Ambassador at Hickory Valley Golf Club

Great day out on the course, especially when teeing off at 6:40. Pace of play was great along with the other two guys plying with us. Definitely recommend playing from the championship tees gives you a whole different perspective of your second shot. Would certainly recommend this course to someone else.

My only complaint is that they didn't give you the pin locations there are a lot of holes that you can't see the pin from the fairway. So it's anywhere between a club or club and a half difference between front middle and back. so it affects the proximity to hole which I don't even have to say. Please update this because you have it on the scorecard and if you're cutting the holes it shouldn't be hard to record them and turn them in to the pro shop.

Great day to play this tricky course. Front nine is a bear and you must be straight. 9th hole is one of the toughest around, especially from back tees (617) yards and requires 3 perfect shots just to get on the green. Then this small green will give average golfer a sure 3 or 4 putt. I played good shots and made a 7...the couple I joined up with decked in their holiday garb had a 9 and 16 respectively. Other than that whole course is a joy. Give it a shot, but play conservative to lower your score.

Another enjoyable round at the Presidential. Friendly staff, tee times enforced. Pace of play was excellent- 3:45 for a 4some. Conditions good, greens smooth. Surprised by no foam in cups and rakes like usual

Beverage cart was running,halfway house open, prices reasonable . ($6 for hot dog and beer!).

Kinda far drive for me, but I’ll return bc of quality experience.

Love this course. Several very tight holes. greens are perfect, although lots of undulation. should do better next time now knowing the course a little better.

Over a 15-yr span, I played the Presidential course approximately 10 times per year, back when the 16th was a par 4 and the 17th was a par 5.

The staff was friendly enough and it always felt like the area's."hidden" gem, especially after the construction of Bella Vista and Raven's Claw, two tracks that in my view, pale in comparison.

I stopped going there about 5 years ago because they'd "lost" a few greens and it seemed like they'd given up on her. As an aside, and in the interest of full disclosure, they also used to send me a voucher for a free round on my birthday and it bothered me that they stopped that practice because it always felt good and kickstarted my season.

Still, a buddy claimed she was once again respectable, so I gave her a look.

As I turned into the parking lot, it felt like I was visiting an old friend I hadn't seen in years, but I didn't have any expectations.

The staff was certainly friendly enough but to my surprise, the conditions are indeed back. Assuming you play from the fairways, you'll find them in good shape and the greens are beautiful. Here's hoping folks take care of both by repairing their divots. Like wearing a mask thru a pandemic, it's the easiest thing in the world to do and it makes life better for everyone.

As for the layout, if you drive the ball 285+ (be honest with yourself) *and* you like hitting your driver, I suggest you play from the black tees. From the white tees, bombers can't, or at least shouldn't hit driver on 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 or 18. You probably shouldn't hit it on 17 either, unless you can carry it 260 with a cut or fade. Because of the many doglegs, trees, and other trouble, even the longest and straightest of drives will leave in you in peril as I found out when I hit my tee shot on the par 5 4th into the high grass, which is just beyond the fairway, about 295 from the tee.

Nevertheless, the old girl is in good shape and the staff is nice enough. It's a good value and a good time.

Both courses at Hickory Valley are well maintained, challenging & fun. The staff is very friendly and accommodating. The Presidential course is the better of the 2 but either delivers good value for the money!

Could play there everyday.. Perfect condition. Great staff!

Really enjoyed Hickory Valley golf course but I have to say don’t go through golf now. Originally had three people to play one broke a rib and could not play. Called golf now and would not refund my money because I did it through hot deals. Have to say it was in a hot deal only saved two dollars. Don’t waste your time or money on golf now. Just booked a teatime online through the golf course.

They doubled charged me for a round and I can’t get through to anyone

I typically play Hickory Valley 4/5 times a year but haven’t played it in a couple of years. I was pleasantly surprised with the course conditions. For a public access course the conditions were very good. The tee boxes, fairways and rough were all very full and the turf was in great shape. Divots were perfect not the exploding type of poor turf conditions. The greens were the best I’ve played them. They were also very lush and were running faster than I’ve ever played them. They usually don’t break as much as they look but when we played, the breaks were much more prevalent than usual. The bunkers all had an appropriate amount of sand and the fairway bunkers were a bit firmer than the green side bunkers as they should be.

We played the 6,290 white tees. Two golfers had 7 handicaps other two are struggling to break 100.

This is a tough course for beginners or the higher handicap golfers because there are numerous forces carries. A “penalty area” formerly a hazard, comes into play on 7 of the front nine holes. The tee shot landing areas on the front side are generous but longer hitters need to be careful on their lines and distances on 1,2,6,7 and 9. Holes 2,4,5,7,8 and 9 have approach / tee (par 3’s) shot carries over a penalty area to the green. The greens on the front side are very large so hitting them in the proper place is key to scoring.

The back side is much tighter than the front and starts with a fairly long dogleg right par 4 into a tight green that is well bunkered with a lateral on both sides. Pull or push your approach and you’ll pay the price. 12 is a really tight driving hole that do legs slightly left with a lateral down the right side and trees on the left. You need to get far enough down the fairway or stay to the right or your approach is blocked. The par 5 14th is a benign tee shot. Pretty open but the left side is OB. There is a large set of trees on the right side up by the green about 60 yards out. Makes you thing about going for the green in two and where to place your approach shot. The green is pretty small and well bunkered. They changed around the pars on the 16th and 17th holes and I don’t think this is a good change. 16 is now a very short and tight par 5 From what used to be a par 4. It was hard to par this hole because on top of it being tight, the green is elevated. A well struck drive results in a mid to long iron to the elevated well bunkered green. (The back black tee on this hole is nearly impossible. It is 490 yards). The now par 4 17 is about the same yardage as the 16th. The problem is it is a slight dogleg right with a water hazard running across the fairway at about 260 yards from the tee. The forces you to hit a three wood or a long iron / hybrid Off the tee to come up short of the hazard leaving you with a 220 plus approach into the green and if you are in the right rough or even the right side of the fairway, you are left without a shot. It doesn’t matter relative to the overall par but they should change this back.

7 handicappers shot 80 and 82 with two lost balls each. The higher handicappers lost about two sleeves each

Overall the superintendent and his crew are doing a great job with what I’m sure is a limited budget. Due to Covid-19, we had little interaction with the staff but they are usually very friendly.

Nice course and always a fun round. Water always in play or OB. Tight fairways and hilly greens which play slow. A good iron player is suited best. Staff was great and accommodated as my playing partner showed up 30 mins late and threw us in right away, thanks guys!

Early Season first time playing this we were really surprised at how nice the fairways and greens were for this time of year.

18 in under 4 hours, not in bad shape considering it's near the end of winter