Vineyard Valley Golf Club

My grandson and I enjoyed our round of golf and I will revisit the course soon. Because of the exceptionally dry weather we have been having some of the greens were burnt otherwise the course is in great condition. The staf were very friendly and helpful.

Eight out of nine greens had huge bare spots. Fairways had bare patches. Tees where mostly dirt. What grass there was on the greens was all snarly so the ball wouldn’t roll well at all.

Services limited due to Covid-19, but a fun course to play. Nine holes with small greens (a couple with bare spots), with tough uphill, downhill, and sidehill lies in fairways - a good test.

Hidden gem this course is. It’s only like $25 for 18, so you get what you get. Not the best course conditions and greens always play slow.

However, I’ve never been paired up with anyone (played all different times), course staff is very friendly, never a wait, can get whatever tee times you want. Pace of play is rarely an issue, usually it’s wide open to play at whatever pace you’d like, and it’s not expensive at all so you can go a lot more. 9 holes, and you get to drive on 7 of the 9. Long course which is great for 9. Hole 7 is really fun, straight with a huge downhill drop so you can hit bombs.

If your ball goes into the woods or a hazard, forget about it you’ll never find it, so I do go through a handful of balls. But the atmosphere is great, always available and cheap. I would definitely get a membership if I lived closer.

Tee boxes are a wreck.

Greens very slow, but we are in a heat wave so mowing them would probably kill them.

Scenic views from 7th tee.

7th is the most fun hole I played in some time. Your tee shot stays in the air so long you thing you are Bryson Dechambeau..

Love playing here. I have fun every time. Always meet new people. Pace of play is great. The owner is one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

Vineyard Valley, built—as its name suggests—over a former vineyard, derives energy from its mix of doglegs, and its variation between up and downhill holes. The course was constructed on a good, if extremely hilly site. The seventh has the largest drop from tee to fairway of any hole I've encountered in Connecticut; from down by the clubhouse, it looks like a Vermont ski slope. The par-3 ninth is a sterling golf hole, and 5 and 8 are fairly good par 4's. Most of the difficulty of the course stems from big sidehill lies (a nice gentleman I played with here for the last few holes told me the course has almost no flat lies; I certainly didn't have any throughout the nine).

What I don't see the point of, though, the way most green complexes here are designed: they possess small and flat—often quite flat—greens that were more suited to executive courses (with short holes) than a layout of this length and potential. Granted, there are few greenside bunkers here, but these are the one defense—used only sporadically—around the putting surfaces.

The conditioning I observed here did not meet a reasonable standard for serious play. Both fairways and rough were marred by crabgrass, clover, and other weeds. Bunkers were filled with weeds, some of them tall. Nearly undefined fringes didn't help, and greens were ultra-show in speed, my putts bumping their way to the holes. The net effect was of a layout without mowing lines from the tees and into the greens, as only the greens were set apart visually. Many of the tees—although not all—were chewed up. Unfortunately, conditioning of this caliber affects the overall playing experience.

As at least one GA reviewer has noted before me, this could be an attractive venue if the owner(s) were to put something more than basic efforts into the conditioning. It deserves better. Some of these reviewers, too, insinuate that the course isn't fit for even casual play, but I respectfully disagree and would call it fine for a good percentage of golfers. Despite the conditioning, I still essentially enjoyed my nine holes here; after all, it's golf!

The chief benefit of playing here is experiencing some of the finest scenery you'll find anywhere as you get up (quickly) onto the massive hill on which this course is built.

Best Hole: The course's best hole comes at the concluding ninth, a nifty par-3 nearly surrounded by water. This variation is better than the standard, totally penal island green, because it allows a bail-out area behind the green, with water on its front and two sides. You'll need a straight tee shot on this one.

Most Difficult Hole: A par-five less than 500 yards, six nonetheless runs straight uphill between the woods on the left and a huge, rambling, impressive-looking modern mansion. The views are magical up here, but the green is very small and basically blind from the fairway. Although the fairway is wide enough, straight and straighter is the order of business on this imposing hole.

Other notes, comments, opinions:

(a) Noted a generally careful response to Covid-19 pandemic.

(b) Friendly gentleman at check-in.

(c) Course was quite busy.

(d) Great scenic, drive through the Connecticut countryside to get here; course itself is located on a scenic drive itself through farmland and mainly pristine forests.

Had a good time playing the corse with friends. Good pace and friendly people

We had a very nice round. . Played right along and staff was very friendly. I booked on Golf now and was treated very well. Enjoyed it lWill be back soon even though it’s almost an hour drive for me. About 20 minutes for the friend I played with. Thumbs up.

Glad I played this course! I live close and thought it would be very hilly, I was wrong. Great layout! Fun course. Definitely recommend this course.

It was a decent course with some beautiful views. Staff friendly and overall great deal!

Course in great condition and very friendly staff. great accommodation and safety guidelines for COVID-19