Cimarron Hills

Review of Cimarron Hills Golf Course in Georgetown, Texas

Created from some beautiful Texas ranch land on the northern edge of Georgetown, Cimarron Hills Golf and Country Club opened January 2003.  This luxury private gated country club is home to a spectacular 45,000 square-foot clubhouse, spa, fitness center, tennis facilities, restaurant. and an outstanding 18 hole Jack Nicklaus signature course.   The course meanders through some beautiful gently rolling hill country acreage with mature and stately oaks, the south fork of the San Gabriel River, and some huge beautiful homes.  

What makes Cimarron Hills Golf Course one of the best private golf courses in Texas and the reason we  gave the course a 9.3 (out of 10) rating is because it is:

very well maintained and manicured from the tee boxes to the cup

peaceful and quiet (except for the few holes along highway 29) and the pace of play is excellent

fair, but very demanding and requires some strategic shot making to turn in a good score

beautiful with cascading waterfalls, rock walls, tall stately oaks, blooming cactus, colorful landscaping, and stunning homes

an excellent layout with some outstanding holes and lots of variety

in near perfect condition with excellent bent grass greens

a blast to  play and you shouldn’t get tired of playing it over and over again

Jack Nicklaus describes Cimarron Hills as the “finest, purest experience of golf in all the Hill Country – perhaps in all of Texas.”  And it’s no surprise to us that Cimarron Hills made Texas Outside’s list of the Best Private Courses in Texas and was named as one of the “Best Places To Play in Texas” by Golf Digest.  If you like Nicklaus designed courses, this is one of the best and here is a list of other Jack Nicklaus Courses in Texas with links to Texas Outside’s reviews – set a goal and play them all!

With a slope and rating of 69.8 to 77.2 and 129 to 141, Cimarron Hills is no walk in the park.  The good news is that there are 5 sets of tee boxes plus a combo tee box with yardages ranging from 5059 to 7302 and it’s critical that the first time you play this course you pick the right set of tee boxes and don’t off more than you can chew.  Each of the holes is a little different from the others and each one will throw something at you that will test your game – long par 4s, dog legs left and right, lots of big fairway bunkers and steep and deep greenside bunkers, several very tempting high risk reward opportunities, water hazards, thick rough, tight fairways several of which have trees that will block shots that aren’t perfectly positioned, tough approach shots to greens with subtle breaks, and some minor uphill and downhill shots along rolling and sloping fairways.  But all of that is manageable if you pick the right set of tee boxes, play smart and strategic, and don’t be tempted to try the risk reward shots. 

Every hole at Cimarron Hills is fun and little different but some of the holes we loved included:

#7 is a slightly downhill 390 yard dog leg right with a risk reward opportunity off the tee box to fly the trees followed by a shot over a creek and gully that cuts across the front of a green which is guarded by a left and right bunker

#15 is a beautiful and fun 542 yard par 5 with trees in the fairway, a lake on the right front of the green, and 3 bunkers waiting for your approach shot if miss the lake

#18 has got to be one of the prettiest holes in Texas with two huge homes overlooking the tee box and the magnificent restaurant and clubhouse overlooking the green, a cascading creek with several water falls from the tee box to the  pin, and some beautiful landscaping, and cart path that crosses the creek next to a waterfall – plus it requires some good shot making skills to par

Cimarron Hills has been through several management companies since opening and the conditions have been hit and miss.  The good news is that Troon Golf took over management of the course in 2014 and they are a premier golf management company with a stable of excellent courses both in Texas and around the United States.  They have done a remarkable job of upgrading the conditions and when we played, despite the tough winter and drought, the conditions from the tee box to the pin were near perfect. 

The bent grass greens at Cimarron Hills range from smallish to huge and are all shapes and sizes.  When we played we were told they were running around a 10, but it seemed a little slower than that.  They ran true and held the ball well.  Some are raised, most are guarded with one to several steep and deep bunkers, and all had some subtle breaks thanks to some gentle slope and a few ridges. 

The Cimarron Hills fairways were also in very good condition – like most Texas fairways they were firm and you need to manage the slope and extra roll as well as the wind.  The first cut of rough is thick and challenging and typically under some trees – it’s more like a maintained natural area.  Miss that rough and you’re in the natural area which is thicker, taller and may be impossible to find your ball and even more difficult to hit out of. 

The bunkers at Cimarron Hills are everywhere and strategically placed – some are along the side of the fairway, some are in the middle of the fairway, most are where your drive wants to land, and all the greens well protected.  The bunkers range in size and shape from small pot bunkers to some monsters and most of the green bunkers are steep and deep!  The good news is that they are well maintained and the sand is soft and fairly deep.

Cimarron Hills is private, but here’s the good news – they have a Stay & Play which will give you the opportunity to play this great course.

Bottom line – Cimarron Hills is an excellent layout that’s scenic, fun, demanding, and in fantastic condition – do what it takes to get on it for a round of golf.