Finkbine Golf Course

PACE: Slowed down towards the end of the round. Holes 14 and 15 seemed to be a hot spot for golfer to get into trouble and slow things down (I doubled $15).

CONDITIONS: Everything was excellent.

STAFF: Got me paid up and pointed me to where I needed to go.

VALUE: $40 to walk at 3pm seemed a bit high, but the quality of the course made it worth it.

LAYOUT: Very walkable course... EXCEPT the walk from 13 to 14. Whew! Good variability with the par 3, and some fun par 4s. Though the course is tree-lined, if you find yourself in trouble you should have a chance to play yourself out of trouble.

Finkbine offers a challenging golf experience with immaculate conditions and a premium feel that far exceeded the expectations set by the greens fee.

Though not the most dynamic course design, Finkbine offers a variety of holes and shots. You’ll use every club you have and the greens will challenge your approach strategy.

No matter where on the course you are, you’ll find the conditions to be superb, even in the hot dry Iowan summer of ‘21. The greens were buttery smooth and had all the pace that the slopes would allow. A couple greens even had some breaks that were extreme but there’s room to position yourself away from most of them.

The staff is excellent from the time you pull into the parking lot till the time you leave and the few small touches of customer service they extend really make the experience feel that much better.

I’m from out of town so maybe $60 for a round and a cart on a weekday morning is high but with rising costs of golf in general, I was very pleased with the experience I got for my money.

Finkbine is the home course of the Iowa Hawkeyes men's and women's golf team. As the home of a Big 10 school, Finkbine comes complete with fantastic conditions, a nice practice area, and a really well done new clubhouse.

The most positive aspect of Finkbine is the condition of the golf course. I would describe it as Pure! The fairways are perfectly manicured, the rough is penal, but playable, and the greens are fast and true.

The greens at Finkbine are some of the trickiest in Iowa. They are very sloped, and if the speed is up, it can be a very difficult putting day. On the day I played they were probably running 10/11, which was enough to make you think, but not enough for putts to get too away from you.

The layout of Finkbine is just okay. It's a typical parkland style course. The holes are a bit repetitive, but a few are memorable. The par 5 6th, with it's snaking fairway, and the par 4 12th with it's uphill approach are very memorable. The signature hole is the double green par 3, number 13. I've played both greens, and definitely prefer when the left green is used.

My favorite hole is the aforementioned 6th hole. With a good drive, it can be reached in 2. However, less than precise shots bring big numbers into play.

Overall Finkbine is a well maintained, great test of golf. It's fun to play such a well manicured track.

Great course with fantastic fairways! Rough is tough, greens are very quick and undulating. Clubhouse could seriously use a facelift.

Great course to walk if you walk a lot, the walk up to 14 can get you tho,

This, amana and bluetop are fantastic and challenging. Much better rates and the walk ability of this one make it a fave. A good round here is earned.

Bent grass tees and fairways. Greens very smooth and fast. Signature #13 waterhole dual greens surrounded by water. Home of the Iowa Hawkeye golf teams. A must play course open to the public.

University of Iowa's public golf course. Bent grass fairways are fantastic. Old course, so the greens slope significantly from back to front on nearly every hole. Tree-lined fairways on every hole. The back nine is tougher than the front and has more elevation.

The speed of the greens make a significant difference. If they are average speed and you play in the Spring/Fall, it's a fairly scoreable course. Play it in the Summer in tournament conditions, good luck making it through without a three-putt or two. Keeping it directly below the hole is crucial. When it looks like you just have a left-to-right or a right-to-left putt, it'll sometimes feel like you're still above the hole for how much the ball can break.

If you miss the fairway, you will have to punch out to the fairway on most cases. I've even had a ball get stuck in a tree and had to re-hit in a tournament.

The only negative thing I can say is that you can run into a ton of ball marks on the greens. However, this is a heavily played public course, so it comes with the territory. I've played here about 15 times, and the course is usually in great shape.

No. 13 is the signature hole, a downhill par-3 with two island greens. It's an extremely fun shot no matter how many times you play here. Even if you are a scratch golfer and play from the tips, both the shorter and longer greens are a challenge.

This is a great course for all skills levels, especially with the wide variety of distances between the four tee boxes. Outside of No. 13, there is no water and no other forced carries. Yet, the greens and tree-lined fairways from the blacks and even golds make it a test for the more experienced players.