Lakemont at Stone Mountain Golf Course

This course had so much potential but never realized it. Yes, I realize it is mid-February 2017 and it's been slightly wet these days. But like the previous review said, this course was in miserable condition.

The course looks great as the front 9 is placed alongside the lake, hence the name of the course. The back 9 is a few minute cart drive away and set in between the front 9 of the Stone course (the other 18-hole course at Stone Mountain). I've added a few photos from the round.

My issues with the course is based on the conditions of the tee boxes, greens, and pace of play.

First, there was not a single tee box that felt stable with different patches everywhere.

Worse though, was the conditions of the greens. Starting with Hole 1 and throughout the other 17 holes, there is patches of grass that will not allow your putt to roll straight or pure. It is very bumpy and not possible to trust your line. Even simple 3-foot tap ins can roll off line due to random pieces of grass protruding from the ground.

Even worse than the quality of the greens is the pace of play. We had a 1:30PM tee time and when we rolled up to the first tee, the 1:10PM threesome was teeing off at 1:25PM. We had to wait for the 1:20PM twosome to tee off and eventually we teed off at 1:50PM. There was no starter and because it's a water carry hole on the opening drive, it took the golfers 2 balls to get over. Mind you, they were playing from the Blue tees even though they should not have.

Hole 1 was not the only issue though. We waited at each hole for a minimum of 10 minutes before being able to tee off. In fact, the pace of play was so slow that I called the pro shop while waiting on the 6th hole to ask them to send a ranger or somebody to help the groups keep pace. They said they'll help but I never saw anyone show up to do anything about it.

It took us nearly 2 hours and 30 minutes to finish 7 holes!! It would have been better if the slower groups just let us play through - they didn't. So we drove through the 3 groups in front of us after Hole 7 and restarted on Hole 11. It took us an hour and 45 minutes to finish the back 9.

Clearly the pro shop didn't care about pace of play as there was no one trying to keep things going. What a shame as the course layout is very nice although the drive between hole 9 and 10 is very long.

One last note - Hole 13 Par 3. There are patches of sand everywhere on the green! Good luck trying to get the pace right on any putt given the chunky grass patches but to have lines of sand (not from the bunkers) makes it impossible to enjoy.

For the money you pay for this course and the $15 parking fee to enter Stone Mountain ($40 for annual), I'd drive 10-20 minutes more to play at better courses anywhere else with similar challenging layouts. Save your money and especially time!

The course was uncharacteristically muddy and wet. However, the greens were the real issue. They did not roll smooth and had tons of patches of poor quality throughout. It was pretty disappointing.

It is February, but for the price you pay I should not be putting through chunks of sand on the green on half the holes. The rest of the course was great.

Looking for a nice little challenge? Play this course from the blue tees. Wonderful setting next to Stone Mountain. Course itself was in great condition. The greens could definitely need some manicuring, but hey...it is January, and lots of courses are struggling keeping up the greens. Wonderful course, but not for beginners. Handicappers between 1 and 20 will love it. Don't expect to shoot your handicap though :).

Took a trip to the Masters last year, and was excited about playing at Stonemountain.

Lakemont was in average to poor shape. Very small Poa-anna greens. Not worth the time or money. Cherokee Run is a much better course.

To be inside Stone Mountain Park and having to pay a $15 parking fee before coming in the gate, really sets the bar too high for this course. The layout itself was not bad at all, but the greens where awful...awful...AWFUL!!! Every bumpey and your putt will not roll smoothly across any of the greens. And the green on the par 3 13th was so bad that they should refund your money!!! I did see many yardage marks anywhere, and the bunkers need a facelift. Plus I got behind this foursome about the 4th hour and they never allowed me to play though, and by the 9th hole had things so backed up that I was right behind them, and another foursome was on the tee box, and another foursome right behind them. As I have already said with what they charge, and a $15 parking fee at the gate this place should be nothing short of awesome but the truth is....it's not, more like a waste of your time and money!! But with the right leadership and care of the greens, and a little course facelift ( some beautiful flowers, dogwoods Something to add color and some eye beauty would go along way to help this course reputation.

Setting is beautiful. Golf course is in bad shape - tee to green. Pace of play - 6 hours. $15 to get into the park to play.

Not a good experience.

The golf course is fun to play. A few quirky holes and the routing requires good directions to follow it but signs are and arrows on cart paths are good. Greens did not look good and had some bare spots but generally rolled true and had good speed. All in all we had a fun day.

One of the greens (Par 3 in the back 9) is really poor. It seems to rework on it but the progress is really slow.

Overall good view and course, but green condition is generally poor.

The club house stopped paying for the entrance fee, $15. Without knowing it, you have to pay green fee (however much) + entrance fee ($15).

Good - The view, service, check in, bag boy, new carts, smooth cart path, visible markers, ground maintenance..

Bad - No drink cart service , 4-5 greens are diseased and in disrepair. Other greens are near perfect.

Such a shame to have so many greens in disrepair. One of them was so bad, maybe 14 or 15 .. was fully sanded. Some of the remaining greens were picture perfect. Super lush, smooth and rolls true. I hope they fix the diseased greens soon.

The course conditioning is borderline. The main problem is the greens. The bent greens were aerated 2 or 3 weeks ago and are in generally poor condition due to shaggy turf, spongy ground, pins that have not been reset in days, and bare patches. The 13th green is basically unplayable. Most of the bunkers have been maintained, but were not raked or groomed on this day. Fairway conditioning is generally good. Many trees have been recently (last year) cleared. These areas need to be cleaned up and groomed so that play from these areas is at least fair.

Play on the front nine was at a 5 plus hour pace. Lakemont can be a 4-star golf course, but needs better maintenance and attention to the golfing experience.

I like Lakemont, but cannot recommend this golf course in its current condition.

Lakemont course is getting better everyday.

Brand new golf carts, fairways are lush, and the staff is friendly.

The greens were aerated, perhaps 4 weeks ago and its slowly coming back. Its still furry and bumpy some, but the sand is all gone and in about 1-5, it should be spectacular. There is still one or 2 holes where the green is diseased, but in time, and cool weather, those should also recover.

The course has trimmed a lot of the treeline and that helps dry out the course. This was much needed and they've also done a good job to clean/clear the undergrowth. It's helpful because this is a narrow track and you can find your balls easily if you do miss into the trees. Did I mention this is a narrow course..

Overall, a fantastic deal for a Hot Deal. Will definitely be back. Conditions should be fantastic in 1-2 weeks.

The course was in great shape. Greens were seeded.

This course is a good one to play. A couple of greens need new growth but most are in great shape .

I should have asked for my money back. The greens were in terrible shape. Marriot should be shame of themselves for the condition of this course. The greens for most part was painted dirt. On a couple of the holes there were holes where the pin position had been moved. A total disgrace!!!!

Overall was good course. The greens were in awful condition, but the rest of the course made up for it. Great layout. We played from the blues. It was nice because it forces you to use some clubs you may not always pull out. I'll go back, but I would only play for discount rates. They need to lower the rates, or fix the greens. The additional $15 to get into the park already increases what you pay.

Have played the Lakemont course a number of times in prior years and have in general enjoyed the layout and conditions. However, the present condition of all of the greens is near horrible - patchy, weedy, uneven and in many cases no grass appears to growing in certain areas of the greens. Most of the rest of the course is in good condition although the tee boxes could use a little care as well. Have come to expect better from SM-Lakemont based on past play though very disappointed with this round and value for course condition.

We were disappointed that the greens were in such bad shape, I would not pay full price for this course right now. $10 as a Hot Deal is fair price for the course condition. It has very nice scenery but bad patches on the greens. The fairways were in good condition. Keep it as a Hot Deal and pay no more than $10. When you go to Stone Mountain you expect better.

The front nine layout was really neat with the geographic layout. Back nine was rather ordinary but we enjoy the golf. Tees were awful - nee tending. Green were very poor - many need to be closed down and regrassed or rebuilt. What a shame. Very poor compared to the Stone Mountain course which was in great condition. Course layout here was superior to SM. One hold was close for repair when most need to be repaired. We still enjoyed our golf here.

The course is beautiful

The scenery breathe taking

The opening hole sets the tone for a great round of challenges a must play for all level golfers

The one downside is the $15 parking fee to enter the state park consolation $40 annual parking pass which can easily pay for it self