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GREENSBORO, Ga. - For golfers who only like to play on days ending in "Y," the prospect of being able to play a different course each day of the week sounds like heaven.
Or, as of this fall, Reynolds Lake Oconee.
The residential/resort mega-complex 80 minutes east of Atlanta in the Peach State's lake country just opened its seventh golf course, a Tom Fazio design called Richland. The new private-course-within-the-club is a fine addition to one of America's most comprehensive single-site golf offerings and one of its most pleasant places to stay, play and (for a few thousand families) live.
Richland is an intriguing half-brand-new, half-remodeled golf course that unfolds from the mature heart of the community and explores new territory before wandering back home to an impressive complex that features the popular National Tavern restaurant, a row of National Cottages where visitors can stay and a first-class practice facility. The course's first five and last four holes have been adapted from the original Bluff Nine of a 27-hole layout called The National, which Fazio laid out in stages between 1997 and 2000. Richland comprises the Bluff's first five holes, including the gorgeous par-3 4th hole, which runs along the edge of Lake Oconee, before heading into a stretch of nine brand-new holes on rollicking terrain across the charmingly named Linger Longer Road, before returning for the Bluff's strong four-hole finish and an 18th green perched above a pond and beneath the clubhouse.
Richland's midsection, laid out on 75 acres of rolling pine forest, breaks new golf ground in multiple ways for Reynolds Lake Oconee. Not only are the holes themselves brand-new, they comprise the club's first true stretch of "core" golf, with no houses bordering fairways. The community's other courses do an admirable job of never letting the homes feel like they intrude too much on play, but Richland's expansive interior offers a distinctly refreshing opportunity to gaze out several hundred yards in multiple directions and see little other than golf holes nearby. Members and their guests will enjoy seeing their domain in a novel way. As a result, the course feels like a three-part drama. It's an unconventional rhythm, which differentiates it further from the club's other golf courses.
Rather than wholesale changes, Fazio and associate Brian Bowers gave the existing holes a more grandiose feel by widening overall corridors and broadening out the bunkers, whose quasi-clamshell shapes and bright white sand are very much in vogue, a nod to Augusta National just 60 miles away, where Fazio has been the consulting architect since 1998. Richland's greens mainly feature long tilts and sweeping contours, although on the roomier middle holes, some pronounced tiers and knobs provide an almost Golden Age look and test. The green on the long par-4 10th, with a sharp tier across the middle, comes as a potentially nasty surprise after the first nine. Firm, lightning-fast TifEagle surfaces make for challenging putting; three-putts can pile up for golfers who find themselves in the wrong section of greens.
Richland's best golf holes are a mix of the reconfigured old holes and new ones. Fazio and Bowers stretched the par-3 4th green to hang over the lakeshore, adding high shot values to visual drama. Of the new holes, the sweeping par-5 8th stands out with a huge-looking fairway that plunges out of sight past the landing area. From the right tee and after a good drive, an exciting heroic approach over a nest of bunkers can result in a putt or pitch shot for eagle.
Richland finishes strong thanks to Fazio's original work a quarter-century ago. After crossing Linger Longer Road a second time, the short par-5 15th is a more intimate version of the 8th, with a pond protecting the green. Holes 16 and 17 are defined by creeks that border the greens on a long downhill par 3 and medium-length uphill par 4, respectively.
How does Richland stack up to the other golf courses at Reynolds Lake Oconee? Having played all of them, I still find The Jack Nicklaus-designed Great Waters and Jim Engh's sculptural Creek Club to be the class of the property, but would put Richland alongside The Preserve and The Landing in the community's next tier of courses. Members will gladly work it into their typical rotation. It's nice to have such options.
Reynolds' latest golf option is one of several recent upgrades the community's more than 4,000 residents have been able to enjoy in recent years. Another, Richland Pointe Village, houses an airy, lakeside members-only restaurant, a wellness center, spa and two infinity-edge pools that have been popular since the complex opened in 2022. Reynolds Lake Oconee feels like a little city centered around golf. While the presence of seven 18-hole golf courses makes it seem silly to think something might be missing, the seemingly inevitable future addition of a short course would be a welcome amenity for members and continue to push Reynolds higher.
More golf course news and notes
WELLING REVAMPS PENINSULA - Architect Beau Welling, who oversees several course design projects in addition to assisting Tiger Woods on the 15-time major champion's golf design work, recently completed an overhaul of The Peninsula Club north of Charlotte, N.C. [LINK: The Golf Wire]
SECOND FIDDLE NO MORE? - Royal Dornoch Golf Club's kid-brother Struie Course is set for a major upgrade that will see the building of several brand-new, seaside links holes at the home of the Championship Course that inspired architects like Donald Ross and Pete Dye. [LINK: RoyalDornoch.com]
KING, COLLINS AND... - The golf course architecture firm responsible for Sweetens Cove in Tennessee, Landmand in Nebraska and the new reversible 9-hole Crossroads at Palmetto Bluff in South Carolina has taken on a third partner. Trevor Dormer, a longtime Coore & Crenshaw associate, has made King Collins into King Collins Dormer. His first assignment: transform Old Dane Golf Club into a 12-hole Heartland golf adventure for the Andersen family who own Landmand. [LINK: GolfCourseArchitecture.net]
LATEST MYRTLE BEACH CLOSURE - After 50 years, Carolina Shores Golf & Country Club in Calabash, N.C., has been shuttered by ownership. [LINK: On The Green Magazine/MyHorryNews]
GOLF-ADJACENT - "It's not about what golf lets you do. It's what golf keeps you from doing." Wise words from a non-golfer who recently gave the game a try. [LINK: El Dorado News-Times]
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