Bear Trap Dunes Golf Club - Kodiak/Black Bear Course
Rating Snapshot
About
Bear Trap Dunes Golf Club sits along the Eastern Shore, sprawling across a scenic landscape of coastal dunes and grassy hollows. There are 27 championship holes at the club that are played in three different 18-hole combinations. The nines, Grizzly, Kodiak, and Black Bear, are all different though they share many of the same features including winding fairways lined with native wetland grasses and oversized greens flanked by strategically placed traps. The Kodiak/Black Bear combination follows the natural contours of the coastal terrain, fully utilizing the ample sand dunes that cover the landscape. There is also plenty of water that comes into play throughout. All three golf courses at Bear Trap Dunes are challenging but they are fair and player friendly enough to appeal to a wide range of skill levels.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | 72 | 6853 yards | 72.4 | 130 |
| Back | 72 | 6377 yards | 70.1 | 126 |
| Club | 72 | 5748 yards | 67.3 | 120 |
| Forward | 72 | 5074 yards | 69.1 | 118 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship M: 72.4/135 | 363 | 410 | 541 | 153 | 382 | 365 | 550 | 202 | 427 | 3393 | 358 | 441 | 200 | 508 | 363 | 557 | 175 | 434 | 424 | 3460 | 6853 |
| Back M: 69.7/130 W: 76.0/138 | 345 | 385 | 512 | 133 | 369 | 340 | 522 | 175 | 406 | 3187 | 315 | 405 | 190 | 482 | 328 | 516 | 159 | 413 | 382 | 3190 | 6377 |
| Blended M: 68.2/120 W: 74.1/134 | 345 | 349 | 474 | 133 | 325 | 340 | 522 | 142 | 367 | 2997 | 315 | 371 | 152 | 482 | 328 | 496 | 159 | 340 | 382 | 3025 | 6022 |
| Club M: 67.1/113 W: 73.1/131 | 313 | 349 | 474 | 115 | 325 | 304 | 483 | 142 | 367 | 2872 | 288 | 371 | 152 | 458 | 302 | 496 | 159 | 340 | 343 | 2909 | 5781 |
| Forward M: 64.0/110 W: 68.9/117 | 286 | 317 | 440 | 95 | 296 | 281 | 461 | 108 | 310 | 2594 | 241 | 311 | 129 | 400 | 271 | 424 | 114 | 296 | 294 | 2480 | 5074 |
| Handicap | 16 | 8 | 4 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 6 | 17 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 15 | 3 | 13 | 5 | 9 | |||
| Par | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 12 | 4 | 6 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 2 | 16 | 8 | 17 | 1 | 11 | 9 | 13 | 7 | 15 | 5 | 3 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Food & Beverage
Bar, RestaurantAvailable Facilities
ClubhouseAccolades
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Golf Advisor: Top Courses in Delaware (2019 #6)
Reviews
Reviewer Photos
Worth it
The course has a great layout, the staff was friendly, and a piece of play was great. It was rather wet today but even with that it was a good round.
Very nice course, unfortunately very wet and balls plugging in the fairway. They had just aerated the greens recently or I would have rated them higher for conditions . Friendly staff.
Not told the greens were just aerated and topdressed
Would have been nice to have been told ahead of time that they had just been done.
Very bad experience
I have been playing golf for over 20 years - I have never seen a course pace of play mismanaged as it was today. Three groups waiting on a single hole. Will not be back.
Pace
Somehow a fivesome got in front of us. We should’ve called into the pro shop but tolerated things. When we got in we checked with staff and they said indeed we should’ve called because they would’ve broke the fivesome up.
Course in good condition for the amount of play
The pace of play was excellent and the course was well maintained considering how many players are on the course daily.
This is a fun, resort style course to enjoy at the beach.
We had a good time. We played the front 9 in 2 hours, but on the back 9 nine our pace was reduced to 3 hours.
As they closed the range as we arrived, the least they could have done is discount our rounds by what a bucket of balls goes for, but that did not happen.
Greens Fees Too High versus Course Condition
I've played Bear Trap Dunes many times over the past 2 years, and have even considered joining the club. However, their escalating initiation fee of $4500 and poor course conditions have turned me away from this happening. The public greens fee rate of $130 is way above the market as well.
In regard to coarse condition, the tee boxes are in horrible shape with many having an issue with some kind of grass disease. Also, the majority of tee boxes on all (3) 9 hole courses are in unacceptable condition and need to be seeded and rotated based on the amount of play they get.
I'm an 8 handicap and have played on equal style courses around the U.S. where course maintenance, especially tee boxes and greens, is much better when you factor in the cost of green fees charged.
In my book Bear Trap is a challenging course that needs professional TLC, maybe a new course superintendent.
Fun Afternoon
I had a n enjoyable round this afternoon. There were no delays and the check in was very efficient. I wish they had the beverage cart in service today.
Not quite up to standard for a resort course in peak season
We played on a Monday afternoon and found minimal operations on a very hot day - range closed, no snack bar or beverage cart, range closed. Took a long time to get beverages in the club house at the turn. Course was challenging and fun to play, greens were a bit beaten up with lots of unrepaired ball marks.
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