Wintonbury Hills Golf Course

Played 27 here as part of an annual buddies trip. Ciaran was phenomenal to work with in in the lead up, getting us set up with tee times well in advance and even arranging to have yardage books shipped out to us. On the day of play the staff in the proshop and restaurant were incredibly helpful, providing top notch service.

The course itself was in amazing condition and provided just the right amount of challenge for our group, which ranged from 6-26 HCP. If I lived closer than the 7 hour drive, this would be my go-to course.

Like to try new places each week, Drove 80 miles up from NY after reading about course. Both my golf partner and I agree this is now one of our top favorite courses.

Loved everything about Wintonbury. Staff was great. Course was in immaculate shape. Will be back many times over

Visiting the Northeast for a day, local buddies and I took decided to play this course. I chose this course based on golf advisor reviews, and I was not disappointed. A great track, great views, great condition, Staff was very friendly. Only odd thing about the place is the driving range. You actually need to get in your car and drive down the road a short bit, there is no access from the course to the range. The starter warned us about the carts being GPS controlled, this type of thing is usually annoying because of the creeping done in areas deemed by the course to be a difficult drive, like across bridges and decks. I am not a fan, but there system didn't seem to be too over done. We were also warned about the GPS system controlling driving in the rough or close to areas they want to limit traffic, we did nor experience any issues with this feature. My experience with accuracy of GPS accompanied with mowing lines moving can sometimes lead to unintended cart control, this did not occur thankfully.

Any Pete Dye course will be challenging. This one is not as tough as some Dye courses I have played but still long, hilly and challenging. A few of the greens were in need of some TLC due to mold but overall they were good. Fairways outstanding, tees could use some TLC and leveling. Sand traps excellent condition (so overlooked these days) and even though the course was very wet the traps were playable.

I always enjoy Wintonbury, even if my game is struggling. The greens hadn't recovered from winter, they were still bumpy, with aeration holes still a problem. Still, it's a solid track

Fabulous track that is challenging but fair. Enough fairway width for mid handicappers on most holes. A few difficult driving holes but not the norm. The course is built on a gently rising hill with some horizontal and some vertical with elevation changes. Challenging greens because of slope of hill, that are well kept and roll nicely. The majority of the course is open. Trees come into play at the far end of the course. There are no homes on the course which makes for an enjoyable day with an out in the country feel. Excellnt course for the money.

Played 18 holes as a two sum yesterday and had an absolute blast, the start was very helpful with knowledge of the greens and overall layout, both the groups in front and behind us were nice and the course and overall day was beautiful. The pace of play was kinda slow but having know how golf courses run we understood and didn't let it ruin the day. Only thing is with the amount of players out there it would be nice if they sent out a beverage cart even if it was a weekday and having to drive to the range was a little annoying but not bad. The GPS on the carts were awesome and helpful, and the overall day day was great.

Longest round of golf that I have ever played 5 hours and 45 minutes. There were no marshals on the course and no effort to speed up play. We called the pro shop from the course and nothing was done.

We will never return.

Played here for $40. Worth double that easily. Starter explained all the rules of the cart and how to enjoy the course. Also gave us tips on how to read the Pete dye greens. There was no one playing this gem, why?!?! The layout is open and fair with no blind shots. The greens are a true test of skill. Drove 1:30 and will definitely be back

I participated in a golf competition at Wintonbury Hills. I played a practice round (on a Friday) and a competitive round (on a Saturday).

Bottom line first - I really liked the course layout and the condition of the course was excellent. Unless you have a terrible hook or slice you will not have trouble off the tee. The fairways are a challenge because you don't have many even lies (e.g., ball below your feet, ball above your feet). The real challenge is on the greens. The speed was what I expected but there are plenty of interesting breaks (with two tier greens, or bumps and swales protecting the greens).

They do have a few environmentally protected areas but again, you will only notice them if you have a bad slice or hook. One other thing, you need to hit a lot of shots aiming left off the tee because many fairways roll left to right.

Warm up/Practice Facilities - the only real down side is that the driving range is down the road and you must take your car. So you buy a token in the Pro Shop and drive to the range and then drive back to the course. At the course, behind the Pro Shop is a very nice practice putting green. You are allowed to chip on the green and they even have a few bunkers on the side of the practice green.

Don't let the policy of not driving in the rough turn you off from this course, it is very easy to ride in and out of the fairway (and ride down the fairway). The carts do slow and increase in speed automatically (e.g., when in the parking lot the carts go slow or going down a steep hill on the cart path) so just go with flow.

Pace of Play is great on the front nine but slows on the back nine. We still finished in 4 and 1/2 hours but any time you wait it feels slow. In my opinion the pace issue on the back is for two reasons (1) the back nine is a bit tougher and (2) I saw them putting groups off on the 10th tee when we were teeing off the 1st tee.

Staff and facilities: The staff was friendly and the starter did a great job providing instructions and giving tips. If you like yardage books, they do offer them for sale. The grill is nice and the food was decent. As with most Pro Shops not a lot of variety for women golfers.

Overall, I really enjoyed both days that I played this course.

I enjoy warming-up prior to my rounds, if I have the time. That is somewhat challenging at Wintonbury as the range is 1/4 mile from the clubhouse and you need to get your personal vehicle to get there. It's also mats only, and only offers 8-10 spots. The mats are nice however.

After that, the place is great. There are some similar holes, (1 & 10, 2& 11, 3 & 12, 4 & 13), but there is also a great mix of wide-open and tree-lined holes offering nice variety. The most difficult holes are definitely holes 14 & 15 with tight drives required and precise approach shots needed.

The greens are very challenging. Very undulating, quick, and difficult to read. There are also some challenging pin placements. The conditions of the course is great and it's a very enjoyable play for all skill levels. I've been multiple times and will continue to go, as it's a great option for anyone in the central CT/Hartford region.

Finished 9 holes in less than 1.5 hrs.

Golf cart GPS held us hostage for the first 3 or 4

holes...

Make sure to get a briefing @ check-in if new to the

course.

There was one considerate (out of 4) individual behind us who re-set the cart disable feature when

we drove in the rough

The others (members presumably) made mean

comments.

The front 9 was in good shape considering the dry weather.

If you ever wonder what it's like to play a pga course then wintonbury hills is the perfect test. The only Pete Dye course in the lower part of New England is a must play. The greens are fast and tricky. The fairways slope and run. You have to think about where you hit it because you place it right you get rewarded. If you miss then your misses can be really bad. That is what Pete dye courses do. They challenge your skills not like other courses

This is well worth the drive and the price. I've enjoyed every round I have played at this course. It is expensive even with a Hot Deal though. That said if you want to splurge to get a top of the line experience in CT, this is where you go. I suggest using your rewards on this to get the price down.

Greens and overall course in great condition. Pace of play was great. Make sure you go out ahead of the league play.

The lay out requires distance and accuracy. Greens are fast but consistent. Staff is very friendly and accommodating. Nice putting green but driving range is a bit of a hike. The back nine played slower and gets backed up as groups stop to grab lunch to go before going to the 10th tee.

Course was in great shape for a March tee time.

I will surely return.

My partner and I live an hour away on the shoreline and we usually play here once or twice a year. For us the price has a lot to do with our round. We paid a GolfNow price of $49 for April and November rounds. The course is usually in top notch shape. For the most part it was, except the greens were aerated recently and #14 had hidden plywood on the fairway which caused me to loose a ball that was hit on the fairway. With a 60 degree sunny day and little wind, we had a great time. Leaves were never an issue.

WOW! This course is beautiful. Rolling fairways with few trees as you pull into the parking lot. It really is an awesome looking course.

Our foursome played at bargain rates: $35/cart this fall day. And, although I agree with most of the reviews that state it is a great course we did have some problems.

If you've never played Wintonbury pay close attention to the Starter when he talks about golf cart use. They can only be driven on the cart paths or fairways. If you drive in the rough it will stop dead, as we learned, and will have to be pushed back to the fairway or cart path

The second problem was the greens. Although large and nicely designed, the were aerated several weeks ago but looked like they were just done. They were extremely bumpy, sandy and beat up, so much so that we limited ourselves to 2 putts each. The culprit is water. There has been very little rain recently and the sprinklers have been shut off in preparation for winter. So, no water, no growth.

The last problem was in the bar. They ran out of bottled beer except for a few unpopular brands. That is an unforgivable sin.

I will play this course again and would recommend it to anyone. It is the kind of course that would impress a guest or for entertaining clients. It is truly a bucket list and a top 10 course in New England.