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Rating Index Rating
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4.3
924 Reviews (924)
5 Stars
454
4 Stars
376
3 Stars
61
2 Stars
19
1 Stars
14
Conditions
4.2
Value
4.3
Layout
4.5
Friendliness
4.6
Pace
3.9
Amenities
4.1
93.4%
Recommend this course
882 out of 924 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.1
20 Reviews (20)
5 Stars
8
4 Stars
8
3 Stars
2
2 Stars
2
1 Stars
0
Conditions
3.8
Value
4.1
Layout
4.5
Pace
3.4
Amenities
4.3
StaffFriendliness
4.4
90.0%
Recommend this course
18 out of 20 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.3
75 Reviews (75)
5 Stars
42
4 Stars
23
3 Stars
5
2 Stars
4
1 Stars
1
Conditions
4.3
Value
4.3
Layout
4.5
Pace
3.9
Amenities
4.1
StaffFriendliness
4.6
90.7%
Recommend this course
68 out of 75 reviews
Read Reviews
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AI summaries based on real golfer reviews
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Course Highlights
Castle Bay's welcoming staff consistently make golfers feel at home, from the pro shop to the beverage cart. The links-style layout offers a fun challenge for all skill levels, with fairways and greens reliably well-maintained.

About

Holes 18
Type Semi-Private
Style Links
Par 72
Length 6698 yards
Slope 130
Rating 71.3

Although it is tucked away just north of Hampstead, Castle Bay Country Club will make you feel as though you've been transported to the British Isles. The golf course offers an authentic Scottish-links design that incorporates the natural wetlands of its coastal Carolina location, giving it a truly unique character. The landscape of rolling dunes is covered with native grasses but completely devoid of trees. Tall sand bunkers are strategically placed throughout and there are also expansive waste areas, both characteristics that are true to its links nature. Water hazards come into play on several holes as well. Accurate shot placement is the key to doing well on this course and just like any seaside links layout, the coastal breezes play a prominent role. Much of the difficulty of the golf course comes from negotiating with the prevailing winds.

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Castle Bay Country Club
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Course Details

Year Built 1999
Golf Season Year round

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes
Clubs Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Bunker Yes
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Credit Cards Accepted VISA, MasterCard, Amex, Discover Welcomed
Metal Spikes Allowed No
Fivesomes Allowed No
Dress code Proper attire is required.

Food & Beverage

Food & Beverage

Available Activities

Swimming

Available Sports

Fitness, Tennis
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Reviews

4.3
924 Reviews (924)
Advanced Filters
Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 14
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Windy weather
Used cart
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 5
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 10
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played

Great course

This is the best course in and around Hampstead. Always in great shape and really fun to play. Great value and my favorite course.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great Course

This is an A tier course. I frequent here often and you cannot beat it for the price. Not only is the round a great but all the beer and snacks are priced amazing as well. This is a fantastic place to play and I would recommend it to anyone.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 10
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Aug 18 - carts were limited

Despite the course always being in good condition there has been an ongoing usssue with the availability of carts. This has been further exasperated by a recent lightening strike which fried the boards on 7 carts. So despite a weekday tee of 11 AM, I had to wait 30 minutes for a cart.

One would think that the 30 minute delay would have yielded a quiker round. But endless waiting on the back 9 and NO rangers monitoring pace of play led to a 4:45 round.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Fair
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Pace

The pace of play out here has gotten so bad recently. I have noticed they don’t even have the ranger making sure you are teeing off at the right time. After 12 it seems he completely stops doing his job and anyone and everyone just goes out whenever. This causes terrible back ups and waiting on every single box for 18 holes. I like the course a ton but like every course pace of play not being enforced is an absolute disappointment and is the one thing that really sucks about golf in general. Hope they get this dialed in.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Poor
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Great course!

We were here on vacation. Tried it on a whim. Course was in great condition. The only drawback is the lack of a ranger so pace of play was a little slow.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 9
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing

Fast Greens and Fast Round

Greens were fast and fun… our morning early tee time (8:00) finished in 4 hours. GPS monitors in carts were helpful for first time player. Course rewards well placed shots and well-paced putts.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 20-24
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart

Great course

I would play this every week if I lived here. Great course and great staff.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 11
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 3
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once every three months
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Worth the drive from Wilmington

Got tired of poor customer service at one public course in town and lack of tee times at the other and decided to make the 45 minute drive to play this course. This was a great decision. The layout is good, course was in good shape, pace of play was good. Customer service by pro shop, starter, and especially beverage cart were excellent.

The carts have GPS that gives you distance to the pin but also the slopes on the green. This was very helpful since I haven’t played the course in several years.

I will definitely play this course again. It’s worth the drive.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart

Castle Bay

everything was fantastic- very pleased. We did have an idiotic 2 ball in front of us that we constantly waited on because they were each playing 3 or 4 balls, but not the courses fault and we still played as a 2 ball in 4 hours.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Fair
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 4
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Great layout, friendly staff.

Booked a twilight round, staff was really friendly. Course was in great shape. Course layout is fun and accommodating to all levels of player.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Castle Bay on a hot & humid August day

We teed off on time. Pace of play was very good. It was hot and humid but played under 4 hours. Overall course condition was very good. Would certainly recommend playing it.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once every three months
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 8
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played

Castle Bay Summer 2022

Course is in great shape. Played 3 other courses in the area and Castle Bay is the nicest, by far. Fairways and greens are tight and fast. Staff is friendly and helpful. Rangers could help more with slower groups. But, love playing here!

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played

Local Review

Castle Bay is a great layout and always in good shape. The other two public courses in their area (Old Pointe and Ironclad) don't even come close in terms of course conditions. The 18th is always fun since it's a driveable par 4. Ending your round with an eagle or birdie is a great way to head into the 19th hole where they've got pretty good food and dang good drink.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
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