Donald K. Gardner Golf Course
Rating Snapshot
About
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 72 | 6670 yards | 71.4 | 116 |
| White | 72 | 6308 yards | 69.7 | 112 |
| Gold | 72 | 5649 yards | 66.5 | 104 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 5418 yards | 72.1 | 115 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue M: 72.5/118 | 364 | 504 | 445 | 138 | 412 | 453 | 427 | 218 | 410 | 3371 | 420 | 451 | 378 | 138 | 411 | 399 | 555 | 144 | 403 | 3299 | 6670 |
| White M: 70.8/114 W: 76.5/125 | 364 | 473 | 389 | 138 | 366 | 430 | 404 | 183 | 392 | 3139 | 415 | 416 | 357 | 138 | 392 | 383 | 536 | 144 | 388 | 3169 | 6308 |
| Gold M: 67.0/110 W: 72.2/114 | 336 | 405 | 350 | 138 | 305 | 415 | 375 | 172 | 365 | 2861 | 408 | 410 | 305 | 138 | 283 | 360 | 456 | 144 | 304 | 2808 | 5669 |
| Red W: 71.3/113 | 305 | 401 | 343 | 138 | 302 | 409 | 335 | 127 | 330 | 2690 | 335 | 401 | 301 | 138 | 280 | 358 | 451 | 144 | 302 | 2710 | 5400 |
| Handicap | 9 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 5 | 17 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 18 | 12 | 14 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 16 | 4 | |||
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 13 | 5 | 11 | 15 | 9 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 18 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 6 |
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Deteriorating Conditions
I wanted to submit at updated review, as I can no longer recommend Gardner Golf Course. Simply put the conditions of the course are horrible, and there really is no excuse as the weather has been pretty mild this entire summer.
The fairways and tees are overgrown with no evidence of having been mowed recently. The greens were the longest and slowest I've ever seen them, and it was clear the cups hadn't been moved recently as the grass had started to grow inward, making the holes actually appear smaller.
Add to that a lack of a beverage cart on the course, and no water coolers other than at the turn, and Gardner has turned into a bad golf experience.
A Stern Test
When I first moved to Iowa, I played Gardner golf course all the time. It had been a few years since I last played here, and due to recent storms, the course looked a bit different since the last time I played, with some tree loss.
Gardner is a par 72 that plays 6670 yards from the back tees. I've always found it plays longer than the yardage due to numerous uphill approach shots, especially on the back 9. I recommend teeing it forward at Gardner, which will make for a more fun round!
The condition at Gardner is about what you'd expect from a municipally owned golf course. The course isn't in bad condition, but it's not in good condition either. The greens putt pretty slowly and don't hold golf shots that well, so plan for some roll out on your approaches. The fairways are in good shape, but you can tell they aren't mowed as often as needed.
The layout isn't a push over, but it is repetitive and leaves a bit to be desired. There are a couple of shorter par 5s that are gettable, but there aren't any really short par 4s, and the par 3s aren't easy. Most of the holes run, generally in a North to South direction, so it's a lot of back and forth. Additionally 3 of the 4 par 3s are similar length with uphill tee shots.
I do recommend Gardner. It's a good value at $18 to walk on a weekday. They have 10 minute tee times so the pace is usually good too.
My favorite hole is the par 4 12th. It's a medium length par 4 that doglegs left. A good, aggressive drive can give you a short iron or wedge into the sheltered green. This is also the prettiest hole on the course.
