Redtail Golf Club

The only snag I had was finding the place -- it's a bit tricky.

The deal was fantastic. The only downside was that we only made it through the first nine holes due to inclement weather. Other than that this was a fantastic deal!

Redtail is a nice course. Good value for the money. The carts have a new GPS that is solid. The driving range and putting green are nice.

My only complaint is the sand traps. Need more sand and too many rocks.

The course is beautiful and challenging. Each hole is unique because the course is built on undulating hills. The sand traps are large and frequent. There are some holes where water comes into play. At least two of the greens are almost completely surrounded by water. Bring extra balls because you will lose some. There is no finding them in the knee high grass hazards. There are large custom homes that line the course, but they are far back so there is no fear of hitting them. Overall, it is a very interesting course. I forgot to mention that the carts have GPS.

The only weakness is the lack of attention concerning the sand traps. But this has become an issue with most public courses in the area. Tee to green maintenance was above average, but the lack of dry, fine grain sand was an issue.

This course was purchase by the city of Lake Wood. The city god fathers are VERY CHEAP. Redtail needs LOTS and LOTS of sand to fill each trap. I was a member for over 9 years and each year the city of Lake Wood won't spend money to just keep it playable. The best thing is its greens.

You need to think your way around this course. Most holes have at least one well-placed bunker/marsh to test your driving skills. The island greens bring a lot of fun into the equation.

greens were smooth and rolled nice. course was wet with all the recent rains but in very good shape. real good value for the $

In spite of recent heavy rains, the course was better than we expected especially given its location. The fairways were very good but the greens ran bumpy and very slow. New golf carts are a plus. as well.

The course was ok on front but back was being airated.There was rocks in the sand traps no rakes in traps.Power carts were in bad shape .Rest rooms filthy with two staffers watching TV

We play Redtail on a regular basis. Since we were playing in November, the course was in good shape, especially after this past summer. They were in mid-maintenance mode with some aeration and sanding, but overall, it was still in great shape.

Course just aerated, so we were on cart paths only. Well maintained overall.

The greens were in great condition but the faiways had just been aerated so a little muddy in places after all the rain we had. It was cart path only on the front nine and there must have been several novice groups in front of us as the front 9 took about 3 hours. I only saw a ranger fly by once and I think that he was only looking for people off the path and not to move anyone along. The back nine was much more enjoyable being able to drive the cart on the fairway and played it in about 2 hours. Since the weather and the views were so nice, we didn't really mind the extra time spent for this time of year.

Always have liked Redtail and the homes are nice on the course, the curse is in decent shape for this time of year even though they were doing some airration (sp?).

Open and challenging but windy. Better off playing 1 tee box forward.

Course was in great shape and clean of most leaves for this time of year. Staff was friendly, very nice experience.

The staff was very friendly and the service was excellent. The course was in great shape and very challenging.

Course is wide open so stray shots can be easily recovered. Greens rolled very true and the staff was very friendly. GPS on cart was not the most accurate. Ride up to see where the water is on #10 before hitting your approach shot.

If the wind blows in from the west the par fives can be a pain to reach. The back nine is more challenging than the front.

The Good: Nice Roger Packard layout is an interesting design with significant marsh areas and sand that squeeze into the fairways. Several good Par 4's that require precise, strategic drives and approaches to well-guarded greens. Fairways are manicured nicely, practice facility is above par, and nice staff. Fair value for the northwest suburbs of Chicago.

The Bad: Clubhouse is a trailer and there is no restraunt/bar area. Good Par 4's but lackluster Par 5's and Par 3's, particularly on the closing nine. Greens are very slow and rather bumpy.

The Verdict: RedTail is a fair priced layout that needs serious upgrades in on-and-off course amenities to be considered a complete golfing experience.

Best Hole: The long Par 4 16th consists of a wide fairway but a green protected by a creek and large bunkers. Good, tough hole!