River Downs Golf Club

I looked past all the negative reviews thinking it can't be that bad, but it was. From the moment we stepped on the putting green and had staff accusing us (wrongly) of not paying in front of other customers to the shoddy condition of the course (looks like they can't afford to pay a proper grounds keeping crew to mow and invest very little in upkeep) to the extreme unfairness of the course set-up (it's bad when perfect shots are penalized unnecessarily) to the slowest greens I have ever played, this course just simply isn't worth your time or mine. It seemed to be worth driving 30 minutes out of my way and giving it a shot with a seemingly very fair weekend price of $40 on GolfNow, but I now see why there are so many negative reviews. I will definitely be taking my business elsewhere, and that's a shame, because it does not have to be that way. It's sad to see so much potential go wasted with a nice piece of property and interesting design. This place really needs to get its act together and think about why customers are so displeased. Repeat business is what will save River Downs. Otherwise, it will continue on its downward trajectory.

This course is my high schools home course and after playing it three times throughout this summer, I understand why all the golfers always complained about how we got stuck with this course. The staff was rude and were not wearing masks, which I don’t really care about, but they require guests to wear them when they aren’t. Had some decent food. The course has a very tough layout and has so much potential if they took the slightest bit of effort to care for the course. Tee Boxes were torn up, fairways are very patchy, and the greens are also torn up. The carts were in bad shape and my friends that I played with died in the middle of the 6th hole. This course is just not worth the money.

This course has a great Arthur Hills layout like some of the other courses I have played (Waverly Woods, Links at Lighthouse Sound, etc...). I have played this course a number of times and was never impressed with the conditions. There was a lot of dead grass on the Tee boxes and fairways, and the greens were very slow. Apparently, this course was very nice at a time, and it would be delightful to see it in the shape it once was in.

I have played this course several times and it is both challenging and fun. There are several tricky holes that require you to hit accurate tee shots in order to have a chance at gettin to the green. I played recently and was extremely disappointed about the condition the course was in. It was a Sunday night after 5 and we payed $27 for only 9 holes which seemed high to me but I was willing to pay in order to play. A few holes in I noticed that the greens had been aerated which was odd because it had not been mentioned to me before paying. To me this isn’t a big deal but to some it could be. In addition to the aerated greens, there were several tee boxes, fairways, and greens that were in need of major repair. On several holes the length of the grass on the tee box was as long as the rough and covered in crabgrass. On a couple of holes there were areas of dead grass filled in with sand. I have no issues with the course in these conditions other than the price was not reflective of the conditions. I enjoy playing here but it was certainly disappointing to see the less than standard condition of the course.

When you first walk in the staff is very helpfull the rates are low and the corse is great. The fairways are new carpet like bermuda grass. The bunkers are full of new sand and it just looks great. The food is suprizeingly good for a golfcorse. It is a challenge but its still fun

Put aside your preconceived notions that River Downs is in disarray. The changes that have taken place on this course in the past 7 years under the new management are astounding (far more than just the name changing back to River Downs from Framcis Scott Key). The course itself sits just over the Baltimore/Carroll county line and is well worth the drive. Most fairways have Bermuda grass, and it takes quite well in the Maryland summer humidity. All bunkers have new sand, and those that don't are scheduled to be sodded over/ sanded within the next few months. Course is challenging, but by far the best in the county. Each hole has a personality to it, and can be played MANY times over without feeling monotonous. Staff is not only friendly, but highly knowledgable of the game as well. The food isn't necessarily full meals, but makes for a great snack before or after play. Carts are partially gas club cars, but mostly new Yamaha gas carts. Overall, River Downs is on its way up and is doing fantastic. I would highly reccomend this course to anyone who would consider themselves a novice golfer, i love every single time I play here.

I played this course in December on a 50 degree day. The course was still in great shape. New improvements were going on alot of brush was being cleared away, sand bunkers looked like they had all new sand in them. The grass in most fairways was still soft like walking on carpet.

Best kept secret in the area, I drive about 40 minutes to play here and its worth every minute. Very fun challenging course thats almost never crowded..