Morris Williams Golf Course

This is the first time I've played this course since they did some renovations a year or so ago. First off, the new club house is a HUGE improvement! Built brand new from the ground up, this is now a good sized building with a nice pro shop, restrooms, etc. It also has a large indoor bar/grill -- high ceiling, tables and chairs, ceiling fans, cold AC, and three TVs to watch. Outside, you can sit in a rocking chair on the 2nd story porch overlooking the putting green and a couple of the holes. They also have a large, covered area for tournament scoring and such. As a bonus to the expense of running the place, the entire roof is covered in solar panels. The electric carts are all stored underneath the club house and I witnessed two nice gentleman cleaning out and washing down every cart before they put them in for the night -- great job guys!

I'm guessing that the driving range holds a good 20-30 players. They have permanent, well marked poles for various yardages. And with high nets along the back and right side of the range, you don't have to worry too much about hitting one into the road. The practice green was just right -- plenty of holes, just enough undulation to work with, and in fine shape. They also have a separate, smaller green just for pitching.

On this particular outing, the tee boxes were a bit hard and pretty chewed up with divots. Almost all were very level, but they'd simply taken a beating. The fairways were all in fine shape. Probably fewer divots than you're used to seeing simply because the ground has so much hard pan; it's always been like this. Cart paths are concrete for the entire course and are in great shape. With MoWillie, you'll get a pretty fair amount of elevation change on a lot of holes. It's an enjoyable ride. The greens were a little slow but in very nice shape; a lot of them are on the very large side of the scale. I'm sure the heat and drought play a big part in how low they cut them. Undulation was present on many but I'd put it on the low end of the scale. This should help the higher handicap folks out a little as it'll be less punishing. The bunkers were all in good shape with nice, soft sand. Water hazards are few and far between for this course. Know where they are, avoid them accordingly, and all is well. Haha!

I saw water coolers at #6, #8, #11/15, and #17. I could've used one on about #3 but that's probably because I was a little dehydrated. Still, it's nice to see multiple coolers at each spot and multiple locations on each nine holes. Too many courses skimp on the coolers ... but not MoWillie.

All in all, good job on the renovation City of Austin Parks & Recreation!

Course was in great condition. Greens are back to there normal condition.

I really enjoyed playing this course. It was my 3rd time out and just keeps getting better. They don't seem to stack the course with too many people even though you will get you occasional 5-some which is annoying. Greens are in good shape with a few of them a little spotty. Overall, I would recommend this course.

Nice course. A lot of challenges. I enjoyed the new putting greens

I used to live in Austin and played a lot at Mo Willie. The routing is incredible and the course used to be a great strategic test. The course played firm and fast and the greens were very tough.
In my return visit this weekend I looked forward to seeing the recent changes to the course but was very disappointed. In the process of upgrading the facilities they ruined the course as a strategic gem. Almost all the greens were recontoured and the entire course has new thick lush grass. The problem with the grass is that in order to keep it thick and lush the course must be watered immensely. There was standing water everywhere, with my cart sloshing through fairways. All the sand was sopping wet. Balls were plugging. It was a slog.
No more firm and fast.
Second problem is that in recontouring the greens, they made a mid-century strategic masterpiece into a boring modern course. Hole 4 used to require a strong draw up the hill off the tee in order for the second to be short enough where you could carry the front bunker and still hold the front to back green. If you were short off the tee you had to play to the side and try to get up and down. Now the tee box is dead center and raised up to fairway level. The front bunker is gone and the green a flat top. No more strategy, just a boring straightaway par 4.
Same with hole 9. 9 used to beg you to drive it as far left as possible without going into the lateral hazard in order to get a good look at the well protected right to left green. They flattened the green and moved it left so now pretty much any tee shot other than in the trees can hold in regulation.
The one change that is a big improvement is on 13, where they cleared the brush area on the left hill and it is now an alternative fairway. That is the type of great risk/reward this course used to present on many holes but no longer. Unfortunately, all I have are memories of a great course. The routing is still fab, but the mud and the greens have made it just another course in central Texas.

They charged me for my 8 yo to ride in cart that was a bummer but nice course.

I like the improvements since I played 10 years ago, course was much better than I remember. Great Conditions.

Wow, this course has really changed. If you played this course in the past and have not since the remodel, i recommend you do. I was really impressed. I will definitely play it again soon.

On other courses, i have recently heard several golfers speak fondly of Mo Williams - so I decided to give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised by the updated facilities and the very good condition of the course. The course was challenging enough. The greens were a very pleasant surprise - good shape, interesting design and pin placement. Every putt required a little extra time to read - nothing was straight.
And we played in under 3 1/2 hours. I'll be back again.

Hadn't played here in years....wow..was pleasantly surprised at the changes....nice facility....Course was in great shape...staff was very friendly...will definitely go back when in Austin.

The pace was good, it took us 4 hours to play and the greens were well kept. Mo has a friendly and helpful staff. I look forward to eating the delicious grill cheese sandwich and ice cold beverages. Mo even has a friendly duck at #3! It doesn't get any better than that.

Great golf course after the re-design. It plays over 7k yds from the tips and is still fair enough for the juniors and women from the forward tees. Course condition is always in great shape, excellent fairways, rough, teeboxes and greens. Pro shop employees are a bit smug but a few of them have been there darn near two decades so they probably don't give a darn. new clubhouse is amazing, and clean, with ice cold AC. The back patio has a bunch of rocking chairs, so it's awesome to sit there with a drink and watch golfers come in or tee off. Best municipal course in Austin, and would give most munis everywhere a run for their money.

I'm really impressed with Mo-Willy's. This was my first time back at the course since recent renovations and it's looking nice. The $25-$35 round is a great value at a course like this.

Had a good time playing greens in good shape. Played an extra nine holes because pace of play went so smoothly.

I think this was the 5th time I've played Morris Williams since the renovation. Until now, the greens had been playing very firm taking a shot. But now they are taking a shot nicely which is great. But they're a bit slow and not super smooth...hopefully they can improve in that regard as well. Fairways and tee boxes were good. Overall, the renovations that were made (mostly larger greens and added yardage) are a positive for the course. I like the course. It's nice to have a decent course that's not too expensive.

Very good shape for no rain
Very slow
Waited on any holes
But had a great time

1st time playing MW. Loved it! NO hardpan, greens in excellent condition (kinda slow, but rolled true), fairways playable everywhere and pace was fast 4hrs on July 4th weekend. Also, I played the same ball for 18 holes, a personal best for me, even tho I shot 89. Not a lot of water, but the sand traps are in good condition and has decent sand. (tip: take a LOT of sand when playing bunker shots. It's VERY heavy)
A few blind shots and big swinging doglegs keep your head in it. Also, I saw the beverage cart once in 4 hours, they could improve on that. GO play!

Quality redo with huge greens. Greens are rock hard making for a nice test

Good conditions but I wish the greens were cut down a little more for a Saturday round. Nice clubhouse addition!

This was my 10th time playing and enjoyed my round. I would recommend this course and its one of my top two public courses in Austin.