Rich Valley Golf Course

This golf course is a joke of a place. From unprofessional pro shop old man to the making up rules for people they do Not like. The course is already over charging for there terrible facilities. And on top of that the employees will swear and threaten to hit you if you don’t worship the ground they walk on. Overall, absolute joke of a course and team.

Before teeing off my wife and I were reminded of the rules for this course. The starter covered the pace of play and alcoholic beverage rules and other local ruled. Despite an expectation that the front 9 was expected to be played in 2 hours, it took us almost 3 hours to play the front nine. We quite quit. Not a lot of supervision or enforcement for those who cannot keep up. A bit of a disappointment to be honest.

The course was not in very good condition. Greens were sandy, tee boxes were in rough shape. I played in a charity tournament so my money was going to a good cause but I wouldn’t pay for the conditions the course was in. You weren’t allowed to play out of the sand because they didn’t have rakes out and they also took down all the ball washers. Course needs a lot of work but it was still fun.

Other than a few holes on the back 9, this course plays like a links-style course and is a fun change of pace from most of the courses in South-Central PA. Thick rough and some decent greens make this course playable multiple times. Will definitely play again.

The location is very convenient for me. Has a practice range but I often find myself driving to other ranges as the ground/grass at the range is very uneven and makes it difficult to practice. The tee boxes are also on uneven ground and often poorly mowed. Sand traps on most holes have stones and look like they haven't been raked in a while. Overly priced for what they offer. One time I wanted to take my 10 yr old son to ride the cart while I play (he was not going to play) and they wanted a fee for him to come along. A different course in the area allows 16 and under to PLAY for free with a paying adult. One of the guys in the clubhouse is extremely rude.

Don't normally feel the need to go out of my way to warn others about golf courses - but this course is an absolutely warranted exception. This course charges an absurd amount of money to play an extremely poor product. Tee boxes were shameful. Overgrown and inconsistent lengths. Fairways were non-existent; just severely overgrown grass where balls down the middle could very easily be lost. Traps were in terrible shape, as well. This was of the worst courses I've ever had the misfortune of playing, considering the price and course conditions. Thankfully, and mercifully, the greens were fine, sloped, and challenging.

You have been warned. Play literally anywhere else.

I've been playing this course since it's opened. The front 9 is unspectacular but decent. The greens are mid sized and are usually on the quick side, the front 9 is not overly long.

The back 9 is a much better 9 holes then the front, it's much more varied and challenging. Holes 15-18 are quite a bit more challenging then the remainder of the holes. Overall its a decent course, the price is a bit steep and it has a good overall driving range and practice facility. The staff are usually courteous and helpful.

Rich Valley offers something a little different from most courses around Carlisle. It is short and hilly with small greens and sharp doglegs. I played the golds, and had no trouble reaching most greens in regulation when my drive stayed in the fairway. Lots of times, I had less than 120 yards to the green. Fairways were great to play from -- greens, not so much. The greens looked good, but I noticed that my playing partners' putts bounced a lot instead of rolling smoothly. I assume mine did as well.

Bunkers on the front nine are in deplorable shape. The sand was firmly packed and crabgrass was growing in some bunkers, most notably in the large bunker that crosses the entire fairway on four. Bunkers on the back nine were in much better condition. Most were freshly raked.

Separating the fairway from the rough was hard on some tees for the golfer playing the layout for the first time, I could usually see where the flag was located, but I couldn't tell for sure where the fairway grass ended and the short rough began. It really didn't create too much of a problem because the short rough is not penal. And errant balls are easy to find.

I enjoyed my round. Surprisingly for such a short layout, I used 11 of the 14 clubs in my bag. That means one has to apply a little strategy to get around the course.

Carts are electric. Cart paths are paved and very smooth. Our starter was very helpful. Water and restroom facilities are located on the course. Signage is adequate. We played in the morning; thus, the restaurant was closed.

My daughter and I played this course on a visit to the area. This course is very beginner friendly and the staff is also very nice. Also, kudos to the ownership/management for having very attractive junior rates. There is no real rough other than certain areas planted with wild grasses and flowers. Some of this is visible in my photos. Most of the course thus has wide effective fairways, so it is easy to find and play wayward golfballs. That being said, there are gentle hills and slopes that can present some interesting holes and challenges. I agree with the previous reviewer that it is a mostly open course that needs some time for the trees to grow. All of the above characteristics give it a bit of a sterile look and feeling compared to what we are used to, although we were there on a cloudy day, which didn’t help. The lack of wooded areas also means that you need to be careful to hit towards the correct green, as there are some tee boxes where you can see two greens, and without the clearly delineated fairways you can make a mistake if you don’t check the scorecard map. As far as maintenance goes, fairways and “wild” areas were beautifully maintained. Greens were also very good. There was a brown patch on one of them, but other than that they were green and just the right firmness to where you could be a bit aggressive and have your ball travel as expected and not run off the other side of the green. Strangely enough, there were some weeds in some of the tee boxes. All-in-all though, a nice course, especially for juniors and beginners.

Pretty open over all, very good course conditions, bunkers need more raking, the most challenging holes start at 14 thru 18. Still a new course, that will be nicer when the trees grow up. Best place around to learn to play golf, because of the off course practice area.