  Some are steep and deep and challenging.  15 of the bunkers have been redone and are in great condition with sand that’s a joy to hit out of.  The rest of the bunkers vary from washed out to very thin and heavy sand.  Another 15 bunkers will be redone this year and the rest the following year.

Old Kinderhook is home to an excellent stay and play package that includes your choice of golf cottages, patio homes, or villas.  During your stay, you can also enjoy the upscale Trophy Room Restaurant for lunch or dinner with a beautiful view of the 15^th and 18^th fairways or enjoy breakfast and lunch and the bar at the Hook Cafe.  In addition, there is a fitness center, pool, tennis courts, a spa, seasonal ice rink or sand volleyball courts, and access to the lake with kayaks and paddleboards.