French Lick

The Pete Dye course (there are 4 courses) at French Lick Resort is on the top 100 list, but the web site says you have to stay in the resort in order to play. The 2nd best course in Indiana is the Donald Ross course, so I played there.





This is the 100th anniversary for the golf course, and also for moon pies, so they are giving a free round of golf if you buy a moon pie for $120. Or something like that.



The cart attendants were dressed as Ross would have dressed while playing.



The course is typical Donald Ross, with nearly every approach shot going uphill, to large elevated greens with severe undulations.



I had this putt on the 9th, and couldn't get it close.  (View it on full screen, so you can see where the balls end up.)





There was hardly a level lie in any fairway, and lots of uphill shots from downhill lies. I made birdie on the #1 handicap hole, and I don't have to say anything else if I don't want to (we've been watching Laugh-In on the Decades channel).

One of the benefits of playing with Cactus Dave is gaining an appreciation for course architecture. The more I pay attention to it, the more I like Donald Ross courses. They are hard without being “in your face” about it. This one is par 70, 5900 yards (from my tees), and slope 131. If playing a Pete Dye course is like having to hit every shot from next to the “beware of alligators” sign, a Donald Ross course is like petting a friendly-looking dog and having it bite your hand off at the elbow. You hit two shots just about where you aimed, and the next thing you know you're writing double bogey on the card.

On the way home I stopped at the liquor store, because we had finished off the tequila last night, and a guy in the parking lot asked me if I had played golf there. Turns out he is one of the pros at the French Lick Resort, and noticed my golf shoes. We talked about the course, and he asked if I had played the Pete Dye course, and I told him I had wanted to, but saw on the web site that you have to be a guest at the resort. He says, “No, that's old, it's open to the public now.” It's going to start raining tomorrow as Irma arrives in the area, so we'll have to come back again.


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